Getting into Real Estate: Expert Tips and Tricks

Getting into real estate is one of the best ways to make a money. When starting out in anything, we tend to look to experts for tips and helpful advice. It turns out, as it is most of the time, that these tips are really just solid fundamentals. Nonetheless, they are important. So, without further ado, here are some tips and tricks to know when getting into real estate.

Related: 7 Reasons Why Real Estate is the Best Investment Strategy

• Plan your goals and take action

If you are planning on getting into real estate, you most definitely have a reason for doing so. What do you aim to achieve from investing? How much are you interested in making monthly? What kind of property are you looking for? These are some basic questions that you should keep in mind. Once you’ve outlined ideas, it’s time to take action. Planning and doing research all day won’t mean a thing if you aren’t putting the ideas into practice.

These two steps are part of a large cycle in the life of a real estate investor. For example, after you’ve planned all the financing for a property, you will purchase the property. Then you will need to plan other aspects of property financing, like how high should the expenses budget be. Once you’ve planned that, you will take action, and then plan again, and the cycle continues.

• Buy positive cash-flow properties

Positive cash-flow properties are your go-to if you’re getting into real estate. In simple terms, positive cash-flow is earning more from a property than how much you use on the property. Understanding positive cash-flow is easy, finding properties with it is not as simple. The most accurate and efficient way of determining if a property will have positive cash-flow is to use analytics. Doing the math and finding the data yourself is painstaking and tedious. That’s why it’s best to find positive cash-flow properties using sites like Mashvisor. If you’re in the US and are looking for positive cash-flow properties, then start your search with Mashvisor. Traditional or Airbnb, we got you covered.

• Stay local

Ask any real estate expert what’s one of, if not the most important feature of a property, and you’ll get three answers: location, location, location. Investing in a property located in an unfamiliar area is generally more difficult than investing in a local property. Travel time, distance, and being aware of the new area’s investment possibilities are just some of the roadblocks of investing in an unfamiliar area. That’s why many experts recommend newbie investors to invest in their local areas. If you are getting into real estate, you may not want to get too far from home.

• Don’t underestimate expenses

How you manage expenses is a key player in what your cash flow turns out to be. Some typical expenses to consider are taxes and mortgage. Others, however, will be more frequent and more random. Repairs, renovations, and replacements can take a toll on your expenses; don’t underestimate them, save money on the side for them just in case.

Related: Everything Real Estate Investors Should Know About Tax Season

• Join a real estate investing club

When you’re getting into real estate, turn to experienced investors for advice. That’s why you should join a real estate investing club. Joining an investing club will help you learn many different things about real estate like where to invest, how to invest, and how to save money. Learning vicariously through other investor’s experiences will make you more experienced and informed about real estate, without a doubt. Also, it is possible that some club members will offer you and other investors chances to work on combined investments. Joining a real estate investing club will put you on the right track.

• Do your homework

Getting into real estate unaware of what to do is not a good move. Always be sure to do your homework. Learn about a property before investing in it. Be familiar with the area. Understand the financing method of the purchase.
Experience is definitely valuable, but when combined with research, the possibilities are limitless. There are a lot of outlets for real estate information including eBooks, websites, and daily blogs, like Mashvisor’s.

Related: How to Start Learning About Real Estate Investing

• Buy a property as a residence first, then convert it to a rental

Getting your feet wet in real estate can be rough, and this trick helps to reduce that difficulty. If you plan on living in a house for a long time, consider renting a part of your house first before renting a full property. This is great because it gives you a small sample size of what investing in a full property is all about. You will more experienced with tenants, repairs, expenses, and the whole real estate experience overall. If you follow this method, you could broaden your options as well. Traditional renting isn’t necessary; you could rent out a part of the property through Airbnb.

• Start small

When getting into real estate, earning positive cash-flow is the top priority. Doing so is much easier by purchasing a small or moderately sized and priced property than with an insanely expensive property. Again, starting small helps you get comfortable with all the tasks associated with real estate. Entering real estate by investing in a mansion is a bit of a headache to say the least.

• It takes time

And last but not least, if you plan on getting into real estate, you must be patient and persistent. The investment usually does not pay off initially, but it will over time if you are handling things properly. The more challenges you tackle, the better you will become, and the more rental income you will eventually make.

Related: Top 3 Real Estate Investing Strategies for Beginners

Being a real estate rookie can be difficult at first. But with these tips, experience, and research, you will soon be hitting the bank with your investment properties.

For more on getting into real estate, visit us at Mashvisor.