Burning it down and Starting over

[Paul Dante Pronio]

To make this quick and to the point I am a hairstylists in a shrinking industry and am looking for a new career path. I have a rental property in Philadelphia but otherwise have rented in NYC for 20 years. I have equity in the PA Property plus significant appreciation plus I have an additional 50-60K in liquid assets to throw into a new investment. I am ultimately seeking financial freedom made from a new livlihood. Covid has allowed me to reset and I am open to living in new markets and making big changes. Househacking seems to be the easiest way to get a start on building a portfolio of properties so I believe that could be part of the equation but my real question here is would it be to my benefit to pursue a real estate license? Would it open the door to new investment opportunities or new possibilities in the real estate industry outside of buying and selling? I need a new life and a better shot at financial freedom than what I am getting cutting hair 2 days week.

Any advice would be welcome. Thank you Bigger Pockets Community 

[Kevin Uzelac]

@Paul Dante Pronio 50-60k in liquid assets would definitely be enough to get started investing in Philadelphia. Hard money lenders normally look for that kind of cash balance along with the fact that you already own a rental property. There are plenty of opportunities to fix and flip off market property in Philly but you just need to know where to look. Having your license will provide access to the MLS but you wouldn't need it to find off market property. I would suggest maybe getting a few flips under your belt, building up capital, then investing in some rental property in nicer neighborhoods to starting building that passive cash flow. Hope this helps!