NEED ADVICE: I’m in college and wanna prepare for investing.

[Garret Hohn]

I’m currently going to college for engineering and have started to learn about investing in real estate. My plan is use my engineering salary to invest. I also have started my own painting business in college to make some extra money. I’ve been an avid follower of BP the past few months, listening to videos and podcasts. I’ve also started to read some books. I wanna know what’s the best thing I can do right to prepare me for investing in real estate after college other then saving money and watching videos. I love talking to people and I thought about calling real estate agents and practicing negotiating a deal, but I don’t wanna waste someone’s time. I’d like to visit hours in my area for sale, but I don’t know how to start. Or is there anything else I could do or practice ahead of time since I’m not ready to buy anything at this moment? Open to any suggestions. Thanks guys!

[Kevin S.]

@Garret Hohn congrats on getting started early in life, wish I had been when I was your age. My biggest suggestions would be 1) Read - any and all REI, budgeting, rehab, etc. books/blogs/articles/magazines/etc. you can get your hands on. It's amazing how much info is out there, much of it free or very low cost. The better prepared and organized you are going into it the better chance of a great outcome. 2) Figure out your RE goals - as you read/research and get a better understanding of REI, you will want to plan things such as investing strategy (rehap/flip, buy and hold, etc.) as well as the location or market(s) you plan to work in. 3) Practice running the numbers - BP has their calculator and you can find (or create) similar ones in excel. Pick properties off listings you see or Zillow or craigslist or wherever and run the numbers, do this multiple times so you have a good working knowledge of how to quickly identify if a property is worth pursing. 4) Network - this can be done through your painting job, but there are also a lot of good REI groups around, including a local chapter of the Real Estate Investors Association (REIA). Go to meetings and talk with experienced investors, you never know when a shared connection can pay dividends. Good luck with your REI career!