Real estate investing has undergone numerous changes in the past two decades. Perhaps the biggest change is with the number of part time investors. For years a majority of real estate investors entered the business on a full time basis. This was not just a hobby but a career. In recent years there has been a shift in how the business is done. There are more part time investors today than ever before. Many of these investors are enjoying their full time job while still closing real estate deals on a limited basis. With the right planning and approach it is possible to have the best of both worlds. Here are five tips to help you invest while keeping your day job.
- Build A Strong Team Around You. It is simply not possible to be everywhere at once. If you are looking to invest and keep your day job the first thing you need to do is build a strong team. There are a number of people that you will lean on to do much of your heavy lifting. Your real estate agent, mortgage broker, attorney, contractor and even property manager are essential to your success. Even before you close your first deal you should spend time building your team. Explain your situation to them and let them know exactly what you are looking for. Not everyone will want to work with a part time investor. However those that do you know you can rely on. Your success will directly reflect the team you have in place. If your time is limited during the day a good team is essential.
- Utilize Technology. One of the main reasons that investing part time can be achieved is because of the increase in technology. As little as ten years ago if you wanted to research a property you needed to see it yourself. Your real estate agent would provide any information they had but it was up to you to do your due diligence. This often meant going to town hall and pulling whatever information you could find on the property. You could spend a full day accumulating data for one individual property. Fortunately the process has been made much easier. Technology has made it easy to share documents, connect with people and find information online. There are numerous property valuation sites that can quickly give you an idea of the property. You still need to do your homework but technology can give you a good start for which properties you want to pursue and which you should pass on. You don’t need to be a technology expert to invest part time but you should have a good handle on how to use it for your real estate business.
- Budget Time Wisely. Certain part time jobs make investing easier than others. Jobs where you have no internet access or limited free time can prove much more difficult. Regardless of your full investime job you need to budget your time wisely. Start by having a good system in place for evaluating new deals. You should have a checklist for what you want to do and when you want to do it. It is helpful to know which members you will utilize at every step of the process. You also should have an idea of how technology will play a role in your business. When you have down time during your day you should work on improving or implementing systems that will help improve efficiency. If you cannot leave your employer during the day you need to find ways to get around this. You can do this with the systems you create and how you use any available extra time you have.
- Goals And Plans. The most successful investors set goals and accompanying action plans for everything they do. You should do the same regardless of how many hours a week you dedicate to real estate. If your time during the day is limited you need to map out a plan for how you will use any free time. Just like any other business you should make a to-do list and start with the most important tasks first. Start with something as simple as writing down you real estate goals. This will directly impact the types of deals and properties you will pursue. This will also help you not waste time on deals you don’t really want. This goes a long way in building a rapport with your investing team. They will be much more inclined to work with you knowing that their work will lead to deals. Before you go to bed at night write down any goals you have for the following morning. Instead of sitting at your desk thinking about a plan you can get a jump start as soon as you wake up.
- Prepare To Sacrifice. Investing on a part time basis is possible if you are willing to sacrifice. Without the available hours during the day you need to find time to work on your business. This time is usually made up on nights and weekends. Instead of watching your favorite TV show you may need to work on a new deal. Instead of sitting down for eight hours watching football you should spend it walking through open houses and looking at properties. You may have to get up earlier and go to bed a little later but it is worth the sacrifice. Just like growing any other business if you want to success there are some sacrifices you need to make.
You don’t need to invest full time to be successful. You can make it work regardless of the number of hours you have. Don’t let your full time job stand in the way of your real estate success.
