New to investing AND Colorado...

[Jessica Fatel]

Hello Bigger Pockets gang!

Jess here! My husband and I have recently relocated to Denver, Co from the NYC area for a change of pace and scenery, as well as a lower cost of living (therefore, a greater opportunity for investment). My background is in sales and I have no real estate investing experience, but am inspired by my mother, who has acquired over 20 rental houses in the past 6 years, and is yielding a decent passive monthly income from them. With the sale of our NYC condo, we are looking to make some wise, modest investments and work towards growing a successful, well-rounded portfolio. 

Perhaps someone could advise me on whether it would be advantageous to attend one of the local Denver area networking events at this early stage....I want to jump in with both feet and pursue this as a full-time endeavor, but don't know exactly how to start. 

I look forward to interacting with this community and continuing to enjoy the great tools and education here at Bigger Pockets!

[Scott Trench]

@Jessica Fatel I think that there are a couple of components to the education game. I think that you are wasting time talking to local investors about general real estate principles that can be easily gleaned from multiple books, blog posts, and podcasts available here on BP and elsewhere online. But, I think that you can't really learn about the Denver market from any book. Once you get a basic level of familiarity with the city by reading publications like the Colorado Real Estate Journal, and have lived here for a few months, getting a feel for different neighborhoods, I absolutely think that you should be talking to investors and getting insight as to which parts of town are on the up and up, and where investors are putting their money. If you can approach the conversation with intelligent questions, there's no reason to not meet people today!