All Forum Posts by: Rick Damian

I am struggling with this issue right now. I am researching taking an old 401K and putting into a CAMA plan (CAMAPLAN.com) in order to purchase 2nd position notes. Either way I guess I would have to side on you need money to make money.

Good luck!

Good Day All...

Wanted to see if anyone has invested in notes on here, specifically 2nd mortgage notes. I listened to the podcast on here with Dave Van Horn who has had much success with this and it left me with some questions. I am considering using money from an old 401K and putting that into a CAMA plan. This plan is a self-directed IRA account that allows you to invest in mortgages and notes etc...

Basically if a borrower has defaulted on their 2nd mortgage I can buy it at a discount and try and convince the homeowner to an agreed upon amount without having to take legal action. There is a lot of due diligence involved in this type of investing, as I guess there is in all investing.

Any info would be great!!

Welcome Ravin! This forum has been a great resource for me in the short time I have been involved. Good luck in all your endeavors.

Rick

Thanks @Shawn M I appreciate that advice. I will definitely look into finding my niche. My instructor recommended the same thing. Good luck in NJ. How long have you been at it..?

@John Moore Your advice is well taken. Sometimes I need to remember the time frame between a signed contract and closing. That is a key point. Thank you for responding. I also see you're from Mt Pocono. My girlfriends mother lives up there. Where a bouts are you located and what is that market like?

@Darren Sager Thanks for your input as well. I was told to ask brokers about teams in my class. It is definitely one of the top questions when I interview. I thoroughly enjoy real estate in all of its ups and downs and will certainly read the recommended book. Thanks for taking the time out to help.

Good luck to everyone and have a great New Year!

Rick

Hey BP's I need some guidance. I was recently licensed in PA a few weeks ago and I am attempting to start off as an agent part time. This is so I can keep my steady job and the check while I learn the ropes and gain some confidence. Has anyone gone through this yet? I hear it can be done and be quite lucrative. Unfortunately I did not save any extra money to live off of. I am just a little concerned with quitting a full time secure job to go into a 100% commission based lifestyle. Especially when I see a million signs around with a million different agent names on them.

I got into the classes to learn more about real estate and some of the rules so that I could invest in buy and holds. I did not want to be 100% dependent on an agent without knowing a little more. I have "trust issues.." HA

Thanks for any advice and here's to a great 2014..!!

Rick

Hi Dave,

Have you decided on a class yet? I just recently passed the exam after taking a class through Weichert Realtors. It was $250 which included a text book (which is like the Bible for PA real estate) and was an in class. I found being in an actual classroom helpful.

Hope you are still interested and if so keep me posted. Us rookies need to stick together..!!

Take care

Rick

Hi Aaron,

Thanks for the help. Sorry for the delayed response but I passed the exam on December 5th. I am currently looking into different brokerages and weighing options. Kind of a slow time of year and a lot of people are off. Not sure I am ready to financially commit to full time agency. I did not plan accordingly and save enough to live on 100% commission just yet. I am hoping to start off part time in order to "get my feet wet." We shall see...

So what is the name of the company you mentioned? And yes, a good mentor is definitely key! Hope you are having a nice Holiday. Take care

Rick

Hello out there! I need some advice on the PA real estate exam. I am taking it this Thursday and feel quite confident that I am prepared except for one area - MATH... Now I am good with numbers but I just can't seem to remember when to apply what to where. I have the commission rates all figured out but there are still some problem areas that I need to address.

If anyone out there has taken the exam recently I was wondering roughly how many math questions are on there. I am spending a lot of time trying to prepare for this but it seems like I just have a mental block sometimes. When I read the answer it makes sense and I can figure out how they have arrived at the answer. However sometimes the wording of the question throws me off.

So if there is any advice out there, please let me hear it!!

Thanks in advance.

Rick

I like to use MyHouseDeals.com to browse. I'm also in process of getting my real estate license so I can access Trend and other MLS services in order to get a jump on properties. Good luck!!

Hi there! I am a week or so away from obtaining my PA Real Estate License and I was looking for some general advice. First, I am located just outside of Philadelphia in a suburb called King of Prussia. I am curious about getting into property management where I can use my skills and experience in maintaining a property and wouldn't have to jump directly into a commission based environment. That being said, I wouldn't mind being a full time agent, it's just that the savings don't really dictate that right now. Was considering being an agent part time while I held my current job just while I learned and got my feet wet. Long term goal is to own rental property or two and I thought getting my license would be a good start into the real estate world. I'm sure I sound all over the map, I would love to just bounce ideas and advice off of someone. Looking forward to hearing from you