Good day to you all. As the subject line indicates, I’m attempting to start out in the real estate business from scratch. Specifically, I would like to rent properties out. I’m a college student and I’m finding it incredibly difficult to make ends meet as I’m from a low-income family and live in a town in which there are virtually no job openings. What I’m hoping to do with this is start out slow, as long as the profit outweighs the cost, even by a small margin, I would say it’s worth my time at this point. Unfortunately I have no idea how to get started.
Would it be possible to get a step by step tutorial?
I realize that’s asking for a lot, and any help would be greatly appreciated.
Anyway, where are good places to look for apartments/duplexes/fourplexes? What would be a good way to start out for someone who would need to take out a loan just to get started?
What sort of standards should any place I’m looking into buying meet?
How do I set rates, get tenants, sign up deals with utility companies?
What is usually the best form of communication between tenants and landlords?
Any help, again, would be greatly appreciated.
I think you should first go back and read every single post in the Beginners, Rehab / Landlording, Financing, and Asset Protection / Legal forums. These are all applicable to what you want to do. You’ll get a lot of your questions answered as well as other things you didn’t even know you would have questions about.
Since you’re just starting out, you will probably have to look for fourplexes or less. Are you going to stay in the town where you’re going to school? If so, start looking there for properties to see what different prices will get you. You’ll need to save up money to get started. You’ll need it to get a loan as well as rehab money and reserves for when things go wrong.
The market where you are sets rent rates. You can ask $1000/mo for a 2 br, but if everyone else is offering the same thing for $500/mo your place will be sitting empty. You can advertise for tenants with a sign in the yard, newspaper ad, craigslist, etc. I wouldn’t worry too much about figuring things out with utility companies.
The best form of communication from tenants to landlords are when they pay their rent on time. Our tenants call us (my wife and me) if they have anyting that needs fixed. I’d say a phone call or text is the easiest for things like that. I send letters to them if I need to explain anything and want it to be in writing.
I (and some other people on here) could write tons of information about how to be successful in the rental business. I think for now you should start reading those posts and maybe check out some REI related books at your library or local book store. You need to start learning about what is a good deal and what’s not. That information is on here.
Start looking around at property. Set some goals. Do you want to invest in cheap fixer upper low income properties, mid level (blue collar working neighborhoods), or higher priced areas? Figure those things out and start reading.
I am new here yet this site has been around for years I guess? Telling him to read everything might take a few years?? LOL
I do agree though
Yes, it’s been around for awhile. When I first discovered this site, I was on a detachment away from home (I’m in the military). If I wasn’t working, I was staying at a hotel where we weren’t allowed to venture off the grounds. So I spent a lot of time over those couple months reading all of the old posts on most of the forums on here. If he does that, I think he’ll learn a lot about how to value property and many other things related to renting out houses.
Hi. I am fairly new… started last year, so I can relate and give you advice.
First, spend a few days at a library. Read some books about real estate investing. There are many, many strategies. You need to get a feel for what all is out there.
The great news for you is you do not need much money at all, and none of your credit. You can invest with very little resources by using your brain. Get excited about this and learn about Wholesaling and lease options, maybe subject to investing, etc…
Once you have a feel for what all is out there… you should know what type of investing you want to pursue. So far, you have a pretty good knowledge base of the strategies, and have spent 0 dollars. Spend no more than a solid 1-2 days doing this.
Then, I recommend asking around for references and purchasing a good course on the subject of your chosen niche.
This is a business in a box. It should have everything you need to start your career. It should cost no more than $1000, many times less. If you dont have the money, sell some crap on craigslist, or go mow some yards.
The course should take you about 1 week to go through, and then do every single thing it says to do. It is time to take massive, bold action.
Use forums pages like this and on facebook to get guidance on particular house deals that you come across. Make sure the posters are experienced in your niche.
Find podcasts on the subject and listen to all of them while you are out taking massive action and following your course.
This is the best and fastest way to Real Estate investing success.
Regards
Justin
You can read every book on the market and guess what?? Your still going to make mistakes. Try and gain some understanding on Sub 2, Short Sales, Loan Modifications, Pre-foreclosures, Trusts, and Financing… Then read a few books about Investing then forget everything they taught you because in the 19 years I have been doing this I have never done 2 deals that are the same. And not a one of them has been 100% by the book. To be honest I have yet to even read a Real Estate Investing book and I have only been to 2 Real Estate meetings. My advice is don’t read to much into the how to’s or you will feel like this :banghead Get a basic understanding and jump into the pool with both feet. You are going to make mistakes if you read every book or not. Ask questions!!! Get answers! And don’t purchase to many products or you will have a wonderful looking library and a empty wallet. Every dime you spend is money that you can use on your first deal. I remember my first deal I walked in confident and walked out with $4,250 dollars the same day. And I had no idea what I was doing. The only other advice I have is the first million is the hardest to make. Pretend that you already have it in the bank and focus on making your second Million its a lot easier to make. And be sure to wear sunscreen uv rays can harm your skin!
Thanks guys, I think it would be wise to spend a lot of time on here poring through the forums
and such. At this point, I really can’t afford to make a mistake as it will kill me before I even get
started :banghead
I also have a sample rental application and lease I can send you. There’s really not a terrible amount of paper work for rentals. You need to develop a screening process so you can try to weed out the people who won’t pay or will tear up your property. So you have the application for that (you’ll have to figure out what your standards are and how you will screen people). The lease I use is four pages with all the basics covered. There may be certain clauses or wording you have to put in there for your area. You can check with local Realtors or Real Estate attorneys about that. If you rent out a property built before 1978, you are required to give your tenant a copy of the EPA Lead Based Paint pamphlet. My local Lowe’s store has those printed out and available in the paint department or you can print them out yourself. You’ll also need to have the tenant sign the EPA’s Lead Based Paint disclosure form showing if your property has LBP or not and that they’ve received a copy of the LBP pamphlet. That’s really it. I used to offer a move in / out inspection form, but no one ever turned it back in and frankly, we generally just don’t have people move out. 90% of the times one of our properties goes vacant, it’s because someone quit paying and I had to kick them out. I’ve very rarely had anyone voluntarily move out.
I think it will really open your eyes once you read posts on here about if properties are a good deal or not. There are tons of examples on here. Then you can take that info and look at what’s for sale in your area to determine if there’s anything good out there. It’s really cool once you get several properties and get some momentum going. If you do well and establish a successful record of being a landlord, opportunities will really open up for you.
That would be really amazing, thank you kindly sir.