Flipping vs. Buy-And-Hold?

[Alex Boyce]

Hey BP, Seeking some experienced advice on strategies when starting... I'm VERY excited about REI but am in the very early stages: getting my personal finances in order and learning as much as I can. Currently renting a townhouse, and not much in the way of assets. My end goal is a portfolio of buy and hold properties so I can live off of the cash flow. If there's one thing that I've learned about B&H, it's a VERY slow game. Which I love, but it's also frustrating because I'm itching to get started investing now. I'm still a year or two away from having enough to buy a house-hack-ish property (looking for a primary residence with a mother-in-law suite to rent). I've been curious about learning to flip to build cash reserves, then use that to buy long-term holdings. But it seems like there's a lot to know and a lot that can go wrong with flipping. Does it seem like a bad idea to learn how to flip just to get started, particularly if that's not what I want to ultimately do?

[Will Pritchett]

I would study both strategies. Get personal finances squared away. Read Dave Ramsey. Then I would house hack with fha loan. Starting with weak finances is not a good idea in my opinion - especially as many people see some type of correction on the horizon. 
     My first house gave me the equity to start in buy and holds. A year or two to learn and build finances is not that long. If we do have a correction you'll be ready to pounce on opportunities.  
     Others may advocate flipping with other people's money but there is a lot of risk.  And you'll likely need some skin in the game.
     What about flipping some craigslist/garage sale items for cash. Use your own money. Low risk. Just some thoughts.