All Forum Posts by: Ken Riedel

I get that.  In this case, I was thinking of it more in terms of functioning as a real estate agent, but without the license, which is kind of what wholesaling looks like.  They've already bought another house a couple of hundred miles away that they're in the process of moving into.  Once they're done, they'll sell.  I could serve as a trusted local resource for them, doing what I can to find the right buyer, and earning a small markup from a wholesale price to retail.  I've been licensed in the past, and have been working in lending for years.

But ultimately, I think you're right.  They're probably better off hiring a licensed agent who's better equipped to shepherd the deal through to closing.  It wouldn't be the first time an agent has worked for an out-of-town seller.

Have a neighbor who's selling, and heard that I was interested in real estate investing.  Here in L.A., there's no way to get the deal to work out as a rental or a flip without a huge price concession -- something they're not likely to accept.  Property needs some minor work -- probably about 5-10K.  It comps out at about 410k.  It's a detached condo.

Is there an opportunity to add value for my neighbors and make some money?  Was thinking about wholesaling it, but I've never tried that before.

I suggest you call Madeleine Lavoie, owner of Cherie Miller Real Estate. She's a top-notch realtor and investor in Yucca Valley nearby.  She can refer you to someone. Tell her Ken Riedel says hey.

This blog won't allow me to post her contact info, but you can find her online.

I've lived in Sylmar for the past few years. you're lucky to find anything under 300/sq ft.  170k would be a steal, even for a tear-down.

That's some good advice, Laura.  Thanks for sharing that experience!  Makes me want to check out the guy my daughter's dating to make sure he's not a gambler.

As far as making sure we can buy and sell property and collect rents, we've got a family member over there who knows the market and the laws.  And he'd be involved in each deal.  I just need to figure out how to structure a business entity that allows him to be involved, earn a profit, and have some sort of skin in the game.  

My wife is a Romanian immigrant, and her brother (still in the old country) did well in Real Estate investing in Romania before the market crash in 2008.  As bad as the crash was here, it was worse there.  He's been trying to get back on his feet ever since.  He's convinced my wife that he's got some great investment opportunities, but needs capital. We'd like to participate, but want to avoid sending money in the form of a loan (our experience lending money to family hasn't been so great).

What I suggested was that if he has a specific property that looks promising, he should send us a proposal.  If it looks good we'll buy the property and pay him a commission.

Or, to create something more ongoing, set up a corporation in Romania where my wife and I are the owners and he'd be an officer of the corporation.  For that, we'd need a business plan from him showing how he could make it work and what the risks are.

So my questions to the group are:

1. Does anyone have any advice on investing overseas (especially in Eastern Europe)?
2. What's the best way to do business with family?
3. Is there a way to arrange an overseas real estate investment so that we could write off travel expenses to inspect the property?