1. Start small
If you’ve never invested in real estate, start small and don’t use all your money. No one’s ever looked back and said, “My first deal was my best.” You’ve got to learn how to read the contracts, build your network of specialists—for example, lawyers and realtors—and develop a good eye for it. This only comes from experience.
2. Think big
It’s easy to give up on the real-estate game because you don’t have any money, but it’s the deal that matters, not how much money you have. Chase the deal, not your budget.
3. Understand the economics, then find a mentor.
The real-estate deals that look the prettiest and are easiest to find—such as buying a property that has a tenant and management in place, joining a crowdfunding website, or buying into a publicly-traded real estate investment trust—yield the lowest returns. The most profitable opportunities are the ones no one else knows about, which you find and create.
Due to a strong economy, high consumer confidence, historically low inventory levels, and extremely low interest rates, it’s the best time to flip houses in the past 40 years
4. Learn, then earn
Before throwing money away on the HGTV pipe dream, educate yourself! Don’t spend thousands of dollars on coaches and seminars. No matter how shiny they make it or how much you’re told you need an expensive education, you don’t. Information is inexpensive and plentiful. Find it or someone specializing in investment real estate, like us.
5. Profit is in the purchase.
Source transactions that contain some core elements: they take the shortest amount of time to complete, and provide the maximum amount of profit while minimizing risk and the amount of cash you invest initially.
Before really embarking, solidify your A-Team (advisors whose opinions you trust) and B Team (associates who turn the gears).
Once you have a plan, pull the trigger. Don’t just have a backup plan—ensure that even the most airtight scheme has at least five exit strategies. Experience has taught me that the winds of a favorable real estate market can shift rapidly; the last thing you want is to be anchored to a dozen unsellable investments.