New investor / South Bay area, CA

[Pavon Dunbar]

Hello, BiggerPockets!

My name is Pavon Dunbar.  I joined BiggerPockets today as a matter of fact.

Pleasure to meet all of you on here!

ABOUT ME:  I am a 40 year old new investor from New Orleans, LA and I currently reside in the South Bay area of California, about 30 minutes southeast of LAX and south of downtown Los Angeles, and about 15 minutes west of Long Beach, CA.  I went to Xavier University of Louisiana where I received my Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration - Management.  However, I'm a techie by nature, so most of my time is spent learning how to program in various computer languages as well as develop websites and apps for individuals and small businesses looking to brand themselves online.

WHY REAL ESTATE?  I have a nice job with a real estate company and, although real estate investing has never been something I considered, I just started to as of late.

IDEAL NICHE:  At the present moment, I would like to invest in vacant land only and resell it on terms using seller financing to generate a positive cash flow.  I am educating myself on the mechanics of it and I know I will make mistakes, but I feel vacant land investing is an untapped market; and, I do not want to deal with the stress and headaches of landlording or property management.

A DEAL SECURED WITH MISTAKES: I did my first deal recently where I acquired 8.5 acres of vacant land in Arizona, but the mistake I made was I acquired it on terms because I didn't have all the cash upfront to close the deal.  Now I cannot resell it using owner financing until it is paid off.  The monthly payments are affordable to me...$219 a month for 3 years with no prepayment penalty and the warranty deed will be mine.  But I was so excited to do my first deal, the seller was very cordial ( we still converse about life and other things from time to time), and I jumped headlong into the deal; so I will pay on it until it is paid off and then I will resell it to an end user or another investor using owner financing. That is my end goal and this deal is a small financial learning lesson for me.

The property is subdivided into one 4.5 acres and 2 - 2 acre parcels of land. Each has it's own APN number, obviously.

FINAL THOUGHTS:  I will continue to specialize in technology for another 25 years.  However, I am building my land investing portfolio.

Like I said, I am not at this moment interested in investing in SFR's, multifamily, duplexes, triplexes, commercial buildings, etc...just raw vacant land. Maybe in the future when I have generated enough positive cash flow I will look into these other areas of investing.

If anyone has any ideas on how I can resell the land on terms using seller financing although I am currently paying on a contract for deed, let me know.  I am open to any and all ideas as long as I am not doing anything unscrupulous, unethical, or unlawful.

Thanks in advance for your ideas, and much success to each and every one of you.

Happy Investing!!

-Pavon