Hi from Raleigh/Durham area

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Hi, I'm an aspiring real estate investor that lives in Cary, NC. I have only fairly recently started looking into this. I lost my job on 9/11/06, and that was my big wakeup call. While I was able to find a new job fairly quickly thank goodness, my bubble was burst. Until then, like many people, I just assumed there would always be a paycheck, and that there would always be time to plan for my future. I did not have any savings or investments. Even though I made (and still make) good money in my profession (information technologies), I never had *any* extra money, always blowing it on hobbies, car payments, etc. I'm in my mid 30s- yeah, I wish I would've come to my senses when I was much younger, but I don't think it's too late.

I have been reading everything I can get my hands on dealing with personal finances and investing, and am glad to have found this forum. I have a long way to go before I'm in any position to do any investing, but that will give me time to learn as much as I can, so I'm not discouraged. While I don't have any cash right now, I have worked hard to keep my credit very good, so hopefully that will play into my favor. Anyway, enough rambling, thanks for such a great forum.