Newbie in Colorado Springs, CO.

[James L.]

Hello BP! Over the last few weeks I've slowly been thinking more and more about getting into real estate as a possible self-employment route after I get out of the Air Force. I've been in for 10 years and have about 10 more before I retire - so essentially I've got a pretty long timeline to work with here. I found the BP Blog through some google searches and this site definitely looks like a good place to get some advice and knowledge. My wife and I (and 2 young children) are generally pretty conservative and play it safe with our finances. That is part of the reason I've stayed in the military - that pension after 20 years of service is a pretty big incentive! We've got a good emergency fund already in place, have children's college savings going (at current savings rates and projected 7% interest each kiddo should have about $50k at age 18), and are putting 10% of our income into a Roth 401k. On top of all this, we have positive cashflow and I'm thinking about using the extra to get into real estate. We do have about $18k in student loans, but have consolidated and only pay 2% interest so we're not as concerned about getting that paid off before we pursue any of our other goals. We purchased a home at our last assignment in New Mexico. It was a good learning experience; we did several upgrades, I learned how to fix a lot of stuff myself; ultimately sold it in 2012 when I came to Colorado but probably for a slight loss overall. We have not bought a house in Colorado yet... after New Mexico we decided to not buy again until I'm out of the military. But after almost 2 years I'm warming up to the idea of buying here and renting it out when we get orders to another base. I could see myself settling in this area after my military service so it would be good to have a few rentals here even if I have to move away for a few years. That's probably about it for now. As I said I'm just starting the research phase for getting into real estate. Might be looking to make first deal in 2014 or '15; there's no rush. Goal is to own 5 properties by 2023, then possibly get into real estate full time. Thanks!