Looking to get into Real Estate investing, Help

[Jeremy Ulcigrai]

Im just going to start with some background to help explain where im coming from and hopefully get some advice to help me out with all of this. I am 22 and work a trade job while still living at home so I make good money and I am saving nearly all of it. Im perfectly happy being at home for the time being and honestly intend to continue living at home for at least the next few years. Because of this I have recently started looking into getting into real estate in order to build wealth and help me secure a stable future. With that in mind I expect by Febuary of 2026 I'll have around 50-60k saved for a down-payment. Im not looking to make a huge profit right now and honestly will be happy as long is it isn't net negative monthly. My current plan after having scratched the surface is to aim for long term rentals with a focus on single family homes. I live in the Chicagoland area so Im ideally planning to find something close to where I live so I can also do some of the maintenance myself to help keep costs down. So I guess my main goal in coming here is to get any advice general or otherwise on what to look out for and be wary of, but also where to start learning more to help me make the most informed decision I can. I should also mention that because i still live at home this whole process from looking to houses to finding an agent is all new to me so even the basics are things i still need to learn. Thank you for any advice you may offer i appreciate the time you are taking to help me out. 

[Aaron Zimmerman]

@Jeremy Ulcigrai - congrats on your early success. You are on the right path with the right attitude. 

I think you're perfectly positioned to buy a house hack by February 2026 if not earlier. The goal with the house hack is to find a place where your housing expenses are relatively minimal and where you can cash flow after leaving. With this strategy, you have low down payment options available to you - 3-10%. You're going to learn the skill of landlording as well. 

Depending on the area, I can suggest a couple of agents to work with. I'd encourage you to go to local meetups and listen to the straight up Chicago investor podcast. 

Your biggest early stress is going to come from not knowing who to call (although you are in the trades so you may be able to fix more things than most)