New Investor From Chicago

[David Rogers]

Hello biggerpockets!

My name is David Rogers. I have no background in real estate except reading books and listening to podcasts. I came into real estate by way of reading about investing in the stock market. After a few years of watching my 401k return only a few hundred dollars per year of dividends, I decided my salary and capital gains were barely going to propel me to a happy retirement. 

I'm a teacher, and I really enjoy teaching so changing my job is not really the issue. I'm interested in real estate to have financial freedom and be able to vacation how I want without needing to budget 12 months in advance. I'm interested in buy and hold investing. Right now I plan to buy a two flat in the PIlsen/Bridgeport area by August 2016 using FHA financing. I'm additionally considering using my IRA to purchase an investment property near cleveland Ohio, which is where I grew up.

Right now I'm looking for an agent who also invests in real estate, a CPA to do my 2015 taxes while also walking me through tax implications for 2016 with buying a house and being a landlord collecting rental income. The plan is to then work with said CPA to make sure I'm taking advantage of all of my real estate tax advantages.

Any advice and contacts appreciated!