This chapter is an opportunity for you to decide if investing in an SFR is something that is right for you. To help paint a picture, let me tell you the story of how a small rental property launched my career as a real estate investor. When I was 21, I rented a room from a landlord in Reseda. At the time, I studied finance and Real Estate at California State University, Northridge, while waiting tables at the Olive Garden and working as a manager-in-training at Domino’s Pizza. A quick note to all the college-age and younger folks reading this: My dad changed his major more times than he could even count. He almost became a dental technician despite his crippling fear of dentists! You don’t have to major in Finance or endlessly study real estate to become a successful investor. Don’t sweat it if you aren’t sure what path you want to take. If I’ve learned anything from my dad, it’s how to be smart with my money. Real estate is the most consistent place to invest your money. So if you want to become a doctor, a computer science engineer, or even a circus clown… take the money you make from whatever you are passionate about and invest it in real estate. This is the wisest way to invest because of the power of 18 the compounding effect, which we will get into later. For now, back to the story.