Cleatus, we got off track and didn’t really answer your questions.
Your credit will be your most valuable asset as a real estate investor.
I do not know how credit works in Canada. If you were in the USA, I would advise you to get a department store credit card. Something very conservative, like a Sears card. Make a small purchase on the card (a 1-2 pairs of blue jeans sort of small purchase). Pay that bill immediately, and then cut the card up and forget you have the account.
That Sears account will stay on your credit report for deacades with no late payments. The length of your credit accounts is important. The older the account, the better it improves your credit score
Never ever buy anything you don’t know where the money is coming from to pay for it, and never pay your bills late, and you will end up with a credit score that will allow you to borrow as much as you want, whenever you want it.
Unless you want to hang around the edges of real estate like a jackel, nibbling at what others throw away, a source of money is very important.
And no. 18 is not too young to start. I bought my first property at the age of 18. It was a place for me to live. A personal home for yourself can be a good investment if you pick the right property.
I also know people who started at 18 with buying and selling, flipping, owning rentals, and other real estate activities.
I strongly recommend college. Get into college and wring every drop of information out of it (In canada, University?)
One thing that has worked well for other beginners is to buy a duplex next to the college and rent out the other half and take a roommate for your half. That will pay for your mortgage, teach you how to be a landlord amd manage tenants, and when you get out of college, you sell and get a chunk of cash to buy something else, or you keep it as a rental (if you will stay in the area)