Computer Engineer halfway through college, best plan of action?

Question

Hello I have recently gotten into real estate education from David Green's BRRRR book. (read the whole book)

I am halfway through school, and starting pay for my field out of school is around 70k-100k.

I am 19 years old and have about 20k of income coming in from school coops before I graduate.

My idea is that knowledge and networking is all that I should be focusing on until I get out of school.

I don't know if risking my credit and school money is a good for my first investment, but I would love for some experienced insight. Any input would be fantastic.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

I would figure out how to start right now. Learn about house hacking. Buy a 5+ bedroom home in a good neighborhood. With an owner-occupy loan, you can put 5% or less down. Rent out the extra rooms. Keep it when you graduate and move away. Then start again at the next place.

Bryce Jamison · Answer

If I were in your position I would put all of my focus into finishing school with as little debt as possible then securing a job at the upper end of the pay range you listed. Then for the next 6 months, at least, go all in on your new job to make sure you learn it well and establish a a good reputation. You should also be networking and studying real estate, but finishing school and getting a high income job should be priority number one. Remember, until you build your real estate empire your W2 income will be your main source of income.

Once you've been in your job awhile, have an emergency fund, and have a budget I would start the process of buying a primary residence. The advantages are enormous. There's tax advantages, you can house hack, the value can appreciate, you'll get a lower interest rate, and the best part is you can buy a new house like this every year. If you did this every year after college you could have 8 houses, or more, before you're 30. You can also sell these houses later and 1031 exchange them into even better properties.

While you're buying houses be sure to switch jobs every 2-4 years, at least in the early years of your career. Don't let the "company man" propaganda fool you. You'll get 10-20% pay jumps every time you switch jobs as opposed to the 2-4% annual raise and occasional 8% raise you'll get staying at the same company. As you age you may value the stability more, but I'd try to get the largest pay jumps I could as fast I could. If you do work at a company that's willing to give you 10-20% raises every few years then maybe you do consider sticking with them.

Just one man's opinion! Good luck!

Trevor Knorpp · Answer

I love this response. I see a lot of stories of young people getting their skin into the game early. I do intend on being an job hopper. I think you are exactly right from that perspective. Thank you so much for putting so much effort into my post. I am new to the BP community, and I am so happy that there are so many passionate people like you ready to give their perspective.

One thing I may do differently is push more aggressively into the scene once I have the chance. My goal is to have 10 million in equity. As long as the math lines up, I don't see a problem with pushing deeper, but I am still brand new!! I wants to go full steam into it.