All Forum Posts by: Steven Spinicchia

Hi Ryan!  I'm also a new investor in the Upstate NY region.  I closed on my first duplex back in January and am also itching to scale up with more properties.  If you're ever around in the Capital District, I'm always looking to connect with others interested in real estate.

Looking at the options, one thing that may have been overlooked is how much easier management may be with option 1.  Since the units are connected, things like lawn maintenance, snow removal, etc. becomes much more efficient if you can tackle it all at one location rather than two.  It also gives you some control over who is occupying the unit connected to you other one.  Also if you ever wanted to sell, it may be easier if you can offer up the whole building as opposed to just one piece.  That's just my two cents as I see it from a new persons perspective.  Good luck!

I don't think you're starting late at all!  I'm several years older than you and about to close one my first rental next week.  That being said, realistically you will need to build up some more capital before taking the plunge.  Even if it takes a few years to do so, you'll still be ahead of those who never even get started.  Don't give in to the pressure of feeling like you need to do it right now, as waiting to have a stable financial base would put you and your family in a more secure position; but that is just my opinion and I tend to be super conservative with all my estimates. 

Another option if you are looking to invest in your local area would be to find a 2-4 unit in a neighborhood you like, live in one unit, and rent out the rest. 

A little update to this old thread.  First I want to say thanks to everyone who reached out and offered advice and a helping hand.  I ended up finding a deal locally (with the help of my amazing agent) that I should be closing on later this week.  I'll talk about that deal a little bit in it's own post once I close and get everything situated. I know reading about other's first deals definitely helped me, so if anything I did could help someone else, I'd be more than happy to share my experience.  I can't wait to dive in with this property and connect with others (investors/realtors/contractors/property managers/etc) in the Capital Region of NY.  

I'm a new investor looking for my first property.  I'd love to attend the next meet and hopefully connect with a realtor and other investor friendly professionals.  I've been looking around for good investments both locally and out of state.  

@Paul Moore Great question! Without giving too many personal details on a public forum, I am currently in a stable full time career that I plan on staying with. Right now my wealth is mostly in the stock market, and I see real estate as not only a good way to diversify, but I also like all the different ways it can build wealth (cash flow, appreciation, tax write off's, etc). It's something I heavily considered when I was younger, and am now in a place financially where I have the funds I can afford to put towards this. I would start out with one property and look to build from there as I gain experience and hopefully have built a decent team. I'm debating whether to stick with a SFH with a soft budget cap of $150k, or a 2-4 unit for more. I feel like I'm being conservative with my budget, but as I start to get my feet wet, I will feel more comfortable making larger deals. I know that cash flow can be difficult to come by right out of the gate, but I would want the property at the very least cover all expenses and have a decent shot at appreciation, as I'm in it for the long haul (buy and hold).

I'm leaning toward OOS because the market I'm in (Albany, NY) has high taxes and an ongoing eviction moratorium that could end up being a nightmare for a new investor.  For OOS opportunities, I would be looking to build some connections with a realtor and property manager to handle the heavy lifting.  I do understand that real estate is never completely "hands off", however with the possibility of having property in a different state, I would not realistically be able to self manage it.  I am considering the Indianapolis and now Columbus areas due to personal connections in those areas, but am not opposed to any market that shows a strong probability for success.  

If I invested locally I may consider self management, but would probably look into property management as I believe their services can be worth the money.  I know I'm new to this and have a lot to learn.  At the end of the day, I'd like this to be a good learning experience and long term wealth builder.  I'd gladly take any advice you have about this strategy, because at this point that is all it is, a strategy from someone with little experience.  

@Jason Lin I'm in the same boat, new and looking to invest out of state.  I'm in NY, so I definitely understand the appeal of going to other markets.  This may be thinking a little bit ahead, but once I narrowed down my potential markets to 1 or 2 cities, I then researched everything I could about the different neighborhoods.  Realistically though, I feel that there is only so much that can be learned online.  When I'm at the point where I'm ready to meet with a realtor in my desired market (hopefully very soon *yikes*), I plan on actually visiting the location and touring properties in person.  Between that and hopefully some advice from a realtor who is very familiar with the market I would invest in, I can make the most informed decision.  I'm not sure how others do it, but I think this is the method I will try.  Good luck with your search!

I'm also new to real estate investing and am currently narrowing down markets to invest in.  I've been planning for a few years and have been saving.  Unfortunately a lot of the time, waiting and saving might be the most financially prudent option.  Depending on how much equity you have in your primary residence, you may be able to do a cash out refinance and gain some capital that way.  There are upsides and downsides to that.  I'm sure there are people on here who have experience with all sorts of creative financing and more experience than me who can give some advice.  

Wow, I'm absolutely overwhelmed by the responses here!!  I appreciate every single one of them.  So it's looking like turnkey is not the way to go.  That kinda jives with some of the independent research I've done as well.  I'm thinking something along the lines of working with an agent/broker off of here and then finding a property manager once a deal is closed.  If all goes well, hopefully the first of many. 

Looking further into the markets, it seems that Indianapolis and Columbus have done decent as far as population growth over the past 10 years, and there are a lot of you all that have experience in those areas.  Once I narrow down further between those two markets, I will definitely be reaching out to a few of those who have graciously offered their assistance.  Ideally, after discussing things online, I'd like to make a trip out and see some of the houses/neighborhoods in person then make an offer if there's one that ticks the right boxes.  I'm not sure if that's what normal out of state investors do, but I don't mind making the trip personally to do some due diligence.

Lastly I'm so glad I found this forum.  Thank you all for being so welcoming to new comers.  It's definitely an intimidating process to start and this helps big time!

Good morning all!  I'm new to real estate investing, although it is something that I have been considering for years.  I'm looking for my first investment property to get my feet wet and hopefully learn and grow a successful portfolio.  I currently live in the Capital Region of NY.  Taxes are high and real estate is expensive.  If I was to invest locally, I'd probably look at mutli-family units, but this would require a much larger down payment than if I was to invest out of state.  I'm also not sure of the long term viability of investing in my area of NY, with the outflow of population to other areas, as well as an eviction moratorium that could kill any possible returns if I were to get stuck with a bad tenant.

I was also considering looking at property in the greater Indianapolis area, or possibly the Dayton Ohio area.  Those areas specifically because I have some non-real estate connections in those areas.  I know there are several turn key investment firms in those areas, and a single family house in a solid b/c neighborhood can be picked up for relatively little outlay.  Does anyone have any experience, advice, or referrals for those markets?  Would I be better off looking at a turn key firm or hiring a realtor, then finding my own property management after a deal is made?  Any advice or suggestions are greatly appreciated.  Thanks, and it's nice to meet you all!!