Starting Out
Market News & Data
General Info
Real Estate Strategies
![](http://bpimg.biggerpockets.com/assets/forums/sponsors/hospitable-deef083b895516ce26951b0ca48cf8f170861d742d4a4cb6cf5d19396b5eaac6.png)
Landlording & Rental Properties
Real Estate Professionals
Financial, Tax, & Legal
![](http://bpimg.biggerpockets.com/assets/forums/sponsors/equity_trust-2bcce80d03411a9e99a3cbcf4201c034562e18a3fc6eecd3fd22ecd5350c3aa5.avif)
![](http://bpimg.biggerpockets.com/assets/forums/sponsors/equity_1031_exchange-96bbcda3f8ad2d724c0ac759709c7e295979badd52e428240d6eaad5c8eff385.avif)
Real Estate Classifieds
Reviews & Feedback
Updated over 2 years ago on . Most recent reply
Stuck and confused. Looking for guidance.
Summary: I am 23 year old with a full-time job who wants to be in real estate. Stuck in my 9-5 at the moment and looking for ways out. Any options, recommendations, or guidance helps.
Hi all,
I am a 23 year old in the Jacksonville Beach area. I am looking for guidance, steps I can take, or ways to make myself valuable to professionals with anything to do in the real estate industry. I work full time in the medical device industry and found a way into real estate a year ago in an acquisitions position helping investors find properties, which I was doing with the little time I have at night. I’ve gotten close to having success with this but ultimately my deals have fallen through. With the way the market has been changing rapidly, and thus search criteria, I feel that I can not adequately prospect enough leads to do this efficiently. I had surgery recently and took advantage of that time off and obtained my real estate license in a little over three weeks. Although I have my license, I am interested in all avenues of real estate and just want to find my place in the industry. I want to pursue real estate full time, but I ultimately feel that I am unable to leave my 9-5 and still be able to afford to live. I have considered staying in my current position and saving up before leaving and starting real estate, but it feels so time-ineffective.
I know someone has been in my shoes before, stuck in a 9-5 and trying to find a way out. With the sea of options of things you could do in real estate, I feel lost. I know that I would thrive in real estate and that there is something I CAN do, I just don’t know how or where to start.
If anyone has any words of advice, steps I can take, ways to gain capital faster, or ways I can make myself valuable within this industry, I would appreciate it so much. Even book recommendations or encouraging words are welcome. Literally anything helps! Thank you
Most Popular Reply
![Nathan Gesner's profile image](https://bpimg.biggerpockets.com/no_overlay/uploads/social_user/user_avatar/51525/1621411521-avatar-soldat.jpg?twic=v1/output=image/cover=128x128&v=2)
- Real Estate Broker
- Cody, WY
- 41,044
- Votes |
- 28,053
- Posts
Quote from @Drew K.:
It's hard to give someone directions without knowing exactly where they are and where they want to go. Here's some generic advice.
The easiest way to learn the business and still earn a living is to find a job in Property Management. Having your license probably helps. You can quickly learn things most Landlords never learn: how to screen applicants, how to stop little problems from blowing up, or state laws. You'll not only accelerate your learning, you'll soon see which properties make the most sense as investments and where to find them. You may even find some investors willing to help you get started.
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.
- Nathan Gesner
![business profile image](https://bpimg.biggerpockets.com/no_overlay/uploads/marketplace/business/profile_image/1432/1738609377-company-avatar.jpg?twic=v1/output=image/contain=65x65)