Should I take the plunge

[Andrew M.]

This is actually something I posted in another forum. I wanted to get perspective from people inside and outside of the real estate world.

Background info: I'm 22 years old and graduating from college in about 2 weeks with an econ degree and zero debt except for about $3000 to pay off on a car. I have about $3000 in the bank that I have saved and about $15000 after taxes in mutual funds that I just found out had been saved away and maturing since I was an infant (i think about 4k was put in initially).I have really good credit (750ish) although there's not a ton on it.

Essentially I am in a very secure financial position for someone in my age and position and definitely consider myself blessed because I have gotten some help. My parents are not rich but are very intent on supporting me financially. They will pay for all my food and and probably my cell phone for another year or two maybe but I basically told them I don't feel comfortable doing it anymore and that I'm cutting myself off after graduation except as a really last resort. On a side note I'm a pretty cheap date and have no problem living an extremely frugal lifestyle for several years while getting started.

My basic options I'm considering are:
1. getting some type of salaried position with an investment firm or something similar as an investment analyst and probably starting out around 40-50k and some benefits.

2. Keep my current job working at my university's rock wall making 8.25 to support myself in terms of housing and food and begin investing in real estate. I will try to upgrade to some sort of position where I'm getting 10 to 12 /hour and closer to full time or maybe a server position.When I say real estate it would be some combination of wholesaling and purchasing and managing rental property. I would probably also start working on getting my broker's license.

I have interviewed for several positions already but haven't heard back on anything but at this point I have basically decided that even if I do get a position that I'll turn it down. For one thing I just don't think I'm cut out for the corporate world. I feel like being a cubicle jockey sounds really mind numbing and that if I pursue the investing and it works out it would be a much more fulfilling and interesting career / lifestyle.

The other thing is I'm not signing up for some midnight "Buy with NO MONEY DOWN!!!!" infomercial or something like that. My current landlord has been investing in real estate for about 7 years now and does really well for himself. I told him at the beginning of the year that I was interested in learning what he did and told him that if he ever needed any help I would work with him for free just so I could gain some experience. He basically gave me way more than I bargained for and walked me through the purchase rehab and management of my first rental unit which I have agreed to give him a portion of the final profit on. He has agreed to continue to mentor me and as one of the bigger wholesalers in my area can essentially provide me with a never ending flow of obscenely cheap property. I haven't offered it to him yet but I will probably offer him a small portion of all cash flow and profit I make during for my first two years so he has a really big incentive to invest time in mentoring me. On a side note hes actually a really good guy, and definitely not the grimey sleasy type that people tend to associate with real estate investors and I have a fair amount of trust in him.

My thought is that if it works out I could be starting on the path of a really cool and fulfilling career and setting myself up for financial security and if it fails I'm only 22 years old and I still have a degree to fall back on. On a side not I have decided not to take any money out of my mutual funds during the first two years so if I screw up during the learning stages I don't squander what I do have. If things go well I'll dig into that for capital in the future.

Am I crazy? Stupid? Making the best decision of my life? Tell me what you think.

[Bobby Casey]

Honestly, if it were me I would take the investment job route. If you can truly live frugally, then you should be able to save $5-10k per year at your job, maybe more.

But even more importantly, you will gain a huge amount of business experience by working in that environment. You will learn about all different types of businesses and how to determine their value. This can be a great experience.

There is nothing preventing you from getting involved in RE investing in the evenings and on weekends while you maintain the full time job. As they say, "from 8-5 you make a living, from 5-12 you make a life."

Take your landlord up on the offer to be mentored. Spend as much time with him as possible after work and on weekends. As you are building your bankroll from your job, you will be learning about investing in RE too.

After a couple of years, you will have some money to put down on an investment property or 2. As long as you manage your cash well, you will be able to transition full time into RE investor without having to live on ramen noodles and mac and cheese.