Separation from the waves of newbies

[Bernard Chouinard]

First I want to say what a ridiculously great site/podcast/community. Its the only one of its kind where I feel like the people here and running the site are really interested in helping others along rather than trying to convince them to sign up for some kind of seminar. 

So far from I've seen there's a consistent flow of newbies that come in looking for the same thing.  No money downs, looking for mentors, looking for ways to get funding etc.  I get that, but I'm determined to be one of the typical bunch that says, hey I'm interested in learning but never do anything.

About me, I’ve been in sales for over 15 years with enterprise software sales for the past 5. I’m very driven to understand the best way to get things done and make it profitable. So very sales and business focused with a love for the business world with entrepreneurship running through my blood. Early 2000’s I, much like a lot of others, were loving the idea of flipping by watching all the glorified HGTV shows but always told myself there was no way I could come up with that kind of cash for purchase/reno so I never pursued it. 2007 I bought a duplex with a friend of mine. This building shared water/sewer so the mortgage/deed is set up as a single home but physically it was a typical colonial split down the middle. He couldn’t continue with his side of the payment causing us to foreclose. Building was bought near the tip of the bubble so we over paid by a good $100K and were upside down. Last payment was 2010, they filed bankruptcy which delayed the foreclosure which finally happened this past March. Certainly went above and beyond to try to save this property with cash offering etc to get the other own to sign over the deed with no luck so my wife and I purchased a single family in 2012 and have been there since. Needless to say this has killed my credit.

This past March after finding out how much equity I had in my home with the purchase of a short sale, work done to it and the rise in home values caused my interest in REI to come back around. This time, I'm older and now have spent plenty of time researching, via other REI sites and Bigger Pockets and have a much better understanding of REI and wanting to really dive in. I've had some conversations with friends and have discovered a couple of possible opportunities but with no credit and real way to purchase there's not much I can do by myself so looking to the community for help and suggestions. So here I am, learning as much as possible to try to make this work.

I hope to contribute anything I can to this extremely resourceful forum.  If you managed to have actually read all that, say hi! 

[John Daley]

Your story is all too common for those who jumped in right as the bubble burst.  I'm glad to hear that you've come out the other side of it with an interest in learning how to make it work for you instead of throwing your hands up and giving up.  The fact is there is always risk getting into real estate investing.  It does, typically, take some significant resources...but the good news is that if you are willing to learn and hustle, you can figure out how to make great things happen.  But certainly take your time and get a good base of knowledge to start working with.  BP is great for doing just that.  Welcome!