Most real estate deals end up going to those who can act the quickest. By the time you finish reviewing your notes on a property in the morning, it may be too late to make an offer later that same afternoon. By the time you get your act together, there may be multiple offers on the property. Unless your offer blows the seller away, you will have missed out on a potentially great deal. This does not mean you have to be hasty and careless with your actions, but you do need to be able to quickly decipher information and be willing to act on your impulses. Time is always of the essence in the real estate industry. The sooner you learn that, the better.
Every time you think you have nothing to do with your day, consider improving your systems so they may be implemented in a moments notice. You need to be able to get an answer back quickly on that referral you got from a fellow investor or a deal your attorney asked you to take a look at. There are very few exceptions where you can take your time and get back to the seller after the weekend. Most deals are very time sensitive and need a decision as quickly as possible. The longer a seller has to wait for you to respond to them, the more likely they will look elsewhere for their answer.
The biggest allure for lenders to accept low ball offers on properties was not the security of a cash closing, but the speed in which a buyer was able to close. Sure, the cash offer was nice, but not as appealing as being able to close in a week. This allowed lenders to quickly clear their books of bad debt and move on. The same theory still applies to many sellers and deals in the current market. It doesn’t matter if you are making an offer, closing on one or looking to turn a property over, the investor who can handle these tasks the quickest will either get the deal, close on time or make the most money.
Every day you hold a property without selling or renting, it is costing you money. Between taxes, insurance and holding costs, you are losing money on that property every day. One day may not seem like much, but one day quickly turns into the end of the week which turns into next week and pretty soon you have an extra month of fees and expenses. If you do this enough times with enough properties over the course of the year, you are easily looking at thousands of dollars. You need to keep this in mind the next time you are lax about scheduling contractors or waiting for an appraisal.
You don’t need to be heavy handed when trying to get things done, but you should realize the sensitive nature of every task. If your realtor isn’t urgent in making offers, you should work with one that is. If your attorney cannot get in touch with the selling attorney, you should look to take your business elsewhere. Some deals you can take your time, but the ones that are time sensitive need to be approached with a sense of urgency. The deal may just depend on it.
