Newbie in Alameda CA (East Bay SF)

[Jonathan Roszkowski]

Hello, Bigger Pockets!!

I am currently an IT professional and have been for roughly 8 years after leaving the USCG (Avionics Electrical Technician). I have wanted to delve into REI for a while and finally determined it is time to do so. I have spent enough time waiting and not enough time doing. I have read through a few Rich Dad Poor Dad books and have also begun listening to the Bigger Pockets Podcasts with a new book from a recent episode on the way as well.

I love the information inside of the podcasts and they have been a great inspiration. I can say that I am not really interested in real estate investing in the Bay Area as I feel the market is extremely overpriced for what is here and do not feel it would be best suited for me. I would like to get into rental properties specifically of the multifamily nature (quads would be ideal for me). 

I currently do not own a home and rent myself so I see the benefits of locally purchasing a multifamily unit to use as my primary residence and REI. I do not plan on being the landlord and will be using a management company when I begin my investment journey.

What else about me? I feel that the market here is inflated and that has definitely swayed me away from investing here. 

While not at work I can be found running in the Oakland hills or actively racing in various trail runs around the bay area. During the winter I make trips up to Tahoe to go snowboarding and also enjoy some mountain biking throughout the year. I have just started reading some more, listen to the Bigger Pockets podcasts on my way too and from work and try to listen to at least 1 motivational speech of some type throughout the day. 

My ultimate end goal is to gain financial freedom through real estate rental properties. I currently do not have a circle of friends who are interested in or currently involved in real estate. However, my schedule is tight during the week with how early I can get home since I work in SF and I have not found a group that meets on the weekend. I have also been struggling with some other things in my life which have made it difficult to find comfort around other people and tend to stay by myself. 

Anyways, I think that is enough about me. Feel free to ask me any questions. I hope to meet some of you in time. I love the content on this site and the podcasts are amazing and insightful.

[Sherwin Gonzales]

@Jonathan Roszkowski welcome to BP and thanks for sharing such a great introduction about yourself!

Once you figure out where you want to settle, I would suggest you house hack and purchase a 2-4 unit where you live in one unit and rent the others. Since this is your first property,  you can take advantage of first time home buyer loans and could get a deal with only 3.5% down if you want.

You mentioned the Bay Area is too pricey, but have you acutally analyzed and looked at deals? I've come across many posts on the forums with people having success locally in Oakland.

Go to meetups and network with people on the forums. I live in Oakland and you can find me running Lake Merritt from time to time, so if you wanna meetup and run and chat real estate, let me know! 

Maybe we can start a new meetup. Running for Dollars! 

Good luck on your journey!