Many people are interested in starting a real estate investing career. This, however, can mean becoming a part-time real estate investor or a full-time real estate investor. It is actually very common for a person to start a career in real estate investing while keeping his/her 9 to 5 job. To be completely honest, this is a smart idea as becoming a successful real estate investor can take a lot of time. When you start making money in real estate, you most likely ask yourself: “When can I quit my job and become a full-time real estate investor?” Well, wonder no more! Here are the things you should have achieved in your real estate investing career in order to confidently quit your job.
#1 Get Real Estate Knowledge and Experience
Unfortunately, buying your first rental property does not automatically make you a successful real estate investor. When becoming a landlord, there are many things you will have to learn to be able to make a profit. That is why it is advised to gain some real estate knowledge before even purchasing your first investment property. You can do so by taking different real estate courses, reading blogs, and visiting local events where professionals of the industry gather.
Once you are ready for the process of buying your first rental property, it is important to use tools in order to identify the best investments. Mashvisor has some of the best tools on the market. To learn more about how we will help you make faster and smarter real estate investment decisions, click here.
After you have purchased your first investment property, do not stop learning and digging for information about the real estate world. Allow yourself to have some time and gain experience with managing tenants and earning rental income before buying multiple properties and, ultimately, quitting your job.
Related: How to Buy Your First Rental Property in 8 Steps
#2 Build a Reliable Real Estate Network
As in many other professional fields, having trustworthy connections is of significant importance. The same applies when you are building a real estate investing career. When becoming a real estate investor, there are various strategies you might like to focus on. Such are, for example, fix and flips, residential real estate, commercial real estate, etc. Regardless of the strategy, however, you often rely on other real estate professionals- contractors, partners, agents, and so on. Therefore, it is a good idea to take the time to explore whether or not some of the contacts in your network are reliable and beneficial to your business. Needless to say, expanding your network is of the utmost importance as well. The bigger your network in the investing world, the more options open up for developing your real estate investing career.
#3 Surpass the Break Even Point
This is probably one of the most important factors on which you can base your decision and quit your job. Of course, the investment payback period might prolong, but reaching a break-even point will be a huge milestone for your real estate investing career.
To be clear, the investment payback period refers to the period needed for an investment property to generate enough revenue to equal the cost spent on the investment. In other words, this means to reach the break-even point. At this point, your rental property will start to generate profit rather than simply pay back the expenses.
Calculate the investment payback balance using this tool.
Related: Is It OK to Break Even on a Real Estate Investment Property?
#4 Own Real Estate Properties Which Generate Positive Cash Flow
It is possible that in the beginning, your investments will generate negative cash flow. This means that the costs associated with the property will be higher than the income it makes. However, sustaining a negative cash flow is not something you should settle for. If becoming a landlord is your dream profession, for example, make sure your property generates enough rental income before you quit your job. Owning and managing positive cash flow investments is the way towards making money in real estate and becoming financially independent.
Related: How to Buy Multiple Rental Properties in a Single Year
#5 Plan and Budget Ahead
Developing your real estate investing career and buying multiple properties certainly sounds lucrative. Nonetheless, do not quit your job to switch from a part-time to full-time real estate investor without a plan for the future. It is certainly true that the real estate world is rather dynamic and planning ahead does not always work. Yet, this is the exact reason why you should have a plan for your future real estate investing career.
Review possible scenarios, follow the real estate market trends, think of potential problems and how to solve them. This way, you will be prepared for sustaining your career regardless of the circumstances. You should carefully evaluate this step and prepare for the future before you leave your current job. Do not allow yourself to lose money and destroy your career due to the fact that you did not plan ahead of time.
#6 Save Money
As cliché as it sounds, having savings is a crucial factor for the growth of your real estate investing career. It is not a secret that real estate investing can be quite pricey. Not only that, but it involves a certain risk which can cost you a lot of money.
If you are determined to quit your job and succeed as a real estate investor, it is definitely wise to have a sizable savings account. This will allow you to not worry so much about the risks of your career, but rather focus on expanding it. It is advisable to have enough savings to cover your living expenses for a while as well as be able to pay the costs associated with your business. Of course, saving enough to be able to participate in new real estate projects can only be a plus.
It is important to state that there are various things you should consider before you leave your job and become a full-time real estate investor. You can never be certain of whether or not your real estate investing career will blossom. However, knowing the milestones you need to pass and being prepared for the future gives you higher chances to beat the odds and start making money in real estate. If you want to reach this goal much quicker, start your 7-day free trial with Mashvisor and subscribe to our services with a 15% discount after.