They say it's good to dwell on the positive things in life, but sometimes, it's healthy to hop over to the dark-side for a bit and reflect on some of the wacky (but with good intentions) advice I've received over the years regarding Real Estate, from buying to selling to investing. I'll share some of these events chronologically so you can appreciate the time and setting in which I was the recipient of these tidbits of advice.
Well, a little over 20 years ago, my aunt and uncle used to come over to my apartment at the time a couple of times per week, and they always found me going over the Real Estate section looking for properties. They said I probably spend too much time rsearching and seeing properties. At one point, my Aunt suggested that I should focus on work and just slow down and enjoy life. Why was that bad advice? "Slow down" is the opposite of what a 22-year old should be doing, and "enjoyment" of life is different in every person's own eyes. I worked hard through college and graduated with the equivelant of a 90-degree average to earn my Bachelors Degree. I studied ridiculous hours (ADHD - you have to really cram the information in there!), but wow, did I party, as well! I managed to work during school and sock away some good money, and just had my first home under a Rent to Own Contract, and it was addictive. So, the breaking news on that advice they gave me is that I was very proud of my achievements in school and my initial step into Real Estate Investing. Now, fast forward, and they are now aware that my days of reading the Real Estate section of the newspaper (Pre-Internet "Stone Age" Days) have led me on the path I am on. That little "hobby" of mine has been working out pretty darn good. I make sure to bring up the Real Estate market whenever I see them, as it puts a happy smile on my face. You see that? Real Estate does bring smiles!
During the early 90's, I had been evaluating some developments in Central Florida. I had conflicting advice from some fellow investors. I was warned by some as if I was to avoid the bubonic plague to not throw a single penny into these developments. Of course, I did not heed that advice. Good thing, because a simple investment of $2050 became an equity stake of $35,000 by the mid 90's, and I cashed out. Listen to your little voice inside.
During that same time, I did take bad advice two times, and paid the price for it. The first time, I was advised by two investors who followed the New England market very closely via publications that they ordered in those pre-Internet times. They told me to put everything behind a property in Connecticut, so I invested. As it turns out, somebody missed out that there was a toxic waste/Sewage treatment plan not far away, and the smell kept people from buying in. The place folded and the wrecking ball came in, and I kissed my investment goodbye. Needless to say, I phased out those two woodpecker investors from my circle!
The second time, I had my eyes on a promising piece of land in Maine, in a sectio I was not at all familiar with, but the property adjacent and surrounding tripled in value over 4 years. I needed to get in touch with some local investors, and I made contact with a friend of a friend, and this fella was like a book of everything in that section of Maine. My funds were ready to invest and I was excited. He was so dead-set against this property, saying it was rocky and hard to develop, and showed me a letter from the County actually asking him to invest in it, along with his polite letter of proposal rejection he sent to them in reply. He seemed reasonable in his arguments against the property. Fast forward all of these years, and I am still quite upset with myself for that bad advice, because I missed out on a hotel and a strip-mall, and a price appreciation of more than 25x my would-be invesment! Oddly, I lost "Mr. Maine's" phone number. It's still a mystery today as to how I could have lost it.
So, as you can see, I dodged some bullets, but got caught between the eyes with some others. I remember a friend in the industry warning me not long ago about investing in too many different states. He failed to realize that to ignore hot properties that you have people on the ground you trust to manage it for you is akin to business suicide. Locking yourself into just one market is like putting all of your money on a winning horse. Once he breaks a leg, then what?!
Overall, as I said in the beginning, all of this advice was done with good intentions, but still, that was just some of the worst advice I've ever received about Real Estate.
FYI, more Epson hardware is on it's way for me to review and share with the many of you who have been quite consistent in your requests. Thanks for your patience.
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Happy Thanksgiving!
Have a Great Week, and Happy Rent-to-Owning !
Regards,
Rob Eisenstein
HomeRun Homes - Rent to Own Homes, since 2002
"Located at the Corner of Technology and Real Estate"
Rent to Own Homes and Real Estate Blog for HomeRun Homes: http://blogging.lease2buy.com
HomeRun Homes Websites: http://www.lease2buy.com and http://www.homerunhomes.com
TAGS: #realestate #maine #florida #investment #advice #newengland #developments #centralflorida #realestateinvesting
