Investing Trends

Most people just starting out in real estate investing focus on buzz phrases like, "property analysis" and "due-diligence". The relationship between these two is important to any real estate investor, both experienced and inexperienced alike. The other aspect that is equally important, if not more important is self-analysis.

Now I don't mean psychological self-analysis either. Self-analysis is about taking a good look at your own financial situation, knowledge of investments, resources, strengths and weaknesses, and personal preferences. When we first began our real estate investment company, we agreed that personal guarantees for loans for any project for the company was not in our best interest. This is an example of a personal preference. This obviously has an impact on how we conduct our business.

Many real estate investors face the reality of having to borrow money in order to begin purchasing real estate. A great place to start analysing is your own wallet. Then match that to your personal preferences. For instance, if you were to consider buying a "fixer upper" and you had $5000 in your bank account. You would have to consider your options based not only on the amount of money in your bank account, but also the implications of borrowing money. This includes your credit, your personal assets, your family situation and the risks involved.

Bullets are always nice, so here are some to help you focus on what should be considering before "going for broke" (which is what you want to avoid):

Money in bank


Access to more money if needed


Credit

Possible risks to credit


What do these risks mean to you (how much do you care about them)?


Family - how will this effect your family?


Current assets


Current debts

Take these bullets and then match them to the following:

What are the potential problems that may arise?


How well prepared are you to handle these challenges?


How well do you handle pressure?


What experience do you have?


What are some resources you can use that can help you?


What money sources can you access if needed?


Who do you know that can help you?


How can you meet people that can possibly help you?


Do you want to do what it takes to actually start meeting people in the business?


What if you lose all your money?


What if your credit is destroyed?


What if you lose everything you have?

On a scale of 1 - 10 (1 = Absolutely No Risk and 10 = Extremely High Risk), how risky is the investment strategy?

Those "what if" questions are probably the most scary out of the bunch and they are also the root of what keeps many people from taking the first step toward making that first real estate investment or starting their own business. Regardless of these questions, if you want to start investing in real estate or start your own business, these questions have to be asked honestly.

But look at the entire list also! Part of the power of the "what if" questions are that they overshadow all the other options. The self-analysis you do is an absolute must. Any person who is considering real estate investing as a viable option for wealth building has to answer these questions on their own. No one can answer them but you.

Self-analysis is important because knowing yourself is the first building block to success. You've got to understand yourself and be honest. If you sugarcoat it, you will ultimately fail. There are so many different ways to begin a career or business in real estate, it's almost unbelievable. But no matter what path you choose, you've got to sit down and look at yourself seriously. Where there are strengths, grow them and where there are weaknesses, work on them. Real estate investment success or business success in general, does not happen overnight, neither does self-analysis. Sit down, figure it out. Then go out and make money!

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