Hey guys, I am in the educational/planning phase of my real estate investing career.

Tax valuations can be grossly inaccurate and are a bad way to appraise a property.

There will always be another deal down the road, but a bad financing situation will ruin you

I look forward to being an active member here on BP and meeting some awesome people, growing my education, and building the foundation of a successful, self-sustaining, difference making real estate career.

The nice thing about being an agent, though, is that you're able to start working on that career without having to leave another.

.- More favorable loan and insurance terms for an owner occupied property.There are also downsides such as:- Less privacy- Blurring of the landlord vs neighbor relationship- Can be harder to be the "bad guy" on things because you see your tenants often.

I also eventually knocked out credit cards, car payments and all 'bad' debt. 

This way, you are earning $ but, more importantly, not risking anything AND at the same time you are learning what's good, what’s bad (what the professional buyers like or don't like and why) as well as the entire due diligence/backend process so that after you do a few of these transactions, you will be MUCH better prepared to invest in notes for your own account.I've been working with new note investors for 20 + years, matching them up with the right funder depending upon the types of transactions they want to refer.

Is it a bad idea to get a private lender for a long term investment then?

And having something to offer to others isn't a bad idea either (whether it's a deal, connections, etc).Keep in mind, not everyone is going to be successful at your local REIA.