All Forum Posts by: Michael Ehmann

@Wole Sun the challenge will be high appreciation AND low crime. It’s hard to find both. A lot of the parts of Atlanta which are projected to grow significantly aren’t necessarily in the best part of town. I’ve heard the sweet spot is when about 30% of a street has turned - basically enough to reduce a lot of the crime but still with enough time to appreciate significantly. However, this is really hard TJ time.

@Walker Meadows hope to see you at the next one! In case you didn’t see the updated details, it’s the last Wednesday of each month, 7pm, @ The Ivy in Buckhead. 

The event should show up on the Events and Happenings section of BiggerPockets (note: not a formal BP-sponsored event, but lots of attendees are on BP). We also have a corresponding Facebook group of Atlanta investors who are all pretty active.

@Jeremy Rusch welcome! Have you considered house hacking while in school and then holding onto the property as an investment after you graduate?

@Keyur R Patel

Welcome! BiggerPockets is a great resource. I highly recommend checking out The BiggerPockets Podcast. When I was getting started, I got 80% of my real estate knowledge from here.

IMO it’s important to have a foundation of real estate knowledge so that you can make smart (enough) decisions and have intelligent (enough) conversations with other investors. After a certain point though, you simply have to start taking action. Eventually experience becomes the best teacher. Start learning how to analyze deals, particularly in certain sub markets of Atlanta (assuming that’s where you want to invest).

I would be cautious about flipping in this climate. Not saying you shouldn’t do it, but I’ve heard some flippers getting more cautious. You can probably still do it and be fine for the near future, and some people will make money flipping in any real estate climate. But I would definitely proceed with caution if you go this route. Could be worth considering partnering with someone more experienced if you find a flip deal you like. I personally like buy-and-hold as a first investment.

There’s a group of investors who meet on the last Wednesday of every month at The Ivy. Attendance usually ranges from 50-100 per month, and we’re hoping to consistently have 100+ each month in the future. It should be on the Events and Happenings section of BiggerPockets, but I’m not seeing it for some reason. Let me message someone about making sure it’s set up as a recurring event. If you don’t see it in 24 hours, slide into my DM’s, and I can send you the details. I recommend coming at some point if you’re interested in networking with and learning from others.

Best of luck, and let me know how I can help!

@N'neka Scruggs we have the event on the BP events page, so go look for it there: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521/topics/678234-monthly-atlanta-rei-meetup?fbclid=IwAR37lRU6YV_EsEclJ7Pgo1px-D90hDRjm3-3sl0HQkaSKmTCB0OrkqgIlfc

Hope to see you next month!

Meant to add: if you do decide on Atlanta, I’m happy to provide some points of contact. I have a few wholesalers who I know are legitimate and a property manager who I highly recommend (none of them are giving me a kickback or anything - I just like to help if I can). PM me if you want to chat more or if there’s more I can do to help.

@Tyler Evans sounds solid. I’m glad to hear you’re not blindly sold on Atlanta. It’s a great city, and I’m very bullish on it, which is why I’m investing here for the time being. However, Atlanta is pretty hot right now, so finding a deal is harder than it used to be. Lots of people overpaying.

I think you’re spot on: investing out of state can force you to systematize, which is great.

If you do decide to hone in on Atlanta, you have to know the idiosyncrasies of the city - lots of variation within a small area. Could be worth flying down for a weekend to explore in person.

If you’re looking out of state anyway, I’ve also heard good things about the Midwest - not as much growth and change but supposedly more cash-flowing opportunities. If I ever look out of state, this is what I’ll probably do.

@Tyler Evans why Atlanta? Why not invest more locally? Why blue collar and what do you mean by that?

Hi all - friendly reminder that a group of Atlanta area investors meets the last Wednesday of each month. The next meetup is this Wednesday 2/27, 7pm @ The Ivy in Buckhead! The event consists of networking with other professionals and a guest speaker. It’s not a BP-specific meetup, but a lot of folks who attend also come from BP.

We have investors of all levels - from folks who are just getting started up to those who have done hundreds of deals. Hope to see more people there!

We also have an active Facebook group in addition to the meetup. Let me know if you’re interested in joining that as well.

@N'neka Scruggs welcome to BP! There is an Atlanta investor meetup the last Wednesday of each month at 7pm @ The Ivy in Buckhead. The next one is this coming Wednesday 2/27. There are a lot of folks there from BP.