Starting out - Slower than expected...

My interest in Real Estate Investing was started by listening to a late-night real estate "guru" who promised vast riches. Although I know that there is usually a lot more to these sales pitches than meets the eye, the idea seemed to make sense to me, so I signed up for his free seminar in my area. I have always been interested in investing in real estate, but always thought that buy/hold was the only strategy that was viable. This flipping thing sounded interesting.

In any aspect of life there is nothing free. I knew that there would be some kind of sales pitch involved, but I was determined to pay nothing. Besides, the advertisement told me that when the seminar was over I would have everything I needed to become a rich investor.

You all probably know the story. You get to the seminar and they have some slick guy talk about how great the guru and his program are. They have all of the great sales techniques down pat. At the end of the seminar, you are told that in order to really find out how to invest, you need to sign up for a three-day workshop at a cost of $1497. (Why is $1497 so popular in real estate investment guru circles? I've heard of at least three "programs" that are available for $1497.) I didn't pay, but ended up leaving with a starter set of books and CDs about real estate investing. I'm glad I didn't pay the money because I found out later that the three day workshop was almost as uninformative as the free seminar, and it was another sales pitch to get you to buy into a $40,000 bus tour program.

The materials I received from the seminar/sales pitch weren't bad. They gave me the motivation to continue and some basic essentials to get started. But a lot of the material was overly simplified and not enough to really get started right.

My journey from then till now has been filled with lots of self-education, networking, and administration. My wife and I set up our corporate entity, obtained CPA services, started networking in RE circles, and started looking at deals from various wholesalers and from our local RE agent. Plus, my wife and I are going to be getting our Real Estate license soon. I have to say that the Bigger Pockets community has been one of our best and most valuable finds..

At this point I truly believe that we have the knowledge to move forward on a rehab deal and make a profit. However, financing for a newbie has become a larger issue than I thought it would be. I believe in having all of my ducks in a row before moving forward, so I've been trying to line up Hard Money Lenders or Private Investors before I actually get a deal. According to the guru materials, just having a deal in place guarantees financing from somewhere because all that will be looked at is the deal itself. I quickly found out that the deal plays a large part in getting financed, but your own personal ability to put a good portion of "skin in the game" is necessary.

Personally, I do not have a lot of cash reserves. I have a great paying daytime job, but a lot of my personal funds are tied up because of a divorce in 2010. Fortunately that obligation is over in June of this upcoming year, so I will be able to start putting money away to build up my cash reserves again.

So, I keep hearing that I need to put skin in the game in order to get financed for a deal. At this moment I'm skinless, but only temporarily so. This will mean one of two things will happen. Either I'll eventually come across a Private Money Lender who will work with me on a deal and fund the entire transaction, or I will be even better educated by the time I get some skin that I can put in the game.

When I first started out I had no intention of wholesaling, but as I look into it further, it seems like it might be our best option for us to start making profits without too much money up front.

Regardless of what happens in the short term, I know that we will be successful in the long run. We have the passion and hunger for knowledge to succeed. Besides, if other people can be successful in this business, I have no doubts that I can too.