What's up BiggerPockets community! My name's Cameron and I'm a 17 year old high school senior from Fort Smith, Arkansas. I'm going to college next year at the University of Arkansas to study Investments and Securities but my biggest passion is Real Estate. From the time I read "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" I've been fascinated by the concept of real estate investing, specifically multi-family real estate investing. I dedicate almost all of my time to learning from the typical sources like books, podcasts, and youtube videos etc. My question is, whats the next step? What action should/can I take now? I know I need to build my network and experience/knowledge and the best way to do that is to find a mentor and provide value, but what can I do at 17? I have no aversions to working for a real estate agency or investment group and making cold-calls (for free, in exchange for experience and knowledge) or something like that, but is that something that's even possible for my age? My main concern right now is getting educated and developing the necessary skills to succeed in this field while also building up my network. Any and all advice is greatly appreciated, I'm VERY ambitious and I have some pretty big goals so I'm very eager to get started with this!

My advice is my opinion and it is very extreme but if you're serious about real estate and retiring at 30 this is what you do. Dont go to that university(unless you have a full ride scholarship). The student loan debt will cost you years of retirement. If you must go to school go to trade school or community college. Never finance a car for any reason. Work two jobs for a few years to try to save your first 20-30k or more. Consider working for a contractor to learn handyman skills, that will be very valuable when you start investing. When you buy your first home you must buy a multi family with an FHA loan and house hack. Avoid debt on anything other than rental properties and live very frugally. Dont date until you are 25. By then you will know what you truly need as a partner, find someone with the same drive and frugal discipline. If you marry someone that wants a big fancy house and always needs a brand new car you will forever be trying to make up for those debts. If you do all this and stay focused you will be financially free no later than 30.

Build your credit. Get a credit card, get a car loan, anything to build credit. Find a job working in real estate, you'll learn more by doing than reading. Congratulations on getting an early start. You'll be far ahead of your peers by the time they graduate college.

@Cameron Dye First off, congratulations on starting out at your age! I wish I had started investing in high school. Since you already seem to be learning a lot through books, pod casts, etc. I would say the next step is to get out there and start networking - go to your local meetups or REIA meetings and introduce yourself to people there. Tell people who you are and what you want to do, you'll be amazed at how much people will want to help.

Hey Cameron, Love your ambition! I have been in banking for 11 years now and the number one mistake I see from college students is using their college years to accumulate debt and ruin their credit score. Couple of recommendations for you: I would strongly recommend you use this time to build your savings (as much as possible in college lol), open a credit card, and keep the balance low or at $0. One of the main factors for a credit score is "credit age" . Most credit cards won't let you open one without a cosigner until you're 18, so you might have to wait just a little bit. Having a good credit score will just make securing your first deal so much easier. The importance of connections of like minded people is indispensable. Contacts and networking are so essential in real estate. The best piece of advice I could give would be find a mentor. I have had several mentors over the years and finding someone who has been down the roads you want to go is just so invaluable. Hope that helps and good luck!

@Cameron Dye if I was you, I would contact every property management company in town. Talk to the owner. Let them know your story, that you are young and want to get into rental properties. Tell them you are looking for a foot in the door. Tell them you are willing to do anything. That might be cleaning out vacant apartments, picking up rent checks, unlocking a door for a showing, scrubbing toilets, whatever. The point is getting your foot in the door and being able to learn the business. You may start out doing grunt jobs, but over time you will get elevated to higher responsibility. You could do the same for a real estate company, but I think learning the property management side is more important. You will see the good, bad and ugly of different types of properties and tenants. You will also find that people who own property management companies also own rental properties themselves. Most realtors do not understand investment properties or even own their own investment properties, so that is why I wouldn't start there. One other bit of advice... You are 17 years old, so enjoy your youth, have some fun and make memories. It is great you are looking towards the future, but don't lose sight of where you are today. Keep a balance is all I am saying. Good luck!

I'm sure you already got a lot of great advice here so read and re-read everyones comments regularly and work on applying them to your life. In case these were not covered I'll share my favorite options/ principles to do when you are young or starting out: - Understand that almost every successful person or person in general is working to optimize their business/life and they would benefit greatly from having more time (free time).. leverage the fact that you have the one thing everyone else needs, find the people who understand the absurd value of time and give them yours. That's a great place to start. - Say yes to all opportunities. (You can't predict the future. If you listen to successful people's stories they always seem to start seemingly far from where they end.. that's confusing but the point is you never know what opportunity is going to lead to your future so while you have time, take advantage of all opportunities, even the ones that may not make sense. With your age you can take ten opportunities that don't end up being much and still be ahead of most people so don't hesitate due to fear of being wrong, Ever.) Eventually you will get to a point were you can stop saying yes, and start saying no.. but this is wayyyy down the line when you determined your purpose and your life is on track and aligns with fulfilling your purpose.. for now keep saying yes to everything. - Use your passion for investing, and focus it on personal finance if you feel you can't take much investing action at this time. I'm not saying there aren't opportunities where you can invest now, but especially being a college student you should focus on being a great student since you chose the college path, and throughout that process do everything you can to master your personal finances. Do your best to stay out of debt, you can afford to be extremely frugal so do that. Don't spend on credit cards, and work hard to generate income, and last find every opportunity to offset major costs... Scott Trench's Set for Life details a wealth of actionable tips but most importantly he covers the idea of house-hacking. If you are going to pay for housing at school this is likely the most important thing you can focus on off-setting. Keep learning and start taking action on finding your own house-hack however you can. - Gain experience. Do this anyway you can. Maybe get your realtors license if that interests you, I would probably try and get in touch with an investor however you can to see how you can help them (back to tip one, free time). The other big benefit to you is there are usually a lot of tasks an investors does that can be delegated so after finding investors, find out their biggest problems, and see how you can help or at least take some of the tedious tasks away from them. - Don't underestimate personal growth/ self-improvement. This is where I still focus a great deal of my energy, at the end of the day if I haven't worked hard at being the best version of myself (as cheesy as it sounds).. can I really add any value to anyone else? Should I? Instead use your time to listen to and learn from geniuses like Tony Robbins, Zig Ziglar, Jim Rohn and on and on... keep feeding your mind with powerful content and work on applying it to your own life. If you can truly master your own life by always learning and consistently encouraging personal growth, everything else will take care of itself. As famously explained in The One Thing: "Put the man together, and the world falls into place." Sorry for rambling or any grammatical errors, I hope you can take some value from this. Be patient, work hard.. the fact that you are asking these questions suggests you're off to a great start.

@Cameron Dye Hi Cameron, I am currently 16 years old in Southern California as a sophomore in high school. It’s nice to someone else young with lots of ambition on bp. I have read many books and listened to many podcast as well, and the most important piece of advice that I took away from all of this is to get a mentor or a partner who is experienced and willing to help you out. The way I would find these mentors is through local real estate meetups. As long as you do all the “grunt work” or mundane task they have for you, it will result in much learned knowledge and tips from experienced investors. Also I recommend “house hacking” as a first investment due to the safety factor it provides. Good luck!

Cameron, You're already on the right track! Anytime you aren't sure of your next step, just go to those who have done what you want to do. I have 3 suggestions that have been mentioned separately in replies above. 1. Bank Cash (Get your money right) Start banking cash as soon as possible. ALWAYS pay yourself first! Whether you keep this in a savings account that you are disciplined enough not to touch or open a Roth IRA start building a financial runway. Through college I paid all my own rent, vehicle, books, etc. but I always paid my Roth IRA account every paycheck. I will be graduating this spring with roughly $10,000 cash that has just accumulated. (Please Note) If you place your money in a Roth IRA you can only withdrawal contributions, not interest, unless it is used for your first time home purchase, student loans, or a medical bill, 2. Gain Experience (Surround yourself with the right people) I have a degree in sales and marketing. My advice to you if you are looking to get in the business in real estate is gain sales internships or work for a broker. These experiences will not only teach you the business but sales focused internships will force you to learn how to communicate and come out of your shell. 3. Build Credit (Save first and spend whats leftover) Spend time reviewing Youtube and Bigger Pockets money content on the proper ways to be using a credit card. Pay the card off every single month in full. Best of luck, Brandon

What Should I be Doing as a 17-year old?

Lee Bell

Real Estate Appraiser · Isabella lake, CA · Member since 2018 · 628 posts · 491 votes

7y

Play your guitar.

Run around and chase women and have all sorts of good.

Times.

Or better yet, do what everyone else says. It will likely end better.

1 Reply

Jess White

Rental Property Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2018 · 152 posts · 159 votes

7y

@Andrew Flora That’s really solid advice. Love it.

1 Reply

Jonathan R.

Investor · Wichita, KS · Member since 2017 · 584 posts · 813 votes

7y

@Cameron Dye I disagree with the people trying to talk you out of college. College is awesome. I met my wife during that time, but no need to be in a hurry for that. Do some dating and hook up with a few randos first. :) Anyway, I needed college first before investing. Investing involves risk. In college you might not learn about investing but you will have a safety net under you so you can work if anything goes wrong. I went on to grad school later even, I love learning, investing in your mind will serve you well. I’m on property 5 now and about to the 1/3 to halfway point to financial freedom, I still work in a corporate job to fund my real estate business (a job I would not have without a degree). Grad school was paid for through tuition reimbursement from my job.

Find a way to sell something to your fellow college students (legally of course). Be creative and think of something, your brain will work in similar ways later.

Good luck, yep stay out of consumer debt. Work during the summers or when you can. Find a hot girl with wealthy parents.

1 Reply

Ben Hudman

Rental Property Investor · Abilene, TX · Member since 2018 · 26 posts · 11 votes

7y

@Cameron Dye I am currently 19 and I was doing the same thing two years ago. I will admit that I was lucky enough to have a grandmother finance a deal for me as a co-signer. This allowed me to get my first property at 18 and actually start the process of owning a tangible asset. However, to get to that I talked with realtors and found out information about the community I’d be purchasing property in. Having a knowledge of what property is worth in your area is a huge bonus to have. Also, if you’re going to jump into buying property early make sure you find some reliable contractors that are affordable. This can be a huge undertaking in itself and there are many people out there that won’t hesitate to scam you. However, there are plenty of honest people just find them! My tips on getting started without owning a property would be trying to shadow an agent or (if possible) another investor. The later would be the best of course. Find out about the ins and outs and take action BUT DO RESEARCH! Best of luck to you sir.

1 Reply

Brian Wilson

Investor · Longmont, CO · Member since 2016 · 185 posts · 156 votes

7y

@Cameron Dye

If you find your selected major to be interesting I would say stick with it. It'll provide very solid income upon graduation.

A few things that you should probably do.

- First 2.5 years at a community college and live at home with your parents. Save all the money you can and work as many hours as possible in something real estate related. This at the very least will reduce your education cost in half.

- Use saved money to buy a small MFR near your college (when you go to the big university after you finish your gen eds). This will be your house hack. You can start looking at that market now to get familiar so you know how much you need to save and where you want to buy.

- Get 3 credit cards. Probably have to get the first one as a secured card. After a year or two you will qualify for unsecured cards. I like to travel so I have 2 travel credit cards in addition to my original secured card that is now just a standard card. It will only take a few years but you will build credit pretty fast. Your student loan will help diversify your debt (increasing your credit score).

- Minimize your student debt.

- Don't spend money on stupid stuff. Set a budget.. on paper... stick to it.

The additional potential benefit of the house hack is that if you buy right and depending on your remaining student debt, you could sell the property and clear your student debt. Or use the residual cash flow to pay down your loans. I've paid my way through college (last semester this summer) and will leave debt free and +40k in the bank to use toward REI. HARD work, but so worth it.

Good luck man. If you ever need anything shoot me a message.

1 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Jonathan R.

Thanks man. As for your advice about selling stuff, I already do e-commerce. I also do some swing-trading. Looking to trade more aggressively and extensively whenever I can open my own private account at 18. As for the college thing, I agree with you. My income from my day job will give me capital to invest with for my first several years. Hoping to scale quickly so I can start real estate investing full time as relatively quickly as possible while being smart about it and managing my risk.

1 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Brian Wilson

That’s some great advice I’ll definitely take into account. I’ll also keep your offer to message you in mind, thanks for being open and available if I have any questions. I really appreciate it!

1 Reply

Maurice Smith

Member since 2018 · 211 posts · 164 votes

7y

Im sure you have heard it before, but build your credit, build your credit, build your credit. Make sure your debt to income ratio is below 25-30%. and never miss a payment! cant stress to you how important those 3 points are. I wish I had someone tell me that at your age. spend your money wisely, learn the difference between liabilities and assets. Invest your money into anything that will potentially make you money back. Don't get 20K and use that as a down payment on a benz, or a watch, etc, unless you'r in a position to do so. understand how to use debit to your advantage. Im sure you heard that not all debit is bad debit. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. money can buy you a education, but learning from a mistake can teach you what money cant buy. This has helped me get to were i am in life. Im only 26, in escrow on a 4 unit mfh as we speak. The sooner you can master all of this, the better off you will be.

good luck my friend,

-Maurice

1 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Maurice Smith

Thanks Maurice, and good luck on your 4 unit!

0 Reply

Matthew McNeil

Rental Property Investor · Boise/Portland · Member since 2017 · 709 posts · 742 votes

7y

Originally posted by @Andrew Flora:

Dont date until you are 25. By then you will know what you truly need as a partner, find someone with the same drive and frugal discipline. If you marry someone that wants a big fancy house and always needs a brand new car you will forever be trying to make up for those debts.

If you do all this and stay focused you will be financially free no later than 30.

Bit of a sidebar off topic Andrew. My dad sat my 3 younger brothers and I down one day many years ago and offered each of us $5000 cash if we waited until we were 25 years old to get married. I did wait, and found the perfect wife whom I would have missed if I hadn't followed dad's advice. Thankfuly, she entirely satisfied with nothing big or fancy and she's supported our portfolio growth from the inception. Great advice!

0 Reply

Matthew McNeil

Rental Property Investor · Boise/Portland · Member since 2017 · 709 posts · 742 votes

7y

There are so many great people on BP, but what I've discovered is only a handfull really know what they're talking about. I mean really. They speak in a language that's different than others and they're steadfast and tenacious in their advice. Find those people by reading hundreds if not thousands of posts and pay attention to what they're saying. Don't worry, you'll figure out who they are because their advice is much deeper and refined than most. They stand out. Those guys will clarify and refine your RE strategy. Hint; one guy's name is Jay and another is Joe. Now watch all the Jays and Joes hit the "vote" button :)

1 Reply

Harrison Liggett

Rental Property Investor · Greensboro, NC · Member since 2018 · 24 posts · 11 votes

7y

@Cameron Dye

Great responses here so far, go through these and take note on the ones you see reoccurring.

I’m going to take a slightly different approach here and say to do most of the things people have mentioned like building credit and working as much as you can to pay down debt obligations. However, don’t forget to enjoy yourself in college. I just graduated from college in 2018 and can tell you that I connected with many of my mentors (and even my boss who hired me) through unconventional ways and having a quality social life was the reason for that. If you haven’t read ‘the alchemist’ I would recommend it. If real estate investing is your personal “legend” then you should be relentless and you will get there. Just don’t misinterpret that path as being a straight line. Feel free to connect with me on this if you’d like to talk more on the subject. Best of luck.

0 Reply

Erick Harbert

Real Estate Agent · Spring, TX · Member since 2015 · 109 posts · 25 votes

7y

@Cameron Dye

So many posts not sure if this was covered. If you are going to college I would highly look into house hacking. Renting a place of your own can be expensive and you can make money or get an amazing rental using house hacking and having your friends pay the rent. This usually makes sense for your parents as well as the cost of rent is much more expensive than if they get you your first rental or help you with your first rental.

Obviously, there are a ton of mazing books on BiggerPockets to read and learn the ins-and-outs. I think one of the good books starting out is by Mitch Stephens and my life and 1000 houses. He really watch through a lot of the small intricacies of starting in the business. Also, if you're looking to build great work habits to really streamlined what you're doing I would recommend the miracle morning, the 4-Hour Work week, and essentialism.

0 Reply

Brent B.

New to Real Estate · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2018 · 19 posts · 5 votes

7y

@Cameron Dye Enjoy your life.

But if you want to do some things now, start learning and saving money. No need to rush into these things.

0 Reply

Jassem A.

Investor · PA · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 602 votes

7y

At 17 I'd focus on college so that you can be prepared for a career. If you take on a part-time work while in college then I would choose construction work so that you are prepared to own real estate in the future.

0 Reply

Ryan Riches

Real Estate Broker · Denver, CO · Member since 2018 · 87 posts · 66 votes

7y

@Cameron Dye looks like you have gotten tons of great advice already! I agree with all of it!

1. Get a job in real estate - this will build your capital, knowledge, experience, and network

2. Build your credit

3. Buy a multi family and house hack.

Then you will be off to the races! Good luck out there.

1 Reply

Ian Holtson

Real Estate Agent · Bloomington, IN · Member since 2017 · 23 posts · 9 votes

7y

Cameron,

I would advise that while many folks make a lot of money quickly in this industry, my experience has shown me that it is a marathon and not a sprint. Your early start will reward you. I would read, Set For Life, by Scott Trench. Focus on building a solid foundation, and getting your personal finances in order. Your friends are going to start buying cool stuff like cars and unreasonable houses; do not follow this path - save and invest.

Also, focus on your relationships. Your family and friends are your biggest motivators, and your success is shared with them. They will start to look up to you, and seek your guidance. This will translate directly into invaluable leadership skills that will last a lifetime. Remember, whether it is a hobby or a job, real estate is just something you do, it is not who you are. Focus on your mental/physical/spiritual self - read/stretch/learn to calm yourself. Don't forget to stop and smell the roses. You're a boss brotha keep pluggin' away, and by the time you are 30 you will be light years ahead of your peers.

1 Reply

Kyle Stevie

Northern Kentucky · Member since 2018 · 9 posts · 4 votes

7y

As a father of twin 17 year-olds, I have been trying like heck to instill this in them. I'm jealous that you are able to start this early! If I were you I would do whatever type of real estate work that you can do in Fayetteville during the school year and work for a contractor over the summers in Fort Smith. This way, IMO, you will gain knowledge of how to look at a future property and know not only the market value, but the cost of repair. You will be able to avoid a lot of mistakes and gain so much knowledge. Also, I echo the "Don't date until you are 25." DO NOT DO IT until you take care of you first. When you are financially stable, it takes away so much unneeded stress that impacts your interactions with a person that you are supposed to be completely relaxed around.

3 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Ian Holtson

Appreciate the advice Ian! I’ll definitely look into your book recommendation too, sounds like something I’d be interested in reading.

0 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Thomas Moore

It makes me feel good that most of the things you advised I’ve already been doing. Grant Cardone is a big inspiration to me both from the real estate and sales perspective. Thanks for the reply!

0 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Brent B.

Agreed. However I don’t feel as though I’m rushing. I enjoy this and it gives me a purpose day in and day out. It’s what I like doing.

1 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Matthew McNeil

Thanks for the advice Matthew. Really hoping to come across some “Jays” and “Joes” as I’m more active on this site!

0 Reply

Cameron Dye

OP

Fort Smith, AR · Member since 2018 · 41 posts · 62 votes

7y

@Kyle Stevie

That’s exactly what I was planning on doing Kyle! There are some summer internship opportunities I planning on taking advantage of and I’m really looking forward to getting some hands on experience. Thanks for the reply my man

0 Reply

Justin Munk

Logan, UT · Member since 2018 · 45 posts · 20 votes

7y

I would house hack a small multi-family. Live in one and rent the others out. with and FHA loan you would only need 3.5% down. Do that over and over. Once you have a wife and family it can get harder to do that.

0 Reply

Steven Foster Wilson

Rental Property Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2017 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes

7y

@Cameron Dye What I wish I had done at 17 was

Convince my parents / grandma to help put a down payment on a house near campus
Get a couple guys to live in the house and "house hack" it.
With any extra income, invest it into additional houses on campus

Really whatever you do, do it with 100% passion. Even if you make a mistake, its okay, being 17 gives you the advantage of time. Im sure you've heard this, start early and you get the snowball effect!

3 Reply

What Should I be Doing as a 17-year old?

What Should I be Doing as a 17-year old?

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