Investment club focuses on real estate
Michael and Diana Blend are pictured, Wednesday, in front of one of their recently remodeled buildings, one that use to be a garage and is now being leased to a private business. Garrett Cheen/Daily Inter Lake
The Flathead real estate market curve may be flattening out right now, but to the savvy investor, it's still a gold mine of opportunity.
So is a down market.
A bull market isn't bad, either.
In fact, Michael Blend wants investors to see the potential and know the pitfalls in every market swing.
That's why the Kalispell builder started the Flathead Investment Club in June. On the first Thursday evening of every month, Blend and his wife, Diana, meet in the Museum at Central School with building contractors, consultants, bankers, landscapers, educators, homeowners looking for income property - anyone interested in making money through real estate.
"People can access their dreams through good investments," Diana Blend said.
"If you're willing to start with a fixer-upper, you can," Michael Blend agreed, recalling their own history of buying homes that needed help.
They've learned a lot from turning over those homes, doing their homework on real-estate tax law and talking with everyone who could shed a little light on each new opportunity.
The investment club's catch phrase, "security through real estate," and a mission statement that emphasizes networking, education and ethical conduct, lay out the Blends' focus on sharing the wealth.
For each meeting of the Flathead Investment Club, the Blends bring in speakers with expertise in specific fields.
The August meeting featured Norb Park, who approached real-estate investments from a marketing perspective. September's speaker will be Tom Burk, who will shed light on how to make money even during times of transition in the real-estate market.
Burk's topic is something with which the Blends have some first-hand experience. For example, Michael suggested, sellers tend to be more flexible on sales terms during the flat part of the market.
"Real estate is a strategy game," Michael said. "If you plan this stuff out, you can do real well."
Life has handed Michael a series of first-hand experiences over the years, sharpening his long-held desire to delve into real-estate investments and help others do the same.
Flathead Investment Club's tiered membership offers preferred vendors the chance for three people to attend under one $300 membership, any two people to join for $230, individuals to sign up for $170 and full-time college students to join for $125. Guests can attend a meeting for $20.
It's not cheap, but consider the return on investment, Michael said.
"You can get a piece of information out of the seminar and more than pay for (membership fees)," he added.
One of his favorite gems is the 1031 exchange, a tax maneuver that allows a property owner to sell a home or other property and, within 6 months, turn around and buy another property intended as an investment.
It's something his own parents used for retirement income that is paying for their assisted-living quarters, and something he gladly shares will all interested investors.
Diana also made the point that many out-of-staters moving into the Flathead are benefiting the local economy by bringing their 1031 money and immediately reinvesting it in the area market.
OPTIONS ABOUND in other areas, too.
Right now, local apartment rentals are in high demand but low supply. For those who know how to read the signals in the three market cycles for rentals, commercial and multifamily housing, that rental opportunity now can be parlayed into an ongoing wave of being in the right market at the right time.
There's a caveat, though.
"You don't want to rely on timing the market," Michael cautioned, "but really on cash flow."
"We believe in stewarding your investment," Diana added. "Take care of it, manage it well, be sure the people who live there have what they need. It's just being mindful of who your customers are."
They encourage anybody interested to get into the real-estate market, even if they're not flush with money. Michael said he had virtually nothing when he moved here from California and bought a $30,000 house, put another $22,000 into fixing it up as he lived there, and eventually sold it for $110,000.
"It just doesn't always take a lot of money," he said, "if you're willing to be flexible."
Reporter Nancy Kimball may be reached at 758-4483 or by e-mail at nkimball@dailyinterlake.com