Thanks everyone for responding to my comment. Many of you asked for my thoughts so I decided to write a little mini post sharing my thoughts and experiences thus far in Cleveland.
I'll try to say it like it actually is as an investor newbie from California trying to make it happen in Cleveland. Keep in mind I've been here for 1 week and lived in 3 continents in my lifetime and I keep it real.
Demographic
As an Asian American in Cleveland (or anywhere in the midwest outside of Chicago I assume), it is very normal to be the only Asian guy/gal in the neighborhood. In Brooklyn/Parma/Lakewood where most of you guys will be looking at to invest, there's not a lot of diversity (outside of African American and Caucasian) although I've noticed that there is sizable Puerto Rican community here. Being the only Asian on the block doesn't bother me at all and I'm having no problem meeting the nicest people. They are all willing to chat it up and talk to newcomers. Very warm and welcoming.
Block by Block
It appears that neighborhoods can't be broadly painted with one stroke. For example, Old Brooklyn can be divided into subsections that range from Tier B+ like neighborhood to Tier C-. South Hill in Old Brooklyn is really nice! You might see the polo shirt and dog walkers. Some areas near the zoo not so much; you might see the some riff-raffs on the street. When I did my first gut-rehab in Baltimore, I house-hacked in this type of area so I'm a bit desensitized to it.
Networking
I was fortunate enough to connect with a real estate agent who was very connected with rehabs and had a handful of connections to help with fixing up a place to get it rent ready, roofers, the whole 9 yards. In Cleveland I feel it's so much more about knowing the right people and making good connections as the processes here are less formal and structured (compared to SF/LA/SD). For me, I wasn't looking for the suit and tie real estate agent but more so, an agent that understood my mission and isn't afraid to pull up some carpet to expose that good wood. It's important to be on the same wavelength.
Timing and Good Deals
Everything starts with a good deal. If you didn't start with a good deal to begin with there's no profit to be won. I bought a duplex and an SFR (within 2 months span) and I truly got lucky with these in terms of pricing and timing. The duplex I bought is 5000 sq/ft total glazed brick beauty. I got it foreclosed and won the bid war although someone bid over. Cash Offer and price point was key. The SFR was because I got a verbal agreement right when it came on the market. Literally I refreshed the page and analyzed it and made the offer from San Diego to Cleveland. Timing from my experience so far has been so crucial. Sure you may get a great discount on something that has been on the market for 300 days that nobody wanted. But you can also get incredible deals at .00003 days.
Never Visited the Properties Prior to Putting in An Offer
So as mentioned, I bought both properties (duplex and SFR) just from pictures from California. I was planning to move to Cleveland anyways to invest but those deals were really good. I had obnoxious party neighbors in San Diego that would be noisy til 3AM so I was eager to move out, but I was also chasing this dream to invest in Real Estate. As most of you know, California real estate is ridiculous. If your current situation (noisy apartment causing unnecessary stress)/environment (unaffordable housing market) is not good, the only thing you can control is yourself. Moving to Cleveland to embark on this real estate adventure while most may think is insanity, was very natural for me and I am learning so much here. Especially about boilers that we Californians would never be exposed to. There's so much charm in some of these homes and neighborhoods that pictures just can't show. Now do I plan to call Cleveland my forever home? Who knows, but I'm all about the process of learning and DOING instead of wishing and stagnating.
Hope this was helpful albeit a bit long.
Thanks for all your comments.
Andrew
p.s. I'm not going to re-read and correct all typos on this post because I'm busy fixing up my properties! Excuse the poorly written post. Focus on the content. PM me if you'd like to connect!
