Do any other newbies feel like there is too much info?

[Dan Jablow]

Greetings BP community! I stumbled on to the Bigger Pockets podcast a few weeks ago and let's just say I was instantly hooked. I joined the BP community yesterday and have been reading lots of posts since then - you all have so much great information and so many stories to share and I'm looking forward to immersing myself into this community while I figure out what my own 'plan' for real estate will be. 

Quick story about me - I was living in Arlington VA for about the last 6 years and my wife and I decided that it was finally time for us to buy our first home after being long-time renters. If anyone is familiar with NOVA you know how astronomically high home prices are we. We made the move south to Richmond VA and closed on our home at the end of June and love it here. A house that would have cost us $1MM + in NOVA cost us a fraction of that here. We live in a great little neighborhood and everything, including my son's school and some of the best breweries in the state, are all within 15 min of the house.

Listening to BP has got me thinking that investing in real estate would be a great way to build wealth and also start earning some passive income. I have a full time W2 job that I like but I don't want to work at forever (I'm already 45). Because I'm 45, I'm feeling motivated to get started soon and leaning towards the idea of BRRRRing single family homes. The question I have for the forum is this - did anyone ever feel a bit overwhelmed by all of the possible location choices for their first investment when they were getting started - like there are too many choices? I feel like in some ways that I could take a map of the US, tape it to a wall and throw a dart at it - wherever it lands could be where I start. That sentiment in no way is meant to be a dig on the community - I'm just wondering if any newbies or seasoned investors had any tips or would be interested in sharing any thoughts that helped them decide where to focus on when taking the plunge for the first time? After listening to David Greene talk about this, I really have no preference for local or long distance - the point that he made about how local might not actually be an advantage to an investor really resonated with me. 

Thanks in advance for the tips and feedback. I look forward to hearing from you and to making some connections here.

Much respect,

Dan