Advice for someone investing in Real Estate in their early 20's?

[Account Closed]

Hello everyone! I am fairly new to BP and Real Estate.

I live in Omaha Nebraska. I am 22 years old, recently graduated from UNO where I studied Business Admin with a concentration in Real Estate. I have been working as a banker since graduating and in the process of getting my Real Estate license! In addition to becoming an agent I would like to start investing. I plan on buying a home soon that I am able to house hack.

I would like to ask for any advice you would give someone starting out in Real Estate in their early 20’s! What would you have done or not have done when you first started investing? What have been your most successful strategies?

Thanks,

Madison Calvillo

[Bonnie Low]

Hi, Madison. Congratulations to you for already being way ahead of the curve! Just the fact that you're aware of the power of real estate and beginning to take action puts you way ahead of most people. Here are the things I would do had I started in my 20's and knew what I know now:

1) Find a place to house hack. You have to live somewhere so you might as well find someone to help pay your mortgage. It sounds like you have a good job, so you should be able to qualify for a loan. The sooner you buy your first property, the sooner you start building equity, experience and most importantly, confidence.

2) Ask yourself what you're willing to sacrifice. Can you live for a while without a nice car and car payment? Are you willing to do a rent-by-the-room scenario and take the least desirable room for yourself to boost your cash flow? Can you find cheap entertainment like reading books from the library, taking hikes, journaling, bike riding instead of trips, expensive restaurants and events (presuming we ever get back to normal after COVID)? 

3) If you're going to have W2 income, get involved in something that is related to real estate investing. Whether that's banking, real estate, lending, property management, contracting, etc. There's so much to learn and the closer you are to it, the more support you have from mentors. It even makes sense to do a little bit of each early in your career - don't be afraid to move around and get as much exposure as you can that will help you with your investing.

4) Do you want to be in your current market or is there somewhere else you'd like to invest in? If so, are you in a position to relocate? When you have a mortgage, family and career it's harder to do than when you're younger, single and just starting out in your career.

5) Be really honest with yourself about how much you're willing to put away each month to create your investment funds. Ideally, have some of your paycheck deposited into an account you don't access until you're ready to invest with it. Don't link it to your personal banking - it's just far too tempting unless you're really, really disciplined!

And lastly, find mentors, but also TRUST YOURSELF. Not everyone has great advice. Or even good advice. Some people can't help themselves from sharing their negativity. Learn from their mistakes, but don't let it get you down. You have to become a discerning consumer of information because there's a lot of bad information out there. I'm sure you'll do well!