I looked for cities that have a strong employment ratio, that have historically had a steady increase in home appreciation and has begun to make a steady come back after the plunge in 2007.Of all the of the top areas that met that criteria we chose  Austin TX and Sarasota FL, because we are familiar with those areas and have family connections there.I decided to pull the down out of my 457, take the tax hit, and invest in a rental home in Austin.

I'll keep you and the BP community posted on the updates and provide pictures upon completion of the progress throughout renovation. 

Use that income for your rehabbing and having steady income will make it MUCH easier to get loans.You might want to hold off on that second deal until you get your finding squared away.

I like the idea of opening up different LLCs for each deal where the investor would like equity while having a separate LLC for investors that just want to diversify their portfolio and want steady returns.

Since you are 18 you will need to start by getting credit (if you haven't started already ) start by getting a couple of credit cards and work your credit with that for a while, of course have a steady job and save as much money as possiable so you can have a nice down payment and extra money for your first house, stay in the same line of job until you are able to get a home loan. 

Keep us posted on your progress!

We were very pleased with the progress we saw since our last visit five years ago. 

The thought is that student housing is less cyclical and more steady as there's always kids going to college.  

Congratulations on you taking this bold step to progress to the REI stage.The good thing is that you have a lot of tools in your toolbox and they are in demand.Yes, there are lots of investors on this site that you can partner with and share handsome profits in your undertakings.  

We were throwing a lot of extra money at the duplex (30 yr note) with the lowest balance and making good progress.