Newbie international investor looking to start in the US

[Kelly Wylde]

Hey all, my name is Kelly Wylde. I'm a Canadian national living and working abroad. I was exploring the Canadian market, but the places that most interest me seem tapped dry, so I'm looking in the US market! A coworker of mine -- a fellow Canadian -- first told me about BiggerPockets when we were discussing our desire to achieve financial freedom.

I'm looking to start building a portfolio of homes, preferably in one area in the US, rather than having my investments spread out. Because I'll seldom be able to actually visit any of the properties I'm looking into buying, I'm hoping to meet people here, establish dependable contacts, and make mutually beneficial connections that will provide many future opportunities to work together.

I haven't made my first purchase yet, although I do have enough for a decent down payment. Now I just need to find a nice location where I can continue making purchases over the years, a good deal, a trustworthy property manager, and potentially some means of financing suitable for foreign investors (although I do have some contacts in this final area already).