I wanna learn and start young but I work at restaurant and barely have enough money to pay my bills. I wanna work hard and get lead into the right direction and multiply my year to date income.
Rental Property Investor · Kalamazoo, MI · Member since 2018 · 12 posts · 28 votes
7y
Everyone has different learning preferences, but use the time while you currently have while you are saving to educate yourself like crazy. Listen to as many podcasts as you can, read every book you can find, start going to REI meetups, ask another investor if you can work for him for free, etc. I spent a solid 9 months reading 10+ books, and listening to over 100 podcasts, and built some good relationships before I started.
The best thing you can do right now outside of education is to get creative and disciplined enough to live off of 80% of your income. If you can save 20 percent per month, you'll find you'll have enough captial to land a deal, even if it's not the most amazing purchase, within a year of saving.
When I started out I simply made connections with owners that wanted to offload properties so they would let me place a contract on their property for $50, I would then sell the contract and get the property sold. I can say it takes a little more legwork gaining a friendly relationship with the owners and at the time I had only pockets of listings that had been going on and off of listings (MLS) for a couple years, I then negotiate the price to something with good ROI and put down the contract.
I had also found a couple of properties that people wanted to make money but didn't want to do anything so I helped them rent out properties and rooms at certain prices, add mine on top and that's that.
Longview, TX · Member since 2018 · 24 posts · 6 votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez look into wholesaling. And drive for dollars. Im a newbie but there is tons of valuable information on YouTube and you dont need a RE licence
Rental Property Investor · Erie, PA · Member since 2018 · 6k+ posts · 9k+ votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez
In order to be a RE investor you have to actually invest . You need to save money and live frugal .forget finding a house with no money down . .extremely rare and those deals dont go to newbies . you must have credit and a savings . if your betting on no or low money down start playing the lotto if that’s your strategy.
Rental Property Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2015 · 401 posts · 221 votes
7y
Real estate is one way to invest money. It’s not the only way, and it’s not a miracle that will solve all of your problems. And it’s not easy money either.
If I were you, I would start with increasing my income. Maybe start a side job as handyman? You can learn a lot of construction stuffs online and by asking at Home Depot.
Rental Property Investor · Chappaqua, NY · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 947 votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez Lot of info here.
I would advise that you read as many books and listen to podcasts about real estate as you can.
Also find someone to bounce ideas off nd learn from that Is successful. Chose that person carefully. If you cant find one then just keep reading.
One thing to keep in mind. There are about as many ways to be successful as there are successful people. There is no one sure fire way to get there, that will work better than others.
One of my favorite quotes is “beware of any job that requires the purchase of new clothes”.
I could be wrong but I apply that to mean I can do anything with no thing required. Hard work, ingenuity and trial and error will stand in for any other thing people could say you would need.
@Joshua D Rodriguez just echoing everyone in here. First educate: listen to the money podcast with scott and mindy. Learn all the ways to increase income and save 20-30%. Then know your market and work on getting a 20%down or use a FHA loan to house hack your way to that goal
Rental Property Investor · Annapolis, MD · Member since 2011 · 232 posts · 170 votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez First off let me say congrats for even thinking the way you are at a young age! That alone will separate you and put you on a path of success.
How old are you? Are you going to school? Either way now is the time to educate yourself and network. Read anything and everything you can on real estate investing. Talk to anyone you know that’s in the game. Ask them for their advice. Figure out what path of real estate investing you want to go down. Once you know that, find a mentor who is doing it and then offer to work for free for them in exchange for them teaching you.
At the same time you’re doing all of this you need to figure out a way to increase your income. As some have mentioned the quickest way to do this and what I recommend anyone do unless they are heading down the medical/law path is to get into sales. Specifically a sales industry where it’s possible to make 100k+.
If you work to do both of these you’ll be jumping into real estate deals before you know it. Feel free to message me directly and I’ll be happy to help any way I can. Good luck!
@Joshua D Rodriguez as a practical first step, I'd look into house hacking if you're ok with roommates. It'll help reduce your monthly expenses and allow you to start saving up for the next deal. You only need 5% down (or less sometimes depending on the type of loan you get).
BP Podcast episode 276 with Bryce Stewart is an AWESOME starting point. Even if you just take the truck allegory from it on the first episode, it's worth the time to listen just for that.
Flipper/Rehabber · Justin, TX · Member since 2015 · 17 posts · 10 votes
7y
I’m going to mimic what a lot of other people have said on here, and say read Brandon Turner’s “The Book on investing in Real Estate with No (and low) Money Down”..and read everything else on this site that you can. Listen to the podcasts. Save anything you can. Start going to meetups and network with other investors. The best investors are only as good as their network!
I just completed my first flip with barely any of my own money because I found a killer deal and then partnered with a more experienced flipper who had the money and resources, so I was able to get paid and learn a lot throughout the process! You CAN invest with little or no money. Pm me if you have any questions or if I can help at all. Good luck!
@Matt Nusbaum I am 22 and going to school for nursing
this is excellent! Nurses make good money. even right out of school. Once you get employed save that cash! with your spare time learn about RE. Also, i would caution about paying for any Guru.... you can get your education at this point free. Also, see if your school has any financial classes..... it all will help.
Specialist · Grand Rapids, MI · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 611 votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez
Having another job to help fund real estate helps. I would get another job that pays more, while you build a wealth of knowledge. There is no secret that alot of people with successful real estate careers also had successful work careers because people who succeed in real estate also often have the willpower to succeed at multiple things.
Murrieta, CA · Member since 2015 · 5 posts · 4 votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez Hi Joshua! I have been where you have been and I want to give you a little guidance. First of all, I want you to keep in mind if you want to invest in real estate and make a good amount of money and keep it coming in, keep in mind its not a quick get rich thing, Its a long term process. Second, start learning on youtube the whole process from A to B either for wholesaling, fix & flip, or long term rental and stick to one. I would suggest wholesaling but master this skill. Third, learn on finding & building the right team for you. The people you need is a investor friendly real estate agent (he/she will generally have people who need their homes rehabbed), General Contractor, Title/ Escrow Company, Hard Money Lenders, and Private Money Lenders. Later you can set a business entity so you can write off your expenses and keep most of the money you make. Build and nurture your relationships that you build. Your team is your biggest asset on growing your investment portfolio. There is so much mkre to cover, but this is a good start.
Welcome to the club of aspiring investors at a young age. Everyone has provided you with some good insights already but I'm going to provide you with what I had wish I knew 2 years ago when I first discovered real estate investing.
-REI is just a vehicle for your already earned income to grow overtime. That means what you put into it is what you get out of it. 15% return on 0 dollars is still 0. If you have a goal of making 50k a year look at how much you would need to invest and at what rate in order to reach that goal. The numbers don't lie, don't try to bend them to what you want them to be.
- You need to focus on your personal financial situation. You can't effectively invest with a long term strategy if you are personally in an uncomfortable financial situation. You need to be able to afford to think long term.
- You will not build this overnight, or within a year, or two, or four. Most people with average income levels and good saving/spending habits tend to see solid (subjective) portfolio growth around years 6-10. This means you're playing the long game.
- Gain a trade REI related. @Andrew Johnson gave me some solid advice once to go work at a PM company. I ended up taking a different route, but it was REI related (in a sense). Considering you're going to college to become a nurse, I'd recommend you make that switch now before you start clinical's. You'll probably make close to what you do now as a server but it'll get you closer to your goal of being educated in real estate.
- Be patient and consistent. Also don't forget to have fun and enjoy the journey.
If you ever want to chat shoot me a PM. Good luck!
Specialist · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2018 · 1k+ posts · 666 votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez simple ( not easy) find deals for others, we will pay you a fee. Do enough then have your own money to do them on your own, Good Luck
Flipper · South Abington Township, PA · Member since 2017 · 9 posts · 4 votes
7y
I worked in restaurants too when I started. Spend your time reading/studying now. Analyze deals also. Once you finding a deal that is a money maker, you'll find the money to do it. Needing money to get started is a myth. I didn't have an any and often times I still don't have any to do the deals, but I still put them together.
Real Estate Agent · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2015 · 8 posts · 3 votes
7y
@Joshua D Rodriguez I was in a similar situation as yourself, so I figured I would learn the business from the inside out without investing my own money. I went and got my real estate license, and got hired on with a real estate investment firm. This is a great opportunity to get to work directly with investors and investment properties and to be involved in the sales side as well (huge money potential if you can take initiative). Best of luck man!