Are you Interested or COMMITTED?
So, you're checking out BiggerPockets...that means you are at least 'interested' in learning more about real estate investing. But, are you really COMMITTED?
Over the years I often talk to acquaintances who indicate they would like to be real estate investors, but have not yet made the leap. It's easy to see that they really are envious of the work that we have done to acquire our $3M rental property side hustle. While this may (or may not...depending on your personal perspective) sound like a lot of property, consider that it has taken us over 11 years to acquire this portfolio and at some point it required us to jump from being 'interested' and to become 'committed' to the process.
The purpose of this post is to talk about the difference between being 'interested' vs. being 'committed'. The way I see it, many of those acquaintances who I talk to are merely 'interested', but they have not yet made the leap to 'committed'. What's the difference? Interested real estate investors are those who sit on the sidelines and dream about getting 'just the right circumstances' and hope for a day when they might have a real estate portfolio. They make excuses(consciously or sub-consciously) as to why today isn't the right day for them, why they can't find enough money to get started, why they can't find the right property or they justify why they can't begin the process. As an old boss told us once, 'you are standing waist deep in water complaining about how thirsty you are'. There's opportunity around all of us, if we look in the right place. Now, there's a big difference between jumping blindly into something vs. doing your homework and penciling out the numbers to see if the investment makes sense. I am in no way advocating that someone jump before looking and understanding. However, the act of doing research on your market, seeking out investors, getting your **** together financially and following home/rental prices are all part of the process of being 'committed'. You are committing time to learning and researching which puts you closer to 'jumping', so to speak.
Committed investors are always looking, researching, thinking, building networks with key people (bankers, agents, contractors, other investors, etc) to educate themselves and prepare themselves for when the time IS right for them to jump (that could be today, next week or next year). This way they can 'jump' when they find a deal that makes sense to them and where the numbers pencil out. For example, through my research I have found a resource where I can buy new mobile homes directly from the factory using a bank that will finance the deal for no money out of my pocket for a year. Let me say that again in a different way, through my research and asking questions and trying to find a solution to a problem (I needed more capital to buy more mobile homes to fill my parks...), I have now found a massive win/win solution that helps me fill my parks, helps the bank finance more deals, helps the factory sell more homes and helps customers with poor credit get financing...this is a massive game changer for our portfolio. On the other hand, I could have sat and complained that I didn't have enough capital to continue to grow my portfolio and only dreamed about the next steps (i.e., that would be 'interested'). But, continuing to look for solutions, doing research, talking to others and penciling out numbers are all part of being 'committed' to the process of learning and finding solutions. It's not easy, but it's a difference maker and takes some effort and thought to look in the right area.
One of my favorite videos that highlights this difference in people (i.e., the difference between those who are 'interested' in changing their outcomes in life vs. those who are 'committed') is from Angela Duckworth who has done a lot of study on what makes people tick. She calls this ability to overcome short term obstacles to achieve long term goals, GRIT. In other words, GRITTY people persevere in the face of challenges to achieve a better future. Check out her video here .
So, are you 'interested' or are you 'committed' to your real estate investing?
Rudy
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