Lunch With A “Minnesota Real Estate Investor”
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I recently had lunch with a gentleman (I'll call him "Jack") who opted into the MN investment property program on my website. Jack is a 50-something guy who was eager to tell me all about his love for investing, experience and everyone he knows in the investing world... |
I asked Jack how long he had been investing, and very proud of himself and his experience, he proclaimed that he'd been investing for more than 20 years now! --- "pretty good", I thought - most people who seek me out are more beginner to intermediate (5 years or less, on average). Then I asked him how many properties he currently owned (must be quite a few after 2+ decades, right?). And the answer he had surprised me a bit...
...He said he didn't actually OWN any properties yet!
As it turns out Jack never did ACTUALLY PURCHASE anything... nor did he have a job, or any money to put down. Oh, and I almost forgot... his credit score is trashed and he wanted to know if I was hiring...
Now I'm not gonna insult Jack - God bless his enthusiasm & effort, but I (all too often) get e-mails, voice mails, and "ask a question" forms (submitted on my site) - from many others who have a few issues similar to Jack.
...If you're feeling a little like Jack, and you want to STOP PRETENDING that you are a Minnesota real estate investor and actually BE one - here is my advise... (remember - I promise you no B.S. - so this is honest-feedback!)
I will NEVER tell you that you cannot invest in real estate - YOU ABSOLUTELY CAN DO IT - but I will tell you that if you are truly committed to making money with real estate - as with most other great things in life (your marriage, relationship with your kids, your health) you won't get somethin' for nothin' - you will have to WORK at it.
If you don't have good credit, any money to put down, and no job for that matter - the EASIEST route I can suggest for you is this simple 3 step plan:
1. Get a job - (maybe even 2 jobs, if that better supports your goals).
2. Repair your credit - get caught up on your credit-cards and bills and raise your credit score.
3. Save some money to start buying real estate with.
The other route you can take is to become a full-time real estate investor. This means you are working at it 50-80+ hours per week - doing EVERYTHING imaginable to find and purchase properties with poor credit and no money down. I won't lie to you, this CAN be done, but it's not easy, so be prepared to work VERY HARD for it!
Like I said, the easiest route is the first one, but no matter what you decide - you must decide to take "massive-action" and do the kind of things that OTHER successful real estate investors are doing, and work hard for it. 
