Real estate journey

[Jeffrey Hammonds Jr.]

My name is Jeffrey Hammonds Jr. I live in Seattle and a full time Acute Care registered Nurse for 3 years. Looking to get my real estate journey on the move and I'm always looking for advice before I make the jump in 2026.

[Sean Smith]

Hi @Jeffrey Hammonds Jr. welcome to the BP forums! Tons of great info and resources here. If you're getting started I always suggest digging into the following:

1. Identify your "why" behind investing in real estate first (cashflow to leverage yourself out of your career, equity build-up long term for retirement, lifestyle investments you can use personally, reducing tax exposure, etc). This will be your "north star" to help keep you focused in a world full of shiny-object-opportunities.

2. Identify your ideal investing location. Want to be a quick drive to your investments, or does that not matter as much? Does that location have population growth, job growth, strong incomes, etc? What are the macro drivers of value in that area (gov't jobs, tech, military, hospitality, etc.)

3. Build your team: unless you plan to wing it completely, you'll want an investor-friendly Lender, Agent, Property Manager, and Contractor/Handyman.

Once all of this is in place, you'll be well-equipped to make your first investment (hopefully of many!)