All Forum Posts by: Michael Olesky

Nice to meet you @Keith Nugent

Here are some of the other locals you'll want to meet - http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/55/topics/125715-new-member-here-brevard-county-fl

@Scott Schuetz

Also connect with @Pedro Machin from Indian harbour bch.

@Walt Payne - keep meaning to introduce myself, I relate to a lot of your posts. Let us know when you are town next so we can meet up!

@Christian Lautenschleger

I'm kind of in the same boat. I bought a foreclosure off the mls last August and while I got a decent deal for a good house, I had to put all of my savings into it. So I often wonder if I should have bought two cheaper houses instead of the one newer bigger house.

Like you said though, you live and learn. It has helped mold my goals and future expectations so at least I got that education for my cash being tied up.

If the bank is flailing you can probably back out of the deal if you're really regretting this deal already. I feel a little regret about my one rental but I wouldn't change what I did, it will be a good investment in the long term and I'm working to build capital and looking for owner financing to get the next one with less cash outlay!

@Brandon Cao makes a good point, a duplex is a good practice run for a larger appt.

-Mike

@Kenneth Goldman

I'm guessing you are recharged now after 3 pages of great responses!

At this point, you've come this far and put this much into it because you know the reward is out there for you to find. So you've seen and know too much to turn back now, sorry Ken but you took the red pill (matrix reference!). Adjust course if you have to, re-calculate your route like a gps, but keep working towards your end goal.

When you are feeling defeated, read/watch success stories and believe that if the person in the post or video did it, you can to!

Then think of how many people you will inspire when you tell your story of struggle that finally led to your success, powerful stuff. I look forward to reading your success story!

Hey Jacob,

My first thought is that this is an apartment, not a house. I avoid apt's but I'm sure someone who favors them will post their opinion soon. I avoid apt's because you'll have a monthly HOA fee to pay in addition to your normal mortgage/owning costs. My experience with HOA fees was that they kept increasing year after year, I didn't notice it that much the years that the rent went up as well but then rents dropped. I noticed it big time that year because the HOA still went up. The reason this doesn't sit well with me is that I don't have control over my cash flow, every property is subject to the affects of rent dropping, but I see no need to add an increasing HOA fee to that equation.

Additionally, you have no control over how your neighbor lives, for instance, roaches in your neighbors apt means roaches will find your apt as well.

The other concern I have for apt's is there are usually only a few different models and you are limited in the upgrades you can do to increase the value of your apt over someone else's.

So that is my personal experience/opinion on apt's, the other thing I am currently avoiding is short sales, which this is, because of the long time period to get an offer accepted and closed. Again, a personal preference you'll want to decide for yourself.

The best of luck and keep us posted!

-mike

Nice to meet ya Pedro, I'm in Indialantic. Small world! I code some for work and have began collecting rentals. I haven't done any rehab projects yet but have some friends in Palm Bay that do.

I gotta ask, does anyone drive a lambo in Austin, Texas? Doesn't seem like there would be enough room for a 10 gallon hat!

Just joking, no offense to anyone out of Texas!

I've used the site below for quotes in Florida. Shop around, insurance is goofy in florida!

https://www.fmap.org/index.cfm

-Mike

Hi @Myles Coles,

First off, congrats to you and your partner for getting started at 19!! If I could only go back...

One suggestion for finding a mentor would be to go to a local rei club meeting and find investors that are doing deals and ask them if you can bird dog for them. You'll get to learn the type of deals and the numbers that work in your area from someone who is already successful. You should get a small fee for bringing them deals, but the real payoff will be the experience and guidance you are looking for.

After you bring them some deals that they are happy with and buy, start asking if you can partner with them on a deal. Doing this will not only get you started, but will hopefully turn into a long lasting relationship that you can partner with throughout your career.

Just ask the question "What can I do to help you?" to as many investors in your area as you can and you'll find someone to work with. No matter how little experience you have, there is something you can help with.

As for learning, if you haven't already read it, I really like the book 'The Millionaire Real Estate Investor' by Gary Keller. And don't just study real estate, you'll want to study mindset, I haven't finished it yet, but I'm currently reading 'The Slight Edge' by Jeff Olson and this is so powerful, I think it should be mandatory reading in high school.

Keep us posted on your journey!

-Mike

Hey Jason- If you want a live person hotline, pat live is good but pricey. I just use a free google voice number with a message asking for name, number and address and have it forwarded to my cell for when I can answer it.

You can cut some costs by not getting the real estate license right away, there is a mix of folks who think it is helpful and folks who don't. For me it isn't worth the cost, I have agent friends who are also investors for access to the mls. But I may consider it in the future when the cost has less of an impact on my budget.

I've done well so far with adwords and a squeeze page, but monitor the adwords daily at least, depending on your keywords and geographic constraints, you can get a lot of clicks too quick. On my buyers adwords, i didn't constrain it to florida the first day and got $25 worth of clicks overnight! Not a big deal, but could have turned into one quickly if i wasn't paying attention.

Best of luck!

Mike