New Jersey Real Estate Newbie

[Ian Livaich]

Hi everybody,

I decided to make the big first step and engage on BiggerPockets.  My name is Ian Livaich.  I am 25 years old, a graduate of Rutgers University in New Brunswick (Go Knights!), and am a third-year law student at Villanova School of Law.  After graduating, I will be joining a law firm in Philadelphia as a real estate associate, advising large commercial clients for the most part.  

While I have always been interested in real estate and admired real estate investors from afar, I felt intimidated by the all of the concepts and jargon.  I did not give it a chance because I did not know where to begin.  My good friend, who has flipped four properties, noticed that I was interested in his projects and suggested that I check out BiggerPockets.  I listened to my first podcast two weeks ago and I have been hooked since.  I have been listening to the podcasts and webinars, reading blog posts, and checking out the forums.  I have a bunch of real estate books on the way (all suggested on the BP podcasts) that I can't wait to sink my teeth into.  I will be educating myself as much as possible over the next year before I start working so I can hit the ground running when I have acquired enough knowledge and some capital.  

Because I will have a full-time job in a year, I plan on utilizing the buy & hold strategy on SFRs and multifamily properties.  I think these strategies provide me with great opportunities to apply what I am learning on BiggerPockets, earn passive income, and evaluate my future strategies.  I would also like to flip a property or two in the short-term, perhaps with my good friend who I mentioned earlier.  

For now, I am trying to write down as much as I can from the podcasts - interesting concepts, principles, formulas, questions, and ideas that I want to explore further.  I am maintaining a guide of my own (inspired by the Ultimate Beginner's Guide) to keep all the information organized and accessible.  There is a steep learning curve, but I am already starting to feel comfortable with all of the ideas and lingo that once intimidated me.  Rather than have my questions go unanswered, I will be posting on the blogs this weekend and engaging with the BP community.  Also, I am going to my first meeting at my local real estate club next week.

I would appreciate anyone's input and would welcome the opportunity to connect with you.

Thanks for reading,

Ian Livaich