All Forum Posts by: Brandon Turner

I've got a tenant who runs a daycare (I haven't had the heart to kick her out... yet). The kids (about 15 of them) run around the house unsupervised. They are tearing off siding, destroyed the brand new carpet, disturbing all the neighbors, and in pretty much every other way - destroying my house.

On the other hand, my mom ran a daycare in my home for my entire childhood through college. Our house looked immaculate every day of those decades (minus the toy mess, of course).

So, it really comes down to the type of person who is running it. I generally wouldn't take the risk ( my tenant didn't ask, and it's not a "real daycare" ... she is just watching her sister's and friend's kids...). Obviously, check out the laws - but there are always other ways to remove tenants.

Anyways... I'm off to go remove a tenant...

Yeah, I'd focus on anything having to do with the math behind real estate investing! Math is super important, and vastly misunderstood in the real estate investing world!

Agreed. I finally feel like I could jump into wholesaling more because I know the type of wholesaler that I wish I had on my team (Cause I have none!)

Wholesaling is a great way to learn the business, but if you have no experience, you are just wasting everyone's time. If you don't have the funds needed to start rehabing, then latch on to a local investor who is and let them become your mentor. Offer free assistance on nights/weekends/whenever. Learn the business that way, and you'll also gain your first cash buyer for your deals (your mentor)!

Thanks Ciera Calhoun!

Thanks Nick! Glad you are enjoying my blog thus far! It's good to know people are learning something!

I'll add to the thread though and say I love the posts and especially the interviews over at TheBuyAndHoldGuys.com. They get a lot of good info from people really succeeding in real estate.

Jason - I've seen similar results. Very cool stuff!

Hey Dan. I'm glad to see you getting ready to jump in to real estate. Also, I think it's great that you are spending time right now learning via books and blogs. Very smart. You also might want to consider connecting with a seasoned investor in whatever area you end up choosing, and learn the ropes first hand before spending your own money.

As for where to invest, I think there are good and bad area anywhere you choose. Obviously, some might be better than others but as long as you stick by principles (positive cashflow only, estimate conservatively on repair costs, etc) you can do well anywhere you live.

Real estate is a math game, so just get good at the simple math, live where you want, and invest where it makes sense.

Keep us updated!

Hey Manuel,

I started when I was just 20. A few thoughts -

Real Estate is both a career and an investment. Which do you want? You can invest in real estate for a job, to make income to live off of but not invest for long term. Or you can have a regular day job and invest for future wealth. Or you can do both. Doing both is difficult, but rewarding. If you don't love landlording or are nervous - get a regular job and invest for the future. Without a good solid job, its tough to get low-rate financing from banks, thus harder to get cashflow. It's kinda a catch 22.

Secondly, I started with no money. It is possible, but its tough. But 14k is enough to get started. I'd become really good friends with some people on BiggerPockets or your local real estate investment club.

Oh, and besides this post, I wouldn't let just anyone know how much money you have or people will try to take advantage of you to get it. Obviously, it was needed for the purpose of your question, but very cautious. There are a lot of bad people out there.

Good luck!

wow Thanks everyone for the input. I guess it comes down to whether or not I can find someone to do this. I mean, a lot of it would come down to them trusting me.

Jon, your numbers are probably pretty accurate for what I'm thinking. So 11% ROI for them, which is a heck of a lot better than they get from their CD's at the bank. But of course, much higher risk for them. I think the selling point for most people choosing to do this would be one simple thing: Investing in real estate is cool. People know its popular, know it makes money, and would love to drive their friends by the house and say "yeah, I own that". Its cool. So my hope would be in that.

True, I have no skin in the game. And that is a problem for many people, especially experienced investors. But this wouldn't be for people like us, but for the guy who works 40 hours a week for the county, or the teacher, or whatever. It gets them into the game, a chance to be "cool", and they feel like "at least I'm doing something". Because 50% of a deal is better than 0%, which is where most of the world is sitting right now.

Anyways, thoughts?

Hey, I've been working on a strategy to get some more properties under my belt, and wondering what you guys think of it. Am I giving away too much? Not enough? Wasting time?

Basically, my plan is based on three premises:
1.) I don't want to flip with Hard Money (Been there, done that, not real good to sell now)
2.) I want cashflow, at least $100 per unit
3.) I cannot get any more mortgages (Too much property debt, not enough "income", and too many deductions to use my cashflow as income)

So, my idea is not a new one, I'm sure. Basically, I would find (advertise, friends, etc) partners to purchase properties with. I would find the property (single fams, small multifamilies), research loan options, put the deal together, arrange for any repair work (not physically do the labor - been there, done that - too tired), and manage the property from start to finish (3-7 year timeframe, or whenever the market improved). Basically, I would do 100% of the deal. The Partner would do one thing - get a mortgage because they have a down payment and the ability to get the mortgage. Typical sale price would be $50k - $150k, with 25% down.

We would split cashflow down the middle, as well as future profit after the sale. 50/50.

I would also require the partner to come with an extra $3000-$5000 at closing to put into an escrow account for those emergencies (tenants destroy stuff, etc), as a hedge against a ruined partnership the first time something major comes up. It would already be paid for.

Furthermore, would it be appropriate to collect a small ($1000 - $2000) fee, upfront at closing to pay me for the work to do all this? That would get me a bit of income for putting this all together. Is that too tacky to ask for?

Anyways, this ended up being much longer than I hoped, so if you are still reading, thank you! Let me know if you think this is viable, profitable, or whatever. Thanks!