All Forum Posts by: William Glass

@Remus Phillips Pull up Zillow and only toggle on the rentals in the area and you can see what inventory is on the market and at what rental rates. Not a full replacement for doing due diligence, but you can see what types of properties, size, and location are roughly renting for in the areas you are looking. 

@Scott Morongell Absolutely! I wasn't sure what to expect, but sitting in a stadium with 40k people and it being totally quiet is eerie. Just listening to how Warren Buffett & Charlie Munger think as they answer questions about all types of topics on investing and the economy was one of the most valuable. A simple clear approach to how they think about the world as well as the differences in opinion. 

There were a lot of questions last year about the trade war and investing in China Vs. the US. Charlie is investing in other markets and would consider global investing. Buffett is much more focused on the US market and what he knows.

The networking opportunities are also fantastic. I didn't take advantage as I should have last year so would love to join any meetups

Who is planning on going to Omaha this year for the Berkshire Hathaway Annual meeting? 

Booked my flights last week and ready to hear the Oracle himself and Charlie Munger speak. This is my second time going - any advice from more seasoned veterans?

@Devin Radford What will be your approximate cashflow after you pay your mortgage and expenses? Will you be living for free essentially? 

I had tenants in one side and a roommate in the other. The one side covered my mortgage and escrow payment for taxes and insurance and the roommate covered my repair and CapEx coverage. I ended up moving to a new city for a new job and renting out both sides and that's when I really started to see the cashflow. I still have the same FHA loan though and am eligible for another since it was a career-related move.

Sounds like a great opportunity and the return %, when you use leverage, can be higher than cash. It is scary the first time around, but don't let it deter you. You'll never know 100% what will happen but if you take everyone's advice above with the due diligence and double checking your numbers it will be a great first step!

My only additional recommendation is echoing the above about having extra cash on hand. I replaced both AC units within 10 months of purchasing my first FHA duplex. I knew they were on their last leg and was prepared when the time came to replace each one.

@Devin Radford Can you elaborate on where you are in the process? 

The advice will vary if you are just now starting to look or if you have a duplex under contract or are trying to determine your numbers. 

My first investment property was an FHA financed duplex in Fort Myers, FL and it was a great investment. Happy to answer any questions. Good luck!

I met the CMO tonight at a meetup event in NYC where he was on a panel discussing growth & marketing strategies. He seemed like a nice guy and the way they are trying to go grow is interesting. The comments above seem to be mixed reviews and the pricing isn't conducive to single-investors. Based on what I heard it sounds like they are really targeting bigger RE companies and brokerages. Even if you look at their website it appears to highlight the companies vs. investors. 

As someone coming from the tech world, the subscription pricing is really focused more on companies that can afford a high annual subscription for multiple users. They seemed positioned as a B2B company, not a B2C company. Sam the CMO also mentioned they compete against CoStar/LoopNet as a main competitor to put it in perspective.

I’m looking at building a relationship with a local credit union or bank in the Birmingham area focusing on apartment complexes.

What lenders have you had success with in the area? Who do you recommend putting on a short-list for apartment buildings specifically?

@Micheal Jonoba Any update on the deal? Did you make an offer in the end? Also new to NYC and am interested in getting involved in this market. 

@Account Closed It's interesting that Dubai is planning on being able to do real estate transactions on the blockchain by 2020 but that is still 2 years away. Working for the world's largest technology research firm I have a distinct advantage of hearing the real use cases that exist in the market and many of the enterprise level applications are not currently run on actual blockchain technology. We are advising companies to use blockchain to demonstrate little shows of value in the interim as the technology matures. The issue is Dubai or whoever could start trading real estate through blockchain technology but unfortunately, the majority of digital record keeping needs to be fixed well before blockchain can solve the middleman issue. The issues I see at the moment the necessary infrastructure and data for blockchain technology isn't in place to effectively allow it to scale. 

The example is in the early and mid-2000s the infrastructure (smartphones and fast wireless connections) didn't exist for companies like Uber & Lyft to exist. No matter how great those ideas were in the early 2000s they couldn't have effectively scaled or provided value to the marketplace until the necessary infrastructure was in place. But after everyone had an iPhone or Android with high-speed internet in their pocket, these businesses were able to be created due to the underlying needs of the technology being met. That is where I see blockchain at the moment is we are missing the other necessary pieces to be able to have blockchain be able to effectively transfer real estate.

@Account Closed The underlying technology that powers Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc. called blockchain is pretty unanimously agreed upon as being a long-term transformational technology. The argument comes in as to who the winners in this new technology will be. This is what we saw during the dot-com bubble - pretty much everyone agreed the internet would fundamentally change our lives. The real concern was who are the winners and losers going to be. Right now the purpose of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies do not fulfill the 2 purposes of money (I'm stealing this from Ray Dalio the famous investor who started Bridgewater the largest hedge fund in the world). 

1. A store of value 
2. A medium of exchange

Currently, most cryptocurrencies do not accomplish either of the above as "investors" aka speculators are not utilizing these digital currencies to make purchases because of the price fluctuations. Yes, Japan, Australia, and others now accept cryptocurrencies the data around them being used in day to day transactions is scant (if anyone has data to prove otherwise please share that would be interesting information). I work for a technology research company and there are tons of people who are playing the crypto game. I've had uber drivers and caterers talk about cryptocurrency and have even gone to a local SWFL Cryptocurrency meetup that occurs monthly in Fort Myers where people go to talk about the top 10 cryptocurrencies and why they have invested in them. 

Disclaimer- I am not invested in cryptocurrencies and have no plans to be until the bubble bursts or a clear winner or loser comes about. In my opinion, you are speculating if you "invest" in cryptocurrencies at this point and you have to be okay with losing 100% of your capital. Don't fool yourself into thinking you are an investor you are a speculator and momentum investor. The only caveat is if you truly have information or understand something about one of these thousands of coins that give you a competitive advantage. 

I'm not invested because I'm not smart enough to figure out when the bubble is going to burst and I try to abide by Warren Buffett's rules of investing

1. Don't lose money
2. Don't forget rule #1

I absolutely love talking about cryptocurrencies and believe in the underlying blockchain technology. My thought it most of us in the real estate game are here for the distinct advantages real estate has to offer from cash flow, appreciation, inflation hedge, tax benefits, etc. I don't see any of those benefits in cryptocurrency and I don't have enough capital to risk in order for any "big gains" to be worth the loss of my principal. Other opinions are appreciated!