If you want to learn more about investing in real estate, you are not alone. There’s a group in town you need to know about. It’s a little organization called the Georgia Real Estate Investors Association, and they are the largest such community in the entire United States, with more than three thousand dues-paying members.

Now I know what you are thinking. This must be some sort of "get rich quick" thing like you see on late night television. Right?

Wrong. At least, for the most part. These members are interested in getting rich, all right, but they want to do it slow.

Most members I’ve met want to own their own home first, then move carefully and slowly into the home rental business, often as a side line to their current source of income.

A typical monthly meeting might have as many as five or six hundred members show up, hoping to learn how to write a lease or how to install a toilet. Speakers answer such basic questions as "Where do I find used building materials?" and "How can I obtain financing?"

Other topics might include buying with owner financing, learning the ins and outs of foreclosures, and how to estimate values of residential properties, especially homes that need work.

And the members are from all walks of life.

I have met physicians and plumbers, housewives and store clerks. I have met genuine millionaires and I have met people who were just emerging from personal bankruptcy.

Many of the attendees are common ordinary working folks who have confidence in the American Dream of home ownership. They figure that if owning one house is a good idea, then maybe two or three might be better. Few of the members have delusions of reaching a "Donald Trump" stage.

Amazingly, the membership seems to cover the complete spectrum of education as well. Some are high school dropouts, many have some college, some have advanced degrees. All are looking for opportunity.

If there is a common thread, it’s a belief that ownership of residential real estate is a realistic way for a hard-working individual to begin accumulating wealth in America. Many of the members are well into their "ten year plan" of buying a house a year for ten years. The idea is that if you buy ten solid little rental houses over a ten-year period, you can then possibly quit your regular job and go "full time" as a real estate investor.

There are also plenty of "full-timers" at each meeting, answering questions and handing out free advice like it was water. Some of the advice I heard was less than scholarly, but it was almost universally helpful and down to earth.

And in a city that hosts one of the fastest growing housing markets in the nation, the mantra of "buy more houses" falls on receptive ears.

While every member likely has a somewhat different approach to real estate investing, many of the faithful see opportunity in older houses that have been mistreated by their owners and are now so-called "ugly duckling" properties.

These houses are not attractive, are quite difficult to sell, and typically need between $5,000 and $50,000 worth of renovation. And because they look bad and often smell worse, agents and owners are usually willing to sell them at a steep discount compared to attractive homes in the same market.

Investors find opportunities all over the Atlanta area, but are especially excited when they can buy a house, get this, for under a $100,000 total. And, believe it or not, there are plenty of houses available for less than a hundred grand. Not in Buckhead, but they are around.

In fact, a recent check of the Georgia Multiple Listing Service showed a total of 1,055 homes that carried an asking price of less than that amount, just in the five county metro area. And most of the time, these investors don’t pay asking price. No, indeed.

If the whole truth be known, sometimes these investors don’t pay anywhere near asking price.

They buy bank-owned properties, sometimes for less than fifty cents on the dollar. They buy homes going into foreclosure, helping the owners avoid repossession or bankruptcy. They buy homes seized by federal agencies like the IRS or the United States Marshal. They buy homes where the owners just stopped paying taxes. They buy houses that typical buyers don’t want.

In other words, they buy just about anything that looks like it might be a good deal, but that no one else wants to deal with.

Investors, as much as anything else, are problem solvers.

The nonprofit Georgia Real Estate Investors Association has produced a free booklet called "A Guide To Real Estate Investing," and it is available to you for a phone call. To get yours, call 770-455-9477. They meet on the first Monday of every month, but it’s hard to find a hotel ballroom big enough to hold the group. Visit www.gareia.org to find out about upcoming meetings.

Who knows? There maybe a real estate investor hiding inside of you. If there is, you’ll want to visit this group!