All Forum Posts by: Dillon Francis

@Kenny Lee I'm so sorry brother, but yet again I am going to have to postpone this meetup. Its more of a personal thing, but please check out the latest update above for the full explanation. I still look foward to meeting you in the near future, along with everyone else who has expressed interest in this meetup!

Hello All! Please see the latest update on the postponement of the meetup and the status of the venue. Still looking forward to meeting you all in person and seeing those beautiful faces of yours (without masks preferably lol).

HELLO ALL! PLEASE SEE THE LAST PARAGRAPH OF THE POST FOR AN UPDATE ON THE STATUS OF THE MEETUPS. THANK YOU!

@Justin Heiter thanks for the interest in attending! We do not have a virtual sign-up sheet or anything like that. You can attend by just expressing interest in the comments here and then showing up at the event. Its that easy! However, as a few members have mentioned in the comments, Governor Kate Brown just announced that there will be a restriction on social gatherings, especially in restaurants, starting from November 11th to the 25th. Since many of these mandates have a history of being extended past their initial timelines, I am thinking it may be best for the safety of our attendees, that we postpone the event until after the holidays, perhaps even closer to springtime.

I will be editing the post here very shortly to reflect the new, projected date of the meetup. We would still love to have you attend, once it is a bit safer for everyone to do so. Thanks again for you interest and please stay in touch! I would love to chat more with you about some of your interests in the real estate space! 

@Sean Ohare thanks for the contribution! I really appreciate the feedback and advice. I think you and AJ both make a great point that now may not be the best time to start hosting in-person meetups. I was really thinking we were pushing past this second COVID scare, especially with all of the safety measures we currently have in place, but I guess not. I just read up on the new mandate that goes into effect on November 11th. It looks like it is suppose to last until the 25th, but as AJ mentioned before, many of these mandates are not very short-lived. I am thinking it may be best to postpone the event until after heavy winter months, and see how the numbers are looking as we move into Spring. 

I do have a question for you Sean, but I will reach out to you via direct message. Thanks again for your interest and consideration!

Hey Aj,

Thanks for sharing that information. I was not aware of that new mandate. There may be some gray area there, as the meeting room is a separate event space from the restaurant, so I am not sure if that still applies in this situation. But I am going to take a deeper look into the mandate, so that I can be familiar with the details of it.

If that is the case, where we cannot have more than 6 people in our gathering, than we are going to have to postpone the event unfortunately. I am aware of a few of the meetup groups in our area, I am just not a fan of the virtual events, so I was trying to do something different through the creation of this meetup.

Thanks again for your input. I really appreciate it AJ!

Dillon

Hey BiggerPockets family! My name is Dillon Francis, and I am a new investor in Portland, OR. Like many of you, I am very passionate about all things real estate, and that includes networking with other investors and professionals in the industry. In my pursuit of knowledge over the past 6 months, the single most important QUUUIIIIIIIICCCKKK TIP that I have taken from it all is to build relationships. RELATIONSHIPS! RELATIONSHIPS! RELATIONSHIPS! This can't be emphasized enough!

In light of this discovery, I have decided to partner up with another BiggerPockets member here in Portland and organize our very own IN-PERSON real estate meetups! I speak for my partner when I say that we are very passionate about networking, so we were determined to find a way to bring others in the space together in a fun and safe manner, and hopefully add value to each and every attendee in one way or another!

Our first meetup will be held within the GOLD ROOM (60-person capacity) at the Vertical Diner in Portland on the evening of December 3rd from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM. As I mentioned above, this will be a safe and COVID-friendly space for all who attend. We will require masks at all times (unless eating or drinking) and I will personally be checking every attendee’s temperature with a touchless monitor as they enter the room for their first time. Every meetup we host is free to attend, and we will even be purchasing everyone's first round of drinks if you choose to indulge in one (limited to beer, cider, sparkles, coffee, tea, and soda). That's right, FREE DRINKS!

The cuisine at the diner is all plant-based, and in my opinion, some of the most delicious food I have ever eaten! The food is on you to purchase if you wish to eat during the meetup. That being said, we will be offering a free Vertical Diner meal voucher as a prize to some of the games we will be playing at the meetups. In addition, we will be providing punch cards to each attendee after you attend your first meetup with us. You will get a punch with each meetup you attend, and after collecting six punches, you will be entered into a raffle for a $50 gift card to Target, Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, or Amazon. YOUR CHOICE!

Aside from the games, food, and drinks, we will have investors, professionals, and entrepreneurs sharing their stories, experience, and advice to all of those who attend. We will plan for a few guest speakers, but we encourage anyone to step up to the mic and share their experience with the crowd if they feel inspired to do so. We hope everyone reading this gets as pumped up as we are about these meetups! We can't wait for you to join us and be a part of the REI Meetups PDX family. Of course, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me here on BiggerPockets or on our Instagram page @reimeetupspdx. If you are interested in attending, please go follow us on Instagram @reimeetupspdx, where we will be posting details and updates on the meetups, as well as some juicy, weekly REI content!

We IMMENSELY appreciate your support, and we look forward to seeing you on December 3rd! 😁🏠

I have been listening to some of the podcasts where the guests have been discussing seller-financing. I would like to learn more about the process from the buyer's perspective. Does anyone have any advice in regards to how to approach a seller who is offering seller-financing? Or maybe how to suggest seller-financing as an option to a seller who hasn't already offered that option? Is this option only common for properties listed as "for sale by owner"?

In addition, what would the buyer need to have prepared when they actually sit down with the seller to discuss the terms? Any advice or information is appreciated!

@Mathew Wray I think your first point is a great one! I am curious about writing contracts, now that you mention it. What role do they play in REI and who is usually responsible for creating them? I have heard many wholesalers on the podcast talk about how they got a property under contract, but I have always been curious as to where that contract came from.

I believe my friend has been an assistant buyer's agent for a bit now, so I think she is experienced in that aspect, but not necessarily from an investing stand point. From our conversation, it didn't sound like too many of her clients were investors, so I think you again make a great point, that she should just dive right in and purchase a rental property herself. I think people who speak from experience have some of the greatest advice and insights to share, and I really liked that analogy you used!

Thank you again for the words of wisdom Mathew. I look forward to passing on this invaluable information to her!

@Cory Carlson thanks for your feedback! I agree with you and what was said above. I feel like you took it to the next level with your suggestion. She could maybe build up her skillset/knowledge base by initially partnering with an investor on a project, see if she even enjoys investing and partnerships. Then she could take it to that next level, and actually join an investing firm or like @Steve Morris mentioned, a big commercial RE firm that will give her access to the tools, pipelines, and networks. Steve makes a great point in that it will be a sink-or-swim proposition, but if she overcomes that challenge and indeed swims, then I think that is an indicator that she is cut out for that line of work. 

Very insightful answers gentlemen! Thank you for the contributions.