Newbie from Orange County, CA

[Erick Brownfield]

Hello,

I'm from OC and am looking to both invest in rental properties and break into a real estate career.

I'm a 27 yo Finance major that has just finished paying off student and car loans. After meeting 2015/2016 Roth IRA contributions, hopefully I'll be able to save up enough for a low down payment (have a family member willing to help out by matching) property in a year to a year and a half, so I'd like to study up during the time as much as I can (currently on third book -written by Frank Gallinelli regarding cash flow)

On the other hand, I've been in a dead-end product manager position so am looking to switch careers, preferably one that combines real estate and finance. I'm considering mostly non-sales job such as loan processing, underwriting, acquisitions, maybe even property management. I'm mostly interested in jobs that not only provide decent pay, but more importantly, equip me with the skills to analyze properties for when I do personal investments. Any suggestions on getting my foot in the door? I have no relevant experience (only somewhat valuable skill is fluent in Mandarin) so I'm thinking I'd either have to intern, entry sales (at which I'll probably suck), get an MBA, or a realtor's license. Any other quick certifications I should be considering to help get employment? I currently live at home and have fairly low expenses but almost no savings either.

Suggestions welcome - thanks in advance!