Bill Lightner's POV: Investing in Real Estate in San Francisco
Monday, August 31, 2009 at 2:55PM I am writing to assist income property investors – whether they are managing their own properties or investing with someone else who controls the asset. Because everything I write will be colored by my own POV I thought it would be helpful to share a little bit about my background.
My father was a mid-westerner who rode a freight train west during the Great Depression. Arriving in San Francisco at age 16, he bootstrapped himself into success in the car business. He counseled me, “Be smart! Get a good education. Make your money work for you. And be patient.” In turn, I graduated from the University of San Francisco and Hastings College of Law. But practicing law didn’t satisfy my entrepreneurial drive. So, Merrie and I formed Lightner Property Group.
The combined influence of my dad’s mid-western common sense and a formidable education led me to think of income properties as having two distinct aspects:
- Real estate is a tangible commodity. Its value rises and falls with the whims of the economy. From that perspective you might as well invest in pork bellies.
- But income properties are also complex, highly regulated business enterprises the success of which can be greatly influenced by a good manager. A good manager brings superior judgment, strong business skills and in Lightner Property Group’s case – legal know-how.
Future blog posts will include technical advice and relevant anecdotes. But I hope to do more. My aim is to influence the way you think about real estate investing so you can be successful while avoiding the blunders we’ve seen take place in the industry over the years.
