US Citizen Expat living abroad, looking for a REI in the US

[Steven Cook]

Hello All!

I'm totally new to REI and have only just been looking into it for the past 6 days. I've listed to a couple podcasts and have done only about 10-15 hours of online research, so I don't know much. I'm living in China, but home is San Diego County, California. I'd like to start making the move into REIs through the avenue of Single Family Homes ranging from $50k-100k and renting them out. My goal: Cash Flow. I have a couple connections in San Diego, however, I'd prefer to invest outside of California in a city that has shown an increase in population growth over the past couple years and also leans on the landlord friendly side.

I understand how difficult the process will be when investing from afar, however, I recognize that there are fewer differences between investing in say, Arkansas, from California, than investing in the same home from China. One of my greatest barriers to entry into the market is having a good team on the ground helping things take off and continue moving forward smoothly.

I'm not sure when I'll be living back in the States and I don't want to sit on a pile of savings while depreciation occurs in the mean time. I'd rather put that money to work with the hopes of using the cash flow to invest in more properties down the line.

I have many questions, but I suppose a great question to start with is this: Knowing what you know, if you were in my position, is this an avenue you would venture or would you choose a different path?

Thanks for your time!

- Steven

[Jon Crosby]

Hi @Steven Cook, thanks for the post from across the world!  : )  

Your budget will almost certainly eliminate SD from your list of available regions and probably California as a whole.  You are going to have to target mid-west, southeast states likely for that price point.  

I would suggest you talk to @Marco Santarelli and his team at Norada Real Estate if you get a chance.  They have a well-known turnkey provider business with a large portfolio of available, cash flowing properties to choose from across the country and counselors that give you the proper guidance on your questions. I'm pretty sure they cater to many overseas investors as well. 

Best of luck to you and please keep us posted on how your REI journey goes from China!