How do I get involved in Real Estate while I begin to save money for a down payment?

Question

Me and my wife are planning on starting our investment journey by buying a multi-family home that we would live in as our primary residence. Before this we are planning to go debt free in the next 4 months. Then after that is achieved, we will begin saving for a down payment on our first house that we plan to buy in the next 2-4 years. I am someone who learns by doing, and beside reading as many books as possible during this time I am looking for ways to get my foot in the door of real estate investing. I work as a nurse, so I do normally have four days off per week that are free to explore real estate further but starting next month I will be working nights for the foreseeable future.

I am not looking to get a real estate license for now, so that has seemed to limit my options as well. Any suggestions or pointing in the right direction would be appreciated. I am looking for any type of avenue that would give me first hand experience in any aspect of real estate investing, managing, etc. Thanks in advance for your help!

P.S. I am in the PA market in the suburbs of Philly and looking to invest in the Lehigh Valley area or as far south as Quakertown area.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

Be careful of people offering to help. They are most likely selling something.

Definitely listen to the David Green Podcast on YouTube. Much better, more honest than when he was on BiggerPockets. There's no better person to follow right now.

Check out Set for Life by Scott Trench. It's a great book about how he became debt-free and started investing in house hacks.

Richard Loniewski · Answer

Start networking, go to live Meetups, start talking to lenders, agents, wholesalers and get some real knowledge from investors who are in the trenches every day. Learn how to analyze deals so when you are ready to dive your ready!!!

Nicolas Martin · Answer

It sounds like you’re on a solid path! Starting with a multi-family home as a primary residence is a smart approach, especially with your goal to go debt-free and save up for that down payment. Plus, having four days off each week gives you some valuable time to explore the field firsthand.

Max Wilhite · Answer

@Matthew Posteraro

Welcome to the exciting world of real estate investing! It’s fantastic to see you embarking on this journey—wishing you and your wife all the best as you take these first steps. You’ve got this!

Jonathan Greene · Answer

This is proper planning and so smart to get educated way in advance of the first guy so you are totally on the right track. Meetups + books + podcasts are the way to go, but meetups are the most crucial to your confidence level and to know people like you do this every day.

I agree with @Nathan Gesner on the heads up, when you say you are new and want help, everyone has a pitch, that's why meetups are so good - most have no pitch, just networking, unless it's run by a hard money lender.

I have a couple friends who invest in the Lehigh Valley that I can connect you with when the time comes. One bought a investment duplex. One is a flipper who has multiple projects closer to E Stroudsburg.

Alan Asriants · Answer

Get to know your market. Practice running the numbers. What kind of mulit family properties are available to you on the market? How fast do they sell? Do they sell for over or below asking price? Becoming a professional in your market is the best thing to do. Then once you know values and numbers of your market, then you can start to spot opportunity.

Go to local RE meetups. Make connections. If you ever find an opportunity because of your knowledge of the market, you can present it to your new connections.

Become an expert!

Steven Goldman · Answer

Hi, I am an investor and mortgage broker in the Southern suburbs of Philadelphia. I would be glad to share my knowledge with you. It would be a good idea to lookup meetups in the southern suburbs and attend them. You will meet other real estate investors and they are usually willing to share their experience..

Matthew Posteraro · Answer

Bryce, Thank you for the response. Lots of helpful tips that will help me move forward in my initial stages of investment. I have found a few REI meetups in my area that I plan to attend in the next few weeks, so that was a great idea!

I've also considered reaching out to local property managers to see if they offer any part time work regarding the miscellaneous tasks you mentioned as well. Also started focusing on researching available options in the area that are in my buy box criteria to get me more familiar with what the area has to offer.

Thanks again for all the suggestions and let me know if you have any further suggestions as well, I am always willing to listen and learn.

Bryce Jamison · Answer

I love this question, your mentality, and strategy. Besides reading books, check out all the podcast too, specifically David Greene's.My first thought is start going to all of your local REI meetups. Take a sincere interest in what others are doing and trying to help them and they'll naturally be drawn to you and want to help you.

But how can a "newbie" help other seasoned investors? Learn about "driving for dollars" to create your own curated deal list. You can use tools like the BP deal calculators to then share these with the investors you meet at the meetups. Maybe you can help the investors you meet with all the miscellaneous tasks involved with investing like picking up rent checks, turning over properties for new tenants, or even just driving by occasionally to make sure their properties are in good condition.

I'd also recommend spending a lot of time looking at all the homes you're targeting in your area, both online and in person. If you do this for 3-6 months, you'll know a good deal right away which will help you when you're ready to buy.