Why don't you start by wholesaling:Find a great deal, shop it around to other investors in your area (local REIA, Craigslist, calling signs, etc), and then assign your interest for a finders fee.Do this a few times and you'll have your own cash for your own deals...

-Don't be afraid to shop around for a Realtor...95% of them aren't going to have a clue about effectively helping you buy/sell investment property.

IMO, no, you don't need an LLC, but get insurance.If you choose to form an LLC, I don't care for internet form shops really.

I don't wholesale, but from what I have gathered generally wholesalers are working separately form realtors, they find their own deals, and shop them to buyers; no realtor needed.Andrew

My shop teacher flipped houses in the summer, he'd hire some of us kids to help in the summer, I'd say he did very well, fix and flip and buy and hold, I certainly don't have numbers as I had no clue then.First, I'd suggest you not begin by learning the big picture, as a teacher I know you understand that you really need a good overall knowledge in an activity before you specialize.You can really do anything you like, while the days during school might be busy, RE may only take a few minutes in an evening.

I think my friend is concerned because though it is in a nice area, great schools and some shopping, the immediate area is more single family with just a few duplexes (though there are no vacancies in any of them).

s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1328745898&sr=1-5)I have a regular keyed entry for the main door, this one is almost a no-brainer as I don't want ex-tenants to have access to the common area after they move out and with 6 units, there could be a lot of rekeying.I'm thinking of setting it up as follows:Main door-8 unique codes -1 for each unit -1 "master code" that only I have -1 "maintenance code" that I can give out to contractorsEach apartment-3 unique codes -1 code matches tenants front door code -1 code is my master (this is on all doors) -1 code is maintenance code (also on all doors)Without doing much shopping around, this would cost me about $700 up front, $100 per lock.Here's my list of pros/cons...I'd love for somebody to add to itCons-High up-front cost $100 per lockPros-No lockouts-No rekey fees-No hassle for me to get in or give code to contractor-NO KEYSWhat do you think?

You should shop around and see if you can nail down someone for delayed financing since you paid with cash.

I did rate shop, but really, none of the traditional lenders could match what I was trying to get.

I'm shopping for a HELOC on my personal home right now.