In the beginning...

I'm pretty new to the real estate investment field. It has always been something I wanted to learn and something my family said I should do.  I can be a slow learner when it comes to whats best for me, and it took me this long to get the message.  Today I am completely obsessed and couldn't imagine doing anything else.

I spend a lot of time on BP reading, and listening to the podcast.  I wanted to do it all myself and thought I was ready to take over the world.  I set up websites and bought business cards and thought... "I'm on my way"!  I was listening to a "guru" and marketing to foreclosures.  I  had no money and no experience but was convinced I was going to buy a house.  Honestly, I am super grateful I did sign up for that "guru" course because I learned a lot and it sparked my passion.  However, today I realize just how out of touch with reality I was.

I was spending a few hundred dollars a month mailing to distressed home owners waiting for a deal to fall in my lap.  I know that this can work for some people but I live in New Jersey.  To say competition is stiff is an understatement.  Every seller I go see gets multiple letters all the time and most sellers know their stuff.  The angry calls and hard knocks I got were priceless.

At some point I realized I was spinning my wheels and there is A LOT more to this than I was aware of.  It was time to rethink my strategy.  BP to the rescue again.  Through the BP marketplace I got in touch with local people actually doing this successfully in my area.  One of them was willing to bring me on as their acquisitions manager and my "real" investment education began! 

Since finding the right team everything has exploded and I realized just how far off I was.  Seriously it would have taken me over a year to learn what I learned in a few weeks working with the right people.  Like they say "you don't know what you don't know".  I didn't know what it takes to be successful in this business.  I didn't know all of the different pieces and what it takes, not only to buy a house but then sell it again for a profit. 

That is not to say I have not made a ton of mistakes, because I make mistakes constantly.  Having a supportive team there to help keep things moving forward is absolutely amazing.  Being held accountable and getting feed back instead of just digging myself deeper has changed everything. I recommend anyone new in this business team up with people who can show you the ropes.

I still have so many questions.  I'm looking to learn everything I can about seller finance, marketing properties we have under contract, and building a great buyers list. Any feed back or comments would be greatly appreciated. I am so happy to have found BP and even more so for the awesome people on it.  I look forward to learning more everyday and turning my dreams into reality!