I’m new to real estate

[Robert Xiong]

I want to start in renting out homes but I don’t know where to start

[Joe Hines]

Welcome Robert!

You've landed in the right place.  There is unimaginable information and resources on this site along with the collective wisdom of thousands of people who participate every area of real estate from flipping, buy-and-hold, wholesaling - you name it. 

I'm going to assume you are starting from zero.  Here are some steps to get you started:

(1) Listen to the podcast every week.  You'll begin to learn the terms and concepts you need to know to start real estate investing.

(2) Subscribe to the forums. Look around this site and subscribe to forums that might interest you. Are you looking to buy-and-hold properties and rent them? Will you be a landlord of these properties? Are you looking for single family homes (SFH) or apartment buildings? Subscribe and read the questions and the responses as they come in. You might find after reading some of the questions that being a landlord isn't for you and you'll look for a property manager. In my case, I'm too busy with my day job, so I factor in the cost of a property manager into the financial analysis. You can learn a lot from other's questions.

(3) Know your target market.  Not everyone will agree with this recommendation, but I physically go visit the neighborhoods where I invest.  Walk the streets, especially at night.  What kind of cars are there?  How do you feel about it?  Look on rental sites to see what the rents are in the area.  When you use the tools on this site to analyze deals, knowing the rents is crucial.  Go look at income levels and distributions and see if the market is solid to support the rent levels your seeking and see if the area is growing.  

(4) Familiarize yourself with the tools on this site (or build your own). There are some decent tools here for RE investors. Check them out and know what they are calculating and how they help you analyze a deal. Then start looking through your target market on the MLS for your target market to see what you can find.

(5) Build out a network.  When you've started getting properties in an area, build relationships with your PM, your suppliers (electricians, plumbers, lawn companies, bankers, etc).   I recommend getting to be known around the tax office of your target county.  This network be be invaluable as you continue to invest and they'll also become a good source of off-market deals, which is where things can really start cooking.  

There's a lot more I'd recommend, but starting down this path will help you start learning and help you become certain you want to get into RE.  

Good luck!