Pros & Cons to joining a REIA

If you're thinking about joining a REIA (Real Estate Investing Association) or quitting one, you should first consider the pros and cons of membership.

Pros

Education - REIAs are an excellent place to learn about investing in real estate. They usually have monthly meetings where investors of all levels of experience come to learn about new techniques, strategies, products and services to streamline their business operations. Occasionally, they'll have special events whereas they'll invite a real estate guru in to educate members on a particular real estate investing niche such as foreclosures, property management, creative financing etc.

Networking - If you plan to make a career out of investing in real estate, you'll need to remember 3 words; networking, Networking, NETWORKING! You'll need to build a team of professionals that will help build and sustain your business. Realtors, mortgage brokers, attorneys and hard money lenders all associate with REIAs. I would suggest that if you're going to join one, you first seek out all of these professionals

Coaching - Most REIAs offer coaching programs to their members. These programs offer step by step guidance as you navigate your way into real estate riches 

Cons

They are "For Profit" businesses - Every business is in business to make money and REIAs are no different. I have been to many REIA events and monthly meetings. Most of the time there is a fee at the door (even is you pay your monthly dues). But the kicker is that the featured guru almost always ends his educational presentation with a high intensity & high pressure pitch to sell his home study course to you for $995 (I don't know why, but it always seems like that's the price). I hate to admit it but I spent A LOT of money falling for these pitches years ago. Some of them were worth their weight in gold, and some weren't worth the paper they were written on.

Networking Quality - Ok so I did mention that networking is a benefit of REIAs. And I do believe this, BUT unfortunately, I found that the vast majority of members are beginning investors. Most of them have high hopes and dreams of one day making it big in real estate. Sometimes they even dress for success and carry their own business cards with the name of their LLC and an 800 number. But it's all just a front to make them look (and feel) like they're somebody that they're not. My advise on dealing with these people is to take their card and hold onto it. Keep in contact via Facebook, Twitter or some other social media platform and just see if they remain interested in real estate. If they do, maybe one day you'll partner on a deal together, If not, maybe one day they'll buy or rent a house from you. But NEVER totally lose contact with them.

Questionable Information Accuracy & Quality - I've got to be honest, you really have to be careful with some of the advise that these gurus are throwing out there these days. If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is. If it sounds illegal, it probably is. Remember that these gurus don't know you and regardless what they tell you, they don't care about you either. They are standing there selling their home study course because that's where the money is. Remember the old adage, "Those who know how, DO. Those how don't TEACH". If you can, do some research on the featured guru for the night to see if they are actively investing in the field that they're teaching on, or if it's something that they read about in books from the real gurus.