Mentor, Realtor, Property Manager, or JUST START?!

[Ryan McElroy]

Hey guys!

I've been actively educating myself on RE investing for the past 5 years. I recently graduated from college and plan to make RE a lifelong career. My vision is to own a company that invests in large apartment complexes (150+ units), property development, and in house property management.

I'm currently at a point where I need to take the next big step but don't know what direction to take. I'm afraid of wasting time and not getting the education I need to advance my career. With my vision in mind, what direction should I go to set myself up for the most success in the fastest time possible?

- Mentor: Find a very successful RE investor in my niche who can show me the ropes day in and day out in exchange for free help/service.

-Realtor: Obtain a RE license, find an active RE broker who owns investment property as well, and buy/sell properties while learning to invest from them.

-Property Management: Work as a property manager for a successful investor/management company and learn to manage properties first hand.

-Just Start: Start building my team, network, ask for advice from other investors, make offers and obtain property, self manage, (basically the school of hard knocks)

If you have any other suggestions on a different route to take, I am eager to learn. Thank you in advance for any help!

[Lumi Ispas]

@Ryan McElroy start working for a very active management company that manages properties in the area you are interested in buying. This will your most valuable experience. You'll learn how and why landlords buy their buildings, you'll learn how to stabilized them, through work- remodeling and how they are rented. You'll learn how to market a place to tenants, how to compare applicants and choose your best tenants. 

Imagine learning all this valuable information while actually getting paid!

And, it gets even better, you'll meet a great property manager and a ton of landlords that could be your buyers down the road, you'll meet handyman and contractors and Realtors to bring you deals!

You are young, if you starts your foundation working from a management company, dealing with tenants and landlords, you'll make it through anything!

Good luck to you!