When I bought my first rental property back in 2012, I didn’t belong to any real estate investing groups or socialize with other investors. I stuck to the market I was familiar with (Austin, TX) and ran the numbers to find and evaluate my own deals. I went on to buy a fourplex and two more duplexes in the Austin area (you can read my story here), all of which have appreciated in value and continue to provide great cash flow.
In 2021, I decided it would be nice to have some camaraderie in the real estate world, so I started going to meetups, joining online groups, and reading the latest articles in the real estate space. I met some amazing people, but I also got sucked into following the pack into the latest trends:
Put all of your money into multifamily apartment syndications for a 2x return! (Two of my syndication investments are now looking at a 100% loss.)
Buy Short Term Rental cabins in the Smokies to get rich! (I bought two, and now short-term rental revenue is down 46% in that market.)
I got caught up in the hype and started listening to ‘gurus’ promoting the next big trend, while losing sight of my personal real estate skills and knowledge that had driven my success. And unfortunately it’s going to cost me financially.
These days I still love meeting other investors (especially women!), and I keep up with important real estate news, but I take everything with a healthy dose of skepticism and avoid getting wrapped up in ‘gurus’ trying to sell me on their latest schtick. I stick to markets I know and asset classes I prefer and am still finding cash-flowing deals that I feel good about to continue growing my portfolio.
The moral of the story: Run your own numbers, trust your gut, and be okay being the lone wolf creating your own wealth.
If you want more education on evaluating markets and running the numbers on your own deals, sign up for the waitlist for our Real Estate Investing Primer online class here.
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