All Forum Posts by: George Fitz

Btw, you wanna make sure you buy the right bike. Nothing too cheap (stay away from Wal-Mart or Target). A low-end bike from a reputable brand at an actual bike shop would probably be the way to go.

Maintenance of a bike is usually quite easy and cheap if you do it yourself (or teach someone). The $65 tune up at your local bike shop can be done in about 15 minutes or less if you know what you're doing. Maybe you could find a tenant who wants to take on the responsibility in exchange for free use of the bike, or train your handyman. So if you have your liability issues figured out, I would think you could get the maintenance figured out too. Just make sure you're covered for major damage or theft.

I'll be there...thanks.

I hate B of A. Good luck and give 'em hell Katharine!

Thanks @Michael Wagner It's definitely intriguing and since I'm in the early stages of my research, doesn't require a total re-think.

As of now, we are planning to move to the western NC / Asheville area. I'm originally from Kentucky so it's close to home, and most of my family has relocated to the Carolinas. But our timeframe is a year from now, so we're still figuring everything out.

I work in film/tv post-production and while I may be able to do the work from home thing with that job (at least to some degree), I will need to replace much of my income with this new business.

Thanks again- I'm sure I will have more questions as I do some more exploring.... 

I'd love to join you all. I will follow along and hopefully make it happen once there's a decision on the time and location.

@Michael Wagner Do you just have the one employee at your self-storage facility, and then you pick up the slack for when they go on vacation or aren't available?  When you were spending the two years commuting, were you the only "employee?" How much is security a concern or liability for you? How much monthly volatility / tenant turnover do you generally see?

I'm a multi-family landlord in California with a regular J-O-B, but considering cashing out and moving back East to be closer to family. Luckily my properties have appreciated well and I have good equity to put into a new business, as I won't be able to port my current career over to my new new home. I've been researching the idea of getting into a larger multi-family, but a broker just put me on to self-storage and after seeing a few of the deals he sent, the numbers look very good. But I don't know the business, and that scares me.

@Rob Cee What are you typically for the mortgage broker's services? 1 point, or are you paying less? I've always shopped around my loans with the banks myself. But maybe it makes sense to pay a broker if they bring enough value.

A primary residence is also probably the easiest way to obtain a HELOC, which you can use for investment purposes. We all have to live somewhere, and in my home town, my mortgage is way less than a comparable house would rent for, so I think it was a sound financial decision to purchase, but ymmv.

Hi folks, I'm George Fitz from Santa Monica, CA and very happy that I've found Bigger Pockets. As I mentioned in another post, reading the forum posts here are fascinating- like a book I can't put down. 

I got into the landlord business 10 years ago when I purchased a condo out of state with the hopes of eventually earning a down payment for a house here in California. I got lucky with the timing, the value skyrocketed and I did a 1031 into a triplex in Venice, CA two years later, which I still own. I was living in style in that triplex while the other two tenants paid my mortgage, saving money like crazy until I got married, had kids and began to burst at the seams from that "cozy" apartment. Since then, I bought a house and have been focusing on my family and my full-time job, while watching the economy take its roller coaster ride. Now I'm looking to formulate some future goals with my real estate assets. Seems like I came to the right place- unless my head explodes first. Looking forward to some fun conversations....