Where to start in REI? I’ll tell you EXACTLY WHERE TO START

[Shiloh Lundahl]

Just yesterday I read yet another post from a newbie investor wanting to know where to start. There’s nothing wrong with being new. We all start somewhere. But when I hear someone new say they are really excited about investing in real estate yet they have no money to start, I think to myself that this person isn’t ready to invest in real estate. They have not learned the basic principles  of financial management adequately enough to learn how to manage wealth. If these people gain money through investing in real estate, that money will soon be gone without having learned these basic principles of managing your self and your wealth. So this post is to answer that question for everyone who is new and wants to get started in real estate investing. 

Pay Yourself First! The very first place to start with investing is by paying your self first! This concept comes from the foundational book The Richest Man in Babylon (and if you have not yet read this book, I suggest to you that this book be the very next book that you read!). This first rule of wealth, paying yourself first, forces people to take control of their finances. The lesson is that you pay yourself no less than 10% of everything you make. This seed money then becomes the beginning of building your wealth.

So if you say “I want to invest in real estate because I want to be wealthy and right now I don’t have any money,” then money is not your problem.  You don’t have a money problem. You have a management and a mindset problem. More money will not fix that problem. Learning to manage yourself and your money by changing your mindset will solve the problem. Then you will be ready to successfully invest in real estate.

I would love to hear what others think about this topic.

[Cassandra Sifford]

@Shiloh Lundahl ... Thank you for confirming what my Dad has been telling me all these years!  He ALWAYS said pay yourself 1st.  Other family and friends would always say you gotta keep a roof over your head.  He would always say bills will always be there, but you have to take care of yourself 1st!  I haven't always been the best with saving, but I've gotten better.  I get paid once a month from my full time job so it taught me how to budget.  I've saved money, purchased a good property and have great equity.  Next month will be my month to put me in a good place to apply for a HELoC to fund my 1st investment property.  I've been eyeing this triplex and I'm hopeful that its the one to start my journey to financial freedom :)