Hi everyone, just joined BP and it looks great, my question is: What is the easiest, fastest and cheapest ways to get started in REI?

Question

I am a home improvements specialist/contractor and I've been wanting to get into REI for years but never seem to get started the right way. I'm not sure if it's a lack of startup money or if I just don't know how to get started. My wife and I are getting ready to take classes for our PA/NJ RE licenses in April, I also want to get my inspectors and appraisers licenses. I feel this will give me some great tools and contacts to help us get started in our REI ventures.

Recently I've been looking at rundown houses in Trenton NJ for under $40k and thought this may be the least expensive way to get started. Any advise on how to start would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Nick

Ellis San Jose · Answer

@Nick Stango I applaud you for being direct and to the point.The wholesaling formula is pretty straight forward.1) Communicate with a lot of sellers who are ready, willing and able to sell a propert(ies) to you at a significant discount.( Farm list)2) Put it under contract with enough profit margin for what your investors want and still have enough spread for you to make the profit you want. 3) Sell your contracts to ready, willing and able buyers ( Buyers list)4) Cash checksrinse and repeat steps 1-4.Easy? Look on the MLS for propertiesFast? Buy the property off the MLS with what you think has the most possible profit and price you can afford.Cheap? Google free real estate wholesaling contract. Cut and paste the contracts from the Internet that you like and hope that you don't do anything foolish or illegal that may harm you later.Easy, fast, and cheap vs. Effective, sustainable, profitable, and delivers the optimal return on your time, skill, and money.One of my favorite Warren Buffett quotes, "Price is what you pay, value is what you receive".The investors I know that are most successful and who I most want to emulate, challenge me to focus on asking more powerful questions that will likely lead to more powerful answers.Here are some resources and areas of study that I have found to be extremely valuable.1) Public libraries & especially law libraries (nudge nudge wink wink) contract law, real estate cases and guide books that are state specific.2) Understanding title 3) Public record searching4) Studying marketing and human behavior: What influences people to say yes or no? What causes people to take or not take certain actions? (Why would someone sell me an asset at a deep discount?)5) Studying the laws of money:Why do some people get rich, then go broke?Why are some people rich but miserable?Why are some people always broke?Why do some people become wealthy and stay that way?Best of luck on your journey,

Larry Fried · Answer

@Nick Stango Hi and welcome to BiggerPockets! It’s a great place to learn more about investing and meet the people you want to meet. If you haven't yet, be sure to check out the The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing and don't forget to set up your Keyword Alerts!

Dmitriy Fomichenko · Answer

Welcome to BP community @Nick Stango It is a great place to meet new friends and learn about various aspects of real estate and more. Here are a few recommendations for you:Find and connect with other BP members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meetCheck out BP Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/Wishing you the best!

Nick Stango · Answer

Thanks to everyone for all the input, greatly appreciated! Ellis, Now that's what I'm talking about! Great answer, that will keep my wheels turning for quite a while, I'm sure. By the way, I lived in Burbank CA back in the late 80's for about six months right before I got married, I miss Malibu!

Nick Stango · Answer

Thanks Antonio, I've been studying everything I could find on REI inside and out, great advise! Thanks again, Nick

Antonio Coleman · Answer

Welcome @Nick Stango to the site. One of the best ways to get started is to educate yourself first before jumping into anything. Learn this business in and out, and master the marketing side of it as well.

Nick Stango · Answer

Judah, I know you can do better than that, pick one! Thank s for the welcome!Thanks Luiz, I agree about wholesale deals but still could use some advise on how to get my first deal done and how to find free contracts to download. Larry, thanks, and I will get to the guide and the keywords right away!

Judah Hoover · Answer

Hello and welcome... easy fast and cheap... you cant do all three. Pick two. Or better yet one.

Luiz Souza · Answer

IMO Wholesale is the answer to your questions however you may face some restrictions as a RE Agent or Broker!!LSouza