New investor in Pierce County, WA

[Roy McCuin]

Hello all!

My name is Roy McCuin. I'm just starting out on my real estate investing journey. I grew up in Pierce County, Eatonville specifically. I'm actually closing on my first property (single family) in Eatonville in just a week or two. I've been lurking here reading the Biggerpockets Blog posts for the past year. It's a wonderful resource for ideas and warnings for new investors.

I'm relatively young, I think, at 25. I was in the Marines for 4 years from 2008 to 2012. I feel fortunate since I've gotten out that I've been able to contract in Afghanistan. In fact, that's where I'm posting from right now. Thanks to these jobs I'm able to afford a down payment on a brand new 4 bedroom single family rental. I'm trying to get this money I'm earning now to start working for me because it will be running out soon (war is ending and jobs are drying up).

I've had less than a year of time that I've been reading and educating myself about real estate. I'm sure I'm bound to make many mistakes, so I decided to take the plunge on my first property since I'm in a fortunate position with a lot of income and almost no expenses right now. I'll learn from this one and move forward with at least a little experience under my belt.

I'm open to critiques, advice, and suggestions! I'm sure I'll be bugging you guys with questions as I get deeper down the rabbit hole. Thanks!!