All Forum Posts by: Curtis N.

Hey Taylor :)

Like mentioned, you may want to get a google voice number to mask your identity if bandit signs are not kosher in your area.

I don't personally use bandit signs so the only recommendation I have is to learn when the community usually gets mowed/landscaped and make sure you take your signs down before then. I know that the workers have to remove all the signs and throw them out before they can successfully mow the area.

Interesting story from around here in northern VA... There is no budget for law enforcement to care about these bandit signs so nothing is really done about it unless someone causes a huge stink and makes them do something. Well I know some people in the community who recently organized a large group of volunteers to go around bi-weekly and remove all the bandit signs from public roads.

Nicole Williams - welcome to BP. Like Ned mentioned the DC metro is represented very well here. What types of investing are you planning on doing in MD?

Also, just a tip, when mentioning or replying to someone, if you use "@" their name, it will alert them that they've been mentioned in a post. Otherwise, the person may forget to manually check back to the thread to see your reply.

Good luck!

Welcome Steven Gray ! I am currently working on investing in Indy myself, although I am not local to the area. I've interviewed a couple property management companies and have a couple neighborhoods picked out.

I'd love to run my plan by you and see what you think. Indy is a great rental market but a tough one in the fact that the neighborhoods can change on a block-by-block basis. Your career definitely gives you a leg-up there.

Get active in the forums - it's the best way to learn and network with other investors. Good luck!

Grace Ng - great strategy. I can see how that allows you to catch the good deals. I wish I had time to go look at the new listings within a few hours, that would be great. You're right that using any method you can to find distressed sellers is worth it. You can generally get better deals than working off the MLS. It may be more legwork, but once you get a process down it becomes much easier.

That's great that you found a good agent. That's half the battle sometimes. I think with your strategy you would greatly benefit from getting your license so you can search the MLS yourself and write your own offers, so you can work on your time and maybe win more properties.

Also, just a tip, when mentioning or replying to someone, if you use "@" their name, it will alert them that they've been mentioned in a post.

Keep up the good work.

Sounds like you're making great progress. If you don't mind me asking, where did you find your short sale? Was it off the MLS or did you use direct marketing or was it a referral? I've been having a rough time finding good short sales on the MLS with the market heating up around here. Prince George's included. Welcome!

Welcome Heather Skowronsky ! I live in Centreville Va. There are quite a few investors from the DMV area here on BP. There are lots of REIA's in the area that you might want to check out not only as an agent but as an investor. There is also a less-formal meetup group that meets around DC but they are all BP members. I have yet to visit that one myself but I can't wait to.

But hey - if you come across any deals that look interesting, let me know. I'm always looking for a good agent that works well with investors. I'm interested mainly in buy and hold properties and also do some private lending.

Again, welcome!

There is money to be made in any market. Generally "war zones" are higher risk investments but usually with higher risk comes higher returns. But they can also be big money pits. If you can deal with the situations that might arise, good for you. I think it's already hard enough investing in normal neighborhoods, personally.

I listen to the podcasts in the car on the way to work. I love being able to something that's actually constructive while I'm sitting in DC traffic.

I would generally say I wish it was longer. It's very easy to split it up across multiple trips and still follow what's going on. I agree that it is annoying when you guys skip over interesting topics or stories because of the timeline. Obviously you can't cover everything, but I don't think the time limit is as critical on a podcast. That's the great thing about a podcast - users can listen to it any way they want whenever they want. Not like old school broadcast radio.

Anyways, thanks to you and Brandon for doing the FREE podcasts and thanks to all the guests who take their time to be on the show!

I've never used the Walmart brand but I've tried pretty much every other brand. For rentals it doesn't matter much - the cheap stuff is fine, especially if you're only covering the same color. In my own home I used Sherwin Williams but only with a discount. At normal price it's pretty pricey.

Pick an avenue, really learn that like the back of your hand. Start meeting people and try to learn from them. Ask for advice, etc. Once you feel like you've done your due diligence, don't get analysis paralysis (like I have) and jump in. You need to make the first step or you'll keep putting things off. Make a couple simple goals to start and that will help get you started. Good luck!