Diving into the world of Real Estate

[Gina Medrano]

Hello everyone. I am brand new to the real estate game. Without boring you all too much, my employment history consists of many different things. I started out working in child care (teacher assistant, nanny, tutoring, camp, after school). For a brief moment I held a NY real estate license, which I unfortunately did not take great advantage of. Right before the pandemic hit I had just recently graduated from culinary school, thinking I’d chase one of my passions. I worked in the restaurant industry for a little over a year when we went into lockdown.

A friend of mine who had construction on an investment property come to a stand still, offered me work on the site just to keep things moving forward with little risk of being in contact with a lot of workers due to Covid. I didn’t know much but I threw myself into it and tried to learn as much as I could. Quickly. Next thing you know, I’m speckling, putting up sheet rock, caulking, painting, etc. It was very thrilling. What a satisfying feeling to see something go from drab to fab using your own blood, sweat, and tears (yes, I experienced all three).

As I continued to work and build my skills, I knew that real estate, specifically rehabbing and renting, was something I really wanted to pursue. I began to ask my bosses a ton of questions about how they invest, what they look for, why that area, tricks for keeping rehab costs down and where I can learn more. One of the partners suggested the BRRRR book and I was hooked.

I’m still working at the site, which is a 7 unit building, Monday through Friday. However, I feel I am missing out on a lot of other experiences and knowledge I could be getting outside the physical part of the process. I’m looking to gain more experience looking at properties, assessing value, and how to start investing.

It would be great if anyone knew about part-time work I could do, or if someone is willing to chat about investing, or even mentoring. I’m located in NJ, Bergen County.

Can’t wait to meet you guys and am excited to be part of this community! Have a great day everyone!