Is it smart to have your first investment be an apartment?

[Ruslan Kotelyanets]

I’m new to investing into real estate.  I haven’t purchased any properties but I have been looking and I’m more drawn to multi unit buildings.  That being said I am unsure if that is the best route to take and the other risk is that I would be investing over a million into this.  

[Raphael Collazo]

Hey @Ruslan Kotelyanets!

I'd have to agree with @Chris Coleman, @Edwin Joiner and @Cameron Tope. Before investing a single dollar into real estate, I educated myself on how to identify a good deal and maximize its value once I owned it. As it pertains, to multifamily investing, I've provided a list of some of my favorite books below:

1. "Multi-Family Millions: How Anyone Can Reposition Apartments for Big Profits" by David Lindhal
2. "Crushing it in Apartments And Commercial Real Estate: How a Small Investor Can Make It Big" by Brian Murphy
3. "The Book On Rental Property Investing" by Brandon Turner
4. "Best Ever Apartment Syndication Book" by Joe Fairless and Theo Hicks
5. "What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow... And 36 Other Key Financial Measures" by Frank Gallinelli
6. "Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors: How to Make Sure You Aren't Paying One More Cent in Taxes Than The Law Requires" by John T. Reed

These books will give you a solid understanding of sound investment principles which you can use to build your multi-family portfolio. Also, I encourage you to attend local real estate investor meet-up groups to establish relationships with local investors. One of the most popular groups, R.E.I.A (Real Estate Investor Association) has chapters in most major cities. Our local chapter has over 250 members, many of whom are extremely active in the market and have a wealth of knowledge they're willing to share. The investors I've met while attending these events are some of the most humble and helpful people around. Hope this helps and good luck on your real estate investing journey!

All the best,