All Forum Posts by: Doolan Wesley

Hey everyone, so I had an offer accepted on what will be my second duplex right next to a lot owned by WE Energies in Milwaukee. It's just south of Bay View in Tippicanoe. The cash flow for the property makes sense, it hits 1% gross revenue. I'll be investing 25% down on the property. I don't think there is a huge concern with WE Energies being right next to my property, however I wanted some of your input on owning a property next to powerlines and the dangers of EMFs. The inspection for the property is on Friday.

I'm looking to form an LLC for my property. I am wondering if anyone in the Milwaukee area knows of a good law firm to use. I was thinking of using a local law firm rather than Legal Zoom or any online services after reading some simple reviews. Let me know, thanks!

There's zero link regarding the newsletter and this is just trying to generate a discussion. There is no cookie cutter method for investing and the moderators said that general investing discussion is within the guidelines.

When in my senior year of high school I started developing an interest in the stock market and investing. As I was a kid and didn't have much money to start a portfolio myself, I would just follow some companies that I was familiar with. PepsiCo (PEP) was one of my favorites. It wasn't until I was in college that I said, I am going to begin actively investing. I opened a portfolio with ETrade, put $2000 of my hard earned dollars in there and completely whiffed, losing 80% of my initial investment in just months. The loss was unfortunate, but at just 17 years old I recovered and learned in the process.

 As a means to making additional income, I started writing for SeekingAlpha.com. I honestly didn't know much about investing. I was 17 years old, I had a small stock portfolio, but I was always interested in money and passive income. Maybe it was beginners luck, but I made some great investments after I started doing further research on the companies. I invested in stocks such as Facebook (FB), Starbucks (SBUX), Visa (V), Trex (TREX), PepsiCo (PEP), etc.

As I saw my portfolio grow to to $20k...$30k...$40k...$50k...all the way to $80k fresh out college, I began getting more and more aggressive. We all know how this story ends. I begun actively trading too much, trading on margin, using high risk options strategies until I blew up my account. As hard as the losses were to stomach I gained super valuable knowledge along the way. I knew that investing would always play an important part in my life, but I had to learn to control risk.

A friend and myself came up with a list of criteria that we found most important in stocks. Strong free cash flow, strong margins, high ROIC, and most importantly being in the right industry. We applied metrics to our own investing and have had a great run of success, seeking out some extremely strong businesses. I've also used the knowledge that I gained and applied it to my own real estate investing success. I'm just beginning to acquire properties, but my first property was really a homerun in my opinion and it just came with patience.

I don't know if Bigger Pockets has any additional stock investing forums. In 2017 we created a portfolio of about 25 holdings and started writing about our portfolio. In the process we've met investors from many different states and countries, it's been a great experience.

If any of you have any newsletters or investment techniques that you use, please share them below. I guess the premise of this conversation is that there are a million ways to generate passive income and that equities and real estate should both be utilized. If you can come up with a methodical investment strategy, you're probably on the right track, if you're a gun slinger looking to make a quick buck. BEWARE.

Great input @Marcus Auerbach! What has happened in Portland, I'm totally unaware. I agree with you as well. Growing up in Milwaukee I know exactly which neighborhoods are good low crime neighborhoods and which ones are ones worth avoiding. This is fairly obvious and like any kind of investing, I'd rather find a decent value in a good neighborhood than search for extremely good opportunities in poor neighborhoods. I understand my risk tolerance and the quality of tenants that I want to attract. I'm always looking for people to work with, I'm extremely open to learning.

@Matt Maurice I appreciate the insight. Yeah that is kind of my school of thought too. We're 10 years into a bull market and economically it seems like we're due for some short of correction. Maybe not a 40% market correction like the previous real estate bubble, but due for some sort of economic slow down. I just wanted some insight into those neighborhoods, thank you.

Hey everyone, so I purchased my first duplex in Bay View, which is an insanely hot market at the moment. I want to hear from some experienced individuals. What's the consensus on purchasing properties in Saint Francis, Cudahy, and South Milwaukee. These cities border the lake and you would think that as Milwaukee, WI grows and develops, a you would see investors look to these neighborhoods. It seems like there is SO MUCH development in Oak Creek, WI by Howell Avenue, why is there relatively no economic development right by the lake in these cities?

I'm familiar with these neighborhoods, I grew up in South Milwaukee and I now live in Bay View. They are not bad neighborhoods. I want to see what the real estate experts around Milwaukee think. Additionally, I have $50k liquid for any cash deal, but I'm looking for experienced partners to help with my second real estate venture.

Good questions. @Victor Martinez Lazaro, I'm 27 and from Milwaukee myself. I went to school for nursing, but while I was in nursing school I read almost everything imaginable on investing. Particularly in the stock market. I didn't buy my first property until just this year, but that property and my debt was paid off with the frugal saving I developed in college and some of the major wins I had in the market. A $5k investment in Facebook (FB) grew to $35k, I doubled my money in Starbucks (SBUX), parked money in stocks like Visa (V), PepsiCo (PEP), Trex (TREX), Exact Sciences (EXAS), etc. 

Study all aspects of investing. The bull market has run for over 10 years, when equities pull back, we'll more than likely see real estate pull back as well. This site is actually an awesome resource for meeting people, especially other motivated investors. Remember, invest in what you're comfortable investing in. Also, avoid the just be extremely cautious. I lost 80% of the first $2k that I invested. In addition to equities and real estate, start a Roth IRA right now!

@Victor Martinez Lazaro

@Aaron Stuiber thanks for the input. Which areas of Milwaukee do you focus on primarily. I know there are plenty of Foreclosures west of 43, however I'm always leery of those neighborhoods. I have a good amount of liquid cash, and would like to put together a team in the coming years to find some opportunities to flip acquire for cash flow.

Amanda, I've grown up on the South side so I'm very familiar with the neighborhoods and where they are trending. I think being close to Lake Michigan brings a degree of safety to the investment, for that reason I really like the southeast side more than the north. I'm no expert by any means and have a ton to learn, but I'm good with investing. Investing in real estate is no different than investing in equities. There might be higher risk, higher returns to be made, however why not find deals with relatively low risk that still offer a solid ROI?

I like to think of it as I'll just accumulate cash and sit on the sideline learning until I find the right pitch. We're in a 10 year bull market and the economy is teetering with relatively small interest rate hikes. The yield curve has already inverted a couple of times. A recession will be coming, the question is when.