My name is Bartley "BJ" Anderson. I'm 35, married, have a 2 year old and a 1 month old, and I live in Lorton, Virginia. I used to work in construction and physical security, and changed careers in 2012 so now I'm a software/web developer (BS Computer Science). If you need a handyman or a website (or anything computer related really), I may be able to help you out.

I've studied and practiced personal finance and investing since 2000. I have a get rich slow mentality - more of a stoic view of accepting life how it is, but striving to apply myself fully to it. I thrive on working hard and pushing out the boundaries of my comfort zone, and I'm definitely not a "get something for nothing" type of investor.

I don't have a lot of experience investing in real estate other than owning my own home since 2009. Before the crash (2008) I read a lot about real estate investing, but put off getting into REI because I could tell that the market was irrational. Instead I chose to invest in myself and went to college and paid cash for my tuition. Over the past couple months I've been reading up on REI again, doing some number crunching/research on the market in and around my area, and exploring my options for getting investment capital.

My goal is to build a stable, passive income of $10,000 a month (free and clear), and I plan to do that through rental properties. I also want to fix/rehab properties because I like working with my hands and building stuff, and eventually I want to teach my sons how to fix and remodel properties when they get old enough to start swinging a hammer.

Newbie from Northern Virginia

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