Son is going to college and wants to take some investing classes...what to look for?

Question

So my son is interested in getting into Real Estate investing along with becoming an English professor. He's starting to look at colleges because he's a junior in High School. My question is...should we be looking at colleges that have Real Estate investing majors or are there specific classes that he can take that are really help someone out with real estate investing instead of limiting to only those colleges with those degrees?? There are about 5-6 colleges in NY that have these degrees however they are very expensive! So I was trying to look for courses related to it that he can take as electives. Any advice??

Tom V. · Answer

Don't study real estate in college.  Have him take classes in courses he won't have the opportunity to take elsewhere later in life.  A great Shakespeare professor is hard to come by.  "How to get started in real estate" classes are literally a dime a dozen.

Don't waste college on fake job training.  Maybe an accounting course at most.  Virtually ever college should have accounting.

Have him consider renting an apartment and subletting to friends.  Consider buying a house and letting him manage it.  Find a part time job as a property manager.  Have him mow lawns in your neighborhood - that's how to get started in property management....

All of these are time better spent than listening to somebody explain cap rates or mortgage applications.   That stuff comes in the professional world.

Paul Timmins · Answer

@Nichole Wall

Welcome to you and your son. Have him fill in the foundation below. I agree with Tom you son could line up housing and get free tuition.

Check out the Start Here page http://www.biggerpockets.com/starthere

Check out BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginner's Guide - A fantastic free book that walks through many of the key topics of real estate investing.

Check out the free BiggerPockets Podcast - A weekly podcast with interviews and a ton of great advice. And you get the benefit of having over 80 past ones to catch up on.

Locate and attend 3 different local REIA club meetings great place to meet people gather resources and info. Here you will meet wholesalers who provide deals and rehabbers.

Two Great reads, I bought both J. Scott The Book on Flipping Houses,  The Book on Estimating ReHab Costs  http://www.biggerpockets.com/flippingbook

Consider checking out HUD homes for small multi's owner occupied gets first crack.

You might consider Niche or Specialized Housing like student housing. Rents can be 2-4 times more. Remember you don't have to own a property to control it.

Download BP’s newest book here some good due diligence in Chapter 10. Real Estate Rewind Starting over

http://www.biggerpockets.com/files/user/brandonatbp/file/real-estate-rewind-a-biggerpockets-community-book

Good Luck

Paul

David C. · Answer

I wish I had a mentor when I was starting out & give me actionable advise.  Unless the professors are investors themselves, I don't think they can help much.  Young kids have plenty of time to burn, maybe seek out a mentor, work for cheap in exchange for his/her wisdom?

Nichole Wall · Answer

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I appreciate it!

Nichole Wall · Answer

Tom- that was the idea I had in mind to get him some experience in real life while in college. I'm hoping it will cut down on housing cost too.

Mike H. · Answer

Hmmm. Interesting.

I guess I would go the other way. Most of the college classes you'll take are completely useless. Recommending a shakespeare class? Why?

Take as many real estate classes as you can. Maybe some contract law stuff too. Its going to be much more interesting and will whet his appetite into wanting to put it into practice.

Leon O. · Answer

Hi,

I would suggest if he wants some sort of bachelor in business administration that he specializes in a field (Finance Major, Accounting Major, etc.) There are electives that he can take that can help in his future Real Estate Endeavors.  With a finance degree he can go into lending, commercial appraising, and things like that.

You do not need a degree to be a real estate agent. I majored in entrepreneurship at Baylor University and it helped tremendously in how I run my investment business, but otherwise in getting a career it was limiting as it is viewed as a general business degree.

No offense to Real Estate Agents as well - I am one lol.

Just my two cents.

I hope this helps.

Leon

Son is going to college and wants to take some investing classes...what to look for?

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