All Forum Posts by: Elijah Householder

I am looking to purchase my first investment property soon. Fairly new graduate and packing away the savings right now to get my first purchase in (No prior experience in REI. However, I have been reading books for a while and work at an online mortgage lender. So have some but very minimal knowledge in the REI world). I am starting to do my due diligence and trying to lock down a location. Hoping to get a 2-3 unit property but open to SFH as well.

I have always been interested in Riverside. I went to school there and feel it is in a great central location for Southern California. However, as most of you know who live/invest there, it is not the most glamorous place (As of right now. Believe that could change). However, I feel like Redlands is a beautiful place but not as great of an overall location in Socal.

Any opinions on this? Or any tips for what I should start doing/looking into? Totally open to any suggestions and would LOVE any help/advice you can give. Like I said, I have pretty much zero knowledge in the REI world so I would love to hear from the pros!

Best,

Elijah

0 Votes

@Nicholas Lohr Ahhhhh very good to know!! Thank you so much i’ll look into that for sure.

0 Votes

Hello everybody!

I have been signed up for quite a while on this site but really need to start taking advantage of the great resources it offers. I am super excited to start meeting people on here and making connections. Investing in real estate has always been a big goal of mine but always felt it was so far away. I just graduated college about a year ago and got a good job a few months ago (At a online mortgage lender which is awesome!) which will allow me to start saving. So the goal of buying is feeling closer and closer.

I have been researching for a while and as of now my goal, which I am sure a lot of people try, is to do a multifamily with an FHA loan (Live in one rent the others). Does anyone have suggestions on things I should be doing in the meantime besides saving and researching?

Thank you and I look forward to meeting everyone on the forums!

0 Votes

@Aaron K.

Hi Aaron,

Thank you for the response! In your opinion, should I focus on trying to maximize my cash flow from the start? Or would it be better to focus on learning in a safer market like California where I am able to walk properties and I have a better feel for the areas?

0 Votes

Hello everybody,

I am just curious if as a beginner I should even consider southern california as my first place to start investing. Would it be beneficial to stay local so I can really get a feel for the market/area or would it be better to shop out of state. I am working on saving for a down payment for my first property so I am still in the early stages but want to start researching right away and really lock down my strategy.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Thank you!

PS: Pretty new to BP so I apologize if this is in the wrong spot!

0 Votes

Originally posted by @Yannik Cudjoe-Virgil:

Hey - I would immerse myself in bigger pockets. Alot of my foundational knowledge about real estate investing has come from bigger pockets. As far as a specific course, I would recommend figuring out what your niche is and focusing on a specific strategy. There are many different ways to get into real estate and not being focused starting off can have all over the place and unfocused. Hope this helps

Hello Yannik! I am trying to get into using bigger pockets and making it a habit to come on here and learn. My niche would like to be multi-family but I am thinking of maybe starting on SFH before going into this. Would this be good or do you think I should just save my cash so I can jump straight into a multifamily property?

Let me know and thanks again for your response.

0 Votes

Originally posted by @Jim S.:

Phil Pustejovsky of Freedom Mentors has a great free course of videos that you can take as well as many other more recent videos he has created on YouTube. He does push his mentoring program on every video but if you don't mind that, there is a ton of great information that covers pretty much every aspect of real estate investing.

Hello Jim! I do not mind people pushing their courses at all! Especially when they are offering good content! Thank you for the suggestion. I will definitely be checking this out!

0 Votes

Originally posted by @Kerry Baird:

If you are buying rental houses, one at a time, you don’t need a course. You need an investment friendly agent, lender, title company and insurance agent. Full stop.

If you are buying multifamily, spend some time listening to Old Capital podcast and Best Ever Real Estate podcast, both of which focus on multifamily.

If you are wholesaling, you probably do want a course or a mentor...this is fast and furious and there are a lot of state-specific things to learn.

And there are other niche elements, such as mobile homes, short term rentals, self storage, commercial property. Explore these.

Hello Kerry! Thank you for the response!

Ultimately, my goal is to get into multifamily. Due to the high buy in cost for this I think I want to start with SFH then move onto it later in my life. What is your opinion on this?

0 Votes

Originally posted by @Nathan Gesner:

Starting from scratch involves a thousand different paths. Here's something that might help you get started:

1. Start with BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide (free). It will familiarize you with the basic terminology and benefits. Then you can read a more in-depth book like The Book On Rental Property Investing by @Brandon Turner or The Unofficial Guide to Real Estate Investing by Spencer Strauss.

2. Get your finances in order. Get rid of debt, build a budget, and save. The idea that you can build wealth without putting any money into it is a recipe for disaster and the sales pitch of gurus trying to steal your money. A wise investor will not try to get rich quick with shortcuts. If you can't keep control your finances, you are highly unlikely to succeed in real estate investing. Check out my personal favorite, Set For Life by @Scott Trench , or The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.

3. As you read these books, watch the BP podcasts. This will help clarify and reinforce what you are reading. You can hear real-world examples of how others have built their investment portfolio and (hopefully) learn to avoid their mistakes.

4. Now you need to figure out how to find deals and pay for them. Again, the BiggerPockets store has some books for this or you can learn by watching podcasts, reading blogs, and interacting on the forum. There is a handy search bar in the upper right that makes it easy to find previous discussions, blogs, podcasts, and other resources. Biggerpockets also has a calculator you can use to analyze deals and I highly recommend you start this as soon as possible, even if you are not ready to buy. If you consistently analyze properties, it will be much easier to recognize a good deal when it shows up.

5. Jump in! Far too many get stuck in the "paralysis by analysis" stage, thinking they just don't know enough to get started. The truth is, you could read 100 books and still not know enough because certain things need to be learned through trial-and-error. You don't need to know everything to get started; you just need a foundation to build on and the rest will come through experience and then refining your education.

You can build a basic understanding of investing in 3-6 months. How long it takes to be financially ready is different for everyone. Once you're ready, create a goal (e.g. "I will buy at least one single-family home, duplex, triplex, or fourplex before the end of 2019") and then do it. Real estate investing is a pretty forgiving world and the average person can still make money even with some pretty big mistakes.

Hello Nathan! Thank you so much for the response! I got all the books you mentioned and am working on reading them. I am working on my debt (bad debt and school debt) and hoping to get out of all of that soon!

I am working my best on not over analyzing and getting too scared to do anything. Thank you again for your response!

1 Vote

Hello everyone!

I am a complete beginner with real estate investing. I have listened to a ton of Grant Cardone and listened to a few audio books and am reading books.

I am wondering what you guys think the best course would be for a beginner? Are podcasts the best or is there a more structured course that would be fun and teach me a lot? I am willing to pay for it !!

Please let me know

One of my first posts on here so I apologize if its in the wrong spot!

0 Votes

All Forum Posts by: Elijah Householder

Elijah Householder has started 13 posts and replied 43 times.

Post: Any opinions on Redlands, CA? Or Riverside?

Post: Newbie in Southern California..

Post: Newbie in Southern California..

Post: Can or should a beginner ever invest in SoCal

Post: Can or should a beginner ever invest in SoCal

Post: Best courses for a beginner to take?

Post: Best courses for a beginner to take?

Post: Best courses for a beginner to take?

Post: Best courses for a beginner to take?

Post: Best courses for a beginner to take?