Investors Guide
Real estate has become a popular investment vehicle over the last 50 years. Here’s a look at some of the leading options for individual investors, along with the reasons to invest.
What is Real Estate Investing?
Real estate investing is the educated, strategic, and timely buying and selling of real estate (land and any buildings or improvements on that land) in order to make a profit from either operating income, property value increases, or both.
Any real estate investment entails risk. If you don’t buy the right property at the right time with the right strategy, the investment could lose money. When executed properly, however, real estate investing is one of the most time-tested, reliable ways to amass generational fortunes over time—sometimes in very little time!
Investment Opportunities
There are many ways to build a fortune from real estate investing. Different property classes to consider include:
Residential
Single-family homes, duplexes, and apartment buildings. Everyone has to live somewhere. Note that commercial real estate rules apply to larger apartment buildings.
Retail
Commercial real estate zoned and optimized to sell goods and services to consumers—convenience stores, specialty stores, big-box stores, and restaurants.
Industrial
Commercial real estate zoned for the manufacture and/or storage of goods. Factories, warehouses, plants. May have hazardous chemicals onsite.
Office
Commercial real estate zoned and optimized to sell goods and services to consumers—convenience stores, specialty stores, big-box stores, and restaurants.
Finding the right Investment
There is no one single way to invest in real estate. Investors can profit from property ownership by employing a number of strategies. Picking the right strategy for the property in front of you is half the battle. The wrong strategy attempted on a great property can result in disappointing losses. The right strategy executed on a so-so property can yield outsized returns.
Investment strategies to become educated on include:
- Wholesaling
- Fix & Flip
- Buy & Hold (Rentals)
- Multifamily
- Passive Investments
- Notes
- Lease options
- Seller financing
- Owner Financing
- Vacation Rentals (Airbnb)
- Commercial / Triple-Net Leases
- New Builds
- Short Sales
We Are Investor-Friendly REALTORs®
Most realtors don’t have a clue how to work with investors.
We do. Our clients benefit from our …
Market Knowledge, relevant to real estate investing.
Deal Analysis based on financial viability, not emotions or “gut feeling.”
Team of Experts that can guide even creative transactions to a successful closing.
Common Questions about Investor
Friendly REALTORs®
How do you find deals?
We have access to the multiple listing service (MLS) like all REALTORs® … but we scour it for different things—”fixer-upper” opportunities and motivated sellers that other REALTORs® ignore.
We also work with wholesalers and execute marketing campaigns targeted to distressed sellers, who call us when they are highly-motivated due to dire life circumstances and need to sell fast, often at a discount and under terms favorable to investors.
We also maintain relationships with auction houses, attorneys, investor groups, and REO (i.e. foreclosure) departments of banks with inventory they need to dispose of.
In other words, all the ways the big boys in any investment market find their deals … only we do it for you!
How do you find deals?
We have access to the multiple listing service
Are you investors yourselves?
Yes! We’ve done wholesale deals and invest in short sales, fix-and-flips, new builds, REO, multifamily properties, seller financing, and non-performing notes. As such, we are seasoned experts in identifying good deals for investors.
Why don’t we buy them ourselves? Because more deals come across our desk than we can invest in ourselves, or the time is not right, or the strategy isn’t our preference. Placing deals with our rolodex of professional investors is how we profit even from the great deals we can’t buy ourselves … and we don’t get repeat business unless we do right by our clients. It’s the ultimate win-win.
How long have you been working with investors?
In 2002 we helped our first investor client execute a 1031 exchange. We helped him flip the proceeds of one sale into three separate rental properties, reducing his tax liability by thousands of dollars.
That same year, we represented a group of investors who invested $18 million in constructing new homes on waterfront lots to convert to luxury rentals.
Since then we have brokered seller financing, owner financing, fix-and-flips, wholesale deals, rentals, and lease options across multiple asset classes, including single- and multifamily residential, commercial retail, office, and industrial properties.
We have also assisted with 1031 exchanges and reverse exchanges, Opportunity Zone purchases, self-directed IRA purchases, performing notes, and non-performing notes, as well as commercial and residential leases.
Are you a full-time or part-time REALTOR® agency/brokerage?
Full-time! Real estate is our passion and our life’s work. We are full-time REALTORs®, completely dedicated to shepherding your transaction all the way to the closing table.
Who do you have on your real estate team?
Besides our crack team of investor-friendly REALTORs®, we have assembled a power team of professionals and vendors able to take down even the most creative deals, including:
- Title Companies and Agents.
- Financial Advisors.
- CPAs and Accountants.
- Credit Repair Experts.
- Engineers.
- Architects.
- Builders
- Repair/Renovation Contractors and Subcontractors.
- Property Managers.
- Lenders.
- Banks.
- Private Lenders.
- Insurance Agents.
- Insurance Adjusters.
- Inspectors.
- 1031 Exchange Intermediaries.
- Certified IRA Custodians.
Since real estate deals can fail if they are not properly papered up or defended in court, we also maintain relationships a deep bench of attorneys, with specialties that include:
- Commercial Real Estate.
- Real Estate Litigation.
- Development.
- Probate.
- Asset Protection.
- Estate Planning.
- Corporate Law.
- International Investing.
- Taxation Law.
- Trust Formation.
- Environmental Law.
- Planning And Zoning Law.
- Title Disputes.
- Contract Drafting and Review.
- Landlord-Tenant Issues.
- Foreclosure.
What makes you different from other real estate agents?
Most real estate agents have no clue how to serve real estate investors. They only work with move-in ready houses, pushing emotional buttons on families eager to make a home. When they try to help investors, they try to push those same emotional buttons, without the first idea of how successful investors evaluate property.
Investing is our passion and our hobby. We immerse ourselves in the economic fundamentals of our target real estate markets and can offer expert advice on such guiding indicators as:
- Market vacancy rates.
- Rental and sale absorption rates.
- After-repair value (ARV) analysis.
- Salve price vs. list price ratio.
- Average days on market.
- Return on investment (ROI) calculation.
- Net operating income (NOI) and cap rate analysis.
- Cash flow analysis.
Our deep experience in real estate investing can help you identify profitable strategies for a property you might have otherwise passed on. For example, a property that would make a bad rental might make an excellent lease-option. Our team of seasoned professionals is always on hand to help make your investment effortless and stress-free.
What are your credentials?
Our certifications and designations include:
- RENE / Real Estate Negotiation Expert.
- ABR / Accredited Buyer’s Representative.
- CIPS / Certified International Property Specialist.
- GREEN / NARs Green Designation.
- CLMS / Certified Luxury Home Specialist
- CCIM / Certified Commercial Investment Member.
- Intro Course
- 101 Financial Analysis for Investment Commercial Real Estate
- 102 Market Analysis for Investment Commercial Real Estate
- MCNE / Master Certified Negotiation Expert
How do I compare with other investors you have worked with?
We have worked with first-time investors with limited budgets, seasoned veterans with millions of dollars to deploy, and everything in between! Wherever you are in your investing career, we can help!
Have more questions about how we help investors like you build your real estate empire? Contact us today!
