How to be a successful property investor


Winners are winners for a reason. Success doesn’t simply come to anyone. In fact, there are certain characteristics that make you a winner and that lead to success.

The same goes for being a successful property investor. There are certain traits that determine whether you will fail or whether you will persevere and succeed.

Have Specific Goals and Stick to Them

First step: Come up with a specific plan detailing all of your future goals.

Second step: Write it down.

You don’t go grocery shopping without a plan and a list of what-to-do and what-to-get, so why would you go into real estate investment without doing the same? So before you begin, make sure you know exactly what it is that you want to achieve.

Now that you have the plan, stick to it. Try your hardest to achieve all the goals you had mapped out. It is also advisable to, go over your plan and review it , once in awhile. Update it if needed and adapt it to your needs, your means and your abilities.

Do Your Homework

You don’t need to be an expert in real estate investing. However, you do need to know the basics.

Get some independent, expert advice from someone experienced in the field of property portfolio management; someone who can guide you and navigate you through the plethora of information. While all the new facts and figure might be overwhelming at the beginning, it is crucial that you put in the effort and time to educate yourself.

Find out about the market situation. What are the best areas to buy a property in? Is the area popular among other property investors? What are the average prices there? Has the area improved in the past few years?

Before you sign over all your savings and funds, familiarise yourself with the expenses you can expect and check whether you can afford them. How much, for instance, will the mortgage insurance be? Will you be able to cover other expenses such as council rates, body corporate fees, maintenance and water service costs? If you won’t be able to manage the property yourself, what is the cost of a property manager? Don’t forget to also include the costs caused by tenant damage, such as wear and tear!

It’s a Business, Not a Hobby

As mentioned above, real estate investment is no walk in the park. So if you’re planning to treat it as nothing but a pastime, it is best that you stop right there.

Property portfolio management is a business and it should be treated as such. This is not the place to be lazy, casual, irrational, or emotional. It is not a hobby that you can pick up or drop whenever you feel like it. To be successful in this field, you will have to act the part, and be professional and serious about your business.

Of course, professionals are organised at all times and know when to utilise software to their advantage. There are providers out there who release intuitive, innovative property portfolio management software that can help track details regarding your tenants and properties as your portfolio grows and develops.

Commitment, Persistence, and Positivity

In order to be successful in life, you need to commit, to persevere, and to maintain a positive attitude no matter what. Same goes for real estate investment.

● Commitment:

Set aside a fixed amount of time to take care of your duties and responsibilities as a property investor. Check out the current situation of your properties. See whether there is anything that perhaps needs to taken care of — be it on-site or paperwork. How are your investments performing?

● Persistence:

Being an investor is no easy task. Not by any means. Chances are that you will struggle. Chances are even higher, in fact, that you will at some point stumble and fall. And that’s okay. It’s okay to not get it right all the time.

What’s important is that you won’t let one failure discourage you. Don’t see the lack of success as defeat but as a chance to learn from your mistakes.

No one is born a successful real investor. It is a case of trial and error. Remember, what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. So if you do happen to fall down, get up, brush the dust off your shoulders, and try again.

● Positivity:

There are three types of people in the world.

Firstly, there are those that don’t even try. Those that have given up on their dreams, avoid doing any hard work, and live through borrowed dreams. Then there are those that have tried, but were defeated by one failure and didn’t dare to get up and try again.

Lastly, there are winners. Those that won’t admit defeat. Those that keep trying. Those that remain positive no matter what.

Be that person. Stay positive. Believe in yourself, in your dreams, and in your work. Life won’t always work out the way you want it to, but what makes a winner is their attitude and ability to take what he or she’s been given and work successfully with that.

About the author:

Yaakov Smith is an entrepreneur who is passionate about providing creative solutions to everyday business issues. He is the owner and founding manager of Logican Solutions Ltd, which offers a range of industry specific products, including claims management, debt management and property portfolio management.