Lake Wales, FL · Member since 2018 · 2 posts · 1 vote
Hello, my Name is Cristian Garcia I just turned 22 years old and Im an aspiring investor. I work as a salesperson in the cellphone industry and Ive been watching bigger pockets for months and reading blogs and forums. This is my first post. Im intrested in rental properties and want more information on analyzing actual deals and how to go about networking with investors in my area. My goal is to start shopping for my first property by March and in the meantime learning everything there is to know about rental properties. Also I want to learn more about Real estate market cycles. Thanks for taking the time to read this and please message me with more information if you have it.
Rental Property Investor · Union, KY · Member since 2018 · 33 posts · 22 votes
7y
Cristian, first and foremost, I want to acknowledge you for taking on this journey to be a Real Estate Investor. It's not for the faint of heart but if you persevere, it can be incredibly rewarding. Here my immediate recommendations to get you started:
1) Keep networking and engaging with investors on Bigger Pockets. There's a lot of experience on here and I have found that many of the investors are extremely helpful.
2) Join your local REIA. It's another great way to network and they will often supply education at their monthly or semi-monthly meetings. The REIAs should also have specialty sub-groups like Landlord meetups for example. Also look for other Real Estate Meetups but be careful that some of those meetups could be a ploy to trying to sell you something. Also look for local FB Investor Groups to start networking online as well. While you are networking, start building intentional relationships with other Real Estate Investors, Real Estate Agents, Contractors, Property Managers, and Lenders.
3) Beware of the sharks. You may run into people trying to sell you Real Estate Education at ridiculous prices....especially when information is out there for pennies on the dollar.
4) Find a local mentor and offer that mentor value. Offer to work for free if you have to so that you can learn the game.
5) Study! Study! Study! There are a lot of great REI Books out there. In terms of Rental Education, I recommend, Long Distance Real Estate Investing by David Greene; The Book on Rental Property Investing by Brandon Turner; The ABC's of Real Estate Investing by Ken McElroy; and anything by Robert Kyosaki …..These are just a few of my favorites out of a BIG list of books.
6) Start analyzing deals.
7) Become an expert on your local market. Even if your desire is to invest out of state or in a different city, learning the ins and outs of your local market will sharpen you.
This is not an all-inclusive list to start with but I figure it's enough information to get you started. Best of luck on your journey young man!
Lake Wales, FL · Member since 2018 · 2 posts · 1 vote
7y
@Charles Mahabir
Thanks for the advice. I’ve had a meet up with a local investor recently, he’s agreed to mentor me and I’ve turned my 2016 Mazda 3 into a mobile university. I’ve completely stopped listening to music in my car and now only listen to BiggerPockets podcast.