How much work do you do yourself?

[N/A N/A]

I think from reading MikeOH's blog that he seems to most of his own maint. I don't have that many houses but I do all my own work,several major remodels done and working on one now. I have read some posts that your are wasting valuable time that you could be shopping ...... I couldn't make it work if I farmed it all out. How much do you do? Happy Thanksgiving to ALL.

[Harrison Painter]

I look at my time is much more valuable than fixing a clogged toilet.

BUT.......It is great experience to do everything in the beginning to learn as much as you can about the good, and bad, parts of the business.

I have seen that most investors who "continue" to be hands are one of two personality types:

1. One who really enjoys the work and investing is not just a business, but a hobby for them as well. They might only own 5-10 properties, it keeps them busy, and they really love to interact with tenants and get their hands dirty.
2. One who has control issues and is consistently stepping over dollars to save pennies. They tend to be negative from years of dealing with the stress of tenant issues and have become hard and bitter. Most end up at the level of slumlord. This personality ONLY invest in their own backyard and they are afraid to leave their comfort zone.

There comes a point in time when you will need to evaluate what your time is worth per hour.

For example:
If you make $250K a year, that makes your time worth about $120 an hour.

To go out to a rental property for maintenance will usually take at least 2 hours of your day (This includes commutes). So $240 of your time.

Most of the handymen I have worked with will make $65 for the service call, and they seldom run over $100 total.

So you would save between $140 to $175 of your time by having someone else do the work.

While investing is a fun hobby, it needs to always be looked at as a business.

A wise man once told me this:
Real estate investment success is simply a matter of dollars and common sense!

Good Luck!