I want to buy my first investment property at 19, learning how?

[Nathan Boyer]

Hello Everyone! I am looking for a 2-4 unit in the Hershey/Hummelstown, PA area to house hack or have as a pure investment property. I am 19, interning at Slatehouse group to with my real estate license with Slatehouse Realty of Lancaster, PA. My goal is to have a property under contract within the next 6 months so I can start building equity in a property. I'm looking for advice or suggestions for finding good multi unit deals and also how to fund a purchase as a college student who doesn't work full time. I'm currently talking to a lender about an FHA loan but i'm afraid I won't qualify due to the lack of steady income. My plan right now is to try to sell a home or two as an agent and save up to make a down payment on a property through an FHA loan with my mom co-signing on the loan. Should I focus more time on finding a great deal and pitching the deal to family and friends or investors that I have met so far, OR, focus more on selling properties as an agent to save money and then look for a property that I can make the down payment on. I'm currently reading @Brandon Turner 's book on Low and No Money Down investing and it has shaken up my plans a little bit but my goal is still the same. If anyone invests in small multi family properties for buy and hold in the Hershey, Palmyra, Middletown, Hummelstown, Campbelltown, PA area, I'd love to buy you lunch or something and talk. 

[John Warren]

@Nathan Boyer I love how hard you are hustling! I would focus on finding a good property to buy with your mom as the co-signer. Use your conventional 5% down loan as that is a much better loan. Buy 3 or 4 units if you can, because the income from the units will be used to help you qualify. After you get your first property, use the FHA loan for your second 3 or 4 unit.

I wish I had used this strategy 6 or 7 years ago, and if I had been as smart as you I would be light years ahead by now! I have often heard older investors lament that they wish they had bought more deals, and I am starting to feel that way. I passed on so many opportunities in the Berwyn market where I invest that were screaming deals in retrospect!

 Focus on buying as many units in good areas as you can. You have time on your side, so it is more about finding properties you wouldn't mind holding for the long term.