All Forum Posts by: Alex Griffith

Alright, so I won't be investing for another three years.

I'm a freshman at a military college, home now because of the coronavirus. I want to invest in the Fayetteville area, because I grew up here for the majority of my life and it is a great market.

I won't invest until after college because

1. I don't have an income

2. I won't have the time to check up on the property being stuck in the prison where I take college classes.

So what should I do now to prepare for my first investment? I would love to graduate, hopefully get stationed at Ft. Bragg, and rent a place until I find a deal I like. 

I would most likely look for a triplex or quadplex and do the househacking strategy, and then scale up into commercial real estate from there. I've been doing a lot of research, and will continue to do so.

1. Credit score. What credit score should I try to achieve for good financing on a quadplex at 21-22 years old? What is the best way to improve my credit score as a college student?

2. Evaluations. How do I tell if a property is good or not? Experience? The primary point here is knowing what is wrong with the house and what needs to be improved. HGTV scared me a little with all the extra problems and going over budget.

3. What else?

I won't be buying any real estate anytime soon, I'll need to wait until I graduate from my military college. That doesn't mean I can't prepare.

I can learn about valuing properties, and the paperwork that goes into rental properties through personal research and connections I am gaining through my internship and such. However, my biggest worry is getting into an investment and not really knowing what I am looking at.

I used to work for a home remodeling company when I was in high school, but it didn't help me very much. When I walk into a house, I can't tell if something needs replaced unless it is obviously damaged. How do I learn what to do, and how to know the right steps to take with a particular house? Are there plumbing problems, electrical problems, do I need new flooring? How do I tell if it isn't obvious?