New to Real Estate
Member since 2026 · 1 post · 4 votes
New to Real Estate
7 Replies
- Accountant · Kolkata West Bengal, India · Member since 2026 · 10 posts · 2 votes3mo
Hi Elias,
Welcome to the community! At 19, you're starting earlier than most people ever do, which is a real advantage — time is one of the biggest levers in real estate.
A few practical starting points:
- Start local. Since you're based out of Fresno, CA, young, and new to the business, my suggestion is to start close to home — streets, neighborhoods, and localities you've been frequenting and already know well. This gives you a great advantage while starting out, since you can read a local market far better than a distant one you'd have to research from scratch. Of course, this strategy changes as your portfolio grows.
- Build relationships early — with a lender, an agent who works with investors, and ideally other landlords in your target market. Starting local makes this much easier too, since finding agents and co-investors, and actually understanding your target market, all get simpler when you're not starting from zero on unfamiliar ground. Most of what you'll learn won't come from books — it'll come from people who've already made the mistakes you're about to make.
- House hacking is a strong first move, if it's available to you. I'm not sure how you live right now or what your budget looks like, but buying a small multifamily, living in one unit, and renting out the others lowers your barrier to entry significantly compared to a pure investment property.
- Learn the basics before you buy. A solid place to start is David Greene's Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat — it's the standard BRRRR reference and walks through the strategy step by step. Beyond that, BiggerPockets' own BRRRR calculator (under Tools) is worth using once you're evaluating real deals, since it'll force you to actually run the numbers rather than eyeball them.
- Don't get lost chasing the wrong metric. You'll hear a lot about EBITDA, EBIT, NOI — and yes, they each serve a purpose in analyzing a deal. But as a beginner, the metric that actually matters day to day is your net operating cash flow, and beyond that, your overall cash position — is it positive, and is it growing over time? A property can look great on paper with strong NOI and still leave you cash-poor if debt service, capex, and reserves aren't accounted for realistically. Chase actual cash in the bank, not just a clean-looking spreadsheet metric.
I'm an accountant working in real estate for more than 5 years now, sharing this out of the experience I've gained keeping books for a vast spectrum of rental portfolio owners. Good luck in your endeavors — hope you build a great portfolio and generate positive cash flow that grows manifold.
- 3moArman AhmedPro MemberReal Estate Agent · Columbus Cleveland Dayton, OH · Member since 2024 · 2k+ posts · 946 votes
Quote from @Elias Torres:
Hello Bigger Pockets community! I am 19 years old and have become highly interested in real estate investing but not to sure where to start. Open ears to anyone's thoughts and suggestions on how to get started!
It’s awesome that you’re getting started at 19 because time is one of your biggest advantages. Focus on learning the fundamentals first: how to analyze deals, understand financing, and build relationships with investors, lenders, and contractors. Don’t feel like you have to buy in your backyard either. Many younger investors start building remotely in Midwest markets where lower entry prices and strong rental demand can make the numbers easier to work. The biggest thing is taking consistent action and learning from people already doing it.
- 3moAshish AcharyaBusiness MemberCPA, CFP®, PFS · FL · Member since 2017 · 5k+ posts · 3k+ votes
@Elias Torres, being into real estate at 19 already puts you way ahead of where most people even start thinking about this stuff. Time is honestly the biggest advantage in this game, so starting to learn now instead of at 29 is going to make a real difference down the line, even if it doesn't feel like it yet.
For getting started, spend some time just learning before you jump into anything, BiggerPockets itself, the forums, the podcast, their beginner books, is genuinely one of the best free resources out there. It'll get you comfortable with the vocabulary and the basic strategies (buy and hold, house hacking, wholesaling) so you're not lost once you actually start looking at deals. House hacking specifically tends to be a great first move for someone your age, buying a small multifamily, living in one unit, renting out the rest, since it lets you get in with less money and you're literally living inside your first investment while you learn the ropes.
One thing that rarely gets covered in beginner content: how you structure and finance a property early on affects your options down the road, things like depreciation, how a future sale gets taxed, whether an LLC makes sense right away or later. Nothing to stress about at 19, just something worth having in the back of your mind as you keep reading and eventually start looking at real deals.
Happy to connect!
INVESTOR FRIENDLY CPA®5241 Reviews - 3moJoseph CacciapagliaBusiness MemberLender · San Antonio, TX · Member since 2020 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
I think one of the most important things you can do as you get started is focus on increasing your active income before you spend too much time worrying about actually investing. I see a lot of new people try to start investing without much income or assets. They spend a ton of time chasing no or low money down strategies, and end up spinning their wheels for a long time. If you already have a high paying job, great. If not, figuring out how to maximize your income while learning about the industry should be the first goal. Becoming a real estate agent is one of the shortest paths to both high income and a little insight into the industry. It's not easy, but very doable. Working for a developer, investor, or PM can work too.
- 3moBenjamin AakerPro MemberRental Property Investor · Brandon, SD · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votesHi Elias, and welcome to the forums! Ask your questions here and we can help.
- 3moAlfath AhmedBusiness MemberReal Estate Agent · Columbus, OH · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
Quote from @Elias Torres:
Hello Bigger Pockets community! I am 19 years old and have become highly interested in real estate investing but not to sure where to start. Open ears to anyone's thoughts and suggestions on how to get started!
I would start off with listening to a ton of bp podcasts with guests that have come on and reading books by david greene and brandon turner. That will strictly give you confidence to start.
To actually start after, tons of investors from LA and the bay area usually tend to buy real estate in the midwest because it is cheaper, land-lord friendly, and tech companies investing has boosted the economy.
You should do some research and find a good market that has good potential and connect with an investment realtor who can connect you with their team of contractors, lenders, and property managers.
They will also send you off-market and on-market deals that you can buy. Start with turnkey rentals then shift to the BRRRR model and you can recycle your capital and grow your portfolio. Eventually, do a 1031 exchange when you have enough units and exchange it for a large multi-family complex without paying capital gains.
ReafCo | Ahmed Group 536 Reviews - Wholesaler · Charleston WV · Member since 2026 · 243 posts · 133 votes3mo
My advice is not to try to learn everything at once. Pick one strategy, whether that's wholesaling, rentals, BRRRR, or flipping, and go all in on learning that first. Analysis paralysis keeps a lot of people stuck.
Start building relationships with local investors, analyze properties every day, and don't wait until you feel "ready" to take action. Experience is one of the best teachers.
One thing I wish I had learned sooner is that this business is built on conversations and consistency. Talk to people, ask questions, make mistakes, and keep moving forward. That's how you'll build confidence.
You're getting started at 19. If you stay consistent over the next five to ten years, you'll be amazed at where you can end up.
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