Boots on the ground in TX seeking mentor

[Michael Ardoin]

Hello All!

It's great to be a part of Bigger Pockets! I've been lurking for a little while now, posting here and there, but I've decided an actual introduction would be a good jump-start. 

My name is Mike, and I am originally from Lafayette, Louisiana. I relocated to Mont Belvieu, Texas (Just east of Houston) about 9 months ago for work. I am a Surveyor by trade, and have done a little bit of everything from title abstract, boundaries, and oil & gas work. To doing construction and layout work in large plants, which is what I do currently. In addition to being a Surveyor, I am also a member of the Louisiana National Guard, and currently serve as a Crew Chief for Blackhawk helicopters. 

I practically grew up around real estate. My father is a residential contractor, and my mother was a property manager for years. Even though I grew up watching them do deals, and make their living in real estate, I never made a career out of it myself. It wasn't until I was in my late teens did I start to show an interest in it, and by that time it was the middle of '08-'10 and I was highly discouraged from making that my career of choice.

Of course time went on, and as I'm sure you all know, the oil & gas industry is a roller coaster, and during the last lull, I tried my hand at real estate full time, and became licensed as an agent in Louisiana. However, already being down on my finances due to the industry I was previously in being down, I wasn't really able to get the ball rolling, between keeping up with dues, and additional training, along with the ongoing cost associated with being an agent. Let's face it, selling real estate is a pay to play game. 

What being an agent did do however, was show me that I did not want to be an agent. Imagine that! It opened my eyes to the countless other paths one could take to make a living in real estate. After reading many books on investing in real estate, lurking this forum, listening to the podcast, and taking to other investors, I truly believe this is where I want to be!

Being so new the realm of investing, I would love nothing more than a mentor who can give me advice and help to guide me. Of course, I would never be foolish enough to think that there is anyone out there willing to help me, who I have not first helped myself. Therefore, I would like to offer my services to anyone who may need boots on the ground in the Houston area.  

If you are an out of state buyer, or even an out of area buyer from one of the other larger cities in Texas, I would love to speak with you. I would like to work with someone who has done their share of deals, but is looking to expand into the Houston market, or possibly even someone already in the Houston area looking for a good birddog. I can easily be your eyes, and ears in the area. I want to help you track down deals, evaluate deals based on your given criteria, and help you to work with contractors or other industry professionals in order to close deals, and build your business and your portfolio. 

I am not trying to take your leads and run with them, or even cut into your profits by taking a salary or some percentage of these deals. I am simply looking to help someone FIRST, so that they may help me later. I consider myself to be a pretty smart guy, with background in title, real estate transacting, and most aspects of construction. But I am far from anything close to a knowledgeable real estate investor. This is why I am willing to prove myself, so to speak, in the eyes of someone who knows what they're doing. Learn all I can from them, help them grow, and in turn use the knowledge gained to one day try my hand at investing. If this sounds like something you think you may be interested in, or would like to discuss further. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with me. 

Thank You!