Even though I do not plan to buy in the NYC market, I do think it would be beneficial for me to join in a meet up.

I believe it would be very beneficial to join and network with others there, I will become a member before the next meeting.

It's not like a mutual fund or something where we can just sell it off and cut him a check so quickly.

It gives her a good opportunity to learn on the job.Also, I expect whoever makes this loan is likely not in real estate and probably a corporate 9-5er with extra cash and looking for something more agressive than a mutual fund or bank CD.

You're getting a nominal return and you aren't really growing much.You're better off sticking it in a mutual fund if you're really that risk averse.

Given the capital and credit situation I find myself in, cash investments in small quality properties concentrated in a small well researched farm area has allowed me to maximize my return and minimize my risk. at some point I will need to let go of some control and hire a local property manager or set up a group of investors to mutually manage our properties.

Insurance is also more expensive; the insurance company I use for my residential units (Liberty Mutual) doesn't write commerical policies, so I had to shop around for that.The offset is when I bought and rehabbed the building originally, it was much less expensive for those commercial units - no kitchen or rooms required, just a big open space and a bathroom.Hope that helps,Tom

The property manager gets very low pay for what they do,a bunch of headaches,and then do not have the future equity payoff plus the current cash flow like the owner does.It's like asking an 8 an hour worker to care as much as you do when you are the business owner pulling in over 100k a year.I am talking about little houses here and not managing apartment buildings or commercial.I think interviewing the tenant is a waste of time.The tenants always see the PM's as the bad guy and will throw them under the bus whether they are doing their job or not.So I think saying you believe the tenant over the PM you are employing will damage the relationship.Instead just communicate what you expect in writing to the PM.You are paying XX and for that you want XYZ.Then the PM will say you are wanting to much for what you pay,or I want more money for that,or you never asked me for that etc.If you can't mutually agree on what is provided for what fee then part ways.I find in many cases an owner assumes they will get XYZ and that is the problem.Nobody is a mind reader and you have to lay out the dots in writing real close.I am not saying this is your situation but many times it's a miscommunication and expectation issue.

Yes there are lots of things you need to know and millions of things that will be beneficial to know.

You get ONE paper statement, with each account identified and transactions that go with that account in its own section of that single statement.If you have to maintain separate escrow accounts for each tenant, then "relationship banking" is even more beneficial for all, because those escrow accounts sit there with zero activity, so why have to deal with all the extra statements.And if you go paperless, then this is even less of a factor to the banks; the account info is all computerized, and the computer could care less whether the accounts it has belong to one or a hundred people.However, the smaller bank, with just a couple of branches and the same people always there, just might look at your situation as Bill posted.