Getting started in real estate

[Kendall Jackson]

I’m trying to get started in real estate to provide additional income for flight school and eventually buy a home in San Diego.  Is it a bad time to invest in real estate? And also I want to invest out of state. 

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Kendall Jackson:

I’m trying to get started in real estate to provide additional income for flight school and eventually buy a home in San Diego.  Is it a bad time to invest in real estate? And also I want to invest out of state. 

Below is some generic advice. Since you want to invest in another state, I highly recommend you read "Long-Distance Real Estate Investing" by David Greene.

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 quickly 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 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. NETWORK!!! Get out of your comfort zone. Stop hanging out with your deadbeat buddies who spend all day drinking, talking sports, and otherwise wasting away. Go to BUILD YOUR TEAM at the top of the screen and look for local investors or meetups in your area. You can also find real estate investing groups through meetup.com, Facebook, or a Google search. Birds of a feather flock together!

5. 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. A handy search bar in the upper right 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, recognizing a good deal will be much easier 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.

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

7. Jump in! Far too many get stuck in the "paralysis by analysis" stage, thinking they just don't know enough to get started. You could read 100 books and still not know enough because certain things must be learned through trial and error. You don't need to know everything to get started; you 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 forgiving world; the average person can still make money even with some big mistakes.

[Min Zhang]

Hey Kendall, I can’t speak much about other markets, but Ohio is a great spot to start your real estate journey. I started in Columbus and grew up in Cleveland, and both cities have a lot to offer. Columbus is growing fast with job opportunities and appreciation, and about 80 people move there every week. If you’re on a tighter budget, like $100-$150k, Cleveland is a fantastic market with cash flow returns of 10-18%. Let me know how I can help!

[Alex Olson]

In short, no, it is not a bad time to start investing. It is actually a great time. Fewer investors are looking which means your competing with fewer people and you have a better chance of buying an appropriately priced property. And when rates go down, you can refinance. In my view you are a good 6 months ahead of the guy if you buy now. 

[Samuel Diouf]

There are some great opportunities in the Ohio markets. Many investors from California are choosing to invest in the Midwest because of the low barrier to entry and yearly cash returns making more sense in these lower priced markets. Ohio markets show up 3 times in Zillow’s 2024 hottest markets, with Columbus and Cincinnati taking the top 2 and 3 spots. I moved from Florida to start investing in Columbus because of the same reason.

https://www.zillow.com/learn/hottest-housing-markets-2024/

Make sure you learn about the core-4 and developing your team.

[Jonathan Greene]

If you haven't noticed, when you ask about investing out-of-state the Columbus mafia joins the chat and turns it into a joke, but other than that this is a good place to start (and Columbus is a good market, but seriously...).

Your post is a little disjointed though. Make extra money for flight school is good, but if you need extra money for flight school that tells me that you don't have a ton to invest into real estate right now. Right? So you want to start learning, going to meetups, making connections, and find out about local and OOS markets that might suit your budget now or your future budget.

How did you want to make money right now? High cash flow properties right now are often going to be in lower appreciation markets and harder rent markets.

[Alfath Ahmed]

Quote from @Kendall Jackson:

I’m trying to get started in real estate to provide additional income for flight school and eventually buy a home in San Diego.  Is it a bad time to invest in real estate? And also I want to invest out of state. 

 Investing out of state will be the way to go. I don't recommend using real estate as a way right now to save for flight school. Real Estate is a long-term game. If you need fast money, I would go into some sort of a sales trades or stock trading. 

[Remington Lyman]

Quote from @Kendall Jackson:

I’m trying to get started in real estate to provide additional income for flight school and eventually buy a home in San Diego.  Is it a bad time to invest in real estate? And also I want to invest out of state. 

 If you are looking for quick cash I do not think real estate investing is for you. If you want to generate wealth over time, then it is a good thing to do.

If you want to generate money for flight school I would look into doing resale on ebay or something similar

[Hector Perez]

I always recommend starting in your own market first, then go out of town, then out of state, but I understand California is expensive.

If you need to create cash, wholesaling is the best alternative

If you have some cash, then maybe do a few flix and flips to build your cash reserves.

If you have cash saved, yes you can buy a rental in other markets, but you need to research and create your list of contacts in that market

You can always buy a fixer upper, then refinance, and repeat, you can do that with favorable rates up to 10 times using loans for a secondary/investment home

[Rhealaine Sayson]

Hey Kendall! Getting into real estate to earn extra income and eventually buy a home in San Diego is a smart idea. Even though the market can be tough with higher interest rates and changing prices, it's still a good time to invest if you're strategic. Investing out of state might be a good way to find more affordable properties with better cash flow. For example, the Memphis market, where I'm located, has great entry points with strong rental demand and good cash flow. You should look into markets like Memphis that have lower costs and strong rental demand. With careful planning and research, you can still find good deals and reach your goals. Good luck!

[Bradley Buxton]

@Kendall Jackson

It's right if you have the resources time and energy.  The strategies you have to use now vs 5 years ago will be different.  Make sure the math checks out and your lifestyle energy works with the math.  

[Jimmy Lieu]

Quote from @Kendall Jackson:

I’m trying to get started in real estate to provide additional income for flight school and eventually buy a home in San Diego.  Is it a bad time to invest in real estate? And also I want to invest out of state. 

Hi Kendall, I would say the best time to invest in real estate was yesterday! However, it doesn't seem like you have the funds right now to start real estate investing as you mentioned you need extra income for flight school. I advise to leverage your current skills to work in other trades and get into real estate investing once you're ready. Happy to connect and answer any questions you may have.

[Regina Blake]

Hi, yes, it is a great time to invest in real estate especially in Ohio's market come and check it out for yourself. Thanks for reaching out and please let me know if you have any questions. Good Luck!

[Ross Paller]

If I was just starting out and needed to gain cash but had little to no cash to start there would only be one route for me

The good thing is that this is the same route I would suggest for anyone getting started. The number one skill to learn in Real Estate. 

Finding Great Deals.

Here are the 3 things I would focus on:

1) Become an expert Underwriter. Learn what a Great Deal means. That means that you need to learn what a properties After Repair Value (ARV) would be. That means you need to understand how to conduct a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA). Then you need to learn how to calculate rough construction/rehab estimates.

2) Learn to Market. Get in front of people who may be interested in selling their house. Direct to Seller. Not through middle men like Real Estate Agent and Wholesalers. You can do that later. Once you understand how to do it yourself.

3) Learn to Sell. Figure out how you can provide VALUE to a potential seller. What makes you different from other wholesalers or real estate agents? Without value the only thing you have is price. 

When you get Great Deals all doors start to open. Monetizing is very easy with multiple options.

The best thing about these 3 skills?  They are accessible to ANYONE. You just have to grind!

Good luck going to flight school after you figure out how much money you can make with these skills.....

[Dave Skow]

@Kendall Jackson- thanks ...you should get pre approved for a hypotehtical purchase scenario for an investment property so that you can  1) educate yourself 2) get organized  3) determine if you are able to qualify 

[Nicholas Coulter]

when looking to go local I would consider a house hack. Its a great way to blend investing and saving on cost of living in a pricey market.