There's No Free Lunch in Real Estate



When I speak with most investors considering their first real estate investment, without a doubt one of the biggest concerns I consistently hear is an unwillingness to become a landlord.  For most would-be investors, this objection represents a significant stumbling block to starting a career, and for many investors it can actually represent their downfall.

The key to enjoying a long and successful run in investing in real estate is to realize the difference between being an Investor and being a Landlord.  Landlords deal with toilets, tenants, and trash while Investors deal with cashing checks and figuring out which investments make the most sense.  And most of us would certainly rather fall into the second category. Yet, in order to do this, you must employ the services of a competent and experienced Property Manager.  They will be the one who manage the day-to-day operation of your real estate portfolio and they will deal with your tenants, rent collection, maintenance issues, and most of the other minutia.  This will free you up to make investment decisions as well as allowing you to continue to focus on your ?day? job and save more money to purchase additional properties.

What is your time worth?  This is the first question I ask every investor I meet with when discussing the subject of Property Management and .  Just like you wouldn't hire a plumber to do a root canal, you wouldn't fix a toilet yourself if you don't know how.  If your day job pays you $25-$30 per hour, it makes sense to employ the services of a $15 per hour maintenance man to handle repair issues rather than to do it yourself.  The same goes with competent management as this allows you to focus on other things in your life, whatever they may be.

Finding a good property manager is the key to making sure your assets are properly looked after.  A great online resource is www.IREM.org.  Here you can find qualified Property Management firms as well as Resident Managers.  Always ask for 2-3 references and call them to find out how other property owner's experiences have been.  Remember, you're entrusting one of your largest investments to this individual, so spend some time doing your due diligence.  If you don't you may find yourself working with someone who's doing a poor job of keeping your property rented and maintained, which will inevitably lead to an underperforming asset and deterioration of its value.