Chesapeake, VA · Member since 2018 · 8 posts · 2 votes
Hello Everyone!
This might sound like a no brainer to most of you but I want to hear your thoughts about this situation.. If you are only starting out in REI (no experience and don’t know anyone personally who could help you) and you have 30-50k, would you spend that on a mentor that will guide you step by step on buying properties (almost guaranteed you’d find a great deal fast!) or would you spend that straight on buying deals all on your own (which could probably turn out as a bad deal?)
Will appreciate your thoughts!
Rental Property Investor · Torrance, CA · Member since 2016 · 724 posts · 1k+ votes
8y
If by mentor you mean a guru that is selling a program I say absolutely don’t do that. If by mentor you mean a friend or family member that has been successful then ok. Everything the gurus will teach you can be found in books, online, and right here on BiggerPockets. This isn’t rocket science you don’t need to pay $50,000 for someone’s “secret method.”
Normal, IL · Member since 2016 · 15 posts · 1 vote
8y
Shirley, I hope you are hearing the resounding, NO!, on the guru model. It really comes down to your learning and effort, which can feel overwhelming at times. I have been around property most of my life, but thinking as an investor and knowing the numbers is different than being involved in remodeling and maintenance.
Hang on to your money - learn, learn, learn. Or find someone like me in your area, that may have more knowledge but doesn't have the cash position to move ahead. You might be a good partner for the right person. But YOU still have to learn otherwise you can be taken advantage of. Bests
Rental Property Investor · Erie, PA · Member since 2018 · 6k+ posts · 9k+ votes
8y
Not to beat a dead horse but Think of it this way ... If these so called experts and gurus were actually killing it doing real estate deals they would have no interest or the time in organizing conference seminars and writing and selling get rich quick books . Now I admit I have never attended these conferences and I’m sure there’s some great tips and strategies from these guys but much of what I’ve seen and heard is just regurgitating someone’s old information already out there . By now virtually Every newbie has heard of short sales bank foreclosures and public auctions ..There’s only so many legal ways to make money structuring real estate deals . To me it sounds like they are more motivational speakers than RE experts . Give you some tips on finding deals then get your adrenaline pumping and hyped up with a few success stories and positive thinking psychology in a group setting . The industry secret I’ve read before online is that the biggest names in finance wisdom- kiosaki , Ramsey etc , actually made more selling their books and systems than actually owning real estate and doing deals
Handyman · Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2018 · 5k+ posts · 13k+ votes
8y
Everybody likes having their hand held. Everybody wants a shortcut to riches. Nobody wants to learn through failure. Everybody wants encouragement when trying something new. Nobody likes to waste time and effort and look stupid.
In five hundred years, we'll have gurus shooting ads of guys on space yachts talking confidently about rehabbing mining colonies and flipping asteroids for no money down.
Enrolled Agent · Richmond, CA · Member since 2016 · 225 posts · 148 votes
8y
@Shirley Frias Here's another vote for holding onto your $30k and spending time educating yourself for free. I'm huge fan of local meetups. Over the past few months I've learned about new REI opportunities that could be a good fit for me that I hadn't considered (or even known about) before, and overall I'm feeling much more savvy about my REI plans.
Rental Property Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2016 · 294 posts · 104 votes
8y
No, it's not guaranteed that you find a great deal fast. Because most of the great deals are picked up faster. Do yourself a favor, get a license first. This would give you a fast access to MLS. Then study a market, spend half a year or more looking at deals. Good deals does not come every day, you have to watch and be ready to pick it up.
Rental Property Investor · Austin, TX · Member since 2016 · 294 posts · 104 votes
8y
My best deals came from foreclosure, estate sale, desperate sellers. How can your guru make someone broken or dead, so you can pick up a great deal? RE is not a rocket science, it's buying cheap and selling market price or renting out. The deals are not created from the aer by gurus. What a nonsense.
Investor · Wellington, CO · Member since 2017 · 79 posts · 30 votes
8y
@Shirley Frias, it's a big time commitment at 280+ hours but I suggest that you listen to every single BiggerPockets podcast. Listen to them at increased speed or whatever you need to do, but they are invaluable to a newbie. Start with number one, and work your way through. Despite each guest having a different niche or strategy, you will notice that patterns develop from guest to guest and after a while you'll be able to predict answers to questions based on what you've already learned.
You can spend just as much time reading forums or books but, for me, it's easy to get overwhelmed by this proposition because there is not a linear path to the knowledge and there is just so much... a lot of it redundant.
Josh, Brandon, Mindy, Scott, and Dave do a great job (usually) of keeping the podcast interviews on track and they follow a pretty rigid, predictable format. This makes it more linear, easy to digest, and you get 280 different stories from start to end.
Warning: don't start with the Grant Cardon podcasts. He's an amazing person, but... just don't start there.
Oklahoma City, OK · Member since 2017 · 258 posts · 215 votes
8y
If you need to be hand held enough to pay 30k to a guru, I don't think you have the stomach for real estate. The successful investors are those that gain knowledge themselves (reading BP, listening to podcasts etc), through mentors, and through experience.
If you still need the secret and all the paperwork, I will do all that for you. And you're lucky, because right now it's only exactly 30K :)
Lender · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
8y
If you are starting out, pretend you only have a fraction of that. Learn your market and then learn how to market. If you spend that on a deal right out of the gates, you are rolling the dice. If you spend the time learn what a really good deal looks like, you will know exactly how to apply those funds .
Real Estate Broker · Virginia Beach, VA · Member since 2014 · 127 posts · 31 votes
8y
Hi!
Find a great agent that is already hunting deals/educated about investing then focus in on a concentrated area you would like to invest in. Its also a good idea to find a great contractor that can help you see the bigger picture of the property. Our area is so amazing from an investment perspective.
Everything I needed to become an educated investor is on here and I learned from our local Tidewater Real Estate Investing group. There are a lot of investors there that are happy to help when you have questions and may even go in on a deal with you!