Starting out as a Senior in College

[Christian Tanas]

Hey everyone!

I am a senior mechanical engineering student in the North Jersey/New York City area and am a complete newbie in the real estate investing world. I began learning about personal finance and investing at the beginning of this past summer, and I've come to bigger pockets to learn more.

Although I do not yet have a set strategy or plan I'd like to pursue, I am open and excited to learn about different paths to success. I love the idea of real estate investing because of the math and creativity that goes into it. I believe that it is the best way for me to achieve financial independence.

A few questions I have for anyone reading my post:

1.) What did you do to educate yourself when you first started? (Books, videos, conferences, etc.)

2.) What are some of the things I can do outside of education to get myself started?

3.) Can any of you recommend a "Real Estate Math Book"? I just finished reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad and have begun reading the Back to Basics: Real Estate Investing by Eric Tyson and Robert S. Griswold. I would like to be able to read something that explains how the numbers work for things like actual real estate deals, taxes, buying and holding, and/or anything else I am probably missing.

Thank you all for reading and I hope to see you around on the forums!

[Bryan Noth]

@Christian Tanas welcome to BiggerPockets!

As for self-education that well runs deep. The BiggerPockets forums, podcasts and books all have great information. In addition to educating yourself on REI, consider educating on personal finance as well. Setting yourself up to take action for investing is an equally powerful move to make during preparation. As for the math of REI, that tends to be very market specific and is why finding a good book with details is challenging.