Newbie investor in need of advice: Rent or Lease Option??

[Michael Orlando]

Hello everyone!

My name is Michael and I'm a 24 year old graduate from The Ohio State University with a passion for entrepreneurship. I currently work as a project lead for a quickly growing startup in the Cleveland, Ohio area and recently became obsessed with REI. Working for a startup, I don't make a ton of money.. obviously.. Both my family and I have never had a lot of money, but I've always been motivated and a self-starter. I see real estate not only as an entrepreneurial challenge, but a key to financial freedom and being able to support my family. I was never someone interested in working in the corporate environment..

So, I've been saving the little money I can for a potential down payment on a house (I'm talking like 3-5%). I became interested in lease options after watching a lot of Kris Krohn's stuff and it seems like a pretty good strategy for a beginner with less capital. I've contemplated buying his course. I guess in his course they actually give you all of the paperwork you need to go out and start doing deals which is what really made me interested. However, I also have a wealthier family member who may be willing to get into some multi-family investing, she just doesn't have the time/will to learn about investing so is leaving that up to me. With my full time job (about 60 hrs a week) I don't have a ton of extra time to be a landlord. But, I also don't know how time consuming it will/can be and if it would be something I could balance with a full time job.

As a new investor which path do you think you'd pursue in terms of having a work/work balance (being able to keep my full time job and invest at the same time)? Why would you choose this route?

Any and all help/advice is appreciated!