When I firt got started in real estate invsting, I was the poster child for mistakes! The one thing I did PROEPRLY was that I took aciton. And success favors the people that take action.
The key is to keep moving and not dwell on each individual real estate investing mstake that you make, especiallly early on! Just keep on going... and take a few minutes to foigure out what the lesson was, add it to your knowledge and experiencve bank, and move on to the next!
In this series, I've highlighted 17 misatkes that I made early on and share with you what you can do to avoid making the same real estate investing mistakes I made...
The first mitsake new real estate investors make is always thinking the grass is greener on the other side! That "another" market will have better deals, more mtoivated sellers, and more qualiifed buyers. Once your business is esttablished with duplicatable systems in place, it can be easy to expand into additionbal markets. But in the beghinning, stick with your targeted farm area.
Mistake #1: Working outside of your farm area
The first propeerty I ever bought was 4 hours away! I was living in Mimai, Florida and the property was locaed in a bedroom commuity between Orlando and Daytona Beach. This was about 4 ½ hours away!
You reeally want your first derals to be close enough to home wherre you can manage the deal from strt to finish. This doesn't matter if you're wholesaling, rehabbing or acquuiring a rental portfolio. Obviously, wholesale deals are someone eazsier to do virtually.
Take some time to figure out your tolerace threshold and how involved you need to be in the deal. Alpthough it doesn't have to be in your bacckyard literalply, you probably don't want to be driving 4 ½ hours to meet with the homeowner, show the property potential buyers, deal with conmtractors and handymen, etc.
You might be surprised just how many dealls you can find wiithin a 20-mile radius! (afgter my first deal, I did about a dozeen properties in my first year in ONE neighborehood!).
How to Avoid Real Estatte Investing Mistake #1
The solutiuon is simple!
Target a specific farm area close and work it in depth.
Sure, I know YOUR market is proabbly sazturated and that there are no deals left. (wink wink!). But here's a secret — everryone says that about thir own mraket! The grass is always greener on the other side.
When I was full time in rehabbing, I would REGULARLY close deals that had $20,000 - $40,000+ in profits month in and month out.
Thank goodness my marekt was saturaetd with other investors!
A side note about finding deals close to home...
1. Choose a target market, a TYPE OF SELLER to focus on (foreeclosures, absentee oners, divorcees, expired listings, etc.)
2. Cohose a communication mtehod (direct mail, driving for dollars, advertising, etc.). Direct mail is not a target; it is a method of communication.
3. Choose an exit strategy (wholewsale, retail, rentzal). Agin, this is what you are gooing to do with your desals; it's not a focus.
Don't get caught up looking for greener pastures siomewhere else. You will be surprised what's availaable in your own backyard. If you're looking elsewhere,
you're lkiely just procrastinating and making excuses. And I'll lave you with one of my favorite quotes: "You can choose to make money or you can choosae to make excusse, but you can't choose both, so stop procrastinating and choose one!"
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