All Forum Posts by: David Barnett

I contribute 10% to my ROTH 401k with a 5% company match in pre-tax.  I don't max out to the $19,500 per year, and still am able to put away a few thousand a month to be able to purchase real estate.  My employer also has a pension plan that they contribute 5% of my salary to.  I agree with a few others that I prefer to have different buckets of funding and tax treatment for diversification.  I believe that diversification is key and gives someone maximum flexibility to be able to manage their financial affairs as one sees fit.  I don't like having all eggs in one basket, it's a too one-dimensional strategy for me.

I'm also very interested in possibly traditional roll-over 401k to ROTH conversions with real estate professional status (i.e paying 0 federal taxes on the conversions due to depreciation and paper losses and converting the assets to tax free growth incrementally).  Disclaimer: Not tax or legal advice.

Congrats on the first deal.  Out of curiosity, what part of Saint Paul is this in?  East side? 

I also do them annually.  I've had an instance where I've had a no heat call on New Year's Eve.  It's much cheaper to have it serviced annually instead of having the no heat, after hours, emergency heat call.  I agree with Nik, 100% worth the money to do it annually.

I bought my condo (primary residence) towards the tail end of 2018.  Probably the best financial decision, and over the past 11 years, the value has about doubled.

@Bud Gaffney Have you checked out the neighborhoods where the properties are in Taunton?  I'd be careful in Taunton; there are a lot of rough spots in Taunton, and the values lead me to believe these aren't in a good part...

@Mikal Quintanilla I would say it depends on who you are meeting with.  For example, if you are meeting with a realtor or an agent, the majority of them care about starting a relationship that will lead to deals that are successfully closed (which is how they will be paid).

I'm an out of state investor, too, and I've found it hard to individually hustle from afar.  In order to successfully close deals from afar, you'd need to build a team on the ground that can do most of the hustling for you.  Local folks will know what's happening in the market, which unfortunately (due to location) you won't.  

The last item that I wanted to mention was that (in reading between the lines), you don't have a lot of experience or capital.  Therefore, I'd work on securing more capital, if you can because capital makes this a lot easier.  Otherwise, you'll need to secure capital, deals and experience.  I think this would be hard to pull off from afar.  In the initial meeting, I think most people are looking for someone that they like and trust.  If someone likes and trusts you (and you subsequently follow through on what you promise - very important), you'd likely be able to build a network of folks locally that can help you get up and off the ground running.

@Mikal Quintanilla I would recommend spending a few dollars flying out to the market and making connections in person.  Face time is extremely underrated, and don't think cold calling will be as effective as meeting people in person.  If you are able to weave into your story (when meeting with these people in person) that you traveled from the LA area, you'll gain a lot more credibility (people will view your goals much more seriously since you ponied up time and cash to travel to the market).  A lot of people cold call, not a lot of people pick up, get on a plane and travel to the market to meet in person with people.

@Nathan Shankles First and foremost, I wanted to say that if the tenants qualify after screening and meeting minimum criteria, I accept them.  Two out of my three properties are in B to B+ areas and my properties appeal to the following demographic.  Usually, 25-35, single, young professionals that want to live in the urban core.  I wouldn't say my tenants are hipsters, and maybe one step below.  I've found this niche to be fairly profitable, and on the two properties in the B to B+ areas, I haven't had a turnover in three renewal cycles.

@Tab Teehee Great job and thanks for sharing the pictures.  Nice looking units post rehab, and love properties that have the old school appliances and that nasty old school carpet.  Scares most people off, and can really transform the properties with a little bit of work.

I've used Boehm Heating and Air out of Saint Paul with really good results.