Newbie from Washington DC Area

[Ian Giles]

Hello all....

My name is Ian Giles, I'm a 31 year old government worker that resides in Gaithersburg, MD. I came across this site and was amazed at all the resources it had to offer with along how helpful the community is. So here I am ready to jump right on in with yall!

[Paul Timmins]

@Ian Giles

Welcome. Time to get the second career started.

Check out the Start Here page http://www.biggerpockets.com/starthere

Check out BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginner's Guide - A fantastic free book that walks through many of the key topics of real estate investing.

Check out the free BiggerPockets Podcast - A weekly podcast with interviews and a ton of great advice. And you get the benefit of having 50 past ones to catch up on.

Locate and attend 3 different local REIA club meetings great place to meet people gather resources and info. You have a very large DC club.

Two Great reads, I bought both J. Scott The Book on Flipping Houses,The Book on Estimating ReHab Costshttp://www.biggerpockets.com/flippingbook

Consider checking out HUD homes for small multi's owner occupied gets first crack.

You might consider Niche or Specialized Housing like student housing. Rents can be 2-4 times more. Remember you don't have to own a property to control it.

Good Luck

Paul