In search of advice

[jla04]

Ok so I am new here hoping to obtain some guidance on my situation. I am 27, married with three kids. I have a job that I hate so much because of the way I am treated and because of it have had blood pressure issues. I currently have 100k in savings and am about to sell an inherited house to add about 205k to my capitol. My wife and I aren't interested in being landlords right now and want to get into investing, primarly real estate fix and flip. She wants me to quit my job and focus on it full time so I can save us money doing most the labor but I am a bit reluctant to do so. I am just searching for advice on what I should do. Flipping houses has been her life long dream that's now a possible reality. I just want to make sure I am making the right decision for my family, maybe there is a better way to invest. Thanks for any advice.

[bjl584]

I'd be careful. Flipping isn't as easy as it is on TV. You have to buy right, buy in the right area, and find a buyer quickly, or you could lose your shirt.

I'd approach cautiously. Maybe buy a cheap fixer-upper and resell to get your feet wet. Something that won't devastate you financially should it not go according to plan.

After you have some experience and are totally confident in what you are doing, only then would I quit my day job.

In the meantime, do house flipping on the side and start looking for a new full time job.

[Petunia 100]

What knowledge/expertise do you and your wife already have? If you don't know what you are doing, you can really lose a lot of money flipping real estate. Maybe you could find a mentor in your area? Someone who is successful at what you are hoping to do?

Life is too short to be miserable. Find a job you love, or at least like. If it pays less than the job you have now, so be it. We have to enjoy the ride.

[snafu]

Life is too precious to work at a job you hate. Have you explored possible employment choices that mesh with your education, credentials, skill sets and experience? I suggest you polish up your resume, sign on with appropriate recruiters, join LinkedIn and watch what's on offer in your community. Make appointments to meet people in your ideal job even if you have to take a couple of hours off or a bit of holiday time and ask about their pathway, credentials to your goal. Have you read the latest edition of What Color is My Parachute?

If you and DW have been consistently buying fixer upper homes and moving up that shaky ladder you may be ready to jump if your community's housing market is finally moving forward. What is your back up plan if your costs are higher than expected, the time line is longer than planned, and estimated sell price falls short? If you have the trades skill sets needed are you passionate about the challenge? Will your day-to-day personal budget support this plan? What does your wife see herself contributing to this plan?

When I fall back to my experiences, I admit DH and I considered divorce as a result of a kitchen remodel with work done by a competent contractor. Life was so disrupted for a couple of months with washer/dryer and stove in living rm, materials that weren't delivered as promised and plumbers being paid for just standing around without fixtures to install made me hate my decision to upgrade and reduced me to tears.