All Forum Posts by: David Hutson

Welcome Chris,

There is a ton of info on BP. Set up the keyword alert for Sacramento and you will receive a message every time someone discusses our great city. You can also connect with colleagues here. Finally, we are going to create a Sacramento Meet Up in the next month, keep your eyes open for that.

Robyn,

I'm a buy and hold investor in Sacramento with eight buy and hold properties locally so I'm not a major investor but I do have local experience. I agree with those here who say to look at the cash flow. If you can get a property at below market value and cash flow, even better. It's been really difficult around here to find really good deals unless this is your full time job or have a great agent. I personally look for $300+ per unit. If I can get that and pay almost full price then I am happy. I do look for the good deals but you need to be prepared to move quick and have cash or be pre approved for a loan. Definitely check out the local REIA groups for more info and contacts. There are two locally and Elk Grove is said to have one but I haven't ever been able to make contact with them. Watch on here for a local BP meet up. I'm going to keep hounding @Al Williamson to host the first meeting, which should be in a month or so.

Good evening and welcome to BP. It's a great community. I have learned a lot from everyone here and there is always someone who has an answer to a difficult question.

There are two active REIA's here in Sac. I recommend you go check out both to see which is the best fit for you. They are well established and have many members.

@Al Williamson is setting up a local meetup here in town. I'm gonna keep nudging him to get back here and help him with getting it started. Should be in a month or so.

So follow along, ask questions and get involved.

Brandon,

Great info. I'm still on active duty in California and I’m a buy and hold investor. I currently own and manage eight properties from condo's to a fourplex. I recently bought a turnkey home in Memphis as my wife is from there and spends several months a year in that area.

I will say it is a lot of work so anyone, not just military members, need to be prepared the amount of time learn the business. If you manage your own properties you need to be ready for the calls in the middle of the night or on the weekend for the flooded bathroom or any other issue.

I purchased my fourplex in 2000 as a means to increase my income at the time with a goal of $1500 a month in retirement income once I paid it off. I have slowly added to my profile since.

For the most part I really enjoy working with tenants and the properties. There are times when I have to go away for duty or deployment so the wife steps up and schedules the repairs if something comes up. The longer deployments can be an issue. I hired a property manager for most of my properties during my first deployment to make it easier on my wife. She has been able to manage the properties during my follow on tours/trips. Two things that have helped when I’m gone have been Skype and this great website out there I use called biggerpockets.com. We can ask questions there or to my colleagues.

To sum it up you can invest while in the military. Your job may determine how much time you can dedicate to investing but it is possible. I highly recommend that my fellow service members start educating themselves first then look for homes in the areas around their bases as there are always other service members on looking for homes and each base has a housing office.

Skip the get rich in a weekend seminars and download the Ultimate Beginner’s Guide on BP and listen to the podcasts. Look for other quality educational materials also. There is always something new to learn.

BP, again, great articles and I appreciate all that everyone on here does. There is always someone will to help out and answer questions. Hopefully this isn't too long and I didn't bore anyone.

Al Williamson has already started planning for a meet up in the Sacramento but had to postpone it. I'm looking forward to meeting with everyone else in the near future.

@Al Williamson if you need any help setting up the meeting let me know.

John,

Welcome to you also.

Welcome Jay,

Full time Army here. I own 7 properties locally. It's a lot of work but in the long run it will be worth it.

I'm a buy and hold investor. Just bought my first home in Memphis where the value is much better.

Owning a duplex would be a good way for you to get into the game if you don't mind living next door to your tenant. There are pros and cons to being close to the tenant but I think it's a good way to get started.

I have recently purchased a turnkey property in Memphis. There are many companies out there that provide the service. I flew out there to talk with them and look at the quality of their homes. A few stood out and were of high quality and others, I felt they were lacking.

My opinion is that it's good to diversify so that is where I plan to expand into.

I'm interested in attending. Let me know where and I'll be there.

I have been looking around here and other places online and haven't seen much regarding specific parts of Sac, nothing for Rosemont. It's a good area but I don't believe there is a large number of rentals in that area compared to others. I think it's a good area though. I'm looking at moving into that part of town next year.

Look for some of the meet up/real estate investment groups in town. They have lots of info and people who are knowledgeable and you may find someone specific to the Rosemont area.