What does it take to become a successful real estate investor? Depending on who you ask the answers will vary greatly. Some will say it takes financial backing while others will say you need education. Some will argue that local contacts are key while others proclaim that a quality real estate agent is essential. While all of these answers are in some part correct they are often not enough to guarantee success. What you will find is that the seemingly subtle qualities in your business end up being the most important. In a field filled with competition these qualities can directly influence your success. Here are five overlooked qualities essential for real estate investing success.
- Organization. It is easy to forget sometimes that you are actually running a business. Regardless if you purchase one property a week or one a year your business needs structure and organization. There should be systems in place to help you with property evaluation, deal structure, financing and lead generation. If your business is established you need organization in paying bills and communicating with current contacts. Leaving all of your receipts in the front seat of your car may not be the best filing method. Eventually something will get overlook and omitted that will set your business back. There are also times in any business when you are tempted to jump from opportunity to opportunity without much of a plan. Doing this ultimately wastes time, energy and leaves you right back where you started. The more structured and organized you are in every aspect of your business the less likely you will make a crushing mistake.
- Persistence. For every ten properties you are interested in you are fortunate if you can get one or two to go your way. Similar numbers apply to lead generation, networking and marketing. In most aspects of your business you are more likely to face rejection than success. How persistent you are in the face of this can make all the difference. Studies indicate that most people will not respond to marketing until the sixth time they are contacted. Do you have it in you to stay with your marketing until a connection is made? As great as the real estate investing business is there are plenty of times when you will get frustrated and annoyed at your progress. It is these times when you will be tempted to give up or not work as hard. By staying persistent and working hard regardless of whatever else is going on you will find yourself with more opportunities throughout the year. Closing just one or two more deals a year not only increases your bottom line but puts you in a position to work with additional people. This only happens if you are persistent.
- Diligent. It is very tempting to pursue every new listing that hits the market. At first glance many of these properties check off the boxes you are looking for in an investment. Only upon closer inspection will you find flaws that can change how the deal is perceived. Performing due diligence is certainly not a glamorous part of the business but it can be the most important thing you do. With any business it is important to constantly move forward. By getting involved in a bad deal you run the risk of having to fight just to break even. This leaves you hesitant to pursue future deals and inevitability you will miss out on a good opportunity. Due diligence doesn’t mean spending days and days pouring over information about a property. Often times the information is right in front of you if you are willing to put in just a small amount of time and effort. Trusting your gut and acting impulsively can be a benefit at times but in most cases it is better to stay diligent and know exactly what you are getting into.
- Efficiency. There are only so many hours in a day. What you do with them is entirely up to you. In the real estate world you need to be efficient in everything you do. Getting bogged down in one task means you are not working on something else. This causes tasks you had planned for today to be pushed back to tomorrow. At the end of the week something ends up getting pushed out. If you make a habit of this you will see a decrease in your productivity that will be directly reflected in your bottom line. One of the keys to time management is by planning every hour of your day. If you know what you need to do and when you should do it you end up getting more accomplished.
- Positivity. Your attitude often influences your actions. Think about some of the people you have been around in your business. In most cases the more positive they are the more likely you will work with them. On the flip side if they have a negative attitude you will not want anything to do with them. It is difficult to stay positive when things aren’t going you way. As the saying goes if something was easy everybody would do it. Real estate investing can be difficult at times but the rewards make it all worth it. Regardless of what you have going on in your business you need to stay positive at all times.
There is a lot that goes into successful real estate investing. As you focus on the big items don’t discount the importance of these five qualities.
