College Student in Auburn, AL frequenting Fort Myers, FL

[Jake Fikse]

Hey everybody at Bigger Pockets,

First off, I’d like to thank everybody who has clicked on this post and taken the time to read it and engage with me. I really appreciate the effort you all make to get to know new people. I’d like to get started introducing myself to you all, where I’m at in my life and career, and where I plan on heading. Some of this you should be able to find in my profile but I hope to go into more detail here for those who choose to read on.

My name is Jake Fikse, I am currently a junior at Auburn University pursuing a degree in Building Science (also read as Construction Management). While at Auburn I am also pursuing a Co-Op degree. For those not familiar with what Co-Oping is, I will be alternating between semesters at school and semesters working/interning with a company, in my case, a commercial general contractor based out of Naples, FL. This means that this coming Fall 2017 I am lucky enough to move to the Fort Myers, FL area for about 4 months from August through December. Then I will spend my Spring in Auburn and be back down for the Summer. Not only does this allow me the benefit of extra work experience, it allows me to build my network in two different awesome locations, and observe two very different markets over the next two years. My current situation as a co-op student makes me thrilled that I will have such an awesome opportunity to learn.

Now, onto what most of you all are interested in reading about. You’re probably asking the why’s and how’s of my interest in Real Estate Investment. My dad presented me with a great starting book for Christmas, Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover. Now, I have been blessed enough to not have worry about bad debt so far in my life. But that being said, this book gave me incredible insight on how to handle money, and the basics of how to give, save, invest and have fun. Dave Ramsey gave me a fascination for Financial Freedom and a desire to learn how to be smart with my money. But that isn't what lead me to REI. And thus, comes the next foundational book in my life, Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Kiyosaki provided me with the passion to build wealth and escape the rat race, and is what brought me to REI. Again, this was a recommendation from my own Dad after asking him what else I should read while digging in more on how to create a life of financial freedom and building wealth. I guess you could say in the past few years, my dad has become a Rich Dad. While not necessarily fully involved in REI, as I have gotten older I have seen him learn increasingly more about investing, and a lot of his knowledge he has passed down to me as my passion for it has grown. He is one of the smartest people I know, and a trusted mentor in my life, but probably not specifically for REI, but I will turn to him quite a bit as I go out and pursue this on my own.

With this fascination in REI I am looking for a lot of things. The first being the knowledge to feed my passion. My goals in REI go beyond just establishing enough cash-flow to be financially free. That is just the first step in my opinion. Someday I want to be able to build wealth and have equity within my investments where I can give more generously than I ever could imagine, live well within my means, and pursue what I choose to. I know my goals are not very clearly defined because I am just starting out, but I plan to establish more specific and feasible goals as I learn more. I know that I do not want to work a W-2 job for the rest of my life and I do not want to have to wait and slowly grow a 401k and IRA from the time I'm 20 until I'm 65 so I can retire ok. I want to be able to pursue my passions while I am young and healthy, and build enough wealth to support a family with financial security. As for the sectors of REI I would like to get involved in, it varies a bit and I haven't learned enough to go into specifics. I know that my knowledge of construction management will lean towards flipping, or flip and hold, aka BRRRR. I am also interested in buy and hold, multifamily, and commercial real-estate. I know that this is a very broad range but I plan to narrow this focus.

I know this is going to take a lot of hard work on my part, but I am prepared to work as hard as I can and do whatever it takes to reach my goals. I am currently searching for knowledge, ideas, a network in Auburn, Fort Myers, and Atlanta, book recommendations, and any advice from all of you at Bigger Pockets who far surpass my knowledge in REI. I plan to engage with the Bigger Pockets community as much as possible, and asking a lot of questions while I save up some money and try and learn as much as possible. If you have any questions for me or want to get in contact please feel free. I am passionate about people and about learning as much as possible about REI and working hard towards my first deal. Sorry if that was a little long. Thanks for taking the time to read this and get to know me.