Newbie in West Texas/Permian Basin with First Deal Done!

[Eric Fernandes]

Hey everyone! I am a 27 year old Real Estate Investor living in West Texas in the Permian Basin. I graduated from Texas Tech in 2014 and have been working in the Oil & Gas industry since then. I work quite a bit of hours in my current job (Typically 21 days in a row with 7 days off, averaging 95-110 hours/week), but have lots of downtime at work where I can read books, learn about real estate and practice running the numbers on deals I find on the listings.

 I bought my first property this year at the age of 26 after growing tired of paying rent every month so someone else could pay their mortgage and cash flow off of me. It's a 1950's Ranch Style 4bdrm/1ba home in the small town of Crane, just south of Odessa,TX. I plan on adding a bathroom and doing a few other renovations before renting it out by Q4 of next year while moving onto my next property to buy, live in and house hack. After my 2nd property purchase next year, which I plan to live in for a while, I want to move onto multi-family investing. 

My ultimate goal is be financially free by the age of 33. I bought my first property in 2017, 2nd property will be in 2018 and by 2019 I want to be buying 2-3 properties a year, gradually moving up in value and into multi-family. If I have to sell any of my earlier bought properties to enter into a 1031 to "Go Big" (As Grant Cardone said, a huge influence), I will do that as well.

One of my values in real estate is to improve the areas I will operate in. My father always told me to pay special attention to landscaping, because if you take care of your lawn, the neighbors will notice and want to improve their lawn as well and everyone benefits from a nicer looking neighborhood.

I still hold that same philosophy today. With my first property, I've added trees, plant beds and improved the lawn. I've received numerous compliments from neighbors about the improvements. This is my goal - to provide real value for neighborhoods and communities. Compensation from providing this value is how I plan to be financially free.

[Bruce Lynn]

@Eric Fernandes   Great start....great motivation...congratulations.... sounds like you are on the right path.

One thing to consider is tenants don't generally like to treat the yard/landscaping you do, so don't make it too difficult for them.  One thing to consider too when you move is to including landscaping on top of the lease.  That way you know it gets attention.  If you have a good relationship with your yard guy, you can get him to update you on the condition of the house/yard/watering program.