Beginner Investor that is NOT HANDY

[Spencer R.]

Hi everyone,

I am a 23 year old that has a day job but is looking to begin buying/renting out properties on the side.  I am not afraid of hard work but I also want to work smart as well.  The two things holding me back right now are that home values are just too expensive and so I do not think it is the right time in the cycle, and (what I want to focus on here in this forum which is) that I am not the least bit handy.  Everyone talks a lot about buying properties for discounts that need work and fixing them up, but I am useless when it comes to any sort of fixing/repairs.  I am clueless at evaluating homes to determine whether they have "good bones", and I do not think that walking into a fixer-upper blind would be a good idea for me.  I am looking for suggestions on the best way for someone like me to get into the game.

Thanks in advance,

Spencer

[Ali Boone]

Hey Spencer. You sound wise beyond your years! You just hit on two of the biggest, and most important, things for investing in my opinion. Analyzing a cycle and the associated prices (and therefore is it a good investment), and your natural inclinations. I am completely in your boat about not being handy and that kind of thing not being in my wheelhouse. People will preach to you all day long that you can figure it out and it's the best way to do it and on and on, but in my opinion, if it's not in your natural grain, you will just be swimming uphill. I think everyone can be a million times more successful if they follow what they enjoy doing, their strengths, and what flows easily for them. I think you can be way more profitable doing that than getting a property that requires things that aren't naturally in you and being forced to make it happen.

I've always bought rent-ready/turnkey properties for the exact reason of getting into rehabbing. Sure the margins aren't as high, but I also hold a tremendous value on my time and the reality is that when you get into rehabbing and all that, you are trading your time for higher returns. So at that point, is it actually higher returns? Maybe for some, but not for me. 

You can most definitely get into REI without swinging a hammer! Good for you for having some self-awareness and acknowledging it. There are people, if not the majority of people, even 30 years your senior who haven't figured that out yet.