And the reason I wanted to use a realtor was to help guide me through my first deal but from the looks of it I will be getting a good real estate attorney instead.

The strategy is best described in Joel Greenblatt's fantastic book, and an outstanding practical guide and tool for executing it can be found over at the Magic Diligence website.You can do either (or both) of those using the "leverage" of Options, allowing for substantial upside potential compared to standard stock purchases, with dramatically reduced downside (if you want a no-hype education on Options, Erik Kobayashi-Solomon's book is great).Those with the patience and inclination can indeed use Option trading to make money in any market condition (Wikipedia founder Jimbo Wales, Amazon's Jeff Bezos, and "Black Swan" author Nassim Taleb all spent time -- and made lots and lots of money -- as options traders in their careers).For even more leverage, you could of course do any of the above (and much more) on margin (meaning your brokerage lends you money to do the investment), though that's not something I would ever do personally.Also, if you focus on holding stocks (or options) for at least a year, you benefit from favorable tax treatment of the profits.

Make sure to read the Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing

I am an 18 year old aspiring entreprenuer looking for mentors to guide me in real estate investing.

They should be able to guide you through.  

Here are some recommendations for you:Find and connect with other BP members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meetSet up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alertsRead Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investingCheck out BP Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/If you wish to tag someone in the conversation on the forum, type @ followed by their name and then select the name of that person which should appear below the comments box.

Make sure to read the Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing

Here are some recommendations for you:Find and connect with other BP members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meetSet up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alertsRead Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investingCheck out BP Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/Wishing you the best!

Here are some recommendations for you:Find and connect with other BP members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meetSet up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alertsRead Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investingCheck out BP Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/If you wish to tag someone in the conversation on the forum, type @ followed by their name and then select the name of that person which should appear below the comments box.

Make sure to read the Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing