advice from broker buddy

[Tony Silva]

A buddy of mine in college became a broker and we recently reconnected.

I asked him about real estate investing and told him I am looking strictly for bargains, etc.

His advice was "always buy your own place first before you start investing in rental property. It will get you familiar with the business".

I rent a very cheap place right now and am looking to save as much cash as possible for inivestment properties. I kind of like renting at this point since it is so cheap and allows me to relocate easily if possible (I do not have kids). Also, I live in california and it would take massive capital to get involved with my own house here as a first investment. I would rather not "get pregnant" with a house here and a huge loan...I can always buy a dream house once the investments pay out. At the same time, renting always puts money into someone else's pocket. Any thoughts for a first investment?