All Forum Posts by: Jeff Spicer

Welcome Joel,

I am new here as well. I am in Bloomington, IL. just a few hours to the west of you. Definitely check out the podcast if you have not got a chance. They are great and check out the ulitmate beginner guide

http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing

You will want to connect with a REIA in your area as well.

I found the following resources doing a quick search for REIA Indianapolis on Bing. It looks like you have a few good choices for networking with local investors.

http://www.meetup.com/Coast-to-Coast-REIA-Indianapolis-IN
http://www.cireia.org/
http://www.reiclub.com/real-estate-clubs/Indiana.html

I will be trying to get out to some of the clubs in your area so hopefully we can meetup at one of the meetings. Looking forward to networking and hopefully working with you in the future.

Thanks,

Jeff

Congratulations Ryan!!

I see you are in New York and that you purchased your first deal in Memphis.

That sounds amazing. Not only is it a great accomplishment to make your first Real Estate deal right out of college but to purchase a deal out of state that is fantastic. I am sure you will do great things. You definitely are well ahead of the game adn have a great plan. Thank you for sharing and motivating all of us.

Thanks,

Jeff

Hello Barry Congratulations!!

It sounds like you are working your plan and making great progress. Keep up the great work!!

I have not thought about Millington, Tennessee in quite awhile.

While I was in the Marine corp I did my basic aviation and basic helicopter training training at the Naval base there before going on to the specialized CH-46 helicopter training in North Carolina.

Once again congratulations and looking forward to hearing the entire story.

Thanks,

Jeff

Hello Nkrumah,

I am new to BP and live in Bloomington were you able to locate any clubs or groups in the area?

Peoria is not that far for me so a good group would be worth the drive.

Thanks,

Jeff

Hello Casey,

Welcome to BP.

I am new here as well. The plan looks great. Doing an FHA loan for your first investment is a good way to get started. An FHA loan is one of the easier ways for beginners to limit the amount of cash needed upfront.

Letting the tenant know that their neighbor is also the property owner is likely a personal choice. I would choose to let the tenants know. Being upfront and honest in all dealings is a good approach in my opinion. However, I can totally understand in this case wanting to keep your privacy and trying to avoid uncomfortable situations. If you let them know I would just specify all issues go through the property management company first. The property management company is paid to take the calls and deal with the issues first. Just make sure not to blur the lines when the tenant should work with the property management company especially if a friendship develops. Otherwise, the property management company is likely to be paid exceptionally well to have very little to do.

In addition, if you plan on owning the property yourself instead of using an LLC or corporation to own the property I would make sure to work closely with an attorney, accountant, and insurance agent to ensure that your are protected, as much as, possible. Not to say that when buying a property as an LLC or corporation that these resources are not required. I am just assuming that those setting up a LLC or corporation to purchase property are already working closely with these professionals.

I wish you the best of luck with your investments!!

I am looking forward to connecting and networking with you in the future.

Thanks,

Jeff

Hello Blake,

That sounds like a great goal. I am in Bloomington IL. and just getting prepared to do my first deal. I am going to need to really work on my goal, but I know it will at least include completing my first deal before the end of 2103.

I wish you the best and hopefully we can connect at some of the local meetups or at least on BP.

Thanks,

Jeff

Hello Ned,

Thanks you for the great advice and links.

I appreciate the assistance.

Thanks,

Jeff

Hello Brandon,

Thanks for the great video. I am at step 2 / step 3. I currently believe that hold and buy of Multifamily 5+ units is what I ultimately want to do. However, I also believe I need to learn much more from first hand experience, plus generate more money in order to get there. Of course the journey will be the best part and you never know what I ultimately end up loving. I think that I will need to start with SFR due to the lower cost of entry and availability. I will likely do some wholesaling as I am sure I will come across many more deals that will work for others, but that I would not be in a position to take on. Right now I just need to narrow down on a neighborhood and area and get started learning the area and connecting with others in that area and just get going.

Thanks once again for a great video.

Jeff

Hi Bill,

I am new here as well.

I am in Bloomington Illinois, but really thinking about learning and investing within your area. Especially since my wife and I have many family members and friends in the area and are up there on a regular basis. It sounds like you have a great start. Keep up the great work. I just love this site as there are so many willing to network and share their wealth of knowledge. I hope to see you around and be able to network with you more.

Thanks,

Jeff

Hello BP Community,

My name is Jeff Spicer and I am a newbie. I came across this fantastic site this week doing research about investing in real estate. I am located in Bloomington Illinois. This places me in a great location since I am less than 3 hours from Chicago, Indianapolis and St. Louis. I am am regularly in these areas visiting family and friends. So I am interested in connecting with other professionals in one or all of these areas. I am thinking that working and learning one of these metro areas could be more beneficial and allow for more opportunities than my more rural location. However, if that is not the case please point me in the right location to learn about how others are able to successfully work more rural areas.

I am still trying to figure out what area to focus in, but I am leaning more toward buy and hold. However, doing some flips and wholesaling to generate additional cash to fund my buy and hold seems like a good way to start. I also, thought starting with multi family would have been the way to go, but looking at some of the postings it does seem there can be more profit potential, fun, and easier to start with SFRs. However, I can also see that after reaching around 10 properties moving into 5-50 unit buildings would likely provide more funding opportunities. So my goal right now is to learn a little more, make some connections, and develop my plan over the next 2 weeks and then execute my plan by locating and finding my first property and just get started.

I am looking forward to connecting, learning, and contributing to this great group and profession.

Thanks,

Jeff