Were they right? What did you have in mind for that property, anyway? That’s a question few rental property investors ask themselves. Why is that important? It costs you money if you don’t know where you want to go with your investments. After all, how will you know if you get there, or even if there is a “there” to get to, without planning the result you want?
The real estate mega-investors, the ones who buy the 1000-unit apartment complexes and 30-story office towers, know exactly what their investment goals are before they even make an offer on a property. They are looking for specific, measurable results: increase in value, tax savings, and/or any number of other goals related to putting lots of dollar bills in the bank. That concept is the number one secret to making a profit on investments.
On the other hand when many smaller-scale landlords finally close on a rental property, their reaction is too often “Whew, I got it.” Then they go to work finding tenants and/or managing the property and, in the process, get so tied up in the day-to-day operation and the resultant problems and headaches of the property that the bigger picture gets lost.
Their rental property turns into a chore, a duty, a cross to bear, but certainly not an investment.
How can you make sure your real estate investments will accomplish the goals you had in mind for yourself? Here’s what I am going to ask you to do: figure out what the big picture is for your properties.
Take a sheet of paper and divide it into three columns. In the first column write the addresses of each of your rental properties.
In the second column, opposite the address of the property write why you bought it. If you don’t know why, leave it blank. But even if you changed your mind about why you bought it, write it down anyway
About the Author: Bob Cain
Some 30 years ago Bob Cain went to a no-money-down seminar and got the notion that owning rental property would be just the best idea there is for making money. He bought some. Trouble was, what he learned at the seminar didn’t tell him how to make money on his rental property. He went looking for help in the form of a magazine or newsletter about the business. He couldn't find any.
Always ready to jump at a great idea, he decided he could put his speaking and writing skills to work and perform a valuable service for other investors who needed more information about property management. So Bob ferreted out the secrets, tricks and techniques of property management wherever he found them; then he passed them along to other landlords.
For over 25 years now, Bob has been publishing information, giving speeches, putting on seminars and workshops, and consulting for landlords on how to buy, rent and manage property more effectively.