Newbie From Ypsilanti, MI

[Tiara Thomas]

Hello Everyone! I'm so excited to be starting this new journey in real estate investing. I just bought my primary residence earlier this year with a VA loan which was my first experience dealing with real estate. I want to do a combination of fix and holds with fix and flips and eventually get into some multi family properties since I live so close to 2 college towns and could potentially rent to college students. Since I'm very new to this whole experience I am very interested in networking, education, and most importantly gaining experience. I look forward to meeting new people and creating new relationships here on BiggerPockets. It's also my hope that one day I can be a source of inspiration, education, and resourcefulness like so many of the members here!

[Thomas Franklin]

@Tiara Thomas Since you are interested in fix and flips, I propose the following action plan. The first step would find an Investor Friendly Realtor assuming you do not have access, to the MLS. I would suggest that you interview several Realtors and ask them the following questions, to ascertain if they are truly Investor Friendly, or if they are throwing you a sales pitch.

1. How many investors do you currently work with and how many investors have you worked with, in the past?

2. How many transactions have you closed, with investors?

3. Do you currently own any Investment Properties? If so, what type do you own?

4. Are you a member of any REIAs?

The next step would be to work with the Realtor and determine the hot markets, in your County, with the greatest number of sales over the last 90 to 120 days. Personally, I would prefer 90 days because markets are always changing. This list would contain the zip code and corresponding name of the municipality, and a breakdown of the number of SFRs. This will be your Farming Area. From this data, you can utilize a website bestplaces.net that will give you a breakdown of the percentage of homes that sold, in various price ranges, for a given zip code. This will identify the retail price ranges, in which you can list the rehabbed property and the price ranges, of distressed homes, you should target.

You can use the Realtor to help you find deals and also use Wholesalers. If you acquire a property, from a Wholesaler, once the property is rehabbed and ready for the Retail Market, allow the Realtor that provided you the zip codes, to list the property for sale. This creates a WIN-WIN Situation and gives the Realtor incentive, to work harder on your behalf.