Whats an ideal number to start investing with?

[Jose Arreola]

How much money do I need to get into my first flip. I was talking to a buddy of mine, and he had  told me that i need a minimum of 120k. Is this true? I have 80k at disposal. 

[Marshall Leipprandt]

@Jose Arreola I agree with @Tony Kim and @Eric Gerakos. If you are starting with no experience, flipping your first home on a thin budget is a huge risk. With prices being so high here in SoCal, your holding costs alone (assuming you use a hard money lender for the purchase price) will eat you up. 

Do you know anyone who is currently flipping? If not, try to make some connections and see if there are some flippers who are willing to mentor you. This is the most valuable thing for you to do at this stage in my opinion. Although sometimes just jumping in is the best way to learn, I would say that this principle does not apply fully to the flipping world. You have to deeply understand the market, have working relationships with reputable contractors, and have a solid plan backed with experience in the real estate industry before diving in head first.