All Forum Posts by: Bill B.

@Dawn Anastasi decisions, decisions, decisions..... :-) I'm leaning toward Seth's approach because of my parents and my son. You have a GREAT model going. I've learned a LOT from your posts and your website. Thank you for posting.

@Gary Parker I hope to have the opportunity to scale. We'll see. I admire your success and have many, MANY posts about vetting tenants earmarked. Hopefully I'll end up with long term angels. We'll see about that, too!!! Gotta buy the property first!!! Thanks for adding to the topic.

@Brandon Turner Or should I say Marlon? :-) Thanks for your post. It is amazing how "simple" REI is at the 10,000 foot level.

Discipline, Perseverance, Systems, and Numbers, Numbers, NUMBERS!

Violate any of those and you can end up in deep trouble. I've seen several references to E-Myth. I've come to understand that reading it is simply "an offer I can't refuse"! :-)

I re-read your seven year plan often. It'll be a bit harder in SoCal (MUCH bigger numbers...looking in the high desert to bring prices down....but.....I gotta vet the farm first!!!!), but I'm 56 and don't have a twenty year horizon to build the portfolio. Again, thank you for your post and for all you do for BP. You and Josh are very inspiring with all that you've accomplished and all whom you have helped. Thank you!!

@Aly W.

Thank you, Aly!

@Seth Williams

Thank you!!

Thanks @Ellis San Jose !! I appreciate your taking the time to post.

@Joe Gore boot camp for landlords!!!! Sounds harsh, but effective.

@Melissa Pragana I'm trying to miss the train that you are riding. I truly hope that some of the ideas on this thread help you to turn your situation around. Thank you for your input.

@Aly L HOPE!!! Thank you for your post. It sounds like you have a quasi PM with the contractor you described. How did you find him? Or to ask another way: If you went to a new market, how would you find one like him? I also hear you loud and clear about where to buy. Thank you for answering the posts.

@Deborah B. Thank you for the time to prepare such detailed posts. And thank you also for the healthy dose of perspective! You have done a wonderful job and thank you for sharing how you got there. I take it that you are managing the properties directly and don't have a PM. Do you contemplate getting a PM at some point? If so, when?

@Terry Hershberger Buying in good areas may cost more in the short run, but it sounds like a pay me now or pay me later proposition. Systems to manage and maintain are in my wheelhouse, I think! We'll see!

@Troy Stoehr Thanks for chiming in. The more I hear a point confirmed, the better chance of getting through my thick scull! Prime locations and thorough screening. Sounds like a trend is immerging.

@Seth Williams your post is like the cherry on the sundae. If I plan and prepare properly, I should not end up in landlord Hell. At what point did you start using a PM? With the first property or after having a few? How did you find/vet the PM?

Thanks to all who posted so far. I hope more people contribute. This is a great discussion and very helpful. More war stories, please. Did anyone start down the path to perdition and end up turning it around with buy and hold? That is, did you want out, then "see the light"? If so, how did you do it?

As to the crash, it is anyone's guess. No one stands to win. Caution and extra due diligence is prudent in these times......

@Brandon Turner if you truncate the last letter of your first name, you become BRANDO!!! (and in this case, SUPER BRANDO!!!!)

My DESIRED response would more properly fit in the "off topic" forum. So, I must refrain except to say (ON topic) that the vast majority of what you list would be obviated by paying cash for properties. That is to say, most explicitly, government policy and actions are skewing the market to the wealthy and hurting the poor and middle class. And such is normally the case with government "help".

Whether tis nobler to fix and flip to outrageous fortune, or to landlord and wade into the sea of trouble.....

....my apologies to the bard........

I've seen so many references to "burned out landlords" and "it takes three years for newbies to sell out of their buy and holds" that it gives me pause. I am captivated by Brandon Turner's (did you ever notice that truncating the last letter of his name makes him Brando?!?!??!!!) seven year plan to one million......but I keep getting the vibe that landlording is a full contact sport. Then I read Ali Boone and want to pull the trigger (almost ANY trigger) ASAP after due diligence........(I already have the beach picked out!!!!!) Then I see another post about "lions and tigers and meth labs, oh my!!"

I'm not averse to work, but I am blessed to still have my parents who need increasing amounts of my time and a son with special needs.....so, my aim is to generate cash flow and be able to work it toward a part time job with the flexibility to go to doctor appts, etc.

So, what causes the burn out? Does having a cracker jack PM obviate the burnout? Or is that just another layer of hell? How does one avoid the burnout? I would really enjoy a good debate on these issues. Please share war stories. If you got out of buy and hold, why? If you are seasoned buy and hold investor and would not live ANY other way, how did you avoid burn out? (or are you just masochistic?) :-)

I appreciate everyone's time and input.

@Joel Owens

I'm contemplating wholesaling and fix and flip to fund buy and hold. I'm trying to understand the market and want to get an overview. I don't have my RE license yet and therefore no direct access to MLS. Looking for something in the mean time so that I don't sound any more moronic than need be when I do start making calls. Thanks for your input. I always enjoy your posts.

@Mandy S

If you see my daughter up there in Sac, please have her call home every once in a while......sigh........more seriously, thank you for the info. I do need current info. Many of the RE sites (trulia, etc) are so out of date that it can bring one to tears. As noted for Joel above, I'm starting out and am contemplating wholesaling and fix and flip to fund buy and hold. That is a lot harder down here in SoCal with prices as they are.....but......I gotta try..... Can you (without taking too much of your time) describe the different tools you refer to for wholesaling vs fix and flip vs buy and hold? Again, I don't want to take too much of your time, but the learning curve is just not bending for me yet. Thank you for your time and effort.

@Freddy McCloud

I don't know of a site like Property Radar for your area. I'd suggest searching in Bing with the following key words:

site like +"propertyradar" +"georgia"

include all the quotes and plus signs to force the search to use those exact terms. Obviously change out georgia to florida for the second search. I hope this helps.

Warning: newbie advice....

You may or may not be able to get 5% down financing. But, the larger issue is will that be enough to protect you? CA RE is showing signs of slowing. Some believe we're in another bubble in certain CA markets. IF (should we say when?) the market turns down will you have enough equity to hold on? Even if you are cash flowing well, do you have enough rental income that will allow a cut in rents if the market sinks far enough? Don't do the deal if any of the answers to the above are negative. Just the newbie in the room.....I'll go back to my corner now.......