All Forum Posts by: Michael Koenig

Hello,

I'm a licensed architect that has recently made the switch to working for a GC. Real estate investing has been something I've been interested in since I graduated back in 2011 but sadly since I stuck with the architecture field so long I was building a down payment way below the rate the market has shot up. Since this is a much better paid field I'm excited to finally be being building capital at a fast rate. However, since I'm in southern California, figuring out how to enter this game is still proving a little tricky and wasn't sure if anyone had some tips. House hacking does not seem to be option as I'd be looking at a million plus first purchase even in some of the more questionable neighborhoods. I also don't trust the lower end condo stock down here, ($450,00 and under) as I've worked for an architect involved in rehabilitating these under maintained properties and most seem as though they are old stick built buildings about to fall apart. Additionally, many times when you factor in the HOA it's the same monthly payment as a 700k house. I'm interested in possibly rehabbing an older house and adding an ADU since the city has become very friendly to those to combat the housing crisis, even removing the parking requirements in many areas. Again though this would be 700k+ operation. As of right now I've noticed that alot of these properties pencil out once you can muster a 20% downpayment to escape mortgage insurance but that would require close to 100k to get in the game and I'm tired of sitting on the sidelines. Just looking for some encouragement and ideas on getting at it. Thanks anyone who can contribute.

I'm posting from California where almost all of this is regulated but your pictures are showing why that isn't necessarily a bad thing. You can research what the requirements are by going to your cities website and looking at new development requirements. Specifically Searching for "stormwater requirements" should bring up some results. From there you can check county requirements for new developments and since this is dumping into your local creek possibly state fish and game and lastly the army core of engineers. I'm not sure on the last one as the current administration might have ended the practice but the Army core had originally grabbed jurisdiction on basically every river and stream in the US. They are more about overseeing developments that alter these water bodies but if there is as drastic erosion as you are claiming they might be the ones to contact if you can't find any local new development requirements for stormwater. They'll slap your city hard if there's new development severely affecting waterways and streams.