Sign advertising for investor apprentice - suspicious?

[Tara Doyle]

Hi, everyone! This is my first post. I'm a total newbie trying to get started with real estate investing, probably flipping and rentals. From all the books, blogs and podcasts I've read/watched, it seems having a mentor is key. Tonight at a restaurant, I saw a professional-looking metal sign posted (along with a bunch of other signs) that was asking for a real estate investor apprentice. This seemed too easy to me, but I wouldn't want to miss out on a great opportunity just because it sounds suspicious. Should I call about it or should I just assume it's some kind of scam? Am I right to be suspicious?

[Ned Carey]

You absolutely should call, but not for the reason you think.

My guess is, that the person who put up the sign is charging students to learn real estate. There certainly is nothing wrong with paying for a mentor or coach but when you are brand new it is easy to be taken advantage of. Possibly the investor is looking for Bird dogs to feed him or her deals. If that is the case you may not get full mentoring, just enough to find deals for the investor. 

So why should you call? Successful people would have just called without asking first. There is no risk to a phone call other than sounding or feeling foolish. If that is enough to stop you, you may not go very far. I think one of the top things that stops new investors from moving forward is the reluctance to make a phone call (or visit) to a stranger (primarily sellers),