All Forum Posts by: Sheri Fluellen

@Pete Tychsen, great question!!  I started investing in single family, small multifamily, and smallish commercial properties in 2007 and am experienced.  When I discovered the opportunities in large multifamily, I was immediately fascinated. There are many programs, and I cannot speak to all of them.  There are 3 that I've had some exposure to.  Rod Khleif, Michael Blank, and Collaborative Multifamily Investors Mastermind.  Rod Khleif, I've been to one of his bootcamps in person, and a couple virtually.  I also have a handful of investor friends that have been or are in his high ticket mentorship program. His community is very "family" feel oriented, from what one of my friends who is in his mentorship has said.  She likes the "people" that he attracts. I have appreciated the many pieces of content he offers (such as the ebook on all the questions to ask prior to partnering with someone). I did find his in-person event to feel a bit disorganized and there are some dynamics that I'm aware of internally that lead me to not join the group.  I won't put those here, but they are not dynamics that would matter to most people nor would anyone every become privy to them.  So they aren't a make-or-break thing.  The second mentorship is Michael Blank.  I went to his live event last year and have listened to his podcast religiously.  I tended to favor Michael's approach in his mentorship and his world.  He is very logistically minded. He likes numbers and spreadsheets, as do I.  I use his Syndicated Deal Analyzer all the time (spreadsheet to evaluation multifamily deals).  He is very analytical.  At his live event, he broke down how a GP can make a living at it.  This was a mystery to me in the past, as most GPs don't seem to like to say how much they actually earn at the initial close, ongoing, and then upon disposition.  Also Michael Blank offers a gaurantee that they will continue to mentor with you until you do your first deal, even if that is after the first year. I'll write end the rest of my response on a separate post just to ensure I don't accidentally delete this one before I post!!

Quote from @Andy Sabisch:

Sometimes technology makes a simple task complex.  Going through a property with a clipboard that has rooms and you take notes as far as what is needed and then supplement it with photos allows you to go over the notes after a walk through and develop estimates or define what supplemental walk through / inspections are warranted.  We have tried some applications on tablets and spent more time fooling with the application than focusing on the conditions that needed work and would cost money.  

Now we go in with a clipboard, a laser tape measure, a good flashlight, an electrical tester (plug in and proximity probe) and a cell phone camera.  We can get what we need to develop a pretty close estimate on a walk through without fiddling with the application which may not capture all the right issues to focus on.

I hear what you're saying!!  I was hoping that there would be a simple app to help with the documentation!  But you're right in that when technology goes wrong, it makes everything take longer and be more challenging.

@Carlton B., I do use the flipping calculator for doing the evals on if we want to go forward or not.  I am referring to a way to track what we think will need fixing in the moment while we're doing a walk through at a potential flip property.

What do flippers use to track the repairs needed based on walk throughs? We could bring a standardized form printed on paper, but using an app on our phone would be more efficient. Anyone have ideas?

Quote from @Allie Pfannenstiel:

@Pedro Huichapa

Hi Pedro!

Congrats on your sabbatical. Some of my questions to you are:

How much income are you looking to replace as your primary source of income?
Whats your aversion to financial risk?
How much involvement do you want in these properties?
Do you want to take on renovations or does it need to be turn key?

Some of these questions will help determine the number of properties that you get, the asset class you invest in, whether you join another investor's syndicate or keep full control and responsibility in your investment. 

Id love to help guide you after getting to know more in depth some of these crucial questions.

We do both residential and estate at my brokerage so you can take your time and explore the best of both worlds.

Hey Pedro! I'm a Psychologist and Certified HIgh Performance Coach.  I noticed as I was reading responses that people were giving you a lot of advice but there are some critical questions that need to be asked first, and I appreciate @Allie Pfannenstiel's post, as it actually directly asks some that i was already thinking about. Start with your long term vision first. Then work backwards from there. This will help guide your decisions around how REI will play a role in your life and how it can serve you. If you want to talk through things a bit more detailed, I'm happy to help. I do this sort of thing a lot.

You can bring someone in as a equity partner, meaning they have a piece of the pie.  Or you can bring someone in as a debt partner, meaning they are loaning you the money.  Typically, my preference is debt partner.  It keeps things cleaner.  There's no arguing about how the house is used, when to take out additional debt on it, etc.  You are in full control.  ALSO, what happens if they fall on hard times and try to strong arm you into selling early? You just need to be confident you can always pay the debt partner their monthly fees (or however you structure it).  Equity partners can be nice when you want more advice or guidance so they have more involvement.  It can also be helpful when you're wanting to build longer term relationships in which there are bigger and better opportunities ahead.  

@Francis M., I left Anderson for a small firm that will do the actual taxes and then another company that specializes in tax strategy.  I honestly don't have any real feedback on them yet so hesitant to "recommend" them. 

Quote from @Robert Lumerman:

Quote from @Sheri Fluellen:

Getting sellers to share stories about their investment journey can offer some interesting info.  Ask them about why they chose to buy the property.  What the best thing they like about it.  What's been the most challenging thing.  How many tenants have they had (how long do they stay).  If you can get them sharing stories, you'll be able to read between the lines too.

 awesome and thank you for these. I am going to Cheyenne next weekend , n a personal trip. always wondered about the market there.

Amazing!! I'd be happy to grab a cup of coffee with you and chat investing!

Amazing!! I'd be happy to grab a cup of coffee with you and chat investing!

Getting sellers to share stories about their investment journey can offer some interesting info.  Ask them about why they chose to buy the property.  What the best thing they like about it.  What's been the most challenging thing.  How many tenants have they had (how long do they stay).  If you can get them sharing stories, you'll be able to read between the lines too.