All Forum Posts by: Ben W.

Tom, if you are a real estate broker then you should know the rules.  The federal securities law is just one concern I would have in reading this.  What is your experience?  Have you ever done a deal other than brokering one?  To raise serious money from others, you are going to have to PROVE that you know what you are doing - get dirty.  I am not going to beat you up, but an Offering Memo is much more complex than what you have outlined here.  I suggest that you try this on friends and family before you try it on strangers;  your first argument may be 1) friends and family do not appreciate what you do or 2) I don't want to approach people I know.  Well then, put some skin in the game and show that people are going to invest in success.  Don't over analyze it, get in game, but please do not create a bad name for real estate investors by not knowing what you are doing.

To end my rant, I am going to applaud you for at least going to BP. 

Best wishes.

Leo, 

I echo what @John Whittle and @Alex Brookbank said.  I would add the comment that even if you plan to use local PM, that may not be enough.  In Price Hill, you really need to buy right.

We have been investing in that neighborhood for over a decade, have lots of great stories (good and buy) but manage for ourselves because we believe that in areas like this, you need to be really fast, and we have found very few PM's who really care about investors as we care about ourselves.  Happy to share more with you if you want to PM me.

You may need to source outside of your market.  We are finding many west coast investors are now investing in the Midwest.

Ashley, that is what I was saying. Real estate is not as liquid as other investments (the capital markets - CDs, stocks, mutual funds, etc). A SFH where you are the owner, is going to be the nex step down in liquidity. Then MF, because there is a more limited market. Then a syndicate because of your lack of control. Just my humble opinion. Many investors don't think through all of this.

@Chris Soignier, well said.  The hard part for many early investors to get is that there are many, many scammers out there who want to separate you from your money.  It is a tough decision to relinquish control, but same thing about investing in the stock market, right?  I cannot opine on LU, but there will be spin offs and maybe some bad eggs.  As a Midwesterner, I would tell you that we do not see as many of these "clubs" around.  That being said, the resurgence of the old "pay for education" such as Nouveau Riche scares me.  The question is:  do I pay now, or pay later?  Do I earn while I learn.  Tough for many, particularly those who want to invest more passively and do not have the full resources/team.

So Ashley, do your due diligence.  There is not that much liquidity in real estate so you need to be careful.  I assume that you have the financial flexibility and wherewithal to do this.  I live by the adage that the deal of the year comes us every day.  Congrats on actually taking action. 

Scott, if it is the one that I believe it is, it may not be as great a deal as you think.  If it is that one, it has been marketed for some time.  I mostly do buy and hold of residential but do own one strip center as well.  Don't know your experience, but neighborhood centers are much different than the bigger centers. 

Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss.

Ben

bad experience with RPM.  We manage for ourselves.  If you have the capacity, you might try that at the beginning.  Our theory is that no one takes care of your properties as well as you do. 

Best wishes as you start the journey.  Many resources available.  Develop a strategy; allow that strategy to be a little flexible as you get more inputs.  Take action. 

Michael, we are investors and work with a number of really good realtors.  While I am sure you will receive many responses from the trade here, you need to be discriminating when you add people to your team.  As I am sure you did with any existing purchases, it always helps to have a strategy that you can vocalize to a realtor so that they can stay focused for you.

Welcome.  The Cincinnati metro area is an excellent market for a multitude of strategies.  A number of us here are happy to collaborate as you determine if this is truly an area of focus.  Connect if I can assist.

Ben