Real Estate Investing

Joseph and I have been quickly heading towards buying our first house. Granted, it will not be the greatest house in our area, but it will hopefully be a long term investment and money maker. We feel as though we are in a rock and a hard place - we do not want to keep throwing money out the window by continuing to rent, nor can we afford a nice house where we would not mind making our permanent residence for the next 10 years. Thus, the dive into real estate investing.....

This has been something I have started to become interested in during my last few semesters at college as I begin thinking about what I want to do with the rest of my life. Real Estate investing is a business, and I feel equipped with the business education I have received and am confident I can succeed. Hey, it may even lead into a career of full-time investing. (For right now, I'll stick with part time :-) )

So, as a firm believer in continuing one's education through books, I have picked up a copy of Jay DeCima's "Start Small, Profit Big in Real Estate". It is quite interesting and gives tips and instructions on what to do and what not to do when buying a house.

After much discussion and prayer, Joseph and I have begun looking towards buying a duplex and living in one side while renting out the other. Meanwhile, making improvements to a property that has been run down and needs cosmetics. There is a lot you can do to make a house more presentable with even just some elbow grease! Because people seem to associate clean with a higher price, we can then raise rents after we have improved the property. Within two years, we would like to be renting out both sides and have our renters pay our mortgage on a much nicer home.

Well, these are our first steps into this field and we are nervous but also very excited! We also understand that this is not something you just jump into with theories of making a ton of money. It will be hard work and I am not blind to that (especially after reading DeCima's book). Knowledge of what you are doing can help take away the fear of the unknown. :-)