{"id":120574,"date":"2019-12-26T14:30:54","date_gmt":"2019-12-26T21:30:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/?p=120574"},"modified":"2021-03-16T14:57:34","modified_gmt":"2021-03-16T20:57:34","slug":"real-estate-investing-veteran-do-differently-if-starting-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/real-estate-investing-veteran-do-differently-if-starting-over","title":{"rendered":"As a Long-Time Real Estate Investor, Here’s What I’d Do Differently If I Was Just Starting Out…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Seasoned investors: If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?<\/p>\n

As someone who has been in the real estate investing industry for more years than I\u2019d like to think about, I often get asked that question. Wouldn\u2019t it be great to have the opportunity? The chance to do it again with the knowledge and experience I have today?<\/p>\n

Of course, I can\u2019t do it all over again\u2014but I can provide suggestions for those just starting out.<\/p>\n

So, what would I do differently, and on the flip side, what things did I get right and wouldn\u2019t change?<\/p>\n

What Would I Recommend to New Investors?<\/h2>\n

First, let me start with a few tried, true, and timeless investing pearls of wisdom. These are things I think most investors would say they wish they had done differently. These pointers stand the test of time, regardless of the market conditions when you start your real estate investing.<\/p>\n

1. Start investing earlier.<\/h3>\n

This is the most obvious one\u2014 just about everyone I know wishes they had started earlier. Time is on the real estate investor’s side. We all know the market has its ups and downs, but the sooner you get in, the easier it will be to ride out the bumps.<\/p>\n

I feel like I got in at a good time, but I would have been able to buy properties even cheaper if I had started earlier.<\/p>\n

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2. Use debt more aggressively.<\/h3>\n

This one dovetails with starting earlier. If you start early, you likely don\u2019t have a ton of cash. So, you need to leverage other people\u2019s money.<\/p>\n

And when you start earlier, you can take on more risk. If some of the deals don\u2019t work out, you\u2019ll have time on your side in terms of recovering.<\/p>\n

3. Take more risks early.<\/h3>\n

This one also ties into starting sooner. As mentioned, if you start early, you can take more risks because you have time on your side.<\/p>\n

What Would I Have Done Differently?<\/h2>\n

Next are things I specifically would have done differently.<\/p>\n

1. Limit the geography of properties.<\/h3>\n

We own properties in five states. I would put more money into fewer markets if I had to do it all over again.<\/p>\n

It has been a lot of work to manage properties in so many locations. We have made money for our investors in the process, but we probably could have grown faster if we hadn\u2019t been as stretched by managing this number of locations.<\/p>\n

2. Delegate sooner.<\/h3>\n

I have built a team over the years, but we probably could have grown faster if I had done this sooner.<\/p>\n

Related:<\/em><\/strong> 5 Smart Tips for Outsourcing & Delegating Work in Your Real Estate Business<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

3. Expand into commercial buildings (from single family homes) quicker.<\/h3>\n

Our commercial projects<\/a> have done very well. I wish I had started this expansion sooner, as there is less competition from buyers in the commercial space.<\/p>\n

\"Storage<\/p>\n

4. Leverage technology better.<\/h3>\n

Especially today, technology can be a fantastic tool for investors. But getting the right technology and knowing how to use it and leverage it to its fullest can be a challenge.<\/p>\n

We started out using Propertyware and found it too complicated. So, we switched to Buildium for a while and soon found it too simplistic\u2014and ended up switching back to Propertyware.<\/p>\n

This switching was painful. I wish I had taken the time to learn Propertyware better from day one to avoid this pain.<\/p>\n

What Wouldn’t I Change About My Investing Journey?<\/h2>\n

Finally, here are a few things to help you get it right from the start, most of which I had the good sense to do and wouldn\u2019t change.<\/p>\n

1. Just start.<\/h3>\n

This can be one of the biggest hurdles for many. You just need to start. And the sooner you do the better.<\/p>\n

Related:<\/em><\/strong> Hesitant to Invest? Hack Your Way Out of Analysis Paralysis<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

2. Get educated.<\/h3>\n

No need to reinvent the wheel here. There are many educational opportunities to take advantage of.\u00a0 And with so much technology available today, it is easier than ever to educate yourself.<\/p>\n

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There are webinars<\/a>, podcasts<\/a>, investment groups, and more. Of course, many “educational” programs are ultimately trying to sell you something. But even so, much can be learned with little to no cash outlay.<\/p>\n

3. Get a mentor.<\/h3>\n

A mentor<\/a> can be an invaluable asset. Believe it or not, there are people out there who are willing to share their expertise\u2014just out of the goodness of their being\u2014without wanting anything in return.<\/p>\n

If you can find one, stick with them and learn as much as you can. Especially if you are on your own, having someone to bounce ideas off can be a tremendous asset.<\/p>\n

4. Stay focused.<\/h3>\n

I attribute at least some of my success to focus. I had a plan and stayed true to that plan in terms of the type of properties I wanted to invest in and my investment strategy.<\/p>\n

It can be easy to get side-tracked as opportunities come along. So I would say, be clear about your goals and objectives, set your strategy, and then stay the course.<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n

Real estate investing is a great business to get into, and I\u2019ve been fortunate. Looking in the rearview mirror, there isn\u2019t too much that I would do differently if I had to do it all over again.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Any tips you’d add to this list? Questions for me?\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Let’s talk in the comment section below.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sure, it’s currently not possible to go back in time and begin certain ventures\u2014like investing in real estate\u2014all over again. But as an industry veteran, if I could, here are the things I’d do sooner, do differently, and do exactly the same as I (fortunately) did when starting out in real estate. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":89170,"featured_media":120378,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5524],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-120574","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-estate-investing-for-beginners"],"acf":[],"comment_count":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120574","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/89170"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120574"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120574\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/120378"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120574"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120574"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120574"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}