The world through the eyes of a Newbie

[Account Closed]

Do you ever stop and think back about when you first got into Real Estate? Or even before that when you were just thinking about getting into Real Estate? What would you go back and tell that naïve person?

When I think back about my foray into Real Estate I would tell myself not to chase down those rabbit holes. I remember how much there was to learn (and still to learn) and how so many different options sounded attractive. That is why the guru’s do so well selling their products. They pitch a dream of fast wealth and people are lining up at the door to buy the dream.

There were wholesaling adventures for me that never were going to pan out. Countless hours wasted on hold trying to negotiate short sales that the banks had no interest in doing. Subject-to properties that I took over and should never have gotten involved in. Fix and flips that taught me the hard knocks road of construction and the incredible costs associated with it. Renters that had more experience being tenants than I had being a landlord and took full advantage. Days wasted listening to guru’s trying to sell their product that I was never going to buy. Endless meetings with sellers who were not motivated. The list goes on and on.

The advice I give people entering the business is pick an aspect and stick with it. Ignore the other shiny objects that will inevitably appear. Doing 5 tasks at 20% does not add up to 100%. ;)

[George Pauley]

I tell potential investors to accept that they WILL make mistake$.  (Spelled with a $ on purpose...)  So many people are afraid to make the first deal because the investment amounts are usually significant (at least to new investors) and they know that they are still novices.  I tell them to get the best deal they can with the knowledge they currently have, and to accept that they will end up regretting some aspects of the deal.  Treat each mistake or regret as a le$$on learned.  Really not a lot different than paying tuition at college.  But making that first deal, and paying for those lessons is how they move from novice to seasoned investor status.  The next investment will better, and the one after that better still.  

(Within reason, if you, as a novice, know the best deal you can currently get is a bad deal, then it almost certainly is a bad deal, and you shouldn't take it.)