Where do/can i begin?

Question

Hello, i came across this site about a week ago interested in Real estate, coasting through the forums and searching for material that could help me gain some knowledge or give me a head start in the right direction.

I came across a motivational thread on books, so i went to borders, bought rich dad poor dad - Read that book in about 3 days ( very inspiring and a eye opener ) i am currently reading Think and Grow Rich, by N.Hill and re authored for the 21 century, interesting but a motivational book at best, after this book id like to read some books that i can actually get some hard knowledge on the subject, im just not sure how to start, where to begin to read?

Anyways im rambling i hope to stick around this site for the years to come!

Jeff Fairchild · Answer

Start with 
            "Flipping Properties: Generate Instant Cash Profits in Real Estate by William Bronchick"
            to learn about short term flipping, which is how you'll make your initial money.
            
            "Buying Real Estate Without Cash or Credit by Peter Conti and David Finkel" is like a bible to me. Pretty much the best introduction you're gonna get and includes scripts. 
            
            If you need something to get you really excited, read " How to Be a Quick Turn Real Estate Millionaire: Make 
            
            Fast Cash with No Money, Credit, or Previous Experience by Ron LeGrand and Mark Victor Hansen"
            
            For short sales:
            Short-Sale Pre-Foreclosure Investing: How to Buy "No-Equity" Properties Directly from the Bank -- at Huge Discounts (Paperback)
            by Dwan Bent-Twyford (Author), Sharon Restrepo (Author) 
            
            Buy at least one of the Weekend Millionaire's Secrets books

Jon Holdman · Answer

The key to avoiding living paycheck-to-paycheck is to spend less than you make.  If you can just save 10% of each and every paycheck, you WILL get to the point where you aren't living paycheck to paycheck. Get to a point where you have no debt and six months expenses in the bank and, viola la, you're no longer living paycheck to paycheck.  Left unchecked, expenses will consume every penny you make.  Believe me, I speak from experience.

Don't misunderstand.  Wholesaling and flipping houses is just as much a job as working at McDonalds.  Its worse, in some sense, in that you can put in a lot of time, effort and money and never get a penny back.  Its better than McDonalds in that if you're good at it you can make a lot more money than you'll ever make at Micky D's.

Don't know what the market is like in Yakima, or what prices vs. rents are.  If you own a house and have a big mortgage, you're throwing away money renting the money (i.e., paying interest on the mortgage) just as much as paying rent is "throwing away money."  Carefully evaluate the net cost of renting vs. the total cost of owning, and you might be surprised that renting is cheaper than you think.  I'm sure that its less costly to rent in places like SF and LA than it is to buy. You have to have some place to live, so you're stuck "throwing away money" on something.  There's lots of home buyers all over the country who really wish they had been renting, these days.

I'd recommend "The Richest Man In Babylon" as another must read.  "Total Money Makeover" is another great one.  I know you're looking for RE related books, but applying Dave Ramsey's techniques is the real source of "not living paycheck to paycheck."

There are many real estate investing books.  I'd recommend just randomly grabbing a batch of them from the library and reading away.  You'll pretty quickly find a lot of repetition.  Or, spend a Saturday afternoon at the book store and persue a stack of them.  Buy just one or two that seem interesting.

There are some other threads here with specific book recommendations.

Steffen Kightlinger · Answer

Thanks for the responses guys, i will continue with my reading, and keep seeking knowledge, the only debt i have, or will have is a truck payment, i am using that along with a credit card to help my credit line, i dont abuse the credit card ( anymore, when i was 18 i maxed it within a month, wont do that again - Good thing it was a 300 dollar limit, but man the interest! ) anymore and just want a good credit score so i can use it to my leverage at any given time, so Thank you and i hope to speak with you all soon!

Nick J. · Answer

Well it's good to see you don't want to jump in mis-guided....

Re-read Think and Grow Rich

and then consider wholesaling, it doesn't require much if any money at all (other than some marketing cost)
read this website as much as possible, there is an amazing amount of knowledge here.

Whatever you don't get discouraged, keep on keeping on

Nick J. · Answer

I highly suggest re-reading Think and grow rich as often as possible.

I actually dedicate an hour each day to reading that book. When I finish it, I start over...........you learn something every time you read it, also when it speaks about joining a mastermind group, I can't tell you the importance that has become in my own investing career........

I'm sure we can all recommend some good books if we knew what your strategy is going to be.

Steffen Kightlinger · Answer

The plan for me right know is to just read and learn really, im renting right now and i feel im throwing my money away, in the long run id like a good flow of income a month, but short term would be to flip a few houses and buy a few properties to rent out ( Duplex's idealy or apartment buildings )

I literally jumped into this about  a week ago and really just want to read, but i was hoping to get pointed in the right direction as there is alot of mis-information out there, really just looking for guidance -

im 21 and i dont want to live from paycheck to paycheck, i refuse too.