Re: why so diffucult - Posted by john
Posted by john on May 06, 2003 at 21:39:35:
Are they (my friends) kidding themselves if they think they can replace their substancial incomes through re investing. You’ve said you have been actively investing for 8 years and are just now going to cash out in the low six figures this year. Thats a long time to wait (8yrs) for a decent income.
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by Kristine-CA
Posted by Kristine-CA on May 07, 2003 at 24:38:33:
Actually, Monopoly will work just a well in a pinch. I played with the family this weekend and it was like a very bad joke. My strategies and poverty levels were just like my everyday mindset. After 5 turns, I had been in jail 3 times, I was broke BUT I owned Boardwalk.
Regarding business owners getting into REI: it is difficult the other way around as well. The the last 2 years before I got into this full-time I worked for good friends who were VERY successful in real estate. One had been a developer, the other very good with multi-million dollar flips and strategies with the county regarding land use and land gifts, etc. Well, they kept a portion of a large ranch that had a campground permit and turned that campground into pretty much a luxury “camp” resort. All their success and experience in real estate did not turn into instant success running a profitable business. This resort opened (in 6 months after close) with 100 rooms (where there had been none before), a store, a mobile massage service, a restaurant (with permitting issues up the wazoo.). And they honestly thought they would have their investment back in a year. They got real about that expectation and business is going fine now. But it was very, very different than running your own show in real estate. Management and customer service and market research and marketing…all things that had been totally different in REI investments.
This phenomena reminds me of the difference between construction plumbing and maintainence plumbing. Here in Santa Barbara everyone wants to be a real estate investor (or a plumber) as long as they don’t have to handle any crap. Well, in a town where there is precious little development and building starts, guess where the money is? Pre-existing homes (and maintainence plumbing).
Sincerely, Kristine
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by john
Posted by john on May 06, 2003 at 21:15:00:
anne, Not my email. Is email for friend who is investing in vegas. The casino executive.
question to Anne - Posted by rocky
Posted by rocky on May 06, 2003 at 21:02:06:
Anne, first, congradulations. What’s happening in 9 days. Share with the rest of us, would you? Are you putting in your notice with an employer, or are you achieving a goal that will give you the financial freedom everyone is talking so enviously about? I hope it’s the latter as the former would just leave you homeless without it.
Good job, good luck, and good investing.
Rocky
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by john
Posted by john on May 06, 2003 at 20:55:55:
Are you a full time investor Frank? If so, what part of the country are you operating in?
Re: Passion and Focus - Posted by john
Posted by john on May 06, 2003 at 20:45:50:
phil, thanks for your input. Where are you currently an investor.
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by john
Posted by john on May 06, 2003 at 20:24:29:
Thanks for your input Rocky. You may have assumed that I am an investor or wish to be. Neither is true. I simply am amazed that so many people seem to be putting in such tremendous effort and are not having much success. Maybe the reason my two friends who are working diligently in this business are not realizing reasonable success is due to the fact that they are both very finacially comfortable and possibly not hungry enough. They are both trained in doing wraps, L/O buying junkers all cash ect. ect. Ipm not saying that they have not completed any transactions. Quit the opposite. They are both buying properties but they are not creating any cash profits from their deals. Yes they are creating wealth/assets (through the accumulation of notes) but no real cash. They are just finding this business to be much more difficult than Mr. Ron Legrand or Bill Bronchick had described. Both men have incomes in the low to mid six figure range and are very successful. Yet full time real estate investing success seems to elude them. Go figure.
Re: In a word… - Posted by john
Posted by john on May 06, 2003 at 20:51:43:
Steve, I see you are in Atlanta. Do you know of a Dennis Quattelbaum who is a fairly big investor in atlanta.
Re: In a word… - Posted by john
Posted by john on May 06, 2003 at 20:36:47:
That makes sense. Maybe their hearts aren’t sincerely into the investing. Are you full time investing in real estate? If so, are you able to earn a solid six figure CASH income on an annual basis. I was considering jumping into the investing arena until I saw the tremendous efforts and dismal results that both my friends are experiencing. As I said we both, y friends as well as myself are very successfull executives and or business owners pulling in very respectable incomes that put us into the top one half of one percent of all americans. Yet for some reason they are having no more success than the majority of simple wage earners posting on this site.
Great practices… - Posted by Hal Roark
Posted by Hal Roark on May 10, 2003 at 12:48:20:
Dick,
This biz, imo, is like every other: it’s a biz! Follow sound business practices, and your chances of success increase (just like in any business!).
Wishing you the best,
Hal
Thanks for the compliment (nt) - Posted by Hal Roark
Posted by Hal Roark on May 07, 2003 at 15:05:38:
nt
Re: Speak for yourself - Posted by Jim FL
Posted by Jim FL on May 07, 2003 at 20:10:31:
Potash,
Why do I find that easy to believe?
Just razzing you.
Out of curiosity, how are you finding deals if you don’t market at all?
Take care,
Jim FL
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by Brent_IL
Posted by Brent_IL on May 06, 2003 at 22:15:22:
Yes, your insight is correct. Your friends are kidding themselves if they think they can replace their substantial incomes through real estate investing within a short timeframe. Did they reach their present income level in eight years, or did it take a little more experience?
In our society, the only income streams that can be shown to outdistance taxes and inflation are income from working and income from real estate investing. Golden parachutes and retirement packages, notwithstanding, when they leave their world of employment, their income and their purchasing power will drop each year thereafter.
Creative real estate investing is our surrogate for income from working. It?s not rocket science, but it uses a set of skills that must be learned. The learning curve can be shortened drastically, but it will take time. To replace very big money, one also needs to have a big support system in place.
Re: question to Anne - Posted by Anne_ND
Posted by Anne_ND on May 06, 2003 at 21:21:21:
Rocky,
I gave notice 12 months ago that as of May 15 I would be ‘retired’. I have acheived certain milestones and I’ve got a system in place that seems to be working. I’m not worried about being homeless, but I am nowhere near as successful as I’ll be in a few months.
good luck to you as well,
Anne
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by Frank
Posted by Frank on May 06, 2003 at 21:50:30:
It takes a good team, and a ton of research. As for the money, investors are everywhere. Once you turn a couple of deals and take care of your investors and bankers, you begin to get phone calls - people wanting your help to solve their problems; fast money for a probate, a quick flip to cash out a tax problem, dad has alzheimers and we need fast money for the nursing home, we live 1500 miles away and are really “don’t wanters”, etc. Attys, owners, bankers, investors call…solve their problems, and they call more than once. Get a good atty in place, an investor who knows he’ll get a healthy ROI or a great property cheaply, a pretty good property manager, and you can do this anywhere in the country. A good realtor helps, but isn’t critical.
A few years ago, I thought it was exciting to travel, buying pty here and there. Today, I’ll only go more than an hour away if I’m highly compensated…
Frank Edwards
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by Frank
Posted by Frank on May 06, 2003 at 21:14:55:
Full time since '95. Live in NC; invest here, VA, TN, and GA - if the profits warrant it.
Re: Passion and Focus - Posted by phil fernandez
Posted by phil fernandez on May 07, 2003 at 04:36:43:
Vermont
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by Mark (SDCA)
Posted by Mark (SDCA) on May 07, 2003 at 17:22:31:
Ah… ok… That answers the question in my other post…
One of my favorite things about REI is that it can be anything you want to be.
You can get cash, wealth (equity/tax benefits), cash flow. But finding a deal/niche that provides ALL of these can be difficult.
Wraps and LO may not throw off immediate cash. But if your friends are buying/fixing/selling junkers, THAT should. So I would advise them to take a 2nd look at that part of the business. Something doesnt sound right.
Mark
Re: why so diffucult - Posted by rocky
Posted by rocky on May 06, 2003 at 20:53:43:
Well, what do you mean by success? What do you or they determine success to be? If they are already financially comfortable, do they need immediate cash? If so, they need to reevaluate their strategy and adopt one that produces immediate cash. Also, what do you mean real cash? They can very reasonably make $10 to $60k per deal, if that is their goal. And, they can make it in around 5 to 6 months per deal. This is knowledge I have from experience. And I don’t have a hard time doing this, either. In fact, I don’t even do the work myself any more. I have hired 3 people to do most of the paperwork, and I hire contractors to do the labor if a deal requires it. I still make on average of $30k per deal. These are $300k houses, but I usually don’t take all of the previous owners equity (I get a better response from them that way,) but I also don’t put up very much money either. I usually buy subject to with a 0 interest note of around 5 months (that still gets serviced, just without the interest) for the remainder of the price, do whatever needs to be done to the place, and sell around 5 months later. Yes, I agree, most courses make the business sound so easy that you will make $100’s of $1000’s of dollars in your first week without doing anything, but that is also usually what people want to believe, so that is what they hear. Buying houses won’t make anyone rich, but buying the right houses, using the right deals, and buying at the right price will make a person rich. Go figure.