this is what i have planned. i’m almost 21, i just went into contract and i’m building a house near by for myself, i rented an apartment the first year i moved out. how i’m ready to pay toward something of my own. shortly after closing i would like to start buying 2 houses per year to rent, i want to wait 3-5 years on each house before selling it. i currently have a full time job, my wife runs most of our home business (ebay sales) which will allow us to easily save for closing costs and down payments. i have the best credit you can have for my age, my mortgage broker said if i keep it good, i’ll have no problems getting mortgages for investments and etc.
appreciation in central fl where i’ll be buying is around 7-10% right now. i would rent them for maybe 150-200 cash flow, that’s not including repairs and stuff, i plan to build homes or buy newer homes, so repairs shouldn’t be too bad. any advice, books, anything, just give me some imput, i’d appreciate it! 
I think you have your major immediate goals outlined, but now you need to figure out the steps needed to implement the goals. How are you going to be able to come up with the downpayments (if any) for 2 houses per year. How are you going to make sure that they cash flow $150 to $200 per month? What are the details that will make this happen. What are the pitfalls that you may run into and how are you going to handle them? My point here is to not get caught up looking at the horizon and miss the tree root in your path that will catch your foot and cause you to bust your head. You have to look at the horizon, but you will spend more time looking at the trail in front of you.
Wilson
my online business leaves me with about 5k in desposable income each month, that’s after mortgage, untils, 2 cars, ins, food, etc. i plan on letting it stack up and saving it. i have a local mort. broker that said she can set me up with 100% financing most likely through 80/20 loans as long as my credit stays where it’s at, or improves, so all i need is really deposits if building, and closing costs, and a fund for repairs and people that have to be evicted. as far as the positive cash flow, it would be nice, but isn’t neccesary really, i mainly just want to do this to sell 2 houses a year eventually. does anyone recommend any books i can get to further my knowledge of this subject?
Chris,
I am a noobie REI, however I know that cash flow is VERY important. True Florida’s real estate appreciation is great, but why PAY 3-5 years for a pay off?
Protect that extra income from EBay by telling me what you do… er I mean… By buying RIGHT and making the property cash flow every month!
Also the amounts needed for repairs have nothing to do with the age of the home, necessarily. Repairs you may incur are things that are caused by the tenants, stopped up toilets, broken windows, etc. Then when the tenant moves out you get to see all the repairs needed that they never called you about. :o
Sounds like you are doing well. I have an offer to move to Florida soon, but I don’t think I could afford some of those homes out there for investing purposes.