Newbie working in Atlanta, Georgia, residence in Columbus, Ohio

[Joel Craig]

Hello everyone, my name is Joel and I'm JUST getting started with my real estate investment education.  I have a house in Columbus, OH but frequently work on television shows as a producer throughout the country.  I am currently stationed in Atlanta, Georgia.

My initial interest is in "buy and hold" small rental properties to start with.  I like the idea of monthly cashflow, who doesn't?!? 

I am also intrigued by tax lien investing, especially since I've read Georgia is one of the better states for this type of investing.  But, I'm still VERY new to all of this and my preferences could change quite a bit once I gain more knowledge.

My first concern is that I'll need to hire a rental management company since I sometimes work out of state. I'm also a little overwhelmed when it comes to hiring an attorney, creating a LLC, S-Corp or C-Corp, insurance, tax implications, etc, but I assume that comes with the territory when starting out.

I found BiggerPockets by way of AffordAnything.com.

[Paul Timmins]

@Joel Craig

Welcome. Time to build the foundation below.

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 over 80 past ones to catch up on.

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

Locate and attend 3 different local REIA club meetings great place to meet people gather resources and info. Here you will meet wholesalers who provide deals and all the cash buyers (rehabbers) you will need.

To find out about an area and locate a good property manager go to IREM.org search for ARM certified property managers. Call 5 ask them what sides of the city they like/dislike and why. Ask what they see them selling for and what expenses are by category. Ask for market occupancy and rents. Ask if they know anything coming up for sale.

Locate a real estate CPA to discuss legal entity and develop tax strategies. Reach out to Amanda Han who is very active here on BP.

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.Atlanta is the #4 market for student housing in the US.

Download BP’s newest book here some good due diligence in Chapter 10. Real Estate Rewind Starting over

http://www.biggerpockets.com/files/user/brandonatbp/file/real-estate-rewind-a-biggerpockets-community-book

Good luck

Paul