Don't Go Bankrupt Obtaining Your RE Education!

Young or old, veteran or newbie, when it comes to the many variables of real estate, one fact will always remain the same... "We all had to start from somewhere!"

Some people may have grown up with a string of luck, being bought up in a household were real estate investing was the thing to do, but more than likely, most people are like me, and actually had very little knowledge and had to start from scratch.

So if you are like I was when starting from ground zero,  you probably had the same initial question.  Just where does one start? Similar to when building a home, the foundation is of course, one of the most important building blocks needed to get you on your way.  A weak foundation means a weak structure, and you know what a weak structure can mean.  It  means that no matter how much you add onto it afterwards, it all can just come crumbling back down.

Proper education is the foundation in which we build up an real estate house of knowledge and keep building it up brick by brick.  It is a process in which the truly successful will always continue to build upon, fortifying and increasing in depth as time goes by.

So your probably telling yourself right now "Of course education is the foundation! Tell me something I don't know..."  If this is you, instead of wondering where to start, you might just be asking "How do I start?". 

We all have seen the late night infomercials, the mid afternoon radio broadcast, and of course, the facebook ads from some of your favorite house flipping reality TV stars inviting you out to a local seminar... but is that the best place to start?

In my personal opinion, my answer would be an most outstanding "N.O.".  You will notice I abbreviated that.  That is because in many of these cases, it can also stand for "Negligible Opportunity", because that's probably what you will get.

Now before some guru out there starts to envisioning cutting my off my fingers and ripping my tongue out my mouth for heresy, let me say this. "Not all of them are all that bad." Just like anything in real estate, DO YOUR DUE DILIGENCE. 

You can check out places like the Better Business Bureau, and ask questions like "Has the person teaching me this earned a living by doing as he teaches, or just by teaching what he teaches?".  Read that last line again very slowly and let it sink in. Got it? OK good, Moving on... :)

If your still with me, I'm just about to get to the good stuff,  I promise you.  Tip #1:  If you truly are just starting out, do not go out and buy the first "Make a Million Dollars in 2 Weeks" course that you find.  Also, if and when you go out and attend these free seminars, don't go for the super expensive "Advance Courses" right away unless your really for sure that's what you want to do. Talk to others, do some research first.  Regardless of what they say, don't fall for the high pressure sells tactics. "There will still be an opportunity if you so desire to pursue such at a later time".  That  leads us to this, "So, just what can one do?  How do can I get this ball rolling on my own?".

My first recommendation, go to sites like NationalREIA and find a local real estate meeting in your area.  If you have a strong club in your area, you will be surprised at the amount of information you will receive for the price of a cup of coffee in most cases. There are some great ones here in southern California such as the SDCIA! 

Find people in your area who are in the niche of the business that you want to be in. Invite them out to lunch, pick their brains... sometimes you might even end up getting a great mentor out of the deal! If you must take a course your local REIA is usually one of the best places to find one.  They are usually much less expensive and taught by true experts who are known in the local area by many.

There are also many good books out there (Disclaimer: In order to be successful in life, you might just have to read something every now and again... I know it may sound horrible, but trust me... you will live, and you might even begin to enjoy it!) that will teach you most of the guru's "coveted secrets", without having to pay $497 plus for it.  A good place to start might be here: "Books".

Also don't forget about the free websites and communities of experienced real estate individuals such as here on www.biggerpockets.com, that will take you much further along than any "12 CD in Home Course" that you might buy.  Also do you have a Linkedin account? If not, get one.  You can get access to tons of connections and  resources that can help you to learn, build, and grow your business!

By now your eyes are probably getting dry from reading so much, so I will end by saying this...  If you are starting out fresh and new in this business, I sincerely hope that this article will have served to help point you in the right direction for how to get started without breaking your piggy bank.  In most peoples financial situation,  you don't want to spend all of your seed money on expensive real estate courses when you don't have too.  Saving that money for use for the future potential investment opportunities that will come your way will serve to be much more beneficial.  If your doing all the things I mentioned above in learning, trust me the opportunities will come!

Who am I by the way? Just a guy who got started in this business about 4-5 years ago and spent a butt load of money along the way in my education process.  Now don't start feeling bad for me just yet!  I will say this;  At least it got me started on my way and it was a good (howbeit expensive) learning experience.  Some of it was really good, some not so good, but I can tell you that I've learned much more by thru the other ways I just described that will be much easier on your pockets and purses!

Best of wishes to you all, and see you out there in the fields of success!

Wenecio M. Godfrey