How First-Time Homebuyers Can Navigate New York Real Estate With the Right Strategy

Shehriar Islam (00:00)
it’s amazing. It’s kind of like you have a little it you have to have a little luck because I started in Manhattan as a mortgage loan officer. So that was my first step into the business and I got the financing side, but by default, when everything crashed, the big recession we had in seven, eight, you know, I switched to real estate as a full time. I was still doing real estate, but I was doing mortgage full time. So that it it kind of happened by default. And and and you know, I got a little lucky in that respect because everybody tells me the same thing, like, wow, you know the financing side so well. My mortgage guy calls me a unicorn,

Dylan Silver (01:58)
Hey folks, welcome back to the show. Today we’re joined by Shehriar Sam Islam, a New York real estate professional, investor, and former mortgage executive with more than thirty years of experience in the housing industry. Serving both New York City and Long Island, Sam combines his passion for real estate and people to help clients navigate buying, selling, investing, and wealth building opportunities. Sam, thanks for joining us today.

Shehriar Islam (02:24)
Thank you so much. It’s it’s a pleasure being here.

Dylan Silver (02:27)
Now you’ve been active on multiple sides of the business over decades. What has kept you in the real estate game for so much time?

Shehriar Islam (02:38)
what a question. well, I would say, Dylan, the the for first and foremost, I love people. You have to love people in this business. I always tell the young people that enter the business, you know, they think it’s a music video. It it’s far from that. You know, you gotta understand what where people are coming from. I love different cultures, different backgrounds. I’m in the melting pot in New York City, you know, Long Island suburbs. So we have a lot of different people from different backgrounds that want to buy property and I’m here to help them. And, you know, just to give you a background myself, I’ve been self-employed all my life. So that’s all I know how to do. My first job was selling newspapers at in a Catholic church on Sunday. So we had to really sell them. You know, they didn’t just come and take it, you know, so we had to like bring it to the customer before they got into mass. So we I have that experience. I did telemarketing, cold calling. The only time I had a salary job is McDonald’s when I was 14 years old. And I I always recommend working at McDonald’s because it it gives you that toughness when you get into the world, you know, and you get free food too. So we we enjoyed that. But that’s the only time I had a salary job. I’ve been self-employed my whole life, and I love running a business because that’s what we’re doing as self-employed people. And just to answer your question, real estate, you’re changing people’s lives. So what’s so great about changing people’s lives? You you’re bringing them from renting apartments. They’re first-time homebuyers into a brand new house or a condominium. It’s their property. They’re not spending their money on a landlord. so I’ve seen it from both sides where you’re downsizing elderly couple, they’re moving to Florida, South Carolina, they’re you know, their kids are all married. So you see both spectrums and it and it’s exciting on both stages of people’s lives. So I love that. And that’s why I’ve been in it in it for so long. It’s not it’s not for everybody, but it you know, it’s definitely for me.

Dylan Silver (04:30)
When we talk about the sides of the business that you’ve been involved in, of course you’ve got the lending side, you’ve got the brokerage side. You’ve been able to help people in so many different ways. I think it’s becoming more and more uncommon for folks to have that kind of diverse skill set. And I would like to see more folks who have that background because if you’re going to your realtor and they have no idea where to start with the lending portion of it, you may feel a little bit detached from the process. Like, okay, I have to now go to this separate person. You’ve been active on all sides. How has that helped you today in business.

Shehriar Islam (05:09)
Well, it’s amazing. It’s kind of like you have a little it you have to have a little luck because I started in Manhattan as a mortgage loan officer. So that was my first step into the business and I got the financing side, but by default, when everything crashed, the big recession we had in seven, eight, you know, I switched to real estate as a full time. I was still doing real estate, but I was doing mortgage full time. So that it it kind of happened by default. And and and you know, I got a little lucky in that respect because everybody tells me the same thing, like, wow, you know the financing side so well. My mortgage guy calls me a unicorn, you know, and because I actually tell him, “Hey, why don’t you do Freddie Mac instead of Fannie Mae?” You know, “Why don’t you structure the loan like this?” Because I did it. And it was much harder back then. It’s there’s more rules now, it’s a little more structured in terms of like you can only do so much. Back then was like the wild west. So we had to be really creative. And I think that really helped me. It’s kind of like playing offense and defense on a football team. Like I know both sides. So it really it’s incredible for my buyers. as you know, listings the name of the game in real estate, but I’m a unicorn in the sense that I work with a lot of buyers because I enjoy that process being from the mortgage business. So it it’s like a bulletproof strategy for me with my first time home buyers because they put a lot of trust in me ’cause I already know what they qualify for before they even go to the bank.

Dylan Silver (07:22)
Yeah, I mean that’s a huge advantage to have. When we talk about home ownership, especially, you know, in New York City and the East Coast. This is something where a lot of people may feel almost trapped out of it because they may go to one realtor, they’ll throw them to a lender, the lender will say they’re not qualified, and then they may throw their hands up in the air and say, Okay, well, I guess I’m not qualified. But having that person, you know, that trusted confidant who you can go and say, Hey, here’s my situation, you know, this month and I’ve improved since last quarter and this is where I’m trying to get to, we need more of that. We meet we need more of that continuity of care.

Shehriar Islam (07:55)
Right, right. And and and and you have to be responsible with it because it’s a big responsibility having that knowledge and know-how. Because we’re not f— we we we can’t force someone to use the bank we recommend. But what I do is I just put the information out there for the customer. And that’s why my slogan is called The Professional Advantage, because I look at that I look at that aspect as an advantage. I also know the attorney side really well because I’ve done so many houses, I’ve studied contracts. There’s been times where I’m speaking when the lawyers are sitting there and I’m explaining to them because they have so much confidence in me. They want me to explain it. I’m like, “I’m not the lawyer, but I still do it anyway, just to help.” And I think that’s just being passionate about the people you’re working with and caring about getting the person to write property for them and their stage of life. And I really love what I do, you know. So

Dylan Silver (08:45)
You know, when we talk about the different areas of New York City and then we look at, you know, Long Island as as a separate entity, right? There’s a lot of folks who will say, Well, where can I find the best opportunity for a first time buyer? And am I gonna be buying a home? I’m am I gonna be buying a condo? I’m sure you get all of these questions. How do you help your clients be pointed in the right direction if they’re not sure where to start?

Shehriar Islam (09:10)
That’s great question. what I do is I sit down with them. That’s the first thing. You know, with all the technology we have, AI now coming in, I s— you still need person to person face to face. So I’m old school Ray Kroc, McDonald’s style. You know, like you gotta go out there, you gotta meet the people. And when they don’t want to meet you, that’s a telltale sign. They just want you to just show them a house. But the what I do is I prepare them, I give them a blueprint for success. That’s what I do. And the first sign is sitting down with them. If they sit down with me face to face, sometimes I go to their ho— home or they come to my office and then they want that value. So I’m going to give them the value. So I give them a step-by-step process from the beginning to the end. Then I evaluate, “Okay, maybe you don’t need a condo. Let’s do a house for a thousand dollars more a month.” Or maybe— I just had a customer, he wanted a co-op, but then he he didn’t like the idea of of owning a share in the building and going through the whole process of interview. So I said, “Let’s do a condo, and it’s going to be a little more a month, but it’s yours. There’s no— there’s no interview.” And I just put them in contract for a nice two-bedroom condo in Queens. so it’s all about evaluating them, listening to what their needs are and then tailor making a plan and strategy moving forward for them and that’s— I’m very good at that. you have to listen to the customer. Once you listen to them that’s when you can give them a nice plan for success. And a lot of times, I would say eighty percent of the time, they come out of my meeting with a whole different plan, you know, because they trust your— ’cause I know all the areas. I know you know, all the boroughs. I know Suffolk County and and Nassau County Long Island. So it’s it’s to my advantage when you have thirty years of experience, you should know all the neighborhoods by by now. So

Dylan Silver (11:34)
I think there’s a lot of at least conversation around the idea of well where does condo ownership play in the landscape of you know being a homeowner long term. Do you see condo ownership as a distinct a path that folks can take versus, you know, owning the land underneath? Or do you see condo ownership as a way for people to get into the on ramp of eventually owning a home with land underneath it? Yeah.

Shehriar Islam (12:01)
Yes. So the second part. I— it’s also situational. if you’re a newlywed, no kids, you work in Manhattan, right? Condo might be better for you for this stage of your life, right? And a lot of times the young couples, they don’t wanna you know, clean the backyard, because with a house, you’re gonna have to get landscapers to to mow your lawn, you know, do your flowers and all kind of stuff like that. And maybe it’s a too big of a space and too big of a move when you’re just a young couple. But what I find when they have start having kids, that’s a whole different ballgame. They want a house, you know, they want the school district, they want certain things. So it depends on what stage you are in your life. Because like myself, you know, I’ve I’ve been in Queens most of my life before I moved to Long Island. If you told me 20 years ago I live in Long Island, I have kids, I’m like, no way, you know. I’m a Queens guy, I love going to the city, but things change. And I see that a lot with customers. They’ll come in, their second child, they just had a brand new baby. They’re like, “We need a house, we need to move to Long Island,” or they even say New Jersey, which I have people there too. but most of the people that work in the city usually move towards Long Island or Westchester, which I also cover. It depends where you’re coming from. If you’re from the Bronx, most people like Westchester because I grew up in the Bronx, it’s right next door. Most people that grew up in Brooklyn and Queens, they want— they want Long Island. So it depends on your preference, but condo ownership is good. I think it’s also a secondary piece where you have people that have multiple properties, so then they have a condo to rent out because it’s easier to rent the condo than a co-op. Co-op has more restrictions. most co-ops you have to wait two years to rent out, and and you have to go through more of— you go through the board and in all those loopholes. So I think condo is good for what part of the life you’re in and in in the situation. So

Dylan Silver (13:55)
Now, when we talk about the investment side of this space here, a lot of folks are trying to determine exactly where they want to jump in. And of course, New York City, Long Island, this is gonna be a more competitive market. You’re gonna have higher entry points, but there’s still a lot of the same processes and logic apply. If you’re getting in as an investor right now, and let’s say you’ve got a million five to invest. Which segment of the space are you invested in and do have any specific areas that you’re maybe particularly bullish on geographically?

Shehriar Islam (14:30)
Yeah, I would say that’s another great question. I would say right now in the space because there’s so many cash investors, Long Island is better because it’s less red tape. Because once you buy a property and a lot of investors they take out hard money, so they have to the their carrying cost is high, right? In terms of paying the loan back, you also taxes. But on the flip side of that, when you get permits to to renovate, because most of the of the investors like myself, we’re gonna buy the property, we’re gonna fix and flip it, right? So Long Island’s easier to get the permits, it’s much faster than a city. The city has a lot more red tape. Not to say you can’t do it in a city, city’s more expensive. So your average two family in a city that you want to flip, you’re already looking at 800 to buy it and then sell it for 1.1, 1.2, or 1.3, depends on the area, right? Whereas in Long Island, you could buy a house for 500 that’s distress and sell— sell it for a million, potentially. So there’s more upside. but the carrying cost is a little bit more because of the taxes, right? So it’s pick your poison, what’s better for you, also what area you are an expert in, and you need a guy like me to sell it back, you know. So you you gotta have a good realtor on your side to to deal with the end buyer once you fix it.

Dylan Silver (16:30)
Are there a lot of restrictions regarding short term rentals?

Shehriar Islam (16:34)
re— I’ll be honest with you, rentals is not my expertise, but I’ve heard that. You know, I’ve I’ve definitely heard that.

Dylan Silver (16:40)
This is something that we’ve seen quite a bit on the show where folks will go in with the thought of, Hey, I’m gonna do a STR and they’re seeing, Well, I can only have or there can only be a certain number of short term rentals on this street and they’ve already maxed out the number that they can have. So it’s not related to their deal, but there’s a certain number of STR’s there or they get in and then the laws change and now what do you do? You’ve got to turn it into a, you know, thirty one day stay or the month, right? So that it’s no longer considered short term. But pivoting here, Sam, when we look at the greater New York landscape and folks that are moving to New York as well as folks who may be in New York and looking at, hey, I need to find a commutable distance out, what are some of the biggest trends that you see as far as you know population movement?

Shehriar Islam (17:30)
The biggest trend is people are willing to travel more to get more value for their money. So even before the pandemic hit, we saw a big upswing of migration from the boroughs to Long Island or Westchester, right? Because people want more space because it’s— the prices are rising rapidly, right? And the pandemic even made it more of an increase, right? Also, you combine that with the remote jobs. You know, there’s a lot more companies with remote jobs. Like if you fast forward if you go sorry, if you go back 20 years, remote jobs are very rare, right? Maybe your senior, senior guy at the company would work a few days from home, but it was unheard of for like the regular employee to work from home. Now it’s like I I don’t know the what the statistics are, but I would say at least 50% people working from home. So it’s easy to live in Long Island, just take the train to the city once a week, you know, for that one time you have to go to the office. so that those two factors have have really changed the landscape. You know, there’s people that are moving to Connecticut to live in the city, you know. So and also Jersey. There’s people living in Jersey now that would never cross the bridge to go to Jersey that are that are working in the city. So that that whole all those factors have played a big part in the migration.

Dylan Silver (18:51)
we are coming up on time here, Sam. Any new projects that you’re working on? And then also anything you’d like to mention directly to our audience?

Shehriar Islam (18:59)
Yeah, well, I’m in the business 30 years. you know, you could see me on Instagram, Sam Islam Realtor. I I love being on Instagram. It’s great to engage with the customers. you can go to my website, great website, www.SellHomesNYC.com and also SellHomesLongIsland.com. So Luxury Presence, great web web developers. I take you to journey through the whole city and Long Island and upstate. So it’s really nice. you could you could check that out. and you know, if you want to contact me, just go on Instagram and and send me a DM and I’ll be glad to help.

Dylan Silver (19:37)
Sam, thank you so much for your time today. Thanks for joining us.

Shehriar Islam (19:40)
Thank you, you’re the best.