Starting out at 17.
Hey yall, I just turned 17 on May 10th. Im looking into starting a real estate investing business when I move out In Boca Raton or Tampa Bay. My endgame plan is becoming a real estate developer (maybe) Im gonna be starting out in wholesaling first and I have a mentor who is my friends dad. He is experienced in real estate and is a realtor and has been doing it for many years. Hes gonna teach me to do a wholesale deal. I know im only 17 so my dad has to sign the contract. I already started to cold call and I did not know tf was I doing. Alot of people were pissed at me. I had no help what's so ever but I learned from my past mistakes and Ill try again and get more info. :D
Im looking into seller finance for the future but I dont know yet at all. Im still a complete noob.
Gavin welcome to the game!!
This is going to sound sacrilege but I think you should get a W-2 job in real estate based on your end game of wanting to be a developer I would look to work for developers, custom builders, surveyors etc. The W-2 job will be the easiest way to get your first 1-5 rentals.
To supercharge that gameplan you can find off-market opportunities. The best way to do this is to network, network, network. Reach out to 50 investors in your area and ask to have lunch, coffee etc. This is how a 19-year-old investor in my area got his first 2 duplexes (4 units before he turned 21)
Quote from @Gregory Schwartz:
Gavin welcome to the game!!
This is going to sound sacrilege but I think you should get a W-2 job in real estate based on your end game of wanting to be a developer I would look to work for developers, custom builders, surveyors etc. The W-2 job will be the easiest way to get your first 1-5 rentals.
To supercharge that gameplan you can find off-market opportunities. The best way to do this is to network, network, network. Reach out to 50 investors in your area and ask to have lunch, coffee etc. This is how a 19-year-old investor in my area got his first 2 duplexes (4 units before he turned 21)
Tech sales seems interesting to me. I dont know if I want to be a real estate dev. Im still young of course. But I want to be a full time investor by 20 if thats even possible.
Hey Gavin,
It sounds like you're incredibly driven at a young age, which is commendable. The real estate industry, especially wholesaling, can be challenging. You'll encounter setbacks and face numerous rejections and criticisms. However, I agree with Gregory's advice. At your age, securing a W2 job to build capital and savings is a wise move. Meanwhile, don't give up on wholesaling. The experience you gain now will benefit you in the long run. Make the most of learning from your friend's dad and consider joining a local REIA if your parents are supportive. Attending these meetings will help you network and establish relationships with others in the industry. These connections will prove invaluable when you secure your first deal and need to market the property.
Hey Gavin,
Great to see your enthusiasm for real estate so early! Definitely soak up all you can from your mentor and keep pushing with wholesaling—it’s a solid start. Consider getting some experience with developers or in construction, too; it’ll give you a real taste of what goes into the development side of things. Don’t forget to keep building your network; those connections are gold in real estate. And hey, every challenge or setback is just a lesson in disguise, so keep your head up and keep learning. Stick with it, and those big goals won’t seem so far away!
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He's got great goals, but maybe not enough life experience yet. Not sure if "enthusiasm" is what one needs for wholesaling. If I was in financial distress and losing my home through foreclosure or tax delinquency, I would not want to deal with an enthusiastic newcomer trying to make money on my misfortune. These are people who fighting cancer, had a death in the family, or otherwise are in a bad situation. It takes a lot of life experience and finesse to deal with people coping with huge life struggles.
If I were young and starting out, I'd offer paid services for clean outs and basic staging/moving around furniture. You'll naturally meet people who want to get rid of their headache, I mean house, that they inherited. You can then pass the information along to someone else for a finder's fee.
I agree with @Travis Main that you'll want to build a W2 job. You're going to want health insurance and a steady paycheck. It really shows you're stable to lenders as well when you've held down a job for a few years. And you'll meet people who aren't in real estate and it's always good to have connections in many different industries.
Good luck and let us know how you do.
@Gavin Ells Hi Gavin, nice to meet you. If you don’t find a real estate W-2 there are other opportunities.
Personally, I have been working 3rd shift at a group home for years. The jobs I have held have been kind of "babysitting" jobs where I've usually only had about an hour or so of real work during my shift which has allowed me to read all sorts of business and real estate books, listen to real estate podcasts, search for deals on the MLS and elsewhere all during the course of my work shift.
While night shift is not for everyone this strategy has paid off big time since I started investing in real estate about 5 years ago. I’ve built a multi million dollar portfolio that continues to grow.
Then, after work I go home and either spend a few hours on real estate and personal needs and go to sleep, or go home and go to sleep immediately and wake up around 2pm and still have a few business hours to get stuff done.
Personally I’m not enough of a people person to want to be a realtor and as I’m middle age and had a different background of experience coming out of college this type of work has been perfect for me. I recommend it all the time to people looking for a steady income and not too difficult job. While you won’t get rich doing this it could be a good fit to have supplemental income to purchase your first few deals.
If you want to pursue wholesaling as a means to get started you can do it around a W-2 job. It will help you gain more confidence and network and allow you to source deals for yourself and others.
Make sure you read First to a Millon. It's a book published by Bigger Pockets, written for young aspiring investors like you.
Quote from @Gavin Ells:
There are so many wholesalers around the country, all fighting for scraps. There are very few that actually earn a living, and even fewer that make good money. It's a get-rich-quick scheme and you are most likely wasting your time. In fact, 99.9% of wholesalers could make a lot more by flipping burgers at Wendy's.
A better option is to get a job in real estate. Earn money, save money, and invest. This method has worked for thousands of years and is still the best option today.
A job in Property Management has a low bar of entry. You have to be 18, but you can typically find someone willing to hire you, pay for your license, and train you. In fact, you'll learn valuable skills about managing rentals that most landlords don't learn for decades. You'll see which properties work best as investments, how to handle tenants, deal with contractors, and so much more. You may even be licensed to sell to earn extra money. Or you can get a side hustle as a handyman, painter, or 117 other jobs.
I started managing property in 2010. I earn a solid six-figure income from property management (steady income, not up-and-down like sales agents) and I earn another six-figure income from sales (I'm currently #5 out of 240 agents). All my sales commission goes into investments. My investments earn a six-figure income that I could live off of for the rest of my life. Find me a wholesaler that can say that.
