Young Wannabe Real Estate Investor

[Brendan Loellke]

I am 20 years old and my parents want me to be an engineer to get a "good salary."  There is no part of me that wants to be an engineer but I have a passion for real estate.  I changed my major to finance and they are disappointed because they do not think I will get a job or a high paying job for that matter.  I want to show them that a college education is not needed to become successful.  So my questions are, how and where do I start looking for a house to invest in?  How do I know how much I should put the rent at?  And how can I find a realtor that I can trust who will work hard for me?