All Forum Posts by: James ONeal

@Arionne Lloyd and @Don Stocks thanks for taking the time to add your feedback. I spent most of the day reading "Long-Distance Real Estate Investing" by David Greene.

Things I thought about:

(1) The best real estate investors will invest in areas where demand is growing, not just in what is geographically close.

(2) Price-to-rent ratio

(3) Insurance and taxes

(4) Rental demand and vacancy

Additional Market Analysis:

(5) Population

(6) Median Household Income

(7) Median House Value

(8) Crime Levels

(9) Employment

(10) Ethnic Mix

Based on my analysis I am considering the following locations:

-Noblesville -Plainfield -Zionsville -Saint John

Thoughts? Thanks in advance!

@Marcus F. thanks for your service! Where in Cali? I was in San Fran for about 18mo with the Corps of Engineers. 

I am trying to diversify and invest in different class/level properties to get the full picture of what I want to do long term in the area for this location. Open to any recommendation though. 

24%ROI that's awesome! I have found some good candidates on the MLS and am analyzing the numbers repeatedly to paint the full picture for this market.

I really appreciate your input... 

@Kerry Noble Jr stay in touch and let me know when you are ready to make a move. 

@Peter Korty definitely recommend you link up with @Kris Bennett. He's a great guy and has a wealth of knowledge! 

Congrats @Connor Mullen! I hope I will be sharing my success story in a couple of months. After expenses, I am hitting about 15% ROI with property management included (worst case scenario) b/c I will not be able to manage them myself.

@Peter Korty well at least there are two of us now! What types of properties are you interested in? I know Lafayette might not get us rich but the cost to enter as an investor is pretty low which was attractive to me...

@James Storey I am an Active Duty Soldier and was born in Lafayette but raised in Kokomo. Being a newbie my risk threshold is pretty low. I have family in the area and plan on partnering with a cousin as he owns his own painting business and is in the immediate area. I am okay with a base hit the first go around and would be open to a homerun later down the line. My main goal is to get started, learn along the way, and build a network of trusted associates! 

Thanks, @Greg Scott! 10% is after the owner paid utilities, vacancy, taxes, insurance, property management, maintenance, and capital expenditures. Anything north of that is great 10-14% and I always hear Brandon say that's his ballpark number and he shoots for $100 per door. I think you sent a link for an SF home but I am interested in multiplexes. 

Thanks again!

With all of the extra time due to COVID19, I have been reading, listening, and watching everything I can about being a newbie real estate investor. So far I have determined that I want to target multiplexes/family homes in Lafayette, Indiana that need some work (not complete rehabs and not turn-key properties) under $200k with an ROI of about 10%. After searching for podcasts and posts, I don't see a lot of activity in the great Lafayette area. Looking to make some connections!

@Kris Bennett, thanks for the info. I found the Self Storage Almanacs (2009, 2010,2012), and it looks like 2015 is the latest version. There is a plethora of information out there. I appreciate all the feedback to help steer me in the right direction. Thanks again!

@Scott Krone - Solid advice, thanks! I really appreciate it and will keep you posted on the progress...

Over the last 48 hrs, I took a deep dive into potentially investing/constructing storage units. My findings: (1) A great opportunity with low risk (2) If you don't know what you are doing partner with someone who does  (3) Storage units are NOT an investment its a business (4) This is not a passive business- you must be hands-on and engaged. 

Thanks for all the leads, recommendations, and information sharing everyone has provided. As an active duty service member in the US Army who frequently moves I believe you need to stabilize in one location to fully maximize your potential with investing/constructing storage units. 

Thus my journey and quest for knowledge and opportunity continue...  Any thoughts on how to use vacant land passed on/given/available to you?