All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

@Terry Louwerse

Welcome to BP, Terry. I'm in San Jose, but might call upon your services in the future. Out of curiosity, who is your friend that you worked under? Is he/she on BP? Just a note, I think its interesting that you differentiated between REI and flipping - there's a nice debate waiting to happen!

Best,

Chris

@Arthur E.

Indeed, SF is a very unique market that is almost independent of the national RE trends. SF offers almost a complete lack of urban sprawl combined with very liberal city politics (a.k.a. stiff construction regulations) located in the hub of the growing tech industry means a strong investors market, if you can scrape up enough cash for the buy in. Frankly, I don't think you need anyone to tell you (SF podcast) what you probably already know about San Francisco RE. Just reach out to guys like Minh Le, Jeff Pollack, Brian Burke and others who have a respected track record in and around the bay area. 

@Account Closed

@Adrian Ruiz

I'm in San Jose and am enjoying this site and the podcasts.  I am also appreciative of the non-biased advice and commentary members provide on this site (for the most part).  True authenticity. 

@Lupita Solis

Welcome, Lupita.  I am also originally from the Chicago land area. I've been in the bay area, CA for over 5yrs now.  I hope you enjoy this site as much as I have.  There are some great resources under the "Learn" tab at the top of the page.  I am a fan of the podcasts as well as the ebooks. 

Best of luck to you in your endeavors

Cheers, 

Chris

@Azan Finch

Welcome to BP, Azan.  I share the same mentality with respect to investing in RE - slow and steady.  

In response to your inquiries, you might be interested in spending some time under the "Learn" tab at the top of the page.  There are many useful resources there such as links to the podcasts and books. 

With regard to your question about hindsight, you might be interested in this article on BP and this ebook entitled Real Estate Rewind. 

Cheers, 

Chris

@Account Closed
Welcome to BP, Morris.  I'm sure you'll appreciate the free informative materials under the "Learn" tab at the top of the page.  This is thee go to site to get your RE questions answered. 

Welcome to the site @Daryl Davis. I am also located in SJ and have family in the Chicago land area. I've found this site to be quite valuable, especially due to the free educational materials located under the "Learn" tab at the top of the page. I also recommend the podcasts that are available through iTunes. They offer great tips and information from experienced investors. There are a couple of REI meetups in the area, including the local BP meetup which is held at Whisper's Cafe and Creperie in San Jose located at 1085 E. Brokaw Rd.

Best of luck,

Chris

Welcome to BP @Claire H.  I don't have any experience with working with raw land, but this would be the site to get answers on that subject.  I've not come across any details regarding investing in raw land from reading the free information (see the "Learn" tab at the top of the page).  Perhaps you could uncover some information about this topic by setting up a key word alert, which will send you an email any time someone within the BP community addresses the topic.  Go here to set up your key word alerts. 

Good luck,

Chris

I am seeking feedback regarding American Financial Network, INC. Has anyone used AFN Inc, specifically, to purchase a primary residence? I would appreciate if you could share your experience with emphasis on closing costs, unforeseen "hidden" fees, etc.  Also, are there kickbacks for agents who get buyers to go through them? 

Thank you in advance. 

Chris

Hi @Lalaine 

@Lalaine Garsula

Welcome to BP and thank you for sharing your motivation for entering real estate.  Its an inspiring story and I have known others that have worked like a dog all their life with little to show for it at retirement, mainly because they consistently put some money aside via a "financial planner" which is a euphemism for "bookie" in my humble opinion.  As Robert Kiyosaki pointed out in one of his books, most people who plan for retirement in this manner are planning to be broke. 

I also have a desire to create a positive change in my community by providing safe, clean, and stable residences for people but, alas, we can't help everyone. It has to make sense for the landlord. There is a nice BP group in the south bay and there are also REI meetups in the area, one of which is hosted by @Johnson H (for some reason the tag feature isn't working on my mac) and is usually held at Whisper's Cafe and Creperie in San Jose. I'd like to hear more of your background and your goals.

In any case, there are some great free learning resources on this site such as the podcasts and the free books.  See the "Learn" tab at the top of the page.  Pro members have access to more goodies like spreadsheets which allows one to crunch numbers on a potential deal to see if it makes sense. 

I'm sure you'll find this site to be quite worth your time as I and many others have. As I've learned, don't be afraid to ask questions.  There's many seasoned RE pro's on like @Account Closed here that will be glad to provide an honest answer.


Good luck and best wishes,

Chris