New from Austin, Looking for Advice on how to Start Investing

[Christina Truong]

Hey everyone, my name is Christina Truong. I recently (June 2016) became interested in real estate investing and am currently learning as much as possible. I’ve read a few books, watched some videos and stumbled upon this website. I’m from Round Rock, Texas but I’ve lived in Austin for the past five years working on my degrees at the University of Texas. 

I'd really like to know where to start, as I have no idea how to begin investing, from what a good deal looks like to how to finance it. I have read so much about the types of properties you can invest in, how to profit from real estate and the different ways you can finance them, but I have never taken a loan out before (other than for school through FAFSA), and I am not sure how to jump in. I have not graduated and built up enough funds without borrowing money to start investing yet, but I plan to start set aside savings and am open to taking out loans such as an FHA after I graduate in order to begin my investing career.

As a beginner, I am interested in single-family homes and the smaller 1-4 units to start out with. I plan to manage (and possibly live in) my own property first so I can learn more about it before transitioning to hiring out management for larger properties. 

I just got accepted into a 10 month program in Fort Worth, Texas before I complete one of my degrees, so I will be living there temporarily in a multi-family home with my dog. Right now I tend to be quite shy and am working on developing friendships and putting myself out there more so I can start building up my social and networking skills. My dog and I love hiking together and we love going to Zilker for the lake and the beautiful trails around Barton.

Any advice on the steps I should take in order to become an investor or friendship would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for taking the time to read this post and welcoming a newbie to the fold.