How did you start?

[Daniel Becker]

I'm currently saving up for a decent down payment on a property and have $12,000 saved so far. I'm wondering for those of you who have gotten a few deals in, how did you start once you had the money? Did you have people like a real estate agent, contractors, bookkeepers, a CPA, and all of those other roles already on your "team" or did you just purchase the first property and find people for those roles as you went? Thanks for any replies!

[Mike Dymski]

I had an agent and a down payment.  The rest came later.

[Daniel Becker]

Thanks for replying, I appreciate it!

[Tina L King]

I thank you for asking this question, Because I'm thinking you have to have all these people in place first and I don't know anybody and the thought gave me anxiety. So I appreciate this post.

[Joe Funari]

@Daniel Becker @Tina L King Mike Dymski is absolutely correct. Start with an agent that is a fellow investor like myself. I am more than happy to share my preferred lenders that specialize in investment properties, home inspectors, contractors, landlord and builders risk insurance carriers, and CPA's that know to do cost allocation studies with my investor clients (that's how you know you have a CPA that knows real estate investing accounting). In short, all of the people that you need on your "team" that I have used personally, as well as, many of my clients for many years. No sense in you having to reinvent the wheel. Focus first on making sure to you have the cash for down payment and closing costs. That is the biggest hurdle that beginner investors have when starting out. Finding the right property regardless of your exit strategy is the job of a seasoned agent that is a fellow investor. So I got you covered there if you ever want to invest in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Hope this helps. 

[Daniel Becker]

@Joe Funari Thank you for the reply and the advice! I'm focused on building up the down payment now and trying to identify a good market(s) to invest in at the moment. I live in a very rural area in the northeast and most of the markets within an hour of me are primarily class C and D neighborhoods with reputations for drug and crime problems (as well as my own hometown unfortunately) so I will probably look to long-distance investing as I get started. It's helpful just to see posts from people like yourself who have made it past the first steps I need to get through.

[Tina L King]

Heey!! Thank you for your response and wisdom. I am in the Houston area and at times I don't know where and when to hop in. I do have a question though; I am just starting out and I would like to know is it necessary to have a good piece of change doing my first flip? Since most of the funding comes from loans, to be paid off in a short time, is there strategic ways to finance your down payment starting out? I hear stories of people being broke doing their first flip, I'm trying to find out how is that possible. Thank you for your time.

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Daniel Becker:

Don't get buried in the weeds. 30 years ago, people invested by saving money, buying a house they liked, and holding onto it for decades. They didn't have all the real estate books, blogs, YouTube gurus, financial calculators, etc.

The best thing you can do is buy a house and educate yourself on how to manage it well. Too many landlords lose tens of thousands with common mistakes due to lack of education.