All Forum Posts by: Henry Lipscomb

A huge unexpected benefit for me as I became more experienced was my ability to think much more creatively when it comes to doing deals.

At first I thought I wanted to just flip a bunch of houses, buy a bunch of rentals, and then be financially free.

Before I knew it I was taking on new construction projects, hillside projects, and doing commercial deals.

You start to see opportunity everywhere as you become more experienced.

Welcome to the community! Congrats for having some direction at your age! Mentors are great, and can really help springboard your real estate investing journey. 

One of the biggest things I would emphasize you mentioned briefly; 'mutually beneficial relationship'. In my experience, individuals who might qualify as 'mentors' aren't necessarily looking for a mentee that they have to hold hands with and teach them literally everything about the asset class/job/etc. I would suggest diving head first into as many educational resources as you possibly can to get yourself to a point where you can effectively communicate about what it is you are hoping to learn more about. 

If you find an individual that you might be able to learn from and they own a company that you might be able to work for; you need a foundation of knowledge or level of competency in order to even get the job. If you are willing to work for free someone might be a bit more inclined, but they still want to make sure the value you can provide is great than the time and energy it might take to manage you.

If you want to approach a mentor/partner with a deal, I would make sure you can do a decent property analysis and feel comfortable walking through and and having a conversation about the numbers.

I'm a big believer that you get out of the universe what you put into it. If you want to get some value from it, add value to it first. 

Best of luck, and let me know if there is anything I can do to be a resource for you along your journey.

I'll share a bit of my story...

I took a part time job doing handyman/ trim carpentry work. The guy I worked for and with held several rental properties and was partners with other folks on a few more commercial properties. As we worked on the properties we would chat about all sorts of things real estate/ landlording/ finance. I worked for him for almost a year and gained so much knowledge and a better understanding of all the things real estate because I could ask questions to someone that was actively doing it! 

Now that I have my first duplex -  I can call my old boss/ friend and ask him construction questions, vendor/ tradesman referrals etc. All this to say the few thousand dollars I made laboring for him is nothing compared to having him as a resource. --- Like Rich Dad says - Don't work for money.

Go to NETWORK at the top of your screen and you can search for other investors and investment groups in your area. You can also check meetup.com or search facebook for real estate investment groups, clubs, or meetings in your area.

Even if you have to travel to another town an hour away, it would be worth it to mingle with other investors and build relationships. You may discover you have a talent you can share in exchange for their wisdom, or maybe you can even build a partnership.