Value your time

[Sam M.]

I would like to start a discussion on how others see the value of their time and money.

I recently had a seller tell me that my offer was too low because I had to pay for the money for the project. I then explained to her that even if I was using my own money I would need to pay myself the same amount simply because I would need to make the same return on my money as an outside investor does.
It is the same as not factoring in your down payment, just the loan amount when you run a ROI equation on a rental property. Am I right?

I have also seen several people buy a house (40K) and work their tails off gutting and rebuilding the property putting another 60 to 70K (borrowed) in materials while recruiting friends and family for help only to see a 10K return in 1 year. Guess it is better than sticking the money in a CD….Maybe.

The problem I see is they are not factoring their time into the equation. That is some damn cheap labor!!!!! I guess this works for the weekend warrior but it does not make sense from a business perspective. I don't think any one of the people I know can tell me what they are yielding in real numbers.
I always admired the drive of those people but it seems sort of foolish to work for so little return. Then again I am prone to look at things from a business perspective as I intend to run things as a business not as a hobby.

I laugh when I see a property listed as an “investment property†Duplex at 220K purchase and 1,300.00 a month gross rents. Instead of NOI we wind up with NOL.

It's a crazy world out there.