I think I want to be a Real Estate Investor – Now What?

You wake up one morning to find that you’re, quite literally, dragging yourself out of bed. You’ve been in the same job for years and you can reasonably predict how your day will end even before it officially began. To make a long story short, a change is definitely in order. Over a quick shower and a mug of your favorite coffee, you briefly put your situation in a nutshell. You have decent savings in the bank and you badly want to do something different, something that will allow you to learn new things and meet different people.

In a burst of sudden inspiration, you ask yourself: why not become a real estate investor?

The start of a dream: real estate investing

Getting inspired to venture into real estate investing can be very exciting. For one thing, it takes you away from the drab – or at least, ordinary – day to day life you’re accustomed to, and instead transports you to a promising future where you have more control of your time, make a lot of money, and do interesting things. You start reading about successful investors, motivating yourself about the possibility that you too can make it in the ever changing and highly challenging world of real estate.

However, getting interested in real estate investing is just the start of a long, long journey. Just because you’ve read a handful of blogs or books doesn’t automatically make you knowledgeable in the field. So once you’ve made the decision to enter into real estate, the question to ask now is this: what’s next?

Facing reality: assessing your personal situation

Just like in any other business, real estate demands that you consider a lot of things. You need to evaluate, for instance, the time you’re willing to dedicate for the business, your knowledge on real estate, your marketing know-how, and, of course, how much money you can afford to invest. If you have all of the above, then you’re in an ideal situation to do real estate.

But life isn’t always like that, is it? If you find that you’re missing a factor or two, would you go back on your decision and give up on real estate already? The answer to that, if you’re really serious, would a no. Sure it would be more difficult to succeed if you’re starting from a long way behind, but it won’t be impossible.

Marrying dream with reality: upgrading your skills and knowledge

If you’re relatively new in real estate, your best move is to associate yourself with people who are experts in the field. Get to know real estate investors who are willing to mentor you and help you get a good overview of real estate. You can also join real estate investing clubs to help you expand your network and to keep yourself updated with the latest trends. A real estate organization, for instance, is a great venue to access learning materials and an ideal platform to find business associates or partners.

Take the time to meet with your new mentors and peers regularly; you learn a lot of things that way. Now, if you want to be more hands on, you can opt to offer some work free of charge in exchange for insights in the real estate business. For example, you can help with marketing or inspect some properties – anything, really, that can aid the Realtor in expanding the business.

Remember that learning about real estate is a continuous process. You need to get basic overview of investing strategies by reading books, attending educational presentations, and participating in workshops. Once you have a good grasp, you can widen your horizon through courses and apprenticeships as JV partners.

In the end, you need to weigh all your options well and make an educated decision. Real estate doesn’t offer any guarantee, but with due diligence and sufficient research, you can become successful at it.

Written by CanadaREIC Founder:

Jarek Bucholc

Canada Real Estate Investors Club
"Run By Investors for Investors"
http://www.canadareic.com/

Call Us @ 403 668 8666 ext 701

Email :[email protected]