Myth – You will get rich overnight
If you listen to the late night gurus on tv, read their books, go to their seminars, you might believe that one form of real estate investing or another will make you a millionaire over night – or at least by the end of the week. Reality is, real estate investing is no different in terms of effort and energy than any other means of producing real wealth.
It takes time to find the right investments of any kind. It takes time to learn the ropes. It takes time for assets to appreciate (either by waiting, fixing up, getting a deal someone else will pay more for, etc). It takes time for real estate transactions to close. It takes time to build a network of people to facilitate your own endeavors.
Myth – That late-night TV stuff doesn’t work
It is a fact that very few people who purchase guru products make money. This does not mean that the methods taught by the gurus don’t work – most do. The key word is work, and the potential investor must do the work. You can convince yourself that anything won’t work and you will be right. If you take to heart what is taught and adapt it to your own situation (remember, no one thing works for everyone) and put forth the effort, you can succeed. Probably not as fast as advertised and don’t expect checks as big as shown in the testimonials; but that does not mean the system does not work.
Myth – Real estate investing is easy
Let’s face it; if it were easy everyone would be a real estate millionaire! There have been many people who have lost everything because they went in blindly thinking anyone can do it without effort. The reality is it takes effort to acquire the know-how to succeed. Real estate investing is definitely something almost everyone can learn, but it is like anything else new, there is a learning period. Once a method is learned well, the real estate investor can make a very good living with it, but can be quite an uphill road full of potholes in the beginning.
Myth – Money is not needed to invest in real estate
Another often touted “benefit” of real estate investing is “No money needed!” Let’s be real here. Nobody is going to give you his or her home just because you make a phone call. It takes money for education. It takes money to drive out to look at properties. It takes money to print fliers. It takes money to acquire real estate, even if it is only $10. it takes money to mail out fliers. I once signed up for a no money needed tutorial and one of the first questions we were asked was could we commit $300 a month to advertising! So much for no money.
Myth – You need money to make money
Though it was just said you do need money, you do not need a lot of money. The reality is, in the real estate world, if you have taken the time and effort to find a truly good real estate deal, the money will appear. Remember, in the first myth, it takes time to find others. Money is where those “others” can be a tremendous asset to you.
Myth – With a full time job, a spouse, and children, there is no time.
In this day and age with sports and school and all the other things that claim out time, finding time for one more thing may seem daunting. For most of us, however, if we really want something, somehow the time materializes. Spend a week or two and keep an accurate record of how you have spent every minute of each day. Things like watching TV or reading entertainment magazines might take more time than you realize. What about having the children take over some of the day to day chores. There is nothing wrong with teaching a 10 year old how to do laundry, load a dishwasher, and vacuum a room. Might even help them break the TV habit. Use the time saved to learn about real estate investing, research, etc. If you are looking to flip or wholesale, have the family go on ugly house drives. Let the kids know what you are looking for and you might get leads from their friends who live next door to an ugly house.
Myth – There is too much competition.
What sounds like competition is often wishful thinking. Two investors in the same neighborhood, investor #1 finds deals and the investor #2 feels there are no deals because investor #1 is getting them all. Now investor #3 comes along and sees 2 others working the territory and leaves due to competition. Reality is, he who makes the first BEST offer gets the deal. If investor #2 and #3 were to act instead of just look, they would have deals too. Investor #1 cannot be on top of all deal at the same time. Deal density varies from location to location, but reality is there are more deals than people who know what to do with them.
Myth – Real estate agents will not cooperate with investor
Like anything else, some will, some won’t. There are a lot of agents out there who rely on investors for their commissions. It can be a really sweet deal for agents that understand investing. They are in the position of helping you find a property and helping you find a buyer. Sure, they need to be paid, but that is what having a team is about. What’s it worth to you to have properties and buyers brought to you?
