Why should you not get into REI?

[Lindsay Ash]

Hi there, I'm a newbie in the research phase.  I'm considering this as a career change and trying to absorb as much as I possibly can while setting a deadline of March for buying a property.

I love numbers, spreadsheets, optimizing deals and am coming from the world of credit card churning/gaming. I've spent quite a bit of time on reddit reading on that subject. One of my favorite posts is why you should not get into the credit card game. It basically outlines what many of the risks are - screw up your payments and you're paying interest, who shouldn't do it - folks who aren't organized or disciplined, etc. I'd love to get a community view of the same thing here - who is this not for, why might you advise against REI.

Of course most on here would advise to do this but wondering what your thoughts are on this subject.

[Chris T.]

@Lindsay Ash

In REI, there are a lot of things outside your control. A lot of moving parts.

You can do your best to budget, plan, screen tenants etc, but sometimes stuff happens. And when they do, you need to figure out your best plan. 

Compared to a credit card game where the end user controls their results, you cannot control EVERYTHING in REI.

Ultimately, it is up to your risk tolerance, and how well you can adapt to different situations.