All Forum Posts by: Ramsin Jacob

I searched your company, says it's based in Toronto?

There's no collapse in the California market.  

Couldn't have said it any better!

Matt, 

Just being realistic and honest, you're probably not going to find a lender who will do that.  On another note, the subject in Oakland Hills is not very attractive.  $510k purchase price, how much do you expect to receive from that?  I don't think it will be much if you do find someone.  

It sounds like you are wanting to passively invest. If you want to share the details of that land you bought, I could possibly line you up with a offer from one of my developer clients. Then you would have your liquid back and can take that to find yourself deals to passively invest in. Another option, if you would like to do seller financing on your land, we could possibly create a structure to have you as a passive investor on the deal (if it makes sense from a development standpoint) and upon completion, you'll receive your ROI.

Let me know.  Thanks. 

How many lenders did you go to?  If you want, I can point some your way.  It is best to speak with multiple anyhow.  Let me tell you a secret people don't know:  When you go to 1 lender and they pull your credit, you will have a 30 day window to apply with as many lenders as you wish, with your credit not getting pulled again.  

Hi Kanti, 

Hope you have been enjoying the weather here in the Bay Area thus far compared to the midwest. 

Just to make sure I understand, your husband and yourself can't afford the monthly payment of a SFR but you would be able to afford a duplex due to renting out the 2nd unit? From what I read it as, it says you can't afford a SFR but can afford a Duplex. Which technically doesn't add up.

It is a great idea to house hack anywhere.  It is a great initial stone into home ownership.  For areas with good rental income equals higher cost for property acquisition.  You can't go wrong with the majority of cities within San Mateo County & Santa Clara County.  

Specially in San Jose, areas to avoid would be East Side San Jose.   Anything along Monterey HWY.  Subdivisions such as "Cadillac East" / "Eden" which is along Hamilton Ave/Winchester Blvd/San Tomas EXPY.  Many pockets of Downtown you want to avoid.  

Other than that, majority of the South Bay is great.  But again, great areas means higher purchase prices. 

The first step for you and any buyer, would be to speak with multiple lenders and get pre-approved.  From there, you'll have your max budget set and you'll know exactly what to look for in terms of pricing.  A question I would have you is where do you and your husband work?  Because if you have to commute everyday, most would imagine you want to be as close as possible to work.  

There is a lot of details, information, etc, behind this entire subject. 

First I have to say props to you because at 19, I was not thinking about Real Estate at all.  So you are already well ahead of a lot of people. 

I understand you are in college and pay for your expenses.  Don't worry, a lot of us have been there, enjoy these times.  For now, you should continue to soak up all the knowledge you can, which sounds like you have begun doing so.  Find a mentor.  Someone who has success in RE within your area and see if you can spend some time on the weekends or in between classes for a few hours at a time.  Work for free, don't ask for money until you can bring in some money.   The experience you get will be worth much more than any dollar amount you receive early on.  It is also very considerate for the opposing individual to take the time to mentor a 19 year old, so add value to his/her business and I am sure they will be happy to help you learn. 

Develop some skills as far as conversational pieces when talking to investors and sellers.  Go around in your area and pick out ugly homes.  Look for unmaintained landscaping.  Bad roofs, paint, cracked driveways, old fencing, debris around the house, old windows, etc.  Knock of those doors when you feel confident with a pitch and strike up a conversation.  Don't be a pushy salesman.  Just act like they are your friend as if you are checking in on them, while throwing in some questions about them and the house.  You have to be able to read the person, don't use scripts, you'll sounds like a robot.  Know how to pivot in a convo quick depending on the person in front of you.  Let them grow some comfort, so they can open up and if they are thinking about selling, they will tell you. 

Now that you have a lead, find local investors and let them know you have an exclusive off market deal.  I would get a NDA prepared and have them sign it to establish the working relationship.  You want to make sure you can trust the investor so they won't go behind your back to the seller.  Once you have the investor side going and they like the property, you can head back to the owner and let them know your update.  Find out what price would make them happy and also find out other motivation factors.  Such as, do they need the money fast?  Do they need cash upfront to move?  Do they have a lot of trash?  If so, offer to leave their unwanted items behind, usually investors will take care of it.  Makes the move easier for the buyer when they can leave all of that.  

From there facilitate with the investor and try to put the deal together.  At the end of the day, you just have to make both sides feel like they are getting what they want.  

Make sure your investors are buying at prices which are 30%+ below ARV.

This is just a little something to plant in your mind and I hope it sparks some ideas.  

Goodluck.

Amazing to say the least!

We've hit the bottom already in the Bay Area, I sell properties throughout the major counties, speaking from experience. Prices have already dropped dramatically by an average of 20%.  It's not going to get much lower at all.  Especially with low inventory.  We're talking one of the strongest, if not the strongest market in the country.  We still have a massive housing shortage which doesn't have a end solution coming anytime soon.  In fact, cities like San Jose are 50% behind their quota of new development to aid the housing shortage.  Yes, houses are still selling close to or above asking price.  I just sold a listing in San Jose last month above asking price when it was on market for 2 months and we actually we price increase rather than decrease.  Another listing of mine in Oakland was on market for multiple months, held firm at our price and got slightly above it still.  

Look into Berkeley.  Better market than Martinez.  Also look into Tesmecal, Mosswood and Piedmont Ave neighborhoods of Oakland.   Find a property that can be converted with SB9.   You can have up to 4 units on 1 lot as long as it meets certain requirements.  I highly recommend leveraging SB9.  

 Thank you