All Forum Posts by: Ryan Hopkins

@Heather Hopkins

@Brandon S. I would recommend starting with the ULI Guide To Professional Real estate Development. It can be purchased on Amazon here https://www.amazon.com/Professional-Real-Estate-Development-Business/dp/0874201632

@Franklin Parker Lowe's has reputable gc's come out and do free estimates. I have been looking for a roofing contractor as well and Lowe's has been the best resource. Who knew. I've never plugged a giant chain before...I guess there's a first for everything.

@Kris Nicholson Welcome to the club. It's tough out there but plenty of opportunities still available. As @Adam Schneider said, be sure to join TREIA and his Triangle Deal Maker Sessions. Feel free to reach out for any help.

@Timothy Doenges

Short answer...depends.

Long answer...really depends.

It depends on location, builder, debt/capital stack, absorption, build-out (construction type, materials, etc), lot impedance (watershed, topo/grading, utilities, etc), jurisdiction (entitlements, zoning, etc). If you do it right, in the right market, then yes it works. We haven't even touched on length of time of ownership or exit strategy. 

@Janine Badic you will only have to take the state test which is good. There are plenty of weekend crash courses to take before sitting for the NC test. JY Monk is one that I took...it was ok.

Great topic and fun to see responses. Kind of shocked at the number of people willing to stay; good for me I suppose. If you’re net sheet looks fine staying in CA, go for it. I personally couldn’t imagine forfeiting so much to taxes or any other built in regulatory measure in the state. It has far surpassed its reach. As mentioned, if you didn’t purchase properties years ago and have a pile of sitting equity or are being paid ridiculous amounts of money in the tech industry, it’s very tough. We left for more opportunities with less risk. Every generation has its “gold rush” where no one believes that anything could ever go wrong and appreciation just keeps going up and up! I have no magic 8 balls but 2019 isn’t looking so hot for CA on many levels.

@Kyle Ransom There are so many variables when dealing with entitling...I've personally never done anything in Atl however I can safely assume it's near 6-12 month process.  

If the land currently zoned to accept multi-family? The FAR, flood plains, runoff, overall design, height, appeal to neighborhood...etc, will all have bearing on getting through the process. 

Is the land vacant? Just trees? How much of the land do you want cleared?

A little more specifics will help out.

I agree with what @Scott Choppin put forward. This is just like any other property save for the construction cost.

I would add another variable though, the cost of your time to complete. Similar to a liquidated damaged scenario, every moment the property is not saleable or leasable is a moment you aren’t able to turn a profit; that hasn’t intrinsic value. I would also be wary of why they have it for sale. Could be simple and they ran out of money or they uncovered something that isn’t going to allow them to be profitable.

@Garrick Wong having the finances in order is nearly the first step, congrats on getting there! There are plenty of nooks within wake county that you can invest in sfr. Depending on price point, be prepared to come to the table with a higher than offer than advertised. Also closing in this state is a bit different (than I’m used to at least)...the seller isn’t required to disclose nearly anything, there is a non refundable due diligence fee that is in essence liquidated damages for keeping the property off market (normally equates to about 1% of asking price but in the current market this number is increasing with specificity) and there are more fsbo than ive ever seen in any other market. Those are simply a few of the nuances! Be sure to reach out if you need any help navigating any of these waters. Good luck!