Despite the constant change and evolution in the modern world, some things remain constant. The old saying that there is no safer investment than bricks and mortar is, perhaps, the best example.
Property is the investor’s safe harbor, and it is how more than 30 of America’s billionaires acquired their wealth. However, there is more to becoming a successful property entrepreneur than simply buying everything you can and waiting for the money to start rolling in.
Best Tips To Achieve Success As A Property Entrepreneur
Proceed With Caution
Study the market and read all the books you like. You will learn all the really useful knowledge through experience, and that will inevitably mean a few mistakes when you are starting out.
Start with a modest investment property, such as a small house or apartment. At the same time, you cut your teeth and get to grips with everything from how transaction costs can mount up during the purchase to the day-to-day surprises that owning a tenanted property can throw your way.
Understand The Market
A fundamental truth of any business is that if it’s easy and barriers to entry are low, everyone will be doing it, and margins will be tight. You hear lots of the same old advice about property investment, such as the wisdom of buying properties near universities for students.
Yes, you will get a tenant with no problem, but no, you won’t be joining Billionaire’s Row any time soon.
Think outside the box and look at less obvious alternatives – for example, short-term lets through platforms like AirBnB are in constant demand in both urban and rural locations and can deliver impressive yields.
Don’t Stint On Quality
To a certain extent, we are back to the topic of student accommodation here. A word to the wise – we are not living in the 1980s anymore, and offering “cheap and cheerful” accommodation and then stinting on care and maintenance will spiral into disaster.
It can also leave you with a damaged reputation and all sorts of potential liabilities. Make sure essentials such as regular redecoration, safety checks on gas and electricity, building security, and pest control in your investment property are treated as a high priority, with no compromise!
Buy With The Head, Not The Heart
When viewing a property as an investor, you need to have a completely different perspective and mindset than someone viewing it as a potential home. Your personal view of what you would do if you lived in it is irrelevant.
Having said that, when you view a property, it’s hard to avoid feeling this way to a certain extent. Seeing it from the tenant’s perspective is one thing.
Buying a cottage in the middle of nowhere because it reminds you of something from your childhood is another matter and will come back to haunt you when it stands vacant, unappealing to tenants and burns more money by the day.
