All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

Hey all, 

So I've gotten really interested in bird-dogging as a way of starting out. My target area will be Chandler, Tempe, Mesa as I'll be starting out in Chandler AZ mid May

Upsides as I see it:

• Referral fees that I can stash away for future deals
• Networking with local investors 
• Learning my market
• Ideally learn the ropes from a more seasoned investor

I wanted to get everyone's feedback or experiences with starting out like this. Things I should consider, avoid, any recommendations on education material starting out. I have heard its extremely competitive, e specially in a hot market. Also I'm interested in the legal position I would have..couldn't someone easily take a property, sell it and not give a referral fee? Obviously this is worst case scenario, but something I wanted to get some clarity on.

As always thanks for the feedback!

Glad to have you here in the forums. I'm also starting out in Phoenix looking to network with investors. Feel free to add me on here!

Well, in my opinion you have to know when you've really found a deal! If you've found a deal I'm sure a rehab is in order so bring the deal to someone in your area, say you'll split up the deal to be walked through the deal!

@Rick Via The worry is not being able to make those mortgage payments in the event of a downturn if vacancies go up. I think a safer way to move forward is to not over leverage yourself and have X amount set aside to cover the mtg payment in the case of emergencies. If you have equity, you can unload a property if need be. 

Also, I think in a serious downturn banks can ask for the note to be paid in full if a borrower isn't good on making payments, leading to foreclosure. 

Now that I think about it...can someone else chime in here? Are there any other circumstances the bank can ask for a note to be paid in full? 

@Zachary R Sink immerse yourself in everything BP for at least a couple months unless you find a good mentor in my opinion! The podcast will show you how to analyze a rental property, what to look for, what to avoid. Jumping in without the proper foundation can land you in a bad deal!

@Seth Levey Haha well said! I suggested the same

I've tried to bring my serious girlfriend on board by really expressing the difference in a paycheck and passive income. In my opinion when the power of passive income clicks it makes more sense to invest in strong profitable properties rather than depending on one source of income.

 My suggestion, ask her to read rich dad poor dad or listen to the BP podcast. Podcast # 210 is a good one, where Josh and Brandon interview a couple and another guest who are just starting out.

Also I've heard one persons strategy (on the podcast as well, but I forget who) is every time he buys a property he also takes his family on vacation...so they loved when he bough a property haha not to suggest bribery just an interesting idea. 

Hey @Saad L. I'd suggest looking for hard money lenders on here. BUT you're going to have to prepare some sort of formal documentation to show why this is a good investment. I'd suggest using the buy and hold calculator on here and printing it up! If the deal is good enough you should get an investor...if the deal is bad no one will touch it! Let that be a decent indicator of the deal

Hey @Kirk Jess I'll be graduating from the U of A as a Computer Engineer in May..good to see a fellow engineer on the forums. 

I'll be spending the next year learning the ropes in Phoenix and looking to get into some buy and holds. Feel free to reach out!

Dalton

Hey @John Manta I think the most common response you'll find here is no one really knows. A big contributor was the subprime lending taking place leading up to the 08 crash. We aren't anywhere near those lending practices but I will say that somethings I'm keeping my eye on are household debt numbers ( nearing the same levels as 08), 50% of students not paying back student loans and FICO loosening the way they calculate credit scores...all of these are a bit worrisome to me. BUT the big take home is looking at the numbers in your area. 

If you are thinking out investing in a buy and hold property..you need to buy right (~2% deal) ..the thing is these deals are very hard to come by with speculators coming into the market. Whats happening right now in my area and a lot of places around the country, is new investors are willing to buy bad deals, or deals with very small margins driving up the price on investment properties.

My current stance is, if you can by highly discounted (20%-30% under market value) and have reserves for a correction, a property could work as an investment. A correction may drop property values by 20% but if you buy discounted, you won't be underwater.