How to Decide Where the Best Use of Your Time and Money is in Real Estate Investing

Get up, put your shoes on, and let’s go. 

It’s time to decipher where you belong and how you can make the best use of your time and your money.

• Yes – these are the deciding factors that allow us to take action.  

Finally! Yes! Are you excited!? 

Good…or maybe not quite yet? 

Okay – that makes sense, since we haven’t discussed any action plans or arrived at what the actionable items are… 

Good feedback – I got you.

Let’s get started…

Finding a Strategy

When I was growing up, I knew real estate was the option I wanted, although it is one of my many entrepreneurial aspirations. 

Real estate investing for beginners is a vast topic although early on you don’t realize that. 

Real estate is literally everything on land including the land…

Quite often I pondered – like “…To what strategy will I apply myself and what is the best use of my money – for the highest and fastest return on investment!?” 

Maybe you’ve asked yourself this same question. 

Well, this is where the quest begins. 

After you identify the passion, the task then becomes a necessity to seek out sources of information to help gather information. 

After you’ve gathered enough information, you’ll eventually develop your action plan. 

This is what I want to show you today. Options… 

Specifically, this is why I started with tax lien investing (reference “Is this your beginning?” blog) – due to the low barrier of entry, huge potential rewards (or return on investment) and it didn’t require a lot of my time or money.  

Bam! “This is one strategy I will take on, but I must know the details…” I thought as I became more and more intrigued with the process. 

After all, I didn’t have a lot of money, but the reward potential was huge. 

But, just like with everything real estate, its a law of averages (more to come later on the ‘law of averages’ topic)…

Compatibility With Your Lifestyle

I worked a corporate job that I really enjoyed and was very passionate about. 

Therefore, my foundation of both my passions could occur simultaneously. 

I could invest on a national scale with tax liens, (due to the auctions being online and in person), and continue working corporately knowing that relocation was also apart of that plan. 

Behind the relocation ideal, my plan was to invest in each city I moved to, only to rent out the property I purchased when I moved again. 

 I knew I would live in a city approximately 2 – 4 years before relocating again. 

 So, this strategy worked well along with my tax lien investing strategy. 

Getting Started

So, then I began.

I actually bought real estate (with down payment assistance – or grants) before I actually had a management role! I chose to put the fire under me…so to speak…

Eventually, through that management role I earned multiple promotions and moved to new cities three times.

So actually I took part in three investment strategies – buy and hold, first-time home buyer with down payment assistance and investing in tax liens – while pursuing my corporate career. 

By finding the investment strategies that support your lifestyle, you too can decide what works for you. 

How About You?

So, enough about me and my ‘why’s’ behind my initial real estate investing strategies. 

That was just enough to let you know a little about my journey and why I choose the investment strategies I did without taking too long. 

Stay tuned faithful readers-future leaders to “blogs from the non-blogger” and I will continue to spread love! 

I aim to inspire and promote positive action. 

Next, let’s look at some investment options to contemplate applicable strategies for you.

Optional Real Estate Investment Strategies:

• Note: For each strategy, place yourself according to what fits your lifestyle, sustainability, interest, and the educational/monetary – barrier of entry.

1) Purchase wholesale land; and a) resale the land for profit, b) place a mobile home (or mobile homes) on it for cash flow or c) develop your own home on the land.

2) Learn the qualifications and apply the preparation and tasks for utilizing first time home buyer programs allowing you down payment assistance from a forgivable loan. USDA & VA loans are also an eligible source for this type of strategy due to the eligibility of 100% financing. See a great source here (or eBook here).

3) House Hack – Purchase a single family home or a residential multi-family home as your primary residence and rent rooms or units that you won’t occupy yourself for profit.

4) Learn to wholesale or bird dog – bringing opportunities to investors for profit.

5) Learn how tax lien investing works and invest in them by attending auctions either online or in-person. See a great source here (or eBook here).

6) Learn how tax deed investing works and invest in them by attending auctions either online or in-person. See a great source here (or eBook here).

7) Learn and apply the knowledge of purchasing profitable bank foreclosure property online or in person.

8) Purchase a commercial property to lease out to a second party for cash flow or perhaps run your own retail business there. See a great source here (or eBook here).

9) Purchase a performing multi-family apartment building that cash flows and preferably appreciates – and hold it long term. See a great source here (or eBook here).

10) Purchase a SFR or MFR that has value adding potential that you will buy, renovate, refinance, rent and repeat this strategy. See a great source here.

11) Partner with several trusted individuals putting your capital together to invest in a mutual interest and a mutual exit plan strategy.

12) Learn and apply the skillset of investing in “notes” or the paper/document that holds the agreement between the buyer and the lender or lender/owner.

13) Learn to fix and flip properties for profit.

14) Use a 203k or HomeStyle Renovation loan to purchase a primary residence at a discount while adding value by performing the renovations creating equity. 

Okay, that’s enough, although I could keep going. 

• Well, did anything resonate with you? 
• Where is the best use of YOUR time and YOUR money?  

Conclusion

You’d have to start with how much money and time you have, and then choose a strategy that fits your current passion and capability. 

• Who’s your lending source? 
• Do you have lots of money but no time?
• Do you have no money but lots of time?

My motive is to get your thoughts flowing, identify a capable strategy and inspire you to begin to take action.  

That action is research and education first.  No devotion – EQUALS no reward. Period. 

Know that action is the start of your engine.  

Don’t sit idling when you have a perfectly good engine!  

You’re wasting gas! 

Notice the metaphor because some of us will be Yugo’s and some of us may be Lamborghinis! 

It doesn’t matter – just get started. 

Love and best wishes on your journey… 

• Be sure to subscribe for weekly content here and get 15% off your first purchase!

But tell me, where will you start and why? I’m curious. Please comment.