Hello everyone. Going to get right to the point here... I'm 17 years old, will be a senior in highschool this year, and college is creeping up fast. There's no doubt REI is the path I am taking and several seasoned investors told me a college degree isn't exactly necessary. I know college is good but seems irrelevant. I'm going to get my brokers license once I turn 18. My parents demand (won't take no for an answer, I've tried) that I go to college. My parents don't have the money to put me through college, so I have to pay my own way using whatever J-O-B *tear* that I have. I was planning on using that money to get deeper into REI instead of using it for college. So my question is, is there any "degree" for real estate? Is there any classes I can take to recieve a legit diploma along the lines of real estate? I'm not talking about just classes, courses, guru classes, I'm talking about a legit college completion certificate. If not, what would be my best course of study? What should I major in? Etc...Any advice would be VERY helpful. Thank you.

Damon - One aspect that you really can't plan in are your personal growth and maturing during your late teens and early twenties. At 19 I saw the bright light and changed college majors from pre-med to business. After a twenty minute conversation with an acquaintance helped reveal to me my true calling I changed majors and never looked back. An accounting professor became a close friend and guided me towards real estate. He owned several blocks of apartments near campus and did not need to teach. At 21 my Dad died, during my fourth year of school. It was at this point that i knew i had to do a lot of growing up...in a hurry. I had been buying and selling sports cars as a side income when my godfather suggested I take a weekend seminar on how to buy foreclosures. Much like fixing up cars, he said. I got the "bug" and it has been part of my DNA ever since. That was 1978.

I haven't read the rest of the responses, but here's my $.02 in general when it comes to this topic... Do you want to invest in real estate or do you want to run a business investing in real estate? In other words, do you want to focus on doing transactions or do you want to focus on creating a entity larger than yourself that has the ability to generate income independent of your full-time participation? If you want to run a real estate business (or any business, for that matter), I highly recommend taking courses that will help you learn how to start, manage and automate businesses. This includes business courses, finance courses, entrepreneurship classes, business law classes, etc. You can take these classes as part of a formal degree in business/finance or you can take them as electives while pursuing a different primary degree. You can even take these types of courses on their own, independent of a degree. The nice thing about going this route is that, even if you decide RE isn't the right vehicle, you'll still have the skills to focus on other types of businesses or ventures. Of course, if you just want to do real estate transactions and have no desire to build something bigger, take the real estate licensing course and find a good mentor. But, also make sure you have a backup plan in case you find you don't like doing real estate transactions or in case the market gets (more) difficult.

@Damon Armstrong - Have you ever watched or played Texas Hold'em? It's an interesting game to study. The pros know that the cards of are little importance. Identifying tells, understanding statistics, representing strength or weakness, considering your position/table image and maintaining discipline are all more important. Sure, you may have short-term set backs, but over the long-run the best player takes all of money from the player who only thinks about the cards. In a similar fashion, being a successful real estate investor has little to do with real estate. You are a business owner. You must be able to communicate with buyers, sellers, contractors, lenders, employees, and a host of others. You have to market to sellers or buyers or both. You have to analyze opportunities and understand the financial implications (including the opportunity costs) of proceeding. You need to understand the financial markets and how they affect your goals. I could go on and on.... It is far better to learn how to do these things in college than by making mistakes in your business. It is also far cheaper. You are incredibly fortunate that you know how you want to apply the knowledge you gain. Approach learning with the zeal that you show for real estate. Absorb everything. As you build your business, the knowledge and discipline you gain from college will allow you to accelerate your growth at a pace that is otherwise impossible to replicate. Three final points. First, don't rush through the experience. Being 18-22 and in college can and should be an awesome experience. Don't lose focus on the future, but enjoy the heck out of the present. Second, there is nothing that says you can't get started investing why you are in school. Buying a rental house that you also live in is a great way to do so. Paraphrasing Kiyosaki...Most people say 'I can't'; investors ask 'How do I?' Third, like poker, the game never ends. A constant pursuit of knowledge is what will keep you ahead of the competition.

Damon - First, I appreciate your drive and passion towards real estate investment. I live near Baton Rouge (in Zachary), and own a quad in Baker that I purchased over a year ago for $150K. I don't live in it (I own a house in Zachary), so I had to put down 25% to get the property. That was one of the cheaper units I could find. Some of the quads I found ran in the $250K range. You can probably find a decent duplex in Baton Rouge for $150K. If you qualify for an FHA loan (questionable with no credit history), that would be over $5,000 for the down payment alone (at 3.5%). I'm not sure that you would be approved for the Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) that would be required for less than a 20% down payment. With that said, I would like to give you some help toward making your dream a reality. 1. Start with a part time job if you don't already have one. It doesn't matter where you work, but you should start showing a source of income. This will help with #2. 2. After working for a couple months, apply for a credit card. You can start with a secured card (you use collateral to get the card) if you don't qualify for an unsecured version (no collateral required). This will start establishing a credit history. I got my first card when I was a freshman in college. It had a $400 limit. I still have that same card (20 years later), and through smart usage the credit limit is now over $25,000. I'm not sure if there is an age restriction (I don't think there is), so you should be able to get one before turning 18. It is going to be extremely difficult to purchase property with no credit history, so you should start building this as soon as possible. Use your credit card for bills or food and pay it off each month to avoid costly finance charges. 3. Go to college for two years. You can get a two-year degree (from Baton Rouge Community College - BRCC) in Business Technology with a concentration in Entrepreneurship. You will be able to take classes in accounting, economics, information systems, finance, management, and marketing as well as speech / business communications (which will be very helpful for a soon to be investor). Not only will you learn about the subjects that you will need to be a successful real estate investor, but you can network will other like minded individuals. If you can handle the work load, I recommend having a part time job while in college. You can definitely get student loans to help you pay for school (this will also slowly help build your credit once you start paying them back). You should also try to apply for grants and scholarships. If you maintain a minimum GPA of 2.5 and score a 20 on the ACT, you qualify for TOPS in Louisiana, which pays for your college tuition, including at BRCC. This will minimize the amount of loans you need. You can use your pay to start saving toward your down payment, and if you have left over money from your student loans, you can use that too. I recommend looking for roommates to share an apartment with or check the ads and just rent an extra room from someone to save on costs. The more you save on rent, utilities, etc, the faster you will save your down payment. I don't doubt that if you really want this, you can make it happen. The best advise I can give you is to think about each purchase you make. Ask yourself: is this purchase getting me closer to my down payment? If not, you really have to think hard about whether that is the best use of your hard earned money. The more you can stash away now, the faster you will reach your goal. If you have any questions, feel free to inbox me. Good Luck!

@Damon Armstrong I'd highly recommend college. It will only add credibility down the road. It can help you with partners, raising money, and in countless other ways. While it may not have classes directly relevant to what your wanting to do it does help develop certain skill sets. Soft skills like communications, ability to follow through on projects.... While a degree certainly isn't a requirement, and isn't going to impress anyone, it can act as a validation "checkbox" in the back of someone's mind when choosing to do business with you. I went to a good school which happened to have two year masters in real estate program and took a couple classed in it. Found them very interesting and certainly helps you understand alot. If you're looking to get into a more sophisticated job, dealing with commercial, development, ect, it will help and be required. Not sure where you were planning to go but there a a number of schools with real estate degree programs, some are masters.

Real Estate "Degree"?

Arlan Potter

Investor/Accountant/Builder · Meno, OK · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 918 votes

12y

Damon,

Get after it. I have a friend that bought his first house at 16(a cheap rental). He now has 2 rentals and the house he lives in.

Real Estate "Degree"?

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