Newbie from Peoria, Arizona

[Samuel Glantz]

So where to begin, well hi first of all.  Thank you for having such a great community for people like me that are really just trying to get their feet wet can go to and learn. I am just trying to soak up a lot of the knowledge on this site and man is there a lot of it.  Sorry in advance for the long post.

So a little about me.  I am born and raised in the Phoenix area, currently reside on the north side of town in Peoria. I love this city and do not plan on leaving any time soon.  My day job is as an insurance adjuster.  I have a lovely wife and two dogs.  Feel free to inquire about anything else, I am never very good at these intro posts. 

Now to the good stuff! I bought my first home when I was 21 in 2010 (nearly the perfect time, missed the bottom by 6 months) ended up hitting a hard time a couple of years later, sold it and made a small profit. I wish I knew then what I know now.  2018 is not as great of a time to get into real estate investing as it was in 2010 but hey live and learn.  Fast forward to 2017, my dad is getting near retirement, less than a decade away and he has always been a saver but not much of an investor.  I decided we needed to take some action.  Did a little research, not as much as I should but got lucky. I convinced him to buy rental properties. He ended up purchasing 3 rentals in the north phoenix area.  Have had a few hiccups along the way but overall they are all doing well, averaging about $100 per month of cash flow per property but the appreciation has been tremendous.  The goal was to get properties and pay them off by the time he retires so he has cash flow later.  So far it my lucky decision has been paying off.  I have been managing the properties for him thus far and have learned a lot doing it.  

I feel blessed that we have had good fortune thus far for the most part and testing the waters with his money (sorry dad) has given me the courage and hunger to start looking into my own real estate endeavors.  The Phoenix market is too expensive for me right now and would not generate enough cash flow.  I would really like to get into the buy and hold strategy.  I am looking at a few markets currently; Indianapolis, Kansas City, and Memphis are at the top of my list due to lower property taxes.   I am also not sure if I should attempt to find my own property and try to fix it up or go turnkey. Since I am about 1500 to 2000 miles away turnkey seems appealing since I don't know the markets well nor do I have any contacts in those areas.  My main goal is cash flow and with any luck an early retirement by the time I hit 40. 

I am open to all advice and if anyone would like to learn more about me or has any suggestions please let me know.  If you took the time to read my long winded post then I thank you.  

[James Wise]

Originally posted by @Samuel Glantz:

So where to begin, well hi first of all.  Thank you for having such a great community for people like me that are really just trying to get their feet wet can go to and learn. I am just trying to soak up a lot of the knowledge on this site and man is there a lot of it.  Sorry in advance for the long post.

So a little about me.  I am born and raised in the Phoenix area, currently reside on the north side of town in Peoria. I love this city and do not plan on leaving any time soon.  My day job is as an insurance adjuster.  I have a lovely wife and two dogs.  Feel free to inquire about anything else, I am never very good at these intro posts. 

Now to the good stuff! I bought my first home when I was 21 in 2010 (nearly the perfect time, missed the bottom by 6 months) ended up hitting a hard time a couple of years later, sold it and made a small profit. I wish I knew then what I know now.  2018 is not as great of a time to get into real estate investing as it was in 2010 but hey live and learn.  Fast forward to 2017, my dad is getting near retirement, less than a decade away and he has always been a saver but not much of an investor.  I decided we needed to take some action.  Did a little research, not as much as I should but got lucky. I convinced him to buy rental properties. He ended up purchasing 3 rentals in the north phoenix area.  Have had a few hiccups along the way but overall they are all doing well, averaging about $100 per month of cash flow per property but the appreciation has been tremendous.  The goal was to get properties and pay them off by the time he retires so he has cash flow later.  So far it my lucky decision has been paying off.  I have been managing the properties for him thus far and have learned a lot doing it.  

I feel blessed that we have had good fortune thus far for the most part and testing the waters with his money (sorry dad) has given me the courage and hunger to start looking into my own real estate endeavors.  The Phoenix market is too expensive for me right now and would not generate enough cash flow.  I would really like to get into the buy and hold strategy.  I am looking at a few markets currently; Indianapolis, Kansas City, and Memphis are at the top of my list due to lower property taxes.   I am also not sure if I should attempt to find my own property and try to fix it up or go turnkey. Since I am about 1500 to 2000 miles away turnkey seems appealing since I don't know the markets well nor do I have any contacts in those areas.  My main goal is cash flow and with any luck an early retirement by the time I hit 40. 

I am open to all advice and if anyone would like to learn more about me or has any suggestions please let me know.  If you took the time to read my long winded post then I thank you.  

 Welcome to the site Sam. It's not really that complicated to buy out of state. It only becomes complicated when investors try to over complicate or over think everything. Whenever you are buying a property out of state you should do a few things to ensure it's as smooth as possible.

• Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core. Pick a solid B-Class suburban area. Perhaps a nice 1950's built bungalow.
• Always hire a 3rd party property inspector to give you an unbiased feel for the home. The reports are 40-90 pages long and go through the entire house in great detail.
• Get an appraisal. If your using financing the bank requires this. This is good. The bank isn't going to let you blow their money. They have more skin in the game then you do.
• Make sure you get clear title. If using a lender this is a non issue. They will make you do this. It's those maniacs that buy homes cash via quit claim deed off of craigslist that really get screwed.
• Make sure your property manager is a licensed real estate brokerage.
• Understand you can not eliminate all risk, only mitigate it. If you are risk adverse real estate, (especially out of state) is not for you.