Allow me to introduce myself...

[StayFocused]

...my name is: Shon

Current Occupation: Long Haul Comm (military)

Real Estate Exp: None; book knowledge mostly

Current goal: Bachelors in Business Admin w/concentration in IT(it goes with my current occupation)

Long Term: Working for myself by age 48. Thats 10yrs after I retire from the military.

Current Interest: Lease Options and zero down investing. Attended a free seminar from Trump University and it sounded like a winner. I liked the idea of finding a seller, tying up the property, finding a buyer and selling it to them. Its win/win/win all the way around. At the end of the seminar was when they ask you to attend the paid 3 day training. Needless to say, with the new baby and currently one source of income I was unable to go.

Open to other ways of being a real estate investor. So throw some ideas my way!

I will most likely be picking all of your brains. I have friends/co-workers that are currently as interested in real estate as I am but no one is doing it as of yet. They say the best thing to get is a mentor....so if you are live on Oahu and wouldn't mind schooling a beginner and letting me watch you operate let me know. Other than that I look forward to listening to your advice here on the forums.

[joelrunner]

Welcome aboard Shon!

Sounds like you've got some well laid out plans! As far as real estate advice, I'd say you should ignore the "fix & flip market" & buy & hold. There isn't going to be a better time to get into the market than these next couple years. Get in touch with a Realtor who works in the area and start poking around!