New investor in south west Ohio

[Kevn Wolf]

So I’m 18 years old and am looking to start really diving into real estate investing. I have taken time while on quarantine to learn as much information as I can about the proper steps a beginner should take to begin real estate investing. I have a plan loosely in place but would definitely prefer to run it by a few investors and see what they feel my first steps should be. Any advice or any good information you wish you had known early on I would love to hear!

[Zachary Elliott]

@Kevn Wolf Welcome to BP. My best advice is to never stop learning. I started investing in RE in Northern Kentucky about 4 years ago and I've learned SO MUCH since then. Your house hacking idea is a great one, as is will help you to both cut expenses and add to your savings as well. 

Another thing that has been immensely helpful for me is understanding how much peace is brought by having a reserve in place. Your house hacking situation can help you to quickly build a reserve of cash in the event that something bad happens. While each property is going to be different, you should set aside a percentage of your gross income on the property for vacancy, capital expenditures and maintenance. That way, when an A/C unit breaks or you have to replace the roof, you've already budgeted for that. 

I've previously heard David Greene (on the BP podcast) talk about how starting out in RE is like getting a huge train moving. In the beginning, the progress feels slow but you are working extra hard to get a really large piece of machinery moving. Once you've had an opportunity to get moving though, you'll be hard to stop.

Getting money for your first down payment might take some time and effort and saving money for your reserves might be the same way. But if you put in this hard work now, you can save yourself a lot of headache later by being prepared. 

Feel free to DM me if you have any questions. Good luck in your investments!

- Zac.