All Forum Posts by: Kenneth Johnson

@Julia Lyrberg Thank you for the encouragement, I know it’s not the greatest score but I currently have around a 740 so I don’t think I need to be super concerned on that end but yes I’ll definitely be trying to tidy up my finances better.

@Nathan Gesner Wow you were very throrough and it is greatly appreciated. I’ll definitely read through this multiple times and see about some of the recommendations you made. Thanks!

@Wale Lawal I’m definitely trying to start working on most if not all of those things you mentioned and I’ll keep trying my best. Thank you for the advice and encouragement!

@Evan Polaski Thank you for the reality check but I do understand I'm nowhere near ready to actually jump into the market. My current job is in construction but not home construction commercial construction, but it still doesn't really give me the know how to understand home renovation and things of the like. (I test concrete poured at job sites to ensure it meets required specifications) And as I said in my response to Caleb that job is pretty time intensive so I don't really see working a second or third job as a possibility if I still want to have time to educate myself and stay rested. Though I will try to look into side hustles that might help my earnings. Also, I don't attend college and I do live at home, and as I also said in my reply to Caleb I have already considered and will be trying to implement more frugal spending habits to save up for the down payment I know I need. And my current car unfortunately isn't a big help either, because I kinda let myself get scammed as a dumb 18 year old. I got a 2013 Toyota Corolla for $17k, so unfortunately, even if I trade it in I still have about $6-9k in negative equity on the car that I'll still owe. My situation isn't great but I'm trying my best to dig myself out of this hole and I think REI might be the answer I'm looking for which is why I'm trying to go all in on it while I'm young! But thank you for the advice I'll take it into consideration and implement it as best I can. Feel free to add on anything else you may have with the extra context I just provided if you wish.

@Caleb Brown Thank you for commenting and yeah I was definitely planning on trying to be more conservative with my spending as part of getting my finances back on track as I mentioned. My current job is $18.5/hr and pretty time intensive as my hours vary day to day so I could be working during the day or night and I have to intentionally find time to stay as rested as I can and also to do the things I want to do since I don’t have a set work schedule. I’ll try my best to juggle continuing to learn about RE and house hacking as well as potential side hustles to increase my earnings.

Thank you very much for the advice and encouragement!

Hello all. I'm a 20 year old male in the Austin/Manor TX area, and I really want to start investing in real estate. I've known about real estate for a little bit now but I barely started learning up on it a few days ago. However, from the stories I've heard it so far, sounds like it can lead me to the life I want for my future if I play my cards right. My problem right now is: I don't really have any cards to play. I don't work a high paying job, I have no savings due to some financial irresponsibility on my part and I'm barely starting to get my finances back on track, and seeing as how I barely started educating myself by listening to podcasts about REI, I don't really have the skills or knowledge necessary to pull anything off quite yet. I first thought about starting with flipping, but from what I've heard I think I've changed course to maybe trying to house hack with a multi-family home? I really wish I could meet someone that could mentor me through this and help me learn the ropes without having to take all these big risks alone, but for now I'd settle for any advice you guys have that could help me out. Podcast, videos, or even book recommendations or some general advice on steps to take to get started. I really want to jump on something within the next year or two because I know the longer I wait the less my portfolio can grow and the longer it will take to reach that financial freedom and being able to take control of my time to be able to do the things I really want to do. And I know its possible for someone with no capital like me, I'm just not sure how. But anyway, thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this! (And thank you in advance to those that send advice!)