How Much Money You Really Need to Start Investing in Real Estate

Greg Kurzner discusses how much money is actually needed to buy a first rental property, emphasizing that most people lack clarity rather than opportunity and that vague money expectations cause either delay or risky shortcuts.

He breaks financing into key components: down payment, closing costs, and reserves. Conventional investor loans typically require 15–25% down and are often 30-year fixed; FHA loans can be 3–5% down for 2–4 unit properties if the buyer lives in one unit (house hacking); VA loans may offer very low or zero down for eligible buyers, also usable for multi-units with owner occupancy.

He also outlines DSCR loans, private money, hard money for renovations, and seller financing. He recommends six months of expense reserves for vacancies and repairs and previews a next episode on evaluating deals.

00:00 How Much To Start 00:45 Money Clarity Mindset

01:52 Down Payment Basics

02:53 Conventional Loans

03:29 House Hacking FHA VA

04:48 DSCR Private Hard Money

06:39 Seller Financing Options

07:23 Closing Costs Explained

08:43 Reserves After Purchase

10:24 Six Months Cushion

10:58 Define Buckets Next Steps

11:52 Wrap Up Next Episode

Mentioned in this episode:

Post Roll_ Real Estate Investor Progress Podcast Outro

This Ad encourages the listener to subscribe and leave a review or rating as well as join our Facebook Group

Pre Roll_ Intro to Real Estate Investment Call to Action

This Ad offers the First Deal Confidence Kit as a download