WHAT IS YOUR BUSINESS PLAN??

Question

Hey BP,

Yes, ANOTHER question like this..

I am curious to know what your business plan is.

I would like to have as many people chime in as possible on this

What is your goal for your company?

Do you even have a business plan?

Let's hear it!

George P. · Answer

you can waste all the time you want to create a plan and hope to use it one day. or you can go and buy a property to flip or rent.

on the bright side,  if the plan is thick enough it can be used as a door stop.

Brandon Turner · Answer

I have an "informal" business plan, not something totally written down. I want 100 units, all cash flowing an average of $100 per month. How I get there... that's the fun part !

Bret Emry · Answer

This reminds me of a DFMEA in the engineering world. It is a document that is created during the design process to define and address any foreseeable issues. It usually doesn't mean much after the design is completed, it is just a formal tool used to help think through the whole design in detail. These can be used as door stops once they're finished, but can be a very helpful tool to guide the engineer through the details initially.

I think a business plan can be very helpful insofar as is it used as a tool to help you think through your business, not necessarily as a set of rules that dictates the decisions you make.

Jeff McCaskey · Answer

love what George P. had to say!!!!

Seems to me that making a biz plan sounds like a good professional idea and may work for some people in some ways but honestly....... In many ways seems like a waste of time overall. How will you know what opportunities will come up in the future and if you will jump on them or not...???? What will you do, say "oh I can't do that because it isn't in my biz plan", or "gee this is a screaming deal but before I get this deal under contract I need to change my biz plan again so I know what I'm doing"??? Answer is NO!!!

Define some direction to start out in, one that's comfortable, know what you know and know what you don't know, and start figuring things out. Get a deal under your belt, redefine things, then pursue another deal. As a person matures as an investor different paths will appear and either be passed up or followed depending on where a person wants to go and how they want/can get there. I don't see how plans mean shi..... I make plans all the time, daily, and then the natural course of events tends to dictate how closely those plans get followed - they don't last very long.

Goals on the other hand are great!

Stone Teran · Answer

I have:

1. A budget for rental operations

2. A formal analysis for each acquisition as they present themselves

3. No business plan for my future acquisitions since each opportunity is so unique that it blows all my estimates and assumptions out of the water.

Elizabeth S. · Answer

I've never used a business plan but I see the benefit of one if you are working with a lender or a business partner and they want everything in more detail. I plan on owning my properties until I die and passing them along to my kids. Until then, I plan on adding to my portfolio to increase cash flow until I have hit the cash flow goal I've set. I have criteria on the types of properties I purchase, but again those can be adjusted based on the actual numbers of a property. This is in summary...my business plan!

Tyrone Green · Answer

Any Washington State folks wanna chime in on this topic? I'd like to get a local take on this topic as well.

Everett, Seattle, Federal Way, Tacoma, Olympia, maybe Portland or Oregon in general?

Tyrone Green · Answer

Thanks @Thomas Hart,

Funny you say that because I myself have a business partner and we absolutely policize EVERYTHING. It is mandatory, no exceptions.

Thomas Hart · Answer

I guess I would question whether you are partnering with someone.  If one is going into business by themselves then a plan might seem wasteful, but if you are going into it with partners or trying to find partners a business plan sounds more necessary.

Tyrone Green · Answer

@George P., That was AWESOME!

@Jeff McCaskey, Thanks for your fresh perspective, I agree!

WHAT IS YOUR BUSINESS PLAN??

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