All Forum Posts by: Joseph Levesque

@Steven Wilson

Smart. That gives you a better chance of having good tenants because it is people you already know and trust, especially the people in college ministry. That’s also a good idea to lease by the year. The college I’m going to is near some amusement parks, so I was thinking airb&b could have potential over the summer, but leasing a full year is probably safer. You’re giving me lots of ideas :)

@Steven Wilson

How did you find college students to rent the extra rooms in your house? I feel like that will be a big challenge, but maybe not. Also, what did you do over the summer? Air b&b? Thanks for all of the information and help!

@Blaine Alger

Thanks for the response Blaine!

Yea, that’s going to be a problem for me because I stopped working due to COVID. I would need one of my parents to co-sign, but I wouldn’t do that until I had stable income and know I’m not a risk. Plus I am only buying the deal if house hacking income would cover all expenses. I’ve found a few where the numbers look good, but I know actually doing it will be a whole new ball game.

@Steven Wilson

That's a cool idea, you basically combined BRRRR with house hacking and it seems to have worked. Giving cheap rent in exchange for no complaints is a great idea, and definitely something I should consider. Also it's good to hear someone who successfully managed real estate, a job, college, and social life. Very inspiring, thank you!

@Reece Iovine

Yep, starting early is my main goal. I’m not too worried about property management since I’d be living in the house myself, but before I buy I’d also make sure the deal works as a regular rental as well. Thanks for the advice!

@Steven Wilson that’s almost exactly what I want to do, but it will most likely be single family and renting out the rooms. Did you have any troubles along the way? Thanks for the input and Go Bucks!

I am currently a Senior in high school, and am considering various ways that I can start investing in real estate while I’m in college.

One idea I’ve had and am interested in is buying a house near campus, living in one room, and renting out the other rooms to other college students for a little less than traditional student housing. (house hacking). I’ve run the numbers on multiple houses, and it looks like this could work if I can get all the rooms rented out.

If anyone has any experience renting by the room to college students, I would greatly appreciate your input.

Do you think this would be a good idea for me in college? Would this work realistically? What are some potential problems I may face? Thanks!

Hello, I'm 17 and want to get into real estate as soon as I can, but before I do, I want to make sure I know what I'm doing. I feel like having the ability to accurately estimate the value and ARV of a home is one of those pro skills that can be very beneficial and profitable when done correctly. What can I do now to start gaining this skill? Thanks for the tips!

@Sannibel Carter

Hi Sannibel, I am in a similar position as you. I’m 17 and am a little too young to start investing in real estate, but want to learn as much as I can for now until I can start! Here are some of the things I have been doing myself that maybe you could try as well:

Read Books: Over the past year or so I’ve read 3 books: Think and Grow Rich, Rich Dad Poor Dad, and How to Win Friends and Influence People. I would recommend all 3 as they all cover different aspects of success in general, not specific to real estate, which I think will serve as a good base moving forwards.

Analyzing Properties in my Area: I do this to try and get a good sense of my local market, as well as getting good practice on analyzing the numbers for rental properties. I go on Zillow and basically just browse and look around the map searching for properties that look promising, then use the 4 square method of analyzing rental properties to practice running the numbers. You can find a tutorial of the 4 square method on the BP YouTube page. This also helps me gain a better understanding of possible investment ideas for myself, as I get closer to college where I’d like to house hack.

BP Podcast: I enjoy listening to the podcast to get a sense of what successful and experienced investors are doing, and how they were able to build up to where they are. I listen on the way to school and while I run or whenever else I feel like listening. The only thing is that you have to remember that no one person can do everything. I’ve noticed that most of the people on the podcast start with something specific and stick to it. Listening to the podcast is a good way to get ideas and gain a more well rounded understanding of real estate investing, rather than doing everything you hear in your own real estate strategy.

Surrounding myself with entrepreneurial media: This is another thing I’ve done that isn’t specific to real estate, but I think helps me get into a success mindset. Following entrepreneurial and real estate Instagram accounts, watching real estate YouTube videos (Graham Stephen, Meet Kevin, Chandler Smith, BiggerPockets, etc.), reading the news, and staying up to date with the economy are all things I do so that I get little reminders throughout the day of my goals. One thing we can do now as teens is build up the success mindset and surrounding yourself with media that reflects that is beneficial imo.

Learn how to fix Houses: I’ll admit I’m kind of luck on this one. My dad is a handyman and teaches me a lot about the ins and outs of how a house works, and how to fix things, but all this information is also free on YouTube. Often I just watch random videos on renovating bathrooms, patching drywall, painting cabinets, flooring, etc., just to get a good understanding of some of the work that needs to be done with real estate. And when I am able to buy a property, I will at least have some background knowledge on some ways that I will be able to increase its value.

These are just some of the things that I am doing as a teenager, so maybe you might be able to take some things and try them yourself. If you have questions you can send me a message and I’d be happy to further explain some of the things that I’m doing, so long as you’re willing to let me pick your brain as well.. (I haven’t tried webinars yet but I’m curious). All in all, I hope this helped, and thanks for the post, I have gained a lot from some of these responses!

@Joe Splitrock yes you’re right, the epoxy videos make it look so much cheaper but you can’t forget about the cost of time. Even more time if you prep properly like you said. Thanks for replying!