You are a byproduct of the people you surround yourself with. It is no surprise that the most successful real estate investors are those with the best people around them. With all of the ebbs and flows that real estate provides, it can be easy to get discouraged at times; however, it is how you act during times of distress that make all the difference. Surrounding yourself with negative people will sooner or later cause you to negatively view the business as well. On the flip side, if you receive continual positive feedback about accomplishing your goals, you eventually will. Here are some of the most common negative voices you will hear and how you should combat them:
- “Investing in that market will never work.” Everyone has a friend, co-worker, or family member that is the known pessimist. They will constantly tell you how bad things are or why you should avoid something. There is a fine line between listening to the advice of others and knowing when to tune voices out. If you have done your homework on a particular market and are confident that there is value there, you shouldn’t be persuaded by anybody. No market is immune to risk. You can always find something negative about it if you look hard enough. This doesn’t mean that one or two negative comments should cause you to turn from an area you believe it. What you will find is that fellow investors are often shaped by their own experiences. They may have had a bad deal in that market and are convinced that everyone else will. If the seeds of doubt have been planted, talk to someone with no affiliation – or a positive affiliation – to the market or your particular deal. Investment club meetings are a great way to find the independent voice you are looking for.
- “Rehabs are way too risky.” Rehabbing a property can be very intimidating, especially if you have never done it before. If you don’t know what you are doing and execute your plan anyway, there is a chance that you will take a loss. As with anything you do in real estate, you need to evaluate the situation on its on merit. A rehab deal could be deemed very risky by someone who went into it with the wrong approach. Listening to someone paint a negative picture of a rehab deal they were involved in can be very convincing. Ignore the people that don’t know the specifics of your individual deal. Some of these people will try to talk you out of it solely based on what may have happened to them. If you need assurance, talk to your contractor and get a second opinion on the numbers. Look at comparable sales and run the worst case scenarios you can think of. If you are still confident, you should move forward and ignore the negative people around you.
- “Rental properties are more trouble than they are worth.” A rental property is a great way to add to or build a portfolio. However, they will not just run themselves. There is a large amount of work that is needed if you are looking to maximize your bottom line. If you don’t take care of the property and the tenants, there will be always be issues that can cause trouble. Someone with a negative opinion on rental properties could have rented to the first available applicant. Perhaps they ignored incoming calls from their tenants every time problems arose. There are a handful of things that landlords can do to impact how they feel about their rental property. This doesn’t mean you will follow their footsteps. If you spend the money and hire a property manager or even commit to taking care of your property yourself, your view may be completely different. A rental property is a great addition but only if you take care of it. If you are on the fence about a rental property talk to some local landlords. Find as much information as you can about the process and what it entails. Form your own opinion and don’t let one bad landlord sway your opinion.
- “Good luck finding deals in this market.” One of the biggest complaints from struggling investors is the lack of deals available in a certain area. The bottom line is that deals will not just fall into your lap. It takes a certain amount of work and dedication to find deals but they are out there. (Especially if you implement some of the fine real estate negotiation tips that are out there.) If you are creative and willing to outwork your competition, there are plenty of deals in any market. They may not be as easy to spot but they are there. With any business, it takes some time to penetrate your market. You will have to network like crazy and call every potential lead that comes your way. Once you close your first deal. you will gain valuable experience and contacts that you can further develop. The negative voices you hear are from investors who expect home run deals to appear out of thin air. No business works this way. Don’t let the people around you convince you to throw your hands in the air and call it quits.
Every networking club and investment group is an opportunity to find like-minded people. You don’t need to agree with everyone on every item but you should share a passion to be successful. These types of people will push you to work harder and find a way to solve your problems. There will always be negative voices in every industry and real estate is no different. The key is to block these voices out and focus on the people that will help your business grow.
