Newbie from Watertown, NY

[Account Closed]

Hi, my name is Spencer. I'm currently stationed in Watertown, NY but originally from Los Angeles. I work as an active duty Army officer by day and looking to pursue real estate investing by night. I'm interested in buy and hold properties and recently started making a serious effort to learn before diving in (thats when I found the BP website). It seems like an awesome community with a wealth of knowledge and I'm looking forward to participating!

[Matt Slykhuis]

@Account Closed  Welcome to BP! 

I am in a similar situation as you, but up in Fairbanks, AK. I have been reading and studying over the past few months to get ready for some investing. I've found that BP is simply THE place to search for answers to your many questions. You can also stay current on the forums and learn a lot of things you never knew you didn't know!

I would also recommend reading the the Ultimate Beginner's Guide, a free book published by @Brandon Turner and @Joshua Dorkin! If you're a podcast guy, I highly recommend you check out their podcasts as well. I started on podcast 1 back in July and have made it through 36 episodes! I listen to them while working out in order to maximize my time efficiency. 

Lastly, be sure to set up keyword alerts for your area or interests. That's how I came to find your post!

Again, welcome!

[James Wise]

@Account Closed 

welcome to the site.

[Jon Huber]

@Account Closed

Welcome the the community! Now get active. Ask questions, read blogs, and I always suggest a podcast marathon. There is a tremendous amount of information there, that is easy to consume. Good luck!

[Elizabeth Colegrove]

Welcome to Biggerpockets!

My husband is active duty navy. We are buy and hold investors in single family homes who invest in Class A properties. We invest through two methods, pure rentals, and personals turned rentals. Being military is the perfect set up! Our goal is for early retirement in 15 years :)

You will love the diverse community and all the resources. So a great place is to look around the blogs, forums and listen to the podcasts for different niches. If you see a post you enjoy check out the persons signature. Many of us including myself talk about our strategies, styles, niches and business model on our website. So definitely check that out as it is an amazing additional resource. For example, my blog is about while working full time, buy and hold investing, 0% Down Rentals, Personal Properties turned rentals, Long distancing investing, self-managing 3,000+ miles away. Definitely list your blog or website in your signature, if you have one. Its a great additional networking source.

Look forward to seeing and connecting with you around!  Let me know if I can help!

[Paul Timmins]

@Account Closed 

Welcome. Thanks for your service. Time to build the foundation below.

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

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.

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.

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

[Account Closed]

@Matt Slykhuis @Elizabeth Colegrove @Paul Timmins 

Thanks everyone for the welcome! I've started the podcast marathon and read the beginner's guide. Unfortunately there are no REIA clubs nearby (closest one I've found so far is an hour away) but I'll keep looking.

[Jacob Elbe]

@Account Closed 

I found the easiest way for me to get started was to work with a turnkey provider.  At least for the company I worked with, this means they helped me identify a property that fit what I was looking for, they had already rehabbed it, they found the tenant, and stayed on as the property manager.  You can search the forums for threads on turnkey or out of state investing and see if that's something that interests you.  There are some great discussions on the pros and cons of investing this way.  I was stationed overseas at the time, so having someone that was an expert in a specific market that could guide me through the process of finding the property that also stayed on as the property manager was perfect for me.  It allowed me to get started while I was still overseas instead of waiting another two years to return to the US.  Continue to read posts here on BP and you'll figure out which direction you want to go.  Best of luck!

Jacob

[Account Closed]

@Jacob Elbe 

I feel turnkey with property managers is the way to go for me right now. I know I'll lose some profits but I'm afraid of having to deal with tenant issues as a landlord while I'm TDY or in the field for a month at a time.

Right now I rent, so I do plan on buying a house soon and while most may not consider that an investment, my BAH savings will be significant.

[Jacob Elbe]

I actually rent in the DC area, so you're not alone there.  Knowing we will move again in a couple of years means I need to make sure any property I buy will also make a good investment property.  And in this area, it's hard to find anything that will positive cash flow.  So I continue to rent for now and invest elsewhere.

I have one property that I self manage and it takes up more time then all the others and makes less money, ha.  Managing issues when I'm back in the US is one thing, but I've had to address a major plumbing issue from deployements and it's not fun!  It was the owner occupant home I bought at my first duty station.  I LOVE not having to worry about the others!  As long as you make sure to buy a good enough deal, you should be able to cover property management no problem.  

Do some searching and find a turnkey provider with a solid reputation and I think you'll be happy with the results.  There are some really successful folks on here that do nothing but turnkey!

[Account Closed]

@Jacob Elbe 

Haha sounds like a lot of the stuff at work. I'm sure it'll be one of the first places you trim the fat when it comes to it, as long as things don't turn around.

[Brandon Turner]

Hey @Account Closed thanks for introducing yourself! It's great to have you here! Don't miss The BiggerPockets Podcast - they are great for learning how others are finding success.

Also - here's a couple articles you might enjoy:

The 21 Best Real Estate Investing Books Ever

How to Rent Your House: The Definitive Step by Step Guide

How to Be a Landlord: Ten Tips for Success

Oh - and be sure to set up some Keyword Alerts- especially for "Watertown" so you'll be notified when people mention it here in the forums.

Thanks again for introducing yourself!

[Ali Boone]

Welcome! What part of LA are you from? I live in Venice now, from Atlanta. I also am a buy and hold investor.

[Frankie Woods]

Welcome to BP @Account Closed !  Fellow active duty member here (i.e., Air Force) as well!  I wish you the best of luck go forward!  You'll meet some really amazing people on this site, and the knowledge is bar none!

[Tyler Flagg]

Hey @Account Closed Welcome to BP! I'm an Air Force guy myself and have started investing out in Oklahoma City. I actually just wrote a blog about how the VA loan can be used for REI, so hopefully it can help you get on your way.

3 VA Loan House-Hacks for the Newbie Military Investor

Check it out and let me know what you think. Best of Luck!

Tyler

[Account Closed]

@Ali Boone I'm from Pasadena. I've been away now for going on 8 years but my family is still there. I'd like to end up back somewhere in the LA area again once I'm done with the army.

@Frankie Woods Thanks man, good to meet you!

@Tyler Flagg Thanks for the welcome! I'm currently trying to figure out exactly how I want to incorporate VA loans into my investment plan. Way to dive into the regs haha you can also check out VA Pamphlet 26-7 Lenders Handbook if you're looking for more government documents to go through haha

[Dave Visaya]

Hey @Account Closed welcome to BiggerPockets! This is a good place to start learning about REI. Make the most of the site by checking ‘The BiggerPockets Start Here Page’

[Tyler Flagg]

@Account Closed i'll be sure to check out that Lender's Handbook...thanks for the heads up. Best of luck to you!