New BP Member from Nashville, TN

[Heather Jeffrey]

I am brand new to the world of real estate investing and have just discovered this amazing community.

A little background - I am a full time accounting professional with my CPA license, working for a major company here in Nashville, TN.  My husband and I are at a point in our lives where we're living very comfortably and saving decently for retirement, while enjoying some fruits of our labor.  However, I am very restless in my career path - I feel as though I've topped out, mainly because going any further means an unacceptable work/life balance with higher stress and less job satisfaction.  Therefore, I would like to learn the ropes of real estate investing, with the goal to replace my income and build a portfolio of investments that will continue to provide for us through our retirement years, as well as providing nest eggs for my children to begin their lives.

I have contemplated this path for several years, on and off but never really considered it a real possibility.  Recently, though, it hit me that if I don't do something, 25 years from now I will find myself doing the same thing I'm doing now and I cannot accept that.  If I want to work for myself and gain financial freedom, I have to actually do it.  So, here I am.  Right now, I'm in complete information gathering mode - reading, listening, watching, reaching out.  I need INPUT!  (Name that movie...)  Anyway, I would love to hear from anyone else that's been in my situation and may have any advice for me, and/or suggestions for where to focus my learning efforts.  Aside from buying 4 of my own residences over the years, I am a complete fledgling!