I’ve been doing lots of reading on this board but haven’t been an active member. I decided it is time to meet other people with the same interests.
A bit about me:
I’m 23. I recently graduated from college with a degree in emergency medicine. I recently got married (I love being married) and moved to Brooklyn, because that is where my wife is from. I am in the process of applying to medical school (this is what I’ve wanted to do forever), but have always been interested in real estate investing. Up until recently, I figured I would invest after I finish medical school. But why wait? So now I am trying to learn, learn learn, do and learn some more! The biggest problem I have when it comes to investing is being in NY/NJ area. I really want to learn an area but RE is high here.
With regards to money/credit, my credit score is around 680. I have some CC debt. But I also have appx $10000 in credit card check money (at 4% life of loan). I currently rent but would love to buy maybe a duplex or more that I could live in and rent out to began the process.
At this point, I’m interested in rehabing/renting, though I may find I like one over the other after actually getting my feet wet.
Welcome to REI Club! It’s the greatest FREE asset you could ever want to find…there are a ton of highly motivated, highly-skilled folks here to help you in your endeavors.
Congrats on graduating from college nad your recent marriage…good luck with the Med School application process…
Thanks for the response and nice to meet you Keith.
Any suggestions as to how to learn an area thats not near where I live (say three hours away)? I’m looking in PA area but all I can do at this point is look via internet (which doesnt really work). Ive also been making some phone calls to area realtors.
Is three hours considered far when it comes to a rental? I am thinking of moving there but we shall see where that takes me.
Personally (for me – IMO, etc., etc), I only invest in the parish that I live in. This is a personal choice based on my investing style and the fact that my partner in everything (my wife) is new to REI and we’ve decided to err on the side of caution. We feel (at least for now) that proximity to our properties is a very much a plus. Our most distant property is about 20 minutes through ‘traffic’ (traffic is a joke here!)…
Without a some management help, 3 hours will be a struggle, I think.
Now, we have folks here that are really ‘hands-off’ and own property around the country and they are comfortable with that…we just aren’t.
Herschel, If you are going to medical school, GO TO MEDICAL SCHOOL. The main reason people don’t finish their degrees is that they start living their lives before they graduate. Don’t do that. Don’t buy a house, don’t get married (opps too late), don’t have kids, go to school. People say they didn’t finish their education because they ran out of money, no they didn’t, a normal part of going to school is getting financial aid. They just decide they wanted to live there lives more than they wanted to go to school.
You need to stay in the student lifestyle until you graduate or you won’t graduate. The reason I say don’t get married is that she will get pregnant and that will stop your schooling, she will want a nice place to live (sounds like it is already happening) and you should be spending all your spare time studying and not building a marriage. That is why so many people that get married in med school divorce, when he married her, she was a student’s wife. He was a student with a student’s wife. After he graduates he is a doctor with a student’s wife not a doctor’s wife.
Now let’s talk about real estate. Real estate is a business. It can take a lot of your money from time to time, you should not have to choose to pay for school or renovate a building. You have your whole live to get rich in real estate you only have a few years (these next few years) to become a doctor.
No Jeff it is not resentment, just experience. I have been married for 23 years, I waited until I finished my “formal” education before I got married, a lot of my friends didn’t and that is what I observed.
Its been a few days. Got a couple of good responses. Let me talk a bit more about myself and my background.
After high school I worked full time for a year. After that went back to college while working 24 hours a week in EMS. I paid my way through college being that I am one of 11 kids. I got married because that is what is important to me ( I am an Orthodox Jew). I am happy that I got married and I dont think that has changed my outlooks on schooling. Money is an issue but an issue that I can handle. Like Bluemoon said, most student run out of money, so have I. But I’ll keep taking more loans out.
I live in Brooklyn, but it happens to be cheaper there then in NJ where I was before. Now, I want to move into real estate so that when I finish medical school I have some equity that, hopefully, will have paid for itself (and lots of work on my part, while I’m in medical school). I see it as similar to working a 9-5 job while investing in real estate.
So now that I’m done rambing I’ll see what all of you more educated ppl think. Btw I love these forums because there are so many different brains thinking and giving advise!
Happy Holidays,
Herschel
PS I am at work now working on REI:) I love getting paid to sit around
I have read the posts here and think that there is some very good advice thus far, If you are accepted to med school, you will have no time to personally be an active investor. Trust me. The first couple of years in Med school, you will spend with your nose in a book( not in a house). If you try to divide your time between school and investing, both will suffer.
With that said… You could look for a partner that will handle the investing and rehabs for you. You could use your good credit score and perhaps a few thousand cash to aquire a few props. Your partner will over see the renovation(if needed) and either resell or rent.
This way you can be involved in investing while not losing focus on your studies.
Hi Herschel,
It sounds like you are very ambitious and can do 10 things at once…that is a very good thing.
I was also a high energy person and involved in many projects when I was young.
I still am!!
I always knew that I would be successful even though I came from a poor family. It takes drive and organization.
My ex was a Jewish doctor from Brooklyn who also paid his own way and had even bigger plans than me. Even though we are now divorced, I still credit him with teaching me about the importance of goal setting and focus.
Write your goals down (both personal and business) once a year with your lovely wife and make a plan for 6 months, 1 year and 5 years.
We did this from the time we married and wrote things down like:
How much we would save a year, how many patients we would see a month, when we would have a baby, when we would retire and build a house out of the country (we picked Queenstown, NZ)…he was in his late 30’s when he retired (but went back to work after he got bored), we wrote down how many countries we would visit (it was over 40).
We knew we could do it because we never spent more than we made…instead we saved…we didn’t need to impress anybody. We worked long hours but rewarded ourselves with exotic vacations 3-4 times a year…You must have balance.
By following our goal list, we were able to meet every single one of our dreams. Even though we worked like dogs, we always made the time to spend precious moments with our family. We shared the wealth and took them all over the world…it brought such joy to us and my dear Mom cherished those memories…she passed away last month in my arms at home surrounded by her loved ones and I take comfort in knowing that she enjoyed life before Alzheimer’s took her. Give time to your loved ones…that is all that counts in life…it’s not about the money…by having this philosophy, you will always feel good and you will succeed.
Never let anyone say that you can’t do something, because you can. If it’s for the right reason. Constantly educate yourself on money and investments and sleep on it before you ever sign anything…it will be there tomorrow and if not, another deal will come up. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
Save as much as you can while you are still young and that way you won’t have to live under the gun in case there is ever an emergency. Invest in your first home and pay it off as soon as you can. Build up your credit score and have enough back up cash for 6 months at all times before you take on any risks.
I know way too many people who overextended themselves and they lost everything.
I personally don’t recommend that you take on anymore debt right now. Focus on becoming a doctor to earn a good living and open up an IRA.
Try to be patient. You will be glad that you did.
I’ll see what all of you more educated ppl think. Btw I love these forums because there are so many different brains thinking and giving advise!