Hi From Gold Country!

[Kenneth Garnett]

Hi Everyone!

This site is way awesome -- beyond compare! I stumbled upon it by accident about a month ago. In just a few days of poking around the forums, I've gleaned a wealth of information.

To introduce myself -- I'm Ken G., from the foothills east of Sacramento, CA. I started foreclosure investing in 2003, doing rehabs and flips. Seeing market conditions starting to reverse in the summer of 2005, I dropped out of the endeavor to pursue other interests. Then early this year, I came to the conclusion that now is the best time, in my lifetime anyway, to be active in real estate investing -- so I'm jumping back in with both feet.

I'm done with the single-family rehab thing -- too much time, effort, and frustration. But real estate investing is so diverse, there are plenty of other ways to make money...

My investment strategies can be segregated into two main time frames (short-term & long-term), and two main segments (residential and commercial).

In the short term, I'll be focusing primarily on wholesaling. Here in northern CA, this will mainly be REO and short-sale deals where I can establish personal relationships with good local Realtors. I'm also presently seeking other areas of the country where the market cycle is in the nascent recovery stage, and where quick-flip wholesale equity plays are possible without having to deal with short sales or REOs.

Longer term, I'm looking for cash-flowing commercial properties. Some may be to buy and hold for cash flow first, and appreciation second. Others may be for quick-turn equity appreciation primarily through property enhancements and/or occupancy improvements

Right now, I'm focusing on building my power team -- Realtors, title & escrow company, appraisers, contractors (for repair estimates only), home inspectors, private & hard-money lenders, transactional funding sources, mortgage brokers, loss-mitigation negotiators, and joint-venture partners.

I'm also focusing on building my cash buyers list through several mechanisms, such as direct-mail to specific targets and postings to places like Craigslist. Any suggestions along those lines would be gratefully appreciated. I do have a buyer's Web site with a squeeze page, which will be of help in this endeavor.

Anyway, I think that's enough about me... I'm delighted to have discovered BiggerPockets, and I'm looking forward to being a viable member of this network!

- Ken G.