Cash is King.....Data is Queen

[Darien Gaston]

Let me first say that I'm a newbie investor currently in the education stage of investing (books, podcasts, meet-ups, etc.) While I was reading J Scott's book this morning on flipping houses I've noticed that he, along with so many other investors, have pushed the importance of "Knowing your market" before doing anything. And the only route to being able to analyze a particular market is having access to the current market data, either yourself or through someone else.

Now J Scott goes into more detail as far as knowing exactly what buyers in that area want down to the T. That's the most concrete way to know what type of home to look for, or even if the area you're looking at is worth the time. With that being said, I've asked myself the question, what's the quickest and simplest way to have access to this data? Answer: Getting my RE license. (Maybe not so quick, but you get the point : )

Okay now I know, I know....everyone has their own opinion about whether an investor should get their real estate license or not. I understand everyone's situation is different, but here's mine. I currently work in the transportation industry, which has nothing to do with real estate, so my time to learn and invest is limited. If I'm going to be working anyway, why not work in the field that's going to help my improve investing career.

Now my main drawback is that I feel that there's going to be a large portion of time and money that I'm going to have to put into my license. Regardless of the obvious benefits of having my license, am I ready to commit to being a great agent AND investor, as opposed to just being a great investor? That's the part I struggle, and that's the reason I write this post. I know it's ultimately going to be my decision, just looking for some seasoned input. Thanks in advance!

Darien Gaston

BTW, Cash is king....but Data is queen. And we all know who REALLY rules the castle. LOL