All Forum Posts by: Shaylene Tootle

@Nicole Suess I did the same thing!! I was checking reviews for the Rich Dad seminars and found so much free content here I never again considered going into $30,000 of debt to learn it. Best of luck to you! I definitely recommend checking out the Triad Real Estate Investors Association, Triad REIA, on Meetup.com. We have free educational networking lunches almost every week in Greensboro and Winston Salem. Hope to meet you there!

@Jeremy White I appreciate the long term goal you've set for yourself! I also aim to use real estate investing to make my way towards achieving "Accredited Investor" status. Best of luck to you! Let me know when you get there :-)

@Rob Sasser That discipline is a great inspiration when I, too, feel the pressure to throw every extra dollar at lowering my student debt. You are so right on though, investing to take over the payment AND have equity. THAT is what gets one out of the rat race. Thank you! If you'd like to have lunch in Greensboro sometime, I would be happy to meet you!

Hi David,

I have met Craig Brooksby personally and can attest to the fact that he is indeed real. :) He just helped walk me through a tough deal I am working on with precision and expert advice.

Yay! No matter how much I study on my own, I always learn something new from you, Brandon. Looking forward to this tonight. Let's start 2015 with a bang for lots of bucks!

Hi everyone, I am new to North Carolina, investing and real estate. I am going to have my real estate license by the end of the month, and while I am studying diligently the book of what one can and can't do, I recognize it doesn't tell much about how to be successful at the job of it. I am interested in working with investors, as I plan to build my own fix and flip business simultaneously. What are some strategies that have been successful for you here beginning a career in sales, approaching and successfully working with investors, and establishing long term win-win relationships? I appreciate your advice! Thank you.

What an exasperating topic, I am glad you took the time to point it out. I'll be the first to admit that I don't know much yet; I am still having trouble going from zero to the first deal. Although BP is an amazing way to learn, you are right, financing is tricky. I'd venture a guess that those of us who are just starting out are most likely to rely on the free advice that is here. With experience I'm sure that you learn who you can trust and what is allowed or not allowed in your state. It seems like financing is the biggest barrier to getting started for a lot of people I listen to, so when an answer appears to be right there in black and white, we want to believe it and follow that course. 

With the goal of buying a deal by the end of this month, I might read some financing topics here, but my gut tells me that what will end up working out better would be to talk to people in my area REIA group who are actually investing and see who they trust to finance their deal. I like to shake hands with people with whom I do business. If I fall for a scam online, shame on me, but if you look me in the eye and purposefully mislead me, shame on you, is my kind of philosophy. Also, it will be better recourse for me to say, "Hey, that guy you recommended really screwed me!" than to just blog angrily about such and such a person or company. Like everyone says, "Trust but Verify," it is easier locally in person than on internet advice, to me.

@ Matt Redden: What a great quick estimate guide! Thank you for sharing that experience!

@J Scott: Thank you for that post! I am currently going through the real estate licensing class here in North Carolina even though I mostly just want to invest. You have given me some comforting reassurance that I am not doing this for nothing.

@Warren Hemphill: You are absolutely right, it is encouraging to see people actually try to solve their own problems; these days, I feel it is getting frightfully rare. Did you meet your 2 deals goal?

Hi Alli,

Everyone's advice to go through BP is great, of course; I recently joined the Triad REIA group that meets in Greensboro and Winston-Salem, and it has been a fantastic learning resource as well. They are a great group of people who I have found to be happy to share their experiences and answer all my questions. It doesn't cost anything to go to lunch with them, and they always have great topics with knowledgeable speakers. Hope to see you there! Good luck.