New Investor trying to figure out about how to use BP.

[Benjamin I Singer]

Hello all who read this! 

I posted on BP about a year ago talking a bit about my situation but I will just give y'all a quick update. I have been focusing for the last year on how to build my capital to be able to invest in Napa CA. I work in residential construction and I am working towards getting my contractors license. once I get my contractors license and built up enough capital I would like to purchase my first rehab. My plans keep changing on how I would like to go after my first deal but I definitely want to get myself into buy and holds ASAP! Maybe I will fix and flip a few more houses after the first deal or maybe I will try and do a buy and hold right after my first deal, that all depends on how much money I make off the first deal. Now that I have caught everyone up on my life a little, I would really like to start getting active in BP and start learning and putting myself out there a bit! The thing I struggle with the most is pulling up BP on the computer and knowing where to even start. How on earth should I even begin to use bigger pockets online?? I never have been one to blog or use a forum or anything online like this so what's the best way to use this? I dont have very much knowledge that I can share, when I scroll around there are so manny different people or blogs or forums. It seems like just an endless amount of information, I dont really know where to start or who to read. Every time I listen to the podcasts the guys alway say jump in and get active... so here I am! I just was hoping maybe someone had a bit of advice for a newbie like myself that really wants to learn how to utilize BP but feels very overwhelmed by it. Thanks to all who have read this post and i hope to hear from some of y'all!

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Benjamin I Singer:

A couple suggestions.

1. Go to the top of your screen and click on "Education" for free blogs to some basics, like how to BRRR or financing.

2. For more in-depth educatin, click on "Education - Bootcamp" to see their traing programs. These are 10-week programs that walk you through the process, live Q&A sessions, and more. You get some education and some coaching, all inone.

My recommendation is typically the same. Read some books to get a foundational understanding of real estate investing. If there's a particular topic you can't quite grasp, read some blogs or articles to refine your knowledge on that particular subject. Or you can ask questions in the forums to get help from others more experienced. The more detailed the question, the better a response you will get.

Here's some free, generic beginner advice:

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 of your personal 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 BiggerPockets podcasts. This will 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. Find Brandon's videos on YouTube for the "four square" method of analyzing homes and practice. It doesn't take long to learn how to spot a good deal.

5. Study the market. You can learn to do this on your own or get a rockstar REALTOR to lead the way. I highly recommend a well-qualified REALTOR that works with investors and knows how to best help you.

6. 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.