What can a broke college student do now?

[Isaac Pyle]

Hey guys! Just thought I would throw this out there and see if anyone has advice for me, I am VERY fascinated by house-hacking, and have been watching / listening / reading everything I can about it for multiple years now (I am only 20, so that is pretty much all of my adult life thus far). However, because I am in school, I obviously don't have enough time to make an income that would even begin to approve me for a loan on a house, especially in the area of my school (Boulder / Denver, CO). But I would rather not spend my time in school just waiting to be out so that I can begin working and start investing in real estate, because all signs seem to tell me that the earlier you can get started, the more it pays off down the line. Does anyone have recommendations on what I can be doing while in school for 2+ more years?

Any advice is appreciated, and obviously I still have a lot to learn before I actually begin investing.

Thanks in advance!

- Isaac

[James Galla]

Since you're looking at a two-year period that will likely be 'inactive' with respect to real estate, you should discover what kind of investment strategy you're interested in. If you're interested in buying and holding or flipping, perhaps you should jump on a contractor's crew to learn some basic rehab skills. Those skills will be useful in either of those strategies but will also be useful in your personal life.

Beyond that, perhaps you should consider an internship with a real estate agent or property management company. I know on a lot of occasions that property management companies that manage school rentals give out free rent to their employees. That's a pretty good deal because you can minimize your expenses while on limited income while also learning how to manage properties.

In the meantime, you should definitely link up with your local Real Estate Investors Association meetup as well as any BiggerPockets meetup. Networking is something you want to do so you can ease different kinds of burdens down the line. One issue that folks have, for example, is finding a reliable contractor. However, if you're able to network with folks that have been in the business, you'll be able to extend your network to include reliable sources. Good luck with your schooling.