Intro....I'm a newb looking to invest

[James S]

I have been lurking for a couple of weeks reading post after post of wonderful information.

I have been thinking of investing in real-estate for awhile and am primarily interested in buying and holding.

I'll start with alittle about myself. I am civil service for the Air Force at Eglin AFB Florida and I live in Crestview FL (40 miles east of Pensacola). Married and have 2 small children

My wife is apprehensive but warming to the idea of real estate investing as long as I do my due diligence and have a sound business plan. I'm not shooting for the stars and if I can acquire 2-3 rentals a year I'd be happy.

I have a few quick questions for all the experts.

Any recommendations for books or resources on landlording, laws, home improvement and repairs, rehabbing, and creative financing

I have excellent credit. 775-795 on the 3 credit agencies (current as of 3 days ago). How difficult is it to do this with little to none of my own money. I have 10k cash and 15k credit but would rather not dip into either so any advice on no money down or creative financing would be greatly appreciated.

Did you create your own lease agreement or have a lawyer right one up. I know they have to be water tight because a smart tenant can find loopsholes that can be a pain.

How important are REI clubs. I know of 2 that are within a 50 mile radius.

Respectfully

James

Thanks for all the help.

[Curt Davis]

James,

You need to really define what your long term goal is. Thats great you want to do everything but in reality you do not have time to rent out your own home, do the repairs, and so forth. If your goal is to buy and hold for longterm cash flow then you need to read books about learning to become a RE investor. Leave all the other things up to the professionals. Find yourself a general contractor and a property management company.

Save yourself and dont read Rich Dad Poor Dad. All that does is try to pump people up and get them excited so you will buy more of that garbage. You need to get involved in your local reia and seek out people who are doing the things you want to be doing. That is your best form of education. Hope that helps.