Seriously Want to Get into REI but No Resources

General Real Estate Investing
1

I have always been interesting in REI but I have never been able to get started. I have attened Robert Allen seminars. They sound great and it seems like you will learn something but they want 5grand whick I dont have. I have also purchased Carlton Sheets and several real estate books which just dont make a lot of sense to me on how I can get started in my situation.

My big issue is - I dont have good credit and I dont have money to put down. I also dont have any rich family memebers or friends that will let me borrow the money to get started.

I see alot of sites that talk of creative financing and purchasing homes with out using your own money. Then I read further to learn that I would put the money on high balance credit cards that I dont have.

For someone like me…Is there any hope in getting started and being successful in the REI feild. I am very serious and very very interested.

Any suggestions.

:-\

2

Howdy TexinOh:

I bought my first property in Austin with zero down and no credit check. All I had to do was agree to paint the place and some minor repair. It costs less than $500 not including my labor. I rented it for $500 and my payment was $350 PITI and I was in the real estate business. Ba-da-bing ba-da-boom. You can do it too. Birddog for others or wholesale but get started. If I can buy a 30,000 S F commercial building with little down today and my horrible credit I know you can do something to get started. Stop whining and get out there and find a deal and get it bought or sold or something. Get busy doing things that people that are in the real estate business do and you will be in the business, talk to buyers and sellers and attorneys and agents and title companies about deals and you will do deals.

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Ted Stokey:
I’ve notice you live in Austin, Tx. Send me an email about the Austin area because I’m thinking about relocating there within the next one and a half to two years. I have heard nothing but great things about your city.
Dave Mintzer in Vegas
email: davestar1@earthlink.net

4

How many times must this same question be asked and answered???

Get the FREE Bird Dog E-book here at this site, read it, and implement. Pay your bills, rebuild your credit for a couple of years while you are saving some capital from your bird dogging.

The biggest thing: DO SOMETHING!!!

Keith

5

Umm… I suppose as long as we newbies keep finding this website and don’t think to use a “search” option? If questions from newbies bug you, then don’t read them. And if you must respond, please don’t act annoyed, unless of course, your whole point is to make newbies feel stupid, or to turn them off to this site.

I downloaded Barry’s free e-book about bird dogging (he calls it “Jobbing”), and while it was encouraging and motivating, it lacked the nuts and bolts that would tell me the HOW of it (yes, I’m still a newb). It is a good read, but doesn’t get into details. It seemed to be a long ad for his bigger $97 e-book, which I do want to order.

One of my very favorite books is “Weekend Millionaire’s Secrets to Investing in Real Estate”. Its a nuts-and-bolts guide to slowly building wealth by acquiring rental properties, if that is the direction you are interested in going.

Another person whose articles i like is Steve Cook and his info relative to rehabbing “ugly” houses. Here are his products right here on REICLUB.com: http://www.reiclub.com/authors/Steve%20Cook.html He also has his own website, flippinghouses.com, where he frequently posts and answers questions (and yes, he is very kind to newbies - not at all sarcastic or annoyed). I just ordered his Wholesaling course b/c I was told that it is very helpful to beginners who are interested in bird dogging. If you check out his story, he was in a similar position as most of us newbies… he started REI right after a divorce, he was broke and in debt… Incidentally, this was the way a CPA friend of mine started in REI (after a divorce, not a pot to pee in, but didn’t want to be a renter anymore, so he bought a cheap house. When he bought another house, he kept the cheap one and rented it out, now both he and his wife have investment properties galore.)

But I agree that you need to get your financial house in order before you start acquiring properties. Learn your FICO scores at myfico.com, and then work to improve them (higher scores mean lower interest mortgages for traditional lenders). Also, join a local REI club and meet people.

Right now I’m digging myself out of 15 years of credit card debt, and I want to have at the very least a 3-month emergency cash reserve (6 months is better) before I buy my first rental property. I plan to pay down my bills and save up money by bird dogging.

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<<Umm… I suppose as long as we newbies keep finding this website and don’t think to use a “search” option? If questions from newbies bug you, then don’t read them. And if you must respond, please don’t act annoyed, unless of course, your whole point is to make newbies feel stupid, or to turn them off to this site. >>

Nichole,

Exactly right, my WHOLE point in life is to make Noobies feel stupid…please go back and read my posts…I think that you’ll find that this is not the case, in fact, it is just the opposite.

I have made literally hundreds of posts and they are for the most part constructive and helpful. I get lots of thanks both on-line and off-…I always help Noobies when I can. However, not a week goes by that this same question (or a very close variation of it) is posted:

“I have no (money, job, credit – please pick two from the menu)…I want to get rich in real estate.” Usually followed by the inference that the poster wishes to do so with little or no effort on their part (to include reading, studying, networking, or any sort of labor involving dirty hands) and, oh yeah, they’d like that by next week at the latest.

I told the poster what he should do…I would tell you what I think you should do but I will refrain because my mother doesn’t like me talking that way.

My advice remains the same: READ THE SITE – the whole thing. Study, read, read, study, rinse and repeat. If you’re not ready for the effort involved in reading, you’re certainly not ready for the effort involved in REI. Get your finances in order or at least in some sort of decency. Investing in real estate without the knowledge can just as easily make you broke as it can make you rich – maybe even more so! It is not a get rich quick and get out thing. The bottom line is you MUST do SOMETHING!

Questions from Noobies don’t bother me at all…I willing share any information that I have that I believe relevant…you may take it or leave it as you see fit…

Keith

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Just wanted to chime in here and say that Keith is right. I’m also a newbie, and have been a lurker here on these boards for some time now.

Reading his posts in particular, along with a couple of other regular posters on this site has been extremely helpful and encouraging to me personally.

So many times it’s difficult to understand the message that is trying to be conveyed though typed words, and unfortunately it sometimes leads to unnecessary conflict.

Read Keith’s other posts and you’ll find that he is an asset to us Newbies.

Happy Investing!

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Thanx for your vote of confidence, MG!

Keith

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:wink:

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I really appreciate everyones response.

If I did - I didn’t mean to come off like I was not willing to put any time and effort into my business…

I will be reading the rest of the post on this site and any further helpful information will be definately appreciated…

Thanks againg to everyone…

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That comment was generic, Tex and not specifically directed at you…

Study, read, work hard…implement…it’s really not rocket science!

There are actually lots of things you can do with little capital and little credit – look for owner financing, lease options, etc. Some of these things are extremely difficult to find in hyper-active markets but I see them every day in slower markets. Also, look for the “buzzwords” like ‘motivated seller’, ‘must sell’, ‘bring all offers’, etc…

The other thing to remember is that a seller cannot accept an offer that is never made. You NEVER know what is motivating the seller…perhaps it is a landlord that likes the monthly income that he gets from his property but hates dealing with tenants anymore – great candidate for owner financing!!!

Keith

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Thank you…!!!

I really appreciate it!!!

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I for one don’t mind repeating myself. Even though the question has been asked any times, it might have not been the right time for the next person. And, when someone else askes, it makes it more personal.

As far as the question goes, We bought properties on credit cards for down payments. BUT, we had excellent credit and got many thousands of dollar in credit card lines with 00% for 6 months! We just kept transferring to new cards with 0% and used our cash flows to get them paid off.

I really don’t know what you would do with not so good credit. Do you have a friend with good credit that you might want to partner with to get started?

Good luck