New member from the Denver area

[Drew Moler]

Hi everyone!

My name is Drew, and I'm excited to finally join the BiggerPockets community. I'm 48 years old and currently work full-time as an automotive technician in the Denver, Colorado, area.

I didn't receive much financial education growing up, so my investing journey didn't really begin until 2025, when I started listening to personal finance podcasts. BiggerPockets Money quickly became one of my favorites, and after discovering the BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast, I became fascinated with real estate investing. I recently finished reading How to Invest in Real Estate by Josh Dorkin and Brandon Turner, and it confirmed that this is a path I want to pursue.

My long-term goal is to transition from trading my time for money to building wealth through real estate. Right now, I'm especially interested in house hacking, the BRRRR strategy, and long-term buy-and-hold rentals.

Another big reason I'm joining the community now is that I'm planning to relocate from the Denver area to the Knoxville, Tennessee, area within the next 18–36 months. My hope is to begin building relationships and learning about the Knoxville market well before I make the move.

One idea I've been seriously considering is becoming a part-time real estate agent. My thinking is that it would help me better understand the buying and selling process, give me access to the MLS, expand my network, and hopefully provide a little side income while I build my own investment portfolio.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has gone this route. If you're an investor who became an agent—or an agent who became an investor—I'd really appreciate your perspective. Was getting your license worth it? Since I'm planning to move to the Knoxville area, I'd also love to connect with anyone investing there or who knows the market well.

Thanks for taking the time to read my introduction. I'm looking forward to learning from all of you, building relationships, and sharing my progress as I get started!