Becoming a Real Estate Investor

I’ve always loved the beach despite growing up in a family of National Park lovers.  As far back as I can remember, my family hitched up our very vintage Nomad travel trailer and pulled it through the mountains.  I can remember falling asleep to the silhouette of the Rocky Mountains out my bunk bed window with the full moon shining brightly behind them.  A love of travel and living simple was ingrained in me at a young age.

Fast forward many decades to my own family and carrying on those same travel traditions.  I’m never happier than crawling into bed in the camper with the kids all tucked in nearby, a bowl of popcorn, a glass of wine and a slice of whatever local pie we were able to pick up during the day's explorations.  As a homebody through and through, traveling via camper has always appealed to me.  I have my own sheets, towels, bathrobe, slippers, pillows, coffee maker and the rest of the creature comforts in tow.  That plus the ability to prepare our own food and avoid dragging 4 antsy kids into a restaurant to the tune of $100 minimum means we can sustain travel for longer.  We’ve fallen so hard for it that we spend much time dreaming about how we can someday do it for months at a time - spending winters exploring the beaches, coasts and sunsets of warmer climates.

This desire to be warmer - to have the ability to travel and enjoy destinations also comes with the need to be able to sustain an income.  For many years, I’ve sat on the sidelines observing how others are utilizing real estate as a tool to create passive income.  This year, I’ve made it my mission to finally take the first step in creating a life by design.  

Real estate investors acquire properties, whether single-family or multi-family, and hold the properties as rentals.  The objective is to find properties that will cash flow - where the rent coming in supercedes the expenses going out creating a positive net income at the end of every month.  Holding the properties over lengths of time can mean capitalizing not only on the annual positive cash flow, but also the organic appreciation that the property is gaining over time.  Bonus if there are renovations that can be done to the property to create equity faster. 

I spend at least an hour a day ‘running numbers’ on different properties.  I’m very good at the math - probably too good - I can crunch my way out of any deal.  But this is the year I’m getting off the sidelines and jumping into the real estate investing game.  I’ve listened to every audio book, follow a plethora of real estate investors across multiple platforms and have fully accepted that if I try and fail, I’m at least going to fail forward and I’ll do it so you can learn from my mistakes.  I set a goal to acquire 6 doors in 2023 (that may have been a little ambitious but hey, shoot for the moon and you’ll land amongst the stars, right?)

I want to make note that real estate investing is hardly a ‘passive’ gig and I don’t have rose colored lenses as to what managing real estate looks like (and you shouldn’t either).  I do like to think I come into it with a healthy knowledge of homes and have a solid rolodex of contractors we use on the regular (and you can use too - just ask!)  Most investors are looking to build a portfolio of properties, eventually getting to the point of being able to either a) hire a property management company to outsource the work or b) hire an employee to manage properties.  This would be a long term goal.

To take this goal and make it a reality, my first step was networking with those who do it better than me.  I’ve teamed up with an agent with a large portfolio of properties to help me identify, analyze and evaluate potential acquisitions.  Daily, I’m watching the market for new listings, checking in with my lender on the current interest rates and running the analytics.  Like everything in real estate right now, interest rates are making things harder - but it doesn’t mean there isn’t opportunity to be had.  When I see a property where the math might work, I’m touring them in person to see what improvements might be needed, what similar properties have rented for, etc.  The right deal will come along - with my preapproval ready to go, like you - I’ll be ready to pounce.

Have you been interested in real estate investing but are unsure where to start?  Want to jump in with me and start building a life by design?  Looking for accountability in making good on your goals?  Looking for an agent to coach you through the process?  Watch for our Investor Panel coming to Fox Realty this Spring where the top investors in our office are getting granular on the process.  If you are looking for an introduction to getting started, reach out to me and I’ll put you in the same capable hands I’ve found for my own journey. Let’s get started!