My Way To Becoming a New Investor From Seattle, Washington

[James Work]

Howdy y'all,

While utilizing all the great information and commentaries on BP I thought it best that I introduce myself before I am no longer a 'New Member.'  First off, what a great resource we have with BP!  As someone who is just starting off in the RE industry, and thus learning everything for the first time, it is great to have such an active forum for feedback and commentary concerning all aspects of real estate investing.

A little about my story... I lived in a condo unit for 10 years before selling for cash Summer '16. I had no experience in the RE industry outside of selling my property and had no inclination to enter the industry. However, my Uncle is an agent and one day we went to look at a property that I found interesting (for personal use) that was listed on the MLS. Upon inspection it was evident that the property was a flip implementing incredibly poor construction techniques and materials. Yet, while looking through the paperwork I saw that the company who was selling the house was asking $250k over the $400k they had originally paid for the property 3 months prior.

Well, I was not interested in the house but THAT!  That is what I want to do!  Obviously I want to deliver a better product than said company but the ability to Buy, Rehab and Sell successfully at that profit margin certainly grabbed my attention.

It just so happened that a good friend of mine, who I had grown up with, was a Construction Manager who had spent the last couple years as a RE Agent working for other people's companies 'flipping' homes.  I called him up and said, 'I'd like to meet with you to talk about how your business is going.'  Little did I know that he had just ventured out and started his own company and was in need of capital and administrative / marketing assistance.

Long story short, I'm now working for him full-time.  Recently invested in my first property to 'flip' and am receiving a modest but appreciated salary to basically learn the ropes of the RE Industry first hand.  Day by day...  From generating leads / executing mailing campaigns to transferring utilities, buying insurance, and researching CRM and Project Management solutions for our fledgling business.  

I love small businesses...  Building from the ground up.  And this is not the first business I've had the opportunity to startup, as they say.  However, this is the first industry I've been involved within in which everything eventually sells, dependent on price.  The Seattle market is hot!  

Yet, what really I'm looking forward to is growing the company, growing with the company, and am entirely thankful to have such a great resource as BP at my disposal so that my inexperience hinders me as little as possible.

Thanks y'all.  I hope you're having a great day and can enjoy this weekend!