All Forum Posts by: Jim Lally

@Austin Smith 

 Welcome to BP!  I definitely have to concur with what Joel is saying.  Unless you have another source of income in your first year or have at least 6 months of reserves built up then it will be difficult to achieve your goals.  It will take time to establish yourself in your market.  The typical sales cycle can be up to 90 days or more.  You also have to consider the startup and ongoing costs involved with being a realtor.  In my state annual cost run  approximately $2.5k.  Talk to several brokers to get a full understanding  of what those costs will be for you.

I got my real estate license as well but kept my full time job.  That may be an option to consider if your currently working.  I have other agents assist me with showings and I primarily market to  investors vice the retail buyer.  Therefore I focus my efforts on a particular niche market. 

Overall I think having your RE license is a good idea for the investor though.

Best of luck!

Jim

@Ricardo S. 

 In CT we don't have the option to take online classes but believe me if the option were available I would have taken it.  The courses you are taking all revolve around national and state specific legal aspects of becoming a real estate agent.  Unless you think you might have specific questions for the instructor or just prefer classroom instruction, I would go for the online course.  As Gerald mentions, it's going to be much more convenient for you. 

The objective is to get the licensing requirements out of the way as quick as possible to reach your end goal of getting your license.  The course isn't going to teach anything about how to be successful as an agent, just the legal ramifications for the most part.

I would start to interview local brokers in your area to understand what they expect from you and how they feel about your investing goals.  I wouldn't pay for the job placement assistance.  Save your money.   I would just go out and find a broker on your own. 

Best of Luck!

Jim

@Kevin Keene 

 Welcome to BP!  It's always nice to see someone new from CT on the site (and close too!) Thanks for your service as well.  I'm a navy veteran myself.  Retired a few years back.

I recently decided to get my RE license a few months back and I don't regret it. While disclosure is important like you mentioned, I think the pros outweigh the cons. You have access to the MLS, commission savings and a network of other agents you can use to send investors your way. The reciprocity issue for licensing varies by state. Check out this link for reciprocity agreements with CT http://www.ct.gov/dcp/cwp/view.asp?q=381860 So it depends on where you ultimately end up.

In my opinion investing in real estate is not a  race.  It's important to do your due diligence and understand the market your looking to invest in.   I've been looking at properties in the New London county area for almost a year now and still haven't purchased anything yet. My initial approach was to flip but I've now shifted into a buy and hold strategy.  You'll find quite few properties out there that are well over 100 years old and in very poor condition. Lots of structural damage too which is extremely expensive to fix.  This drove me to the buy and hold approach.  The key is to stay focused on one strategy and avoid the shiny objects!

You might want to consider attending a REIA meeting to network. Unfortunately the closest one is in the Hartford area. I've thought about trying to get a meet up started in this area but have not been able to get enough interest. Maybe I should try it again though.

Anyway please feel free to reach out anytime.  

Jim

@Jon Deavers 

 I would agree that reaching out to the more experienced agents in my office is a good approach.  Once they know that I'm focusing on investors they can send any they may come across my way.  I really think that most agents don't want to put in the time and energy necessary to cater to the investor's needs.  Not to mention the lower commissions that come from buying flip properties as well as the numerous offers.  As you say once you have an investor lead they will become repeat business for me as long as I meet or preferably exceed their expectations.  

The BP forums may also be another good approach as well.  I appreciate you thoughts!

Jim

@Leila Jones  I am just getting through the initial orientation training but I will absolutely take the Ignite training at some point.  They offer so much as far training and coaching is concerned.  I have been reaching out to other agents in my market place and already found one who has agreed to help me.  

How long have you been with KW?  I don't think I've come across anyone who has not had positive things to say about KW.  They've all been very helpful and friendly to me so far.  I'm glad I went with them!

Thanks for your input!

Jim

Hi

I recently went ahead and got my RE license in CT but still have my full time job.  My goal is to focus on the investor niche and not the retail market.  I will of course be using the license for my own investing purposes as well.  I went with Keller Williams since they seem to offer the best technology tools (at a price of course!).  However, I want to find the most effective way of getting my name out there now!

I've have been involved in my local REIA but I'm sure their other avenues I'm not thinking of. I've also thought of using Craigslist as well but don't know if that would produce any results.

Anyone have some thoughts on what the best approach would be here?

Thanks!

Jim

Hi @OREESHA MCCREARY 

Welcome to BP! You won't find a better site out there for learning and networking. I highly recommend the podcasts as well as the "How to" guides. I would also get involved with your local REIA as well to learn your local market.

Good Luck!

1. Hi @Kim Gloor 

I'm in the same boat as you right now.  I've been looking for a good deal for months now and simply haven't found it.  You say you've been looking for weeks.  That's really not that long.   Have you found other properties before this one?  I  guess what I'm trying to say is don't become fixated on one property.  If your coming out with $15k in profits that may quickly evaporate if something unexpected comes up (even with a GC estimate).  

This is the reason I haven't found the right flip property myself, the projected profit was just too thin!  Make sure you look at external factors affecting the property as well such as flood zones and of course location.  I walked away from a great deal because I spoke to a neighbor who showed me recent(within the last year) pictures of the property under 2 feet of water.  You have to think about resale.  

Definitely have a GC walk through the entire property with you to determine everything that should be addressed.  Lastly have a reputable home inspector look at the property as well.  He may spot things the GC will miss.

Good Luck!

Jim

Welcome @Robert Murphy to BP. This is by far one of the best sites out there for the real estate investor. The resources available here are invaluable. I really enjoy the podcasts myself.

I'm very interested to see how you do in the student housing market. I was initially interested in doing that myself but decided to get into flipping instead for a variety of reasons. Sounds like you have a good business model though, "high quality housing in good safe neighborhoods for the students".

My own daughter will be entering college in 3 years so it may be a viable alternative to the typical student housing options. There would be no shortage of potential tenants. My primary concern would be in properly screening them though.

Best of luck!

Jim

@Julian G. Believe me the horrible sub $30k homes are prevalent throughout the state. The problem here in CT is the overabundance of older stock homes that primarily make up the bulk of proprieties in this price range. Combine that with much higher housing costs in general as compared to a place like Florida. Often times these homes are located in bad or borderline bad areas. You really have to edge closer to $50k or greater to find decent candidates and even that's a struggle. In my area (New London County) we have a huge inventory of homes that Abraham Lincoln could easily have slept in!

It's tough to find a good flip here but when you find one you have to act on it immediately. You just have to scrub the listings daily and have others looking for you as well(wholesalers, bird dogs, realtors, etc). The activity is picking up though!