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Is 30 too Old to Start Investing in Real Estate?
An old quote states that “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now!”
As a female heading into my 30’s, I often consider what my life would look like if I began rental investing 5 years ago. That’s the thought everyone has when they first learn about the huge potential of cashflow and financial freedom that comes with rental investing!
Is 30 too old to start rental investing?
Rental investing is an art that takes time, skill, research, and money! When considering how old is “too old” to start rental investing, having more years and wisdom can be of benefit.
However, it is easy to be derailed from this thinking considering there are many young adults out there who began rental investing in their late teens and twenties and have created massive portfolios. The key here is to never compare yourself! We’ll talk about this topic later in the article.
In this article I will be diving into the resources you need to start rental investing, plenty of articles to learn from, and a beginner’s step-by-step guide to rental investing in your 30’s!
How to Start Rental Investing in Your 30s
It is never too late to start rental investing!
In fact, there are many popular investors who began when they were in their 30s!
For example, Grant Cardone, a famous rental investor began in his 30s. He now has a massive portfolio worth over a billion dollars.
Think you’re too old to start rental investing? You should also check out this guest post by WhatTheFiGuy about his first rental property. He started later in life and is currently building a huge portfolio of rental investments!
Many people assume that since they missed out on investing in rental properties in their 20s that it’s now too late.
Thing is, with student debt, more people are unable to invest at a younger age! I finished graduate school a 25 and had $50k of debt to my name. With this debt it isn’t easy to dive into investing in rentals.
In short, to start rental investing in your 30s you need to do three main things: Research, network, and start as soon as you can. It is important to get out of debt fast in your 20s to start investing in real estate in your 30s.
Let’s start with how to research about rental investing!
4 Ways to Learn About Rental Investing in Your 30s
There is a lot that goes into rental investing. All the numbers, factors, and calculations can get confusing for a beginner. The first key to rental investing is to educate yourself!
My husband and I spent approximately 2 years learning about rental investing before purchasing and renting out our first property. This sounds like a long time, but when playing around with a large sum of cash, you want to be sure that you’re doing it right!
Below I’ll go over all the resources I’ve used to learn all I know about rental investing, and how I was able to start my rental portfolio!
Here are 4 effective ways to learn about rental investing in your 30s:
- Read books about rental investing
- Listen to highly-rated podcasts
- Join rental investing forums
- Connect with local investors
Are you young and interested in rental investing? Check out this detailed guide for Gen Z to start investing in real estate!
1. Read Books on Rental Investing
This is the easiest way to learn about rental investing! Below are the most popular books currently available for anyone new to rental investing!
- The Book on Rental Investing by Brandon Turner
- The House Hacking Strategy by Craig Curelop
- Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat by David Greene
2. Listen to Rental Investing Podcasts
After reading a book or two, it is suggested that you regularly listen to podcasts on rental investing to learn about specific case studies and get unique advice from investors.
My current favorite podcasts on rental investing include:
- BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast
- Afford Anything by Paula Pant
- The Max Maxwell Podcast
3. Join Rental Investing Forums
An easy way to learn about rental investing is to join forums or communities that are all about rental investing!
This can include Facebook groups, forums on BiggerPockets, and any other social community that you enjoy most!
I personally am a part of multiple Facebook groups and on BiggerPockets. This has helped me to get very specific questions answered, and to learn from other peoples mistakes.
4. Connect with Local Investors
One of the best ways to learn about rental investing is to learn from people who are already involved with real estate!
I was able to connect with a man in our town in his 30s who had over a dozen properties. He had dinner with my husband and discussed his path to building his portfolio and how to get started.
This is a great option, and all you need to do is start reaching out! Find a local investor on Facebook, Twitter, BiggerPockets, or even from asking your friends!
3 Tips to Networking as a Rental Investor in Your 30s
The second most important step for rental investing in your 30s is to network! This means getting to know people, building up a team of lenders, contractors, and agents, and meeting with other investors.
Here are 3 unique ways to network for rental investing in your 30s:
- Network at rental investing meetups
- Build your rental investing team
- Connect with investors
1. Networking at Rental Investing Meetups
Networking is key to growing a successful rental portfolio!
Every city and many towns have rental investing meetups. I found one locally through Facebook.
These meetups usually have a main speaker, guest speakers, or are round-table discussions. These are great opportunities to meet other investors in your area, or even to make connections with newbie investors and find an accountability partner to go through the rental investing journey with someone!
If there are more than one meetup option, consider going to multiple to find what suits you best.
2. Build Your Rental Investing Team
When you build your portfolio of rental properties, you’ll need many people on your “team”. These are people who you can trust to give you answers, work on your properties, and who help you through the buying/selling process.
Here are some of the important people you need on your rental investing team:
- Real estate agent
- Lender(s)
- Contractors (think: Landscaping, roofing, concrete/foundation, etc.)
- Accountability partner
- Mentor
You can begin building this team by meeting with local individuals who you think you will get along with the best. Invite them for coffee or have a short meeting over the phone. It is important to build relationships, especially if you plan to eventually have a large portfolio of properties!
3. Connect with Investors
Most young adults getting into rental investing think it is a sprint. Instead, it is key to think of real estate investing as a life-long investing journey.
By taking time to connect with, talk to, and build relationships with other investors, you’ll be able to have trusted individuals to talk to when confusing situations arise.
Be sure you read here about how to find a Real Estate investing mentor!
One of my favorite places to find like-minded investors is on BiggerPockets! You can make a profile for free and connect within the forums or individually network with other newbie and experienced investors!
Final Thoughts about Rental Investing in Your 30s
It is critical to keep in mind that you should not compare yourself to anyone except yourself. Where you are at in life is exactly where you need to be, and when it comes to real estate investing, right now is such a great time to begin!
Rental investing is not a get rich quick opportunity. It takes time, money, and a lot of effort to learn how it works and to have the guts to get your first property. This is something that as a 30-soemthing, you have more opportunity than 20 year olds do!
There are a ton of ways to get into rental investing. Be sure to check out the below articles to keep learning!
Do I need a real estate license to get rental properties? Learn here!
How do I find my first property? Learn the 5 simple steps here!