New member/globetrotter, where to start?

Question

Hey all!

I'm a Canadian with US citizenship who plays poker professionally. Poker is boring me and I'm looking to get my feet wet in the REI world.

I've been recommended to start off by doing Mobile Home deals. I was wondering if anyone had some advice on where to live. At this point I am strongly considering Florida :)

J Scott · Answer

I've done both professionally, and they're actually similar in a lot of negative ways as well.  Both are a "grind" -- you're going to fight for every penny and when you stop fighting, the pennies stop coming.

Both are going to dictate what hours you work -- with poker, you work when the fish are out; with real estate, you work when your contractors/buyers/agents/etc are working.

Both are going to attract the same type of people -- those who want to make a lot of money without doing a lot of work.  While there will be some other professionals around you, and while you will enjoy talking to them about the business, you'll always be wondering what their angle is to take your money/deals.

There are also some differences that I imagine would frustrate someone who comes from a poker background.  For example, on a given night in poker, I could easily win or lose $10K -- in real estate, you'll spend weeks/months to win/lose $10K.

In poker, if you go on tilt and make some bad decisions, it may cost you some money, but you'll wake up the next day ready to start over -- in real estate, you may have months of lost sleep waiting for a deal to finally be over so you can "start fresh."

In poker, it's easily to switch games when you're not a favorite.  In real estate, switching games means learning a new strategy, a new location, etc., and can take months or years to come up to speed.  If the competition is too tough, your choices are to get better or give up -- you can't just jump from game to game until you determine you're a favorite.

The nicest thing about real estate vs. poker is that I've gone 5 years without losing money on a real estate deal -- if you're good, there's very little variance in real estate investing.  Now, that said, my biggest poker cash is still about 6 times as much money as my biggest real estate deal, and the poker cash only took about 3 days compared to the 3 months for the real estate deal...  :)

Aaron Mazzrillo · Answer

I used to lose professionally to poker players. I also used to invest in mobile homes and lost professionally to mobile home park owners. It's a tough gig with pretty low numbers. If you're a poker player, you should get into real estate, not personal property (which is what a mobile home is.)

Real estate is kind of like playing poker, except we get to stack the deck in our favor, look at the dealer's hand, only place our bets when we are almost 100% sure we are going to win, decide how much of the pot we want to take, and there isn't a ante to sit at the table and not play for a few hands.

Belinda Lopez · Answer

Tyler McKendry - You'd be surprised.  One park currently has 7 homes and one rental home rented at $650/mth with each home being owner occupied paying ~$250/mth with room to expand and raise lot rents.  This area averages about $325-$375 for lot rents but the owner passed away and his widow has not raised rents in years.  Park is only $125k and its in a perfect location for me.  Just found out about two other small parks; each less than 10 spaces where the owners are selling b/c of health issues. One is $160k and the other around that as well.

So you either need to be on the lookout for such opportunities or have a good birddog to help find you good deals.  Also, having pretty good luck finding individual homes through Craigslist but they go fast!  You can hire a virtual assistant to be on the lookout for those in your area if you don't have time to scour local ads yourself.

Good luck!

Tyler McKendry · Answer

Belinda Lopez, Hello!

I'm still in research-mode.

My strategy as of this moment is to stick to mobile/manufactured homes. I'll be searching for good buys (motivated sellers) and sell with financing. It looks like great returns for minimal work with a small legal(contract) risk.

I believe parks are a bit outside of my capital restrictions and comfort zone at this time. I think single family homes or parks would be solid candidates for a market to jump into once I've got a feel for REI.

Belinda Lopez · Answer

What's your model?  Are you interested in individual homes?  or Parks for cashflow.  I just put a small park under contract and am trying to build a portfolio of cashflowing parks.  I don't want to own any homes, will owner finance any that come with parks but not going to be renting out any homes.  I want as low maintenance as possible.

Tyler McKendry · Answer

Wow! I'm thankful for the great advice I've got here.

I'll read over the recommended resources and test the markets I'm considering. Hopefully I can report back with a first deal trip report in a few weeks :)

Cheers!

John Fedro · Answer

Hi Tyler,

That's very interesting and cool that you have been able to make a living, hopefully a great one, by doing something you love online.

Thanks Brandon Turner for the shout out. :)

You asked for specific advice based on your current location of Ca. Whether in Ca, Canada, or Fl you will want to understand the MH buyers and sellers in your market, then close on your first few deals. Yes, there is a specific strategy I would recommend for this. 1. test for buyers 2. locates most sellers 3. make many offers 4. close top deals.

I am Not sure what you where recommended with regards to mobile homes by your friend however they are great cash-cows but less good when it comes to big paydays. If you're looking for cash-flow you came to the right place, just fyi and to save you time.

Best of luck. If you have any other specific questions don't hesitate to ask here or message me here on BP.

Best,
John Fedro

Ali Boone · Answer

I definitely wouldn't put it in the low-risk category. The only way I could see that perspective of it is because it takes so much less money to invest in mobile homes, therefore less money to lose.

All depends on what your goals are!

Tyler McKendry · Answer

Ali Boone
I want to see if I like REI. I enjoy the autonomy and competitive aspects of poker. It seems to me like REI offers similar perks.

Mobile homes was recommended as a low-risk way to get a taste of REI.

Raymond B. 
You'd figure a younger guy would be able to figure that out no problem. Bah. Thanks :)

Brandon Turner 
I know of a few poker players that moved on to REI. It seems to be a good transition for the less introverted players. That said, a big majority of players are introverted.

t've been doing some research on MH. It seems the majority of top resources are written by John Fedro. I'll make sure to check out the beginners guide. Thanks.

Brandon Turner · Answer

Hey Tyler McKendry welcome! I believe J Scott, here on the site, also used to play poker professionally. John Fedro is a bright mobile home guy - I'd definitely get to know him!

Also, if you haven't yet, be sure to check out "The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing" - it will help build a foundation for ya

Seeya around the site -and don't forget a photo!

New member/globetrotter, where to start?

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