Newbies from Lakeland, FL (In between Tampa and Orlando)

[Ashley Bearden]

Hello BP!

I've been listening to the BP Podcast for the last few weeks and decided it was time to jump on the forums! My husband, Chad, and I are interested in buy-and-hold mostly. We're starting to read some books that have been recommended and discussing goals and ideas. We've recently started throwing around the idea of buying a beach property and renting it out through Airbnb or VRBO. Time will tell.. We're currently landlords through necessity.  We both came into the relationship with homes so we live in one and rent the other. We didn't quite know what we were doing but luckily we have decent tenants. We're looking forward to learning a lot!

We live in Central Florida and love it!! We are recently married and have 3 dogs. We play adult kickball in the Spring and Fall. Chad competes in BBQ cookoffs and I enjoy running (which works with all that delicious food he cooks). 

We look forward to being a part of the BP community!

[Glenn McCrorey]

Don't do what I did. The first thing I bought was a condo in Ft. Myers because that sounded exotic for a guy in Iowa. I still have it and it loses money. After that I started to buy boring bread and butter 3/2 houses here in Cedar Rapids and they make money. My folks live in Zephyrhills, FL so I'm relatively familiar with your area. Focus on making money then rent a place yourself on the beach whenever you like. Good luck.