Hello from NE Oklahoma

Wesley Childers · 2019-12-20T09:24:41-08:00

I just wanted to introduce myself. I am Wesley and I'm from a small town called Miami (My-am-uh), Oklahoma. I have always wanted to get into real estate and more specifically rentals. I want to build up a rental portfolio that can provide me with the income I'll need to retire somewhere between the age of 50-60. I am 32 right now so I still have a few years to build.Recently I read rich dad poor dad. This has motivated me to stop setting on the couch and saying "I'm going to invest one day." So now I'm buying books and reading them to better prepare myself. Currently I'm reading: The Book on Rental Property Investing, by Brandon Turner. I feel like there is a lot of useful information in this book and its going to take me 2 or 3 pass through's to understand everything well enough. One thing that has me worried is the housing market in my town is very bad. Property values don't appreciate much if at all. The town is very poor with no positive outlook for future jobs. In fact from 1990 to current day the overall population of the town has gone down. 13,400 to 13,200. I feel like maybe getting into the real estate market in my home town might not be such a good idea. So one question this brings up is Missouri. Miami Oklahoma is in the very NE corner of the state. So this means I'm only about 30-40 minutes away from Joplin Missouri. This city is growing at a decent rate. Went from about 45,000 in 2000 up to about 55,000 today. So is it a good idea to start my journey in real estate investing in a different state even if it is only 30-40 minutes away? How will taxes affect the cash flow potential? Maybe these are questions better left for someone who is more advanced, but its the main question on my mind right now.

Pete M.

Financial Advisor · Issaquah, WA · Member since 2017 · 243 posts · 141 votes

6y

@Wesley Childers Welcome to BP, Wesley.

Educating yourself is the best start, which you're doing. Browse the BP forums, read various books, and listen to podcasts for a while to get a sense for the opportunities you will want to pursue. Your answers around budgeting (including taxes) are best answered through those sources, honestly. There are a lot of ways to make (and lose) money in real estate, so pick a focus and start with that. For example, do you want to focus on cash-flowing rentals to pay your monthly bills now, or pick up long-term wealth-generating properties (like high appreciation) that may not pay out much monthly? How much capital do you have to get started? What's the radius around you that you'd consider investing in? We can't answer these for you, obviously.

Considering out of state investing (which I do), I'd recommend David Greene's book on long-distance real estate investing as a primer. You'll need to find a market with properties to match your strategy, but more importantly, a trustworthy and capable team (agent, PM, contractors, etc) in that market. They are your hands, eyes, ears--all of it, really--on the ground, and will make or break you. I personally invest in OKC and now Kansas City, while living near Seattle; the market up here doesn't make sense for my personal strategy of building recurring cash-flow. After we've achieved financial independence, we'll likely switch gears and focus on building long-term wealth, which will likely mean different markets and different property types/strategies.

Good luck.

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Dennis Fernandez

Investor · Dallas, TX · Member since 2017 · 71 posts · 44 votes

6y

@Wesley Childers

Welcome to the wonderful world of real estate investing!

We have been buying rentals in Tulsa and Oklahoma City with great success. Both if these markets have shown strong growth and have delivered great returns for us. Plus not to mention that there are more people to rent and renovate our houses.

My recommendation would be to network with other investors and learn from them, then identify your investment strategy and lean on your network to execute your strategy.

You can send me a PM I'd you would like to connect.

Wishing you best of luck!!

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Alyssa Dyer

Rental Property Investor · Oklahoma City, OK · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 694 votes

6y

@Wesley Childers I don't know the Joplin market, but I second Dennis in that OKC isn't an area that should be overlooked. It's on a steady incline as far as population and price points are still very approachable. You can pretty easily snag a cash flowing rental for 80k. Something to add to your list to consider!

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Wesley Childers

OP

Member since 2019 · 10 posts · 0 votes

6y

@Alyssa Dyer I do hope to move into a market like OKC or Tulsa within a few years. But right now I am still in the research while saving phase. I'm hoping to make my first purchase sometime next year. I should have around 20k saved up for this by this time next year. So my price to entry is a bit below 80k. But I've been looking at realty websites for Joplin and it looks like there are some good deals there. For instance. I found a house listed at 45k. I believe the ARV should be around 100k. I am basing this on near by listings that sold within the last few years ranging from 80k up to 110k. This house has also been on the market for over 100 days. So I believe the seller would accept an offer lower than 45k. The rehab will be pricey though. But it should be possible for 20k or less.

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Sean Monroe

Member since 2019 · 5 posts · 0 votes

6y

@Wesley Childers

I think that you should look into multifamily properties in Miami as this would be a great opportunity for the people that go to Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NEO). You could also buy a single family and rent out each room or for the people that are coming to see there grandson play football maybe an AirBNB. Just some ideas.

What I'm trying to hint at is that you have a college market that is willing to pay higher prices. I would check out rentometer and see what places are going for and the quality of the house that people are renting.

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Hello from NE Oklahoma

Hello from NE Oklahoma

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