Advice for A 22 Year Old

[Aidan Morris]

I am a 22 year old living in North Central Wv. I am a Master Electrician and also have my real estate license but that is mainly on the side or for my own deals. I currently own 1 property which is my primary residence. 

My first deal I borrowed money from family to purchase a property at a foreclosure auction for $35,000, I put in around $35,000 into the rehab (I did most the work myself), and it ended up appraising for $172,000! I cashed out some of the equity to pay off the money I borrowed and got a Line of Credit on the remaining equity. This is my primary residence and love the location.

I want advice on what you would do next or any tips you have for me moving forward in order to scale. I don't know if i should do a deal similar to my first one and just buy a fixer upper then move into it and keep the current one as a rental property. Or if I should just buy an investment property and turn it into a rental, I have also been looking into some multi family units for the cash flow.

Let me know what you think thanks!

[Michaela Hayes]

You’re in a great spot. Here’s the simple version of what I’d do next:

1. Do another live-in fixer (like your first deal) if you can. It’s the easiest financing and you already proved you can add value.
2. Best move: buy a 2–4 unit and live in one unit while renting the others. That gives you cash flow and experience fast.
3. Keep your current house as a rental only if it cash flows after you budget for vacancy, repairs, and maintenance. If it won’t cash flow, consider selling later and rolling that money into a better rental.
4. Use your LOC as a tool, but keep cash reserves (at least 6 months of expenses) so you don’t get stuck.
5. Focus on 1–2 deals per year and build a small team for the stuff you don’t want to do.

If you tell me what rents are like near you for a 2–4 unit, I’ll help you pick the best next deal type.