Hi everyone,I'm a recently retired Marine out of the DC -VA -MD area.

I would, but my dad was a former US Marine, and most of his expressions aren't appropriate for this sort of context. 

thank you BenThank you JohnRegarding self-employment over a w-2 jobWhen I was just out of the Marine Corps and I had this job at Johnson Controls engineering firm because I was a science major, had a lot of calculus physics and chemistryMy job was to sell to developers and builders That wanted air and water  control devices and I was on straight commission basicallyI had like $20,000 in commissions that they  didn't pay me for I got really upset and at 25 yrs of age I didn't have very much EQ, and my emotions got the best me I basically even went to a lawyer and asked  how can I get my 20,000 in commissions here's the proof they owe me the moneyMy lawyer says it's gonna cost you 10,000 in legal fees to sue them at a minimum he's going to need that upfront as a retainerAnd then there was no guarantees I would get the 20 kThat's why I made the commitment at 25 never ever ever be a W-2 employee and I work as a 1099 alwaysThen I found a real estate 60-year-old mentor who taught me everything from distressed property to foreclosures to divorce to bankruptcy to probateI work for five hundred a week for 2 and a half years and then opened up my own business and did approximately 28 seller interviews a weekMy closing ratio in the beginning wasn't very good because I sucked at itBut with the good coaching from my teacher I got better and better and betterI quit after 2 1/2 years and started my own company on a shoestring it wasn't easyBut I made over hundred thousand dollars my first year if it wasn't for the teacher I would not know how to run a business and I would not know how to hire people and I would not know how to market and I would not know how to negotiateAnd you never stop learning because I made a Ton of money I was 29 and I made over 1 million and a quarter I rolled it back into the company which was a mistakeBut live and learn!

I served 5 years in the Marine Corps as a Military Working Dog handler/trainer and still do this job with the same dog as a civilian.

@Stephanie Marin welcome to the site.

Southern Marin, San Francisco, peninsula and parts of Oakland are highly competitive.  

Some key indicating numbers in single family housing are as follows:-Median Sold Price: $292,000-Sold Listing Price: Up 18%-Avg Days on Market: Down 33%Although single family housing it appreciating well which creates a great fix and flip environment, multi-family seems like a better long term strategy because of the 3-4 year turn over in Navy and Marine Corp personnel.

There are certainly more aggressive, and more accurate ways, but this is not a crazy way if we just want to (for mah fellow former Marines out there) "Keep It Simple, Stupid."

I truly appreciate the sacrifice that those in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and National Guard have made and paid to defend our freedom.  

s advice and open a bottle, although I tend to agree with my fellow marine @Chris M. that this calls for champagne, rather than wine.