All Forum Posts by: Eric M.

@David Holland  I was all excited for a Baltimore discussion, but I guess this is a good question too. ;-) Hope to see you at some upcoming events.

Welcome @Crysta Balbontin! I've had few fun times at the "races and slots" in your part of the world! ;-) Best of luck with your efforts in the RE biz!

@Chris Pappas  Fair enough! Glad you're getting some scholarship money. Best of luck with your studies.

@Chris Pappas Not to pry, but why get a masters in RE after you earned a law degree? Particularly if you are going to be an investor, I wonder how much value a masters in RE will provide compared to day-to-day practical RE knowledge? Just something to think about if you haven't started the program yet! ;-)

@Edward A. Yes. I think the fact that you are new is probably part of the problem. Agents work on commission, and if there are not going to be deals, it's not going to be interesting to most agents. One thing you may want to consider is finding an agent that will offer you an hourly rate or a flat monthly fee. If you buy, the commission earned can be applied to your monthly flat fee, so you'd really only be paying if you weren't purchasing. Everyone wins in that scenario.

@Michael Washington To add to the prior response, which I completely agree with, Baltimore is not exactly a city where you can't find similar deals. I'll bet good money that there are more than a few similar listings on the MLS where financing would be more welcome, and there may also be seller financing opportunities that make good sense that are less risky than financing auctions.

@Account Closed That's a funny appeal. It's going to cost the State three times that much to fight this in a subsequent proceeding. Anyway, pretty funny stuff. Keep us updated on this.

To provide an answer with a very large grain of salt, I think Baltimore is a better market for rentals than for flipping, but that's not to say it can't be done successfully there. For me, as I look at available properties, I find a lot more properties where the numbers are better for rentals than for flipping in Baltimore.

Also, I agree with @Ned Carey that banks are much more likely to post properties on the MLS than sell "of market." They want the highest price, and the MLS is the most "guaranteed" way to accomplish that in most cases.

@Shoshana Shulman There are good deals and bad deals in almost every zip code in the country, including Baltimore. However, one thing to look at is where there are a lot of cash sales. That will give you a good indication for neighborhoods that are attracting investor attention, and it might help to guide you in the right direction. A licensed agent can help you do that search. Best of luck!