How to finance my first property

[Alex Staats]

Hello all, my name is Alex and I am a 24 year old college grad living in Maryland. Growing up, I have always enjoyed working with my father for his one man company that focuses on remodels and home reno. I have worked the last few years at a 9-5 job where I was able to save up a bit and keep my bills to a minimum. I have been following BP for about a year now and have learned so much ( i know i have a long ways to go). More recently, i have decided to leave my full time job to use my time to focus on and chase my dreams in real estate investing and house flipping. My father is getting into his first flip, which he already has financed and ready to go. My plan is to work with him and go through this first flip together to learn as much as we can and to grow. As much as I'd love to piggy back off of him, I would love to be able to make a name for myself and begin growing my own investing career. I am about a month away from finishing my real estate course and taking my exam.

My question would be, what is the best way to go about getting financing for a small townhouse/single family home without having my own home? I have a great credit score from my school loans and I have learned to cut down on my expenses so that i can save. I have spoken to a few loan officers for advice, but they say to get my own home first, using my first time home buyers opportunity and then in a few years to maybe invest when the time is right.

My issue is that I dont feel I am ready to commit to buying a home in this area & I am very fortunate to be living in a house with friends for a great price. I want to stay where im at and start my career in investing by buying a property to flip. Is hard money the only way I will be able to accomplish this? If i go about this by trying to get a conventional loan, will that be forfeiting my First time home buyers opportunity?

Any advice would be great. I will keep looking in the mean time !