BiggerPockets is an online training platform that teaches you all aspects of real estate investing. There are training programs on topics such as creative financing, short-term rentals, multi-families, and more. Founded by Joshua Dorkin, private-equity firm McCarthy Capital bought it in 2018 for $44 million according to the investigations of HoltonWiseTV. Real estate investment has 2 major downsides of high starting and maintenance costs. This equates to high risks. It is important to learn all you about the industry to avoid costly mistakes.
Reviews for BiggerPockets are mostly positive with a rating of 2.4/ on BBB and 4.5/5 on Trustpilot. Users praise the comprehensive resources available, such as the forums, podcasts, calculators, courses, and more. Users have also highlighted the community as a useful tool for networking. Criticism has pointed out aggressive selling and some outdated content. There are also concerns about scammers within the community and non-compliant techniques being taught.
In this article, you will learn all about the BiggerPockets, who is it for, and what people say about the platform. You will also discover if real estate investing is worth it and how it fares against digital real estate.
BiggerPockets Pros and Cons
Pros
You learn different REI business models from several real estate investing experts.
There is training for all experience levels.
BiggerPockets boast over 2.5 million members.
Accountability groups.
Each bootcamp comes with access to a mini-tax course with an expert CPA.
Cons
Real estate investing won't pay you every month until after you've already invested thousands of dollars and rented it out.
BiggerPockets is very strict with their rules.
Too many moving parts with a real estate investment.
There are upsells if you want to access more resources.
Price
BiggerPockets Interactive Bootcamps costs $300 each and Self-Guided Bootcamps costs $125 each for Pro Annual Members. Pro membership costs $39 monthly or $390 annually.
Refund Policy
30-day refund guarantee.
Training
Each bootcamp lasts 10 weeks and there are 6 video training modules.
Group
Private accountability groups in forum style.
Two Major Downsides of Real Estate Investing
1. High Capital Requirement
The capital requirement needed to start a real estate investing business is high. Before seeing a return on investment on a rental property, you will need to either get creative with how you come up with the capital to purchase a property or put up the money yourself.
According to a survey by the National Association of Realtors, the median down payment for first-time homebuyers is around 6%, while repeat buyers typically put down 16%. You may end up spending tens of thousands of dollars or more. This is costly if you are looking to get started with little to no money. For instance, in cities like San Francisco, the median home price is approximately $1.4 million, which means a 20% down payment would be around $280,000. Commercial real estate is always going to require more capital than residential real estate.
2. High Maintenance Costs
After acquiring an investment property, there are several maintenance costs that you're going to take on. For starters, landlords must pay property tax. In some states, property taxes can be as high as 2.47% of the property's assessed value, as seen in New Jersey.
Monthly maintenance costs also need to be factored in, such as utilities, tenant screening, monthly mortgage, and more. A study by HomeAdvisor found that homeowners spend an average of $1,105 annually on maintenance and repairs. If you don't plan for these costs, you may have a negative ROI even if you get a rental income, which can hold you back in your REI business.
Additionally, unexpected repairs, such as a broken HVAC system, can cost anywhere from $150 to $450 per hour for emergency services, according to HomeGuide.
What are the BiggerPockets Bootcamps?
Pace Morby is an experienced investor and real estate investing expert who is the host of the Triple Digit Flip tv show. He has a real estate investing portfolio of over $150 million in assets that includes over 1,000 doors nationwide. Pace teaches the Creative Financing Bootcamp.
Module 1: Choosing Your Market
You are shown 5 steps that help you find out where you should be investing. You also discover the best tools for real estate market analysis. The best tools for real estate market analysis include an After-Repair Value calculator, investment property calculators, public property records, comparative market analysis software, and more.
Module 2: Choosing Your REI Strategy
In this module, you learn which are the different real estate investing strategies and which one is best for you.
Module 3: Determining Deal Flow
You are taught where deals are generated.
Module 4: Comping and Underwriting Deals
In this module, you learn how to comp and underwrite cash and creative financing deals.
Module 5: Creative Strategies
This module reveals what creative financing method works best for your REI strategy.
Module 6: Title & Escrow Process
You are taken through the process of closing deals.
Matt Faircloth and Justin Fraser are real estate professionals who have over 27 years of real estate investing experience. They represent the DeRosa Group, which is a REI company, and they are your instructors in the Multifamily Bootcamp where they teach you how to buy multifamily properties.
Module 1: Building a Multi Family Team
Here, you review the four different roles on a multifamily team and learn how to put a team together that handles each of those roles.
Module 2: Choosing and Entering a Market
This module reveals how to choose the right market to get into.
Module 3: Raising Private Capital
Here, you learn how to grow your investor base.
Module 4: Underwriting and Finance
In module 4, they teach you over 20 of the most important things you can do to make a deal work.
Module 5: Deal Structure, Negotiation, and Diligence
Module 5 is all about structuring a deal and negotiating.
Module 6: Asset management and Property Sale
You learn how to manage your assets in module 6. They will show you when to refinance, when to sell a property and how to prepare for the sale.
Avery Carl is a successful investor who has sold over $300 million in short-term and vacation rentals since 2017. She has a portfolio of over 100 doors and teaches the Short-Term Rental Bootcamp where you learn how to purchase and manage your first or next STR property. Avery also created a course called The Short Term Shop.
Module 1: Short-Term Rental Foundations
In this module, you learn the difference between short-term and long-term rentals.
Module 2: Choosing a Market
Strategies for choosing the right geographic market to purchase short-term rentals are revealed.
Module 3: Finding Deals
After choosing a market to get into, it's time to find deals. Avery shows you how to perform a property analysis to ensure you are ready to move forward on a property.
Module 4: Funding Deals
This module shows you how to fund deals. They go over loans, partnerships, and financing options.
Module 5: Deal Analysis
Module teaches you how to analyze a deal to where you can understand what your profit will
Module 6: Operation and Management
In module 6, you are shown how to leverage listing platforms, automation software and how to hire a team, so you focus more on growing your business instead of working in your business.
Ashley Kehr and Tyler Madden are real estate investors and remodeling experts who teach students how to get started in the real estate investing business model in the Rookie Bootcamp.
Module 1: Real Estate Investing Strategies
Module 1 in the rookie bootcamp breaks down the different ways you can invest in real estate.
Module 2: Choosing a Market and Finding Deals
Module 2 is all about doing market research.
Module 3: Funding Deals
Module 3 touches on the different funding options at your disposal.
Module 4: Analyzing Deals and Estimating Costs
You are taken on a step-by-step walkthrough of how to analyze deals so you can practice making investment deals.
Module 5: Making Offers and Negotiating
Module 5 covers offers and negotiations.
Module 6: Property Management
The last module shows you which vendors and support systems you should set up as you become a landlord to help you run things smoothly.
Who Is BiggerPockets For?
What Are the BiggerPockets Reviews?
BiggerPockets online reviews are mostly positive and it remains one of the most popular resource for real estate investing education. The platform has over 2.5 million members and 100 million podcast downloads.
Over 180 users have given their review on Trustpilot. The reviews are mostly positive, with a 4.5/5 rating. None of the reviews are verified, so take them with a grain of salt.
G. Morman had only positive things to say about BiggerPockets. They explained how the platform is great for beginners. They also mentioned how you can network to find realtors, financiers, contractors, and more. BiggerPockets was the first to coin the term "BRRR" which G. Morman never heard of before.
Sandi Repphun had a great experience with BiggerPockets Pro membership. However, they complained about the extra costs to access other features of the platform. Overall, they had a satisfactory experience.
Maria Balme had a negative experience with BiggerPockets. She explained that realtors on the platform are not vetted, with some even being scammers. She also said that the training is outdated and that you need to go through the forums to find updated info.
BiggerPockets reviews on BBB are mixed. They have only have a 2.4/5 rating. Many of the complaints deal with refund issues, which have mostly been resolved by BiggerPockets.
This member filed a complaint after they signed up for one of the featured agent program. Unfortunately, they had a negative experience as the leads promised were of poor quality.
Is BiggerPockets Worth It?
BiggerPockets is worth it if you are serious about becoming a successful real estate investor. Many successful real estate investors, like Ryan Pineda and Avery Carl, started by learning from the BiggerPockets forums. According to a survey conducted by BiggerPockets, 89% of their users reported that the platform helped them make better investment decisions. You can learn for free just by going through the BiggerPockets forums and asking other members. However, this can be tedious and time-consuming. In fact, a study by the National Association of Realtors found that new investors spend an average of 10 hours per week researching and learning about real estate investing. You can consider one of their bootcamps for a more structured process.
There is step-by-step training in each bootcamp. If you aren't looking to get into one type of REI strategy, there are bootcamps for other real estate investing strategies like short-term rentals and multi-families. According to BiggerPockets, participants in their Short-Term Rental Bootcamp have reported an average increase of 20% in their rental income within the first year. BiggerPockets is a good resource that provides weekly coaching calls and a forum for support, which is of value for any online program, no matter the industry or niche.
BiggerPockets Alternatives
The Virtual Group by Tiffany and Josh High is an online real estate investing course that helps real estate investors improve in several aspects of their business. Those aspects are marketing, systems, acquisitions, and dispositions. This is a 4 week program that has a private FB group for support. You also learn the steps necessary to hire a team to help your business scale.
Price: The Virtual Group costs $997.
More Info: The Virtual Group Review
Ultimate Real Estate Investing Secrets by Van Sturgeon is another program that teaches you how to invest in real estate. Van shows you how to implement the 4-F framework, which is Find, Fund, Fix and Flip. This is an introductory course with 8 training modules and you learn all the strategies Van has accumulated over the years.
Price: Ultimate Real Estate Investing Secrets costs $29.99.
REI Education Academy by Jamel Gibbs is a real estate investing course by Jamel Gibbs. This online program teaches real estate investors, brokers, and entrepreneurs the strategies to succeed in real estate investing. Jamel motivates potential students to learn market research, property evaluation, and funding alternatives. You get online access to educational videos, documents, and a student dashboard with REI Education Academy.
Price: The cost of REI Education Academy is determined during the consultation call.
More Info: REI Education Academy Review
For a list of more alternatives, check out my article on the top real estate wholesaling courses.
Is Real Estate Investing Profitable in 2024?
Real estate investing is profitable in 2024 if you are patient and not relying on it to bring you short term financial stability. A survey by the National Association of Realtors found that 28% of real estate investors earn between $50,000 and $99,999 annually, while 22% earn between $100,000 and $199,999. Clearly, there is money to be made in the real estate market even if things get slow because of a recession and when interest rates are high.
The challenge most real estate investors face is that they don't have as much control as they'd like over several aspects like when to sell, how long it will take a contractor to complete a job, outstanding liens, and more. According to a survey by BuildZoom, 35% of real estate investors reported delays in renovation projects because of contractor issues.
The high capital and legal requirements are also a barrier and risk. According to Zillow, the average cost of closing on a home, including legal fees, can range from 2% to 5% of the purchase price. Not everyone has the resources to invest in real estate. Some have opted to instead invest in digital real estate because of its lower entry barrier. Digital real estate, such as purchasing and developing websites, can start with as little as a few hundred dollars, according to Empire Flippers.
Digital Real Estate VS Real Estate
When it comes to digital real estate vs real estate, each have their own distinct advantages and disadvantages. Investing in physical real estate properties benefit in the long-term from appreciation. According to Zillow, the average annual home appreciation rate in the U.S. is about 3% to 5%, depending on the market. However, it requires significant capital and management effort. According to All Property Management, the average cost to manage a rental property is 8% to 12% of the monthly rental income.
Investing in digital real estate assets, such as websites or social media accounts, involves lower costs. Empire Flippers reports that the average cost to purchase a profitable website is around 2.5 to 3 times its monthly revenue.
While both can be profitable and offer passive income, real estate investments are typically less volatile but require more capital and time, whereas digital real estate can scale quickly and offer higher potential returns. With digital real estate, you don't have the headaches of dealing with tenants, high maintenance, natural disasters, and other issues that come with physical real estate.
How to Start Investing in Digital Real Estate?
To start investing in digital real estate, you first need to lean about the industry and business models. Next, choose the type of digital real estate you want to invest in, such as websites, social media accounts, or domain names. Then determine the platform you'll use to buy and sell your digital assets. Then create and optimize your content to build an audience, and finally, pick a monetization method like affiliate marketing, selling digital products, or lead generation.
Create Low-Cost Scalable Passive Income With Local Lead Generation
Local lead generation is a digital real estate business model that creates sustainable passive income. It costs as little as $500 in initial investment and as little as $30 a month to maintain. By creating and ranking a site on Google, you can rent it out to local businesses who will benefit from the organic traffic. You can earn anywhere from $500 to $3,000 a month in predictable income. For example, a local plumber in a mid-sized city might pay $750 per month for exclusive leads.
Local lead generation excels in scalability. To scale, you simply need to repeat the rank and rent process. There is no limit to how much you can scale. A survey by Search Engine Journal found that 70% of local businesses will pay for lead generation services, showing a strong market demand. A site can stay ranked on Google for years before needing an update. According to Ahrefs, local lead generation sites can maintain their rankings for an average of 2-3 years. This minimal maintenance means you earn virtually hands-free. These qualities make local lead generation the best digital real estate business model to create time and financial freedom.
