My first step in making my first deal

[Matthew Anderson]

Hello everyone, my name is Matthew Anderson and I just wanted to introduce myself and get my name out there in hopes I can build positive relationships in this industry... I’m currently a concrete finisher in Seattle Washington at local 528 (union) trying to work towards my first deal? Does anyone have any recommendations for me and my first step in this process? Thanks 

[Eliott Elias]

Be intentional with your search, hire a realtor that is an investor themselves. They have access to a lot of deals we don't see on the MLS

[James Dainard]

Hey Matthew,

Welcome!

You're doing the right thing by hitting the forums!

The best thing you can do right now to work towards a deal is get your money lined up. Make sure you've got a good lender in your corner that will get you to the finish line.

Feel free to reach out to me or my team with any questions! We'd love to help!

[Dave Skow]

@Matthew Anderson- thanks for the  post -  I  would recommend getting a loan pre approval process  started  so  you can become  familiar  with the process and with the present numbers ...the process  is free and  easy - let me know if I can help 

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Matthew Anderson:

Hello everyone, my name is Matthew Anderson and I just wanted to introduce myself and get my name out there in hopes I can build positive relationships in this industry... I’m currently a concrete finisher in Seattle Washington at local 528 (union) trying to work towards my first deal? Does anyone have any recommendations for me and my first step in this process? Thanks 

1. Start with BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide (free). It will familiarize you with the basic terminology and benefits. Then you can read a more in-depth book like The Book On Rental Property Investing by Brandon Turner or The Unofficial Guide to Real Estate Investing by Spencer Strauss.

2. Get your finances in order. Get rid of debt, build a budget, and save. The idea that you can build wealth without putting any money into it is a recipe for disaster and the sales pitch of gurus trying to steal your money. A wise investor will not try to get rich quick with shortcuts. If you can't keep control of your personal finances, you are highly unlikely to succeed in real estate investing. Check out my personal favorite, Set For Life by Scott Trench , or The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.

3. As you read these books, watch the BiggerPockets podcasts. This will clarify and reinforce what you are reading. You can hear real-world examples of how others have built their investment portfolio and (hopefully) learn to avoid their mistakes.

4. Now you need to figure out how to find deals and pay for them. Again, the BiggerPockets store has some books for this or you can learn by watching podcasts, reading blogs, and interacting on the forum. There is a handy search bar in the upper right that makes it easy to find previous discussions, blogs, podcasts, and other resources. BiggerPockets also has a calculator you can use to analyze deals and I highly recommend you start this as soon as possible, even if you are not ready to buy. If you consistently analyze properties, it will be much easier to recognize a good deal when it shows up. Find Brandon's videos on YouTube for the "four square" method of analyzing homes and practice. It doesn't take long to learn how to spot a good deal.

5. Study the market. You can learn to do this on your own or get a rockstar REALTOR to lead the way. I highly recommend a well-qualified REALTOR that works with investors and knows how to best help you.

6. Jump in! Far too many get stuck in the "paralysis by analysis" stage, thinking they just don't know enough to get started. The truth is, you could read 100 books and still not know enough because certain things need to be learned through trial-and-error. You don't need to know everything to get started; you just need a foundation to build on and the rest will come through experience and then refining your education.

You can build a basic understanding of investing in 3-6 months. How long it takes to be financially ready is different for everyone. Once you're ready, create a goal (e.g. "I will buy at least one single-family home, duplex, triplex, or fourplex before the end of 2019") and then do it. Real estate investing is a pretty forgiving world and the average person can still make money even with some pretty big mistakes.

[Michael Haas]

I'll second what others have said - educating yourself (on BiggerPockets and elsewhere) and building your team (Realtor, Investor, Contractors, etc) is a great first step!

Do you own your own home yet @Matthew Anderson? If you don't HouseHacking would be a great way to get started. We've HouseHacked 4 times now, and it is a big reason why we have such a large portfolio of rental properties now - it really works! There are downpayment assistnace programs available to home owners and househackers that aren't available when buying the house as a straight rental - with the WSHFC down payment assistance program you can get into a house for pretty much just the closing costs- could be just 6k up front cash to close on a $500k house. If that house has a unfinished basement you can finish and rent out, or even just extra rent-able bedrooms, your mortgage payment will likely be significantly less than you currently pay for rent, + you reap all the tax benefits and forced savings effects of home-ownership.

Send me a message if you want to talk more about House Hacking. Its a great and low cost way to get started, and we wouldn't have been able to reach financial independence so quickly any other way. HouseHacking has definitely changed our life for the better!

[Ty Ash]

Hi @Matthew Anderson!

I'd recommend that you keep/start learning! This can be done through Podcasts, Books, and Mentors you find by networking.

I'd pick up a copy of Set for Life by Scott Trench as it has a good framework for financial independence, especially for a newer investor. Real Estate is just a part of your total financial picture so don't become too focused on just real estate. You'll want to learn more ways to increase your income now and in the future, keep your expenses low, and take the difference to invest into assets, real estate/business.

In my opinion, a house hack will probably be one of the best strategies for you to get started and take action while giving you a great return because of the low % down needed to get started. Once you get to this point, make sure to run your numbers for both while living in the house hack (lowering your living expense to less than what it would be to rent in your area) and post move out where you need to be at least break even after accounting for your monthly payment + maintenance, capex, vacancy, property management.

Here's a great resource right here on BP:

https://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing/house-hacking-strategy

Best of luck getting started! Here for you with any questions you have along the way!

[Drew Sygit]

@Matthew Anderson

You should be building a team to maximize your probability of success!

While building your team, it's important you understand the motivations of everyone on your team.

Property Management Company (PMC): No one else on your team should be as vested in a long-term relationship with you as a PMC. They will have to manage whatever you buy on a daily basis until you sell the property or terminate them. You need to find a good one though, that is honest & competent. An honest PMC's incompetency will still cost you.

Sourcing: whether agent, wholesaler, flipper, etc. many only have a vested interest in a transaction. You want to find ones that are vested in developing a long-term business relationship with you. Otherwise, they will screw you for their own compensation.

Inspector: You want an unbiased and competent professional that will properly do their job and document it.

Contractor: Finding contractors that don't cut corners and overcharge is EXTREMELY difficult. Even if they are referred, you really don't know until AFTER they've done a job. The other 3 above should be able to provide referrals, but don't blindly trust anyone!

[Matthew Anderson]

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to respond.