I've always thought real estate investing was for "rich people" only. In the last 2 weeks I've had my eyes opened wide by the vast possibilities out there. I stumbled upon this site by accident and haven't left it since. I've just completed reading the Beginners Guide and am ready to start going through all the links I saved during that process. This is fascinating stuff and I can't seem to get enough of it, even though I think I've reached the saturation point but I'm digesting it as fast as I can.

A little background about me. I'm in the middle of Amish country in Arthur, IL. I grew up Amish, on a dairy farm so work ethic was instilled in me at an early age. I didn't stay in the Amish lifestyle although some in my family and many relatives are still Amish. I have bought and sold a few houses but only at retail and I was the owner-occupant. Again, I've always thought real estate investing was only for the super rich.

Four years ago, my wife and I got the big idea that we wanted to start our own business. She was a bar-tender/manager at a restaurant/nightclub and when the owner wanted to sell, we leased the building and became business owners. Four months later gas prices marched to unprecedented levels and Illinois passed a ban on smoking indoors. Business dropped off and no amount of ads or gimmickry convinced people to spend their money by going out versus building a fire in the backyard and having friends over for cocktails. Hence, after maxing out our credit, laying off our employees and my wife and I working 16-18 hours per day (I still worked my regular day job in addition to working until 1:00 am at the bar), losing our house, and finally, filing bankruptcy, we learned many valuable lessons. The teacher at the school of hard knocks is an unforgiving task master!

We are currently renting but two weeks ago we went to Sarasota, FL on vacation and on a whim began looking at real estate in the area. I was surprised at how relatively low the prices are in the area we looked at. Because of our previous bankruptcy, we were forced to research unconventional loans. One thing led to another; looking at REOs, foreclosures and rentals, and that winding path led to this website. I dove into the research provided here like a starving man at a buffet. Written in plain, straight-forward language, this is a treasure trove that showed me that even I can make money in real estate. I like the buy-and-hold concept and the lease option. I don't know how to approach potential sellers yet but I am reading the forums and blogs, as well as the links provided. I'm looking for an REIC in this area but the closest one is 150 miles away. I'm thinking about checking that one out.

Any tips and strategies from experienced investors will be really appreciated. I'm not afraid of hard work and if it's worth having, it's worth working for.

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