All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Clark

HI Erin, 

There are services in the area that rent and maintain coin-op laundry.  I am closing in a couple weeks on a 4-plex in Lakewood that has a small shared utility room with coin-op laundry which is provided by such a service.   There is no charge.  They own/maintain the machines and share the profit. win-win!

I think you'd want to start with cost analysis, but I'd think if you could make laundry available to all your tenants it would bring in a little extra income and make it easier to market your units.  

J

Using this website: http://www.movetotacoma.com/explore-neighborhoods/ as a reference, I'd call this the upper part of the South End neighborhood.  Major cross streets are S 38th st and Pacific. 

I'd love to find a source of info regarding this and other areas that may come up.. I plan to go drive the area in the next few days as well.  

I'm looking to meet some folks who know the Tacoma area very well.   I'm looking at multi-family (4-plex) but don't know the area well enough and from what I'm reading can be tricky to pick the right neighborhood.    Can anyone point me to any information or area specialist?   Thanks!

I have been researching what the qualifications are to be considered an accredited investor this evening.    I found a ton of answers through internet searches that all seem to agree upon these foundational criteria:

* Your net worth (not including any equity you own in your primary residence) is over $1 Million. 

* Your income is over $200K (or $300K for married couples) for the last 2 years and expected to be the same or more in the current year.  

I am only able to find very limited information on how income is calculated or what is included.     It seems obvious that W2 wages/tips would be included.    I found that deferred compensation (like 401K matching contributions from an employer)  can be included as income to the extent that it's vested.    What about:

• Stock dividends (1099-DIV) ?
• Capital gains  (short or long term)?
• Rental Income?
• Anything else? 

Is there a form or spreadsheet somewhere that I could use as a reference for calculation of "income" in this context?   

Thanks and happy turkey day! 

BP colleagues,

 I've been starting to look at deals in my local area (Seattle/Tacoma/Everett WA) for single and multi-family rental properties.    For a couple of reasons, I'm also considering looking outside this area:

1 Prices are significantly higher in my area than other parts of the country and it would tie up a lot more capital to get started.  This could limit how quickly I'm able to build a portfolio of properties. 

2. Because of the prices in my area, it seems harder to find properties that meet my basic criteria for cash flow in my area.

I'd like to find a resource that enables me to compare rental property markets in one view.  I'd also like to start networking with the  folks in out-of-state markets. 

Any thoughts or guidance?  Thanks for your time and input!

J

@Trevor Ewen

Thus far I have not set any investment goals around how my friends regard me.      My goal is long term wealth and financial independence.   

I'd like to research the turnkey partners a little more.   Are these partners you work with nation-wide or local to you?   Any recommendations on a partner to network with and discuss further? 

@Robert Herrera I just finished reading that book you recommended.     Are you personally using the methods described in the book?   If so I'd love to have a conversation with you and learn more about how it's worked in reality for you.      Some of the things I find interesting about the methods include buying turn-key properties (e.g. not spending a lot of time with rehab),  renter handling their own maintenance (no calls at night about broken toilets), increased cash flow and hold for a couple years instead of flipping (taxes).       Anyone else using this strategy?

@Account Closed Is your concept of a Pro Partner similar to the idea of an investing group?  I do like the idea of learning from others' experience.   Also, my time is similarly limited.  

Thanks for the note Trevor Ewen ! I am definitely thinking my role will be somewhat passive. My wife is a stay-at-home mom and we only have one left in grade school so she will be able to put in significant time as well. That will also be helpful with taxes according to my research. I thought starting local might help me avoid some mistakes at first. However; The Seattle market is expensive and feels like it might be at or near the top of the cycle. Depending on how it looks in March I would consider finding a more suitable market. Regarding partnerships: I am undecided. I have the resources to start on my own and will be networking as much as possible. There are some good reasons to team up. What are your thoughts on partnerships and out of area deals?

Hello BP friends,

I am getting started with REI and currently trying to decide what niche/strategy would work best for my situation. I'd love some helpful feedback from you to help pick a good strategy.

Here’s a little about my situation and goals:

My ultimate goal is to build a portfolio of real estate investments that will provide wealth and income stream that will support my retirement in 10 years.

I plan to keep my full time job for the next 10 years. I will have money from my job to fund my portfolio, and I plan to re-invest any proceeds from investments in the portfolio. I will not need any income from the portfolio while it is growing.

I wish to pick a strategy that uses leverage to (sanely) enhance growth.

This is most important to me: I wish to pick a strategy that maximizes tax savings and/or defers taxes as much as possible to after my retirement when my income will be much lower than it is today.

I wish to pick a strategy that can be manageable even while I have a somewhat busy full time job.

I wish to set up a strategy that is diverse and long-term, able to weather a down market cycle.

I’ve given myself until March 1 to learn, decide what my strategy will be and execute. That’s 179 days away.

Thank you for your time and feedback and don’t forget to fire up the BBQ this holiday weekend!

You sound really proud, William Donnelly , and you should be! NIcely done, sir! Thanks for sharing the wisdom you gained along the way. Folks like you and posts like this are the reason I came to BP to start Learning. If you don't mind my asking, what's your thought on your next buy and what's your long term goal?