All Forum Posts by: Saul L.

Hello Susanna,

Welcome to BP. This community and website are an incredible resource for REI, knowledge and networking, although naturally more focused on the US market. If you are looking to invest in the UK then you might want to join the Property hub as well. http://thepropertyhub.net

Best of luck.

@Sandra Skorupski @Zhen Liang

Don't know about the others, but Al Beahn is an active member on BP- still selling turn key  in Detroit.

Just saw that the OP is pretty old- any updates ?

@Russel McMillan- my experience is in the city of Detroit. I  understand that the surrounding cities are a different ball game but have never invested over there - of course you are then looking at a different price frame, demographics and cash flow. The properties in Detroit itself require a lot of knowledge expertise, experience and active (sometimes aggressive) management.- As I said- for an absentee landlord not worth the risk, aggravation and time.

@Al Beahn is entitled to his opinion, and I am sure he would be happy to sell you a Turn Key home in Detroit, but as another experienced Detroit investor @Richard Dunlop has said more than once on these forums: It takes more than a property manager in Detroit.

Welcome @Russel McMillan to BP, Architecture and REI, (I can welcome to all 3 being where I am)

You are looking to invest in one of the most challenging but also potentially most lucrative markets there is. If you were not moving there I would be recommending you don't get involved- ( I don't believe its the somewhere to invest long distance)- but if you will have your feet on the ground over there-, proceed with extreme caution, learn fast and connect with the right team and partners - it can  work. Don't invest in anything you cant afford to lose (always a good idea).

I would reach out to @Tom A. who co-hosts a local  meet up with a lot of  new and experienced players- @Jeff Rabinowitz is also a highly experienced connection to approach who has helped me alot and probably knows everybody who is anybody in REI - Detroit.

Best of luck with all your ventures.

Saul

Hi @Jerry Shen - Welcome,

As always on BP - you are getting some fantastic advice from posters (as well as a few fishing attempts- to be expected)

Another option to consider is crowdfunding via a few of the top tier portals- providing an easier way to diversify by type (debt or equity), sector (MF, SFH, Apartments, retail, office, ground up developments etc), amount and geographic location. This thread might be of interest - OP invested the amount mentioned exclusively in CF and has posted results.

Hello @Aviv Green

Welcome to BP. 

You are going to find it very difficult to get loans as a foreign newbie investor. Generally regular US banks wont look at you and HML want experience before they throw money at anybody. IMO flipping long distance is near impossible with enormous risk.

I think you need to define how active an investor  you want to be , what risk you are prepared to bear and what returns you are realistically looking for.

If you are accredited I would recommend looking at crowdfunding opps. With the right DD, I have found them an excellent , more passive form of RE investing.

PM me if you would like to connect.

Once you start running- run faster.

 Hello Vanessa,

I hate to put  to put a damper on all the positive responses you have received above, but as as a foreign investor I would recommend staying as far away as possible from Detroit. You are entering a minefield and there are far better, safer and most importantly more managable Investment opportunities for an out of country investor such as yourself.

@Jeff Rabinowitz I understand that they do it because they can. Question is why can they ? 

I would also lien all my debtors properties to me if I could.

Thanks all @Jeff Rabinowitz, @Richard Dunlop, @Steve Babiak, @Account Closed and others who chimed in here. I will post as things pan out. I would like to believe that despite some of the ominous forecasts above, I may be in a slightly better position as it has been the same tenant continuously over the entire period and they are still in the home- so no dispute as to who actually consumed the water and at whose expense it should be.

This might not be the place for a rant - but on a more basic level I havent been able to understand why in the US water utilities always go with property and as such with the property owner when push comes to shove. 

Where I come from  the usage is by a person (not a property) and therefore the bill is to the person whose name it is in and who consumed the service be it water, electricity, gas or anything else. 

If anybody doesn't pay for any utility they get due warning, eventually the service is cut off and the utility company or municipality go's after the debt owed, using regular legal procedures- in the same way any other company or service provider would go about collecting. Nobody gets their home taken away from them because they haven't paid a bill and no landlord is responsible for his or her tenant paying their bills.