Should I contact a realtor?

[Ben Cors]

Hello,

I currently am a second year college student and have recently been introduced to real estate. I had a friend take me to his properties in Cape Coral, FL and saw the great upside real estate has to offer. I am currently reading "Rental Property Investing", which has provided me a great insight and basis of real estate. After I will be reading "Investing in Real Estate with No and Low Money Down." 

Furthermore, I do not have much capital at the moment to put down for a property, which is hence why the "Investing in Real Estate with No and Low Money Down" appeals to me. My gameplan for the ladder half of this year is to keep learning and actively using what I've learned to analyze properties. I have been using the BP calculator to practice the math on properties. 

Additionally, A goal of mine is to buy a property by the end of my second year. Currently, small multifamily properties is what I would like to invest in down the road. A question I have is, should I contact a realtor to have an insight on the market, even though I am not currently looking to buy a property within the next 6 months? Also, any other tips that can help starting out? 

Thanks, 

Ben

[Stetson Miller]

Hi @Ben Cors,

Congratulations on taking the first steps! To answer you main question, I would say that it's completely fine to contact an agent at this step in the process, as long as you're completely transparent with them regarding your intentions. Just like you've explained here, I would do the same for them. This will allow them to gauge exactly how much time they're willing to put towards helping you, as well as give you an idea in the process of how much you can expect from them

Personally, for someone in your situation, I would set up a broad email drip search that would allow you to gain familiarity with the market you're interested in focusing on. This would allow you to get an idea of how quickly properties are going under contract, and the demand at different price levels