All Topics / Help Needed! / What’s YOUR biggest property investing problem?

Viewing 20 posts - 1 through 20 (of 29 total)
  • Profile photo of danchoi180danchoi180
    Member
    @danchoi180
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 6

    I've been looking and investing in property in the last 3 years and am about to complete my development project. Throughout the 3 years though, my background is quite analytical and as a result I always find myself in 'analysis paralysis' rather than taking action on opportunities. Surprisingly, my biggest problem has been more mental (making up excuses) than knowledge or skills. So, I was wondering what other investors are experiencing whether they be new to property investing or have already started on their journey.  

    So my question is, "What's YOUR biggest problem when it comes to property investing?"

    Profile photo of tommytuckertommytucker
    Participant
    @tommytucker
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 82

    Not getting the right advice. I jumped into a subdivision deal which would have turned out ok however I didn't know what I was doing, how to do it, nor what to do. 

    Lesson learned, spend the money to get the advice of a town planner or whomever it may be then engage someone to help if you are unsure of the process.

    Profile photo of Richard TaylorRichard Taylor
    Participant
    @qlds007
    Join Date: 2003
    Post Count: 12,024

    Must admit I am surprised how many investors I come across are so unprepared or ill advised when it comes to property investing generally.

    I guess it is the reason why I started the TFS buyers agency division headed up by JacM who is a long standing forum contributor and property investing expert.

    Cheers

    Yours in Finance

    Richard Taylor | Australia's leading private lender

    Profile photo of danchoi180danchoi180
    Member
    @danchoi180
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 6

    Cool thanks guys, sounds like most of the time its a lack of knowledge to get going from your responses.

    @tommytucker its great to hear that you were able to find the right advice to help you move forward.

    @qlds007 great to hear there are people out there helping others in property investing

    If there are any other viewpoints it would be great to hear!

    Profile photo of wilko1wilko1
    Participant
    @wilko1
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 510

    Not many people learn to ride a bike on their first go.

    Property investing can be similar. Your first deal will never be your best deal, so just accept that. Envisage to make a profit or buy in a good area, try to buy the right property. But when you buy your 10th or 100th property, the knowledge you gained along the way will help you to make better choices.

    But if you never start you will never get there. So be prepared to make mistakes as a lot of people are afraid to make mistakes. Don't make a huge mistake though that your sent broke and be sensible about slowly increasing the size and scope of your investing to match your level of expertise.

    When you ask a property investor about their most valuable lesson that they would of learnt, Invariable it would of been a lesson that cost them some money. But those are the lessons that you remember and wont make again.

    Profile photo of Colin RiceColin Rice
    Participant
    @fms
    Join Date: 2011
    Post Count: 338

    Weighing up decisions with the fact that I have a wife and three little ones and another on the way counting on me to "get it right".

    Selling properties to make a capital gain rather than holding for the long term.

    Not becoming an MB sooner!

    I have a good life and definitely not complaining and as I read recently "The deal of a life time comes along once a week if your looking".

    Colin Rice | CDR Finance
    http://cdrfinance.com.au/
    Email Me | Phone Me

    Perth Based Mortgage Broker - Investment Property Finance Specialist | E: [email protected]

    Profile photo of tommytuckertommytucker
    Participant
    @tommytucker
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 82

    Colin, are you saying that you previously sold for the gain and now are of the buy and hold persuasion? I'm still struggling with the idea of being able to realise as much gain in the same period of time (short term) with a simple buy and hold strategy. See the below post.

    https://www.propertyinvesting.com/forums/general-property/4349149

    Profile photo of BoughtWithEquityBoughtWithEquity
    Participant
    @boughtwithequity
    Join Date: 2013
    Post Count: 68

    Time!  I need more hours to run through all of the deals that come my way these days.  I create shared housing in my market and have more renters coming at me than there is time to place.  I really could use another 12 hours in the day in order to balance biz & family better!

    Profile photo of Heinz57Heinz57
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    @heinz57
    Join Date: 2012
    Post Count: 26

    Invest in the area I know versus the unknown  (diversify or keep all the 'eggs in one basket'). That's a big one.

    Profile photo of Jamie MooreJamie Moore
    Participant
    @jamie-m
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 5,069
    danchoi180 wrote:
    Throughout the 3 years though, my background is quite analytical and as a result I always find myself in 'analysis paralysis' rather than taking action on opportunities. Surprisingly, my biggest problem has been more mental (making up excuses) than knowledge or skills. 

    It's pretty common. Having analytical skills is great – however, over analysising everything to the point where you can't make a decision (and this isn't just about property investing) isn't so great. 

    Cheers

    Jamie

    Jamie Moore | Pass Go Home Loans Pty Ltd
    http://www.passgo.com.au
    Email Me | Phone Me

    Mortgage Broker assisting clients Australia wide Email: [email protected]

    Profile photo of ChrisA1ChrisA1
    Participant
    @chrisa1
    Join Date: 2011
    Post Count: 172

    Persistence, especially when the market is strong and there are many others in the game, who bid the prices up to ridiculous prices! When the market is strong, I need more hours to go through more deals!

    ChrisA1

    Persistence is 'to keep on keeping on, no matter how hard the going may be'

    Profile photo of danchoi180danchoi180
    Member
    @danchoi180
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 6

    All, thanks for sharing your thoughts and comments on this topic. It has been quite insightful to see all the different issues with a combination of knowledge and soft skills. 

    @wilko1 – good point, you will only learn by making mistakes and grow from there. You sound quite experienced, I would like to know what your biggest issue these days are?

    @fms – its great hear that you have a positive attitude towards property investing. But I'm with tummytucker and am also a little confused on your strategy.

    @boughtwithequity – I hear you on the issue with lack of time, its always a struggle for me as well although this has cleared up a fair bit as of late. Also, having more demand than supply? That's an awesome "problem" to have. I'm sure if the numbers are there, you will find time to scale up.

    @heinz57 – I'm not sure I understand what you mean here, are you able to clarify what you mean?

    @jamie M – you are right, this analysis paralysis weakness applies throughout life. I need to keep this in mind when making decisions.

    @chrisa1 – definitely agree with persistence it's difficult to keep persisting when there are so many other things to do

    I'm sure there are many others out there who would benefit from this information.

    For those who have yet to join in please feel free to comment.

    Profile photo of wilko1wilko1
    Participant
    @wilko1
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 510

    My biggest problem is to remain profitable in property developing is that I have to put in non complying development applications in to council and then have to spend thousands more hiring consultants just to prove the council wrong when they should just make it a lot easier and acknowledge that overall in Australia dwelling size and private backyards have decreased in size since the standard 1/4 acre block was around.  

    And I'd say the biggest problem that general investors are facing today is that as a whole (due to media, the Internet, renovating shows on tv, a near unlimited supply of resources on any topic you can think of) I believe the investing population is generally become more intelligent which means more competition thus higher prices on good properties and less margin. 

    Take the fact that now days EVERYone knows that if you can get a property that pays for itself/ pays you a net return, even if it has debt, it is good debt. Otherwise known as positive cashflow. 

    20 years ago. That was less well known then today. Technology is increasing the efficiency of every bodies investing. Real estate.com search is a prime example. 20 years ago. Could you search low to high of properties in your area. Could you compare as well these days having access to RP data and other websites that record sold prices. You can now look on apple maps, google maps. Measure distances of backyards of block sizes from you iphone or tablet, you don't have to visit a site a hour away to see if you could subdivide it. 

    Council development plans are all freely available on the Internet. 

    To stay ahead of the general investing pack you have to now be able to do the maths on a property asap as next week if you leave it it'll be under contract. 

    20 years ago. That wasn't possible. 

    Profile photo of danchoi180danchoi180
    Member
    @danchoi180
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 6

    @wilko1 – what you are saying is very true, I guess there were a lot more inefficiencies in the market when technology and resources weren't so readily accessible and comprehensive as it is today which makes it easy to get a hold of and quick. I  guess that is part of evolving with the times but that doesn't mean there aren't still opportunities out there. On the other part I really do agree that there needs to be some sort of reform at the council level…

    Profile photo of Nigel KibelNigel Kibel
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    @nigel-kibel
    Join Date: 2005
    Post Count: 1,425

    I think part of the problem is that people on the whole believe that property is much easier than it is. Because of that people do not do due diligence on what they buy. It is my experience that most people spend more time on what blueray player they are going to buy compared to property. Now you may think thats strange however I sit down with clients every day and am amazed at some of the silly things that they have done. Like buying over priced properties through marketing companies. However we live in an age where it is easy to look on line to see what properties are selling for.

    To me its simple do not take anyones word do your own due diligence. I tell people that I work with that you should question what I tell you because at the end of the day its your money not mine.

    Wilko I agree with you about development, its difficult to find projects that stack up. Once someone has a permit they think they are sitting on gold. However there still has to be profit left in the project. So I think you need to look at bigger projects where there is less competition especially as funding is still difficult.

    Nigel Kibel | Property Know How
    http://propertyknowhow.com.au
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    We have just launched a new website join our membership today

    Profile photo of Tony FlemingTony Fleming
    Participant
    @the-dark-knight
    Join Date: 2008
    Post Count: 396

    My biggest problem is I'm losing my passion for doing it :(. When I first started i loved every aspect of the process going through the contract, inspections, talking to morgage brokers, solictors. As i've accumlated property after property the process has become more painful than anything else. I started off doing it as a hobby and now its become my job(nobody ever likes their job). Having said that I haven't had a holiday in 3 years so maybe that's my biggest problem lol

    Tony Fleming | Triumphant Property Group
    http://www.triumphantpropertygroup.com.au
    Email Me

    NSW Buyer's Agent specialising in Western Sydney-Blue Mountains-Orange-Albury

    Profile photo of Jamie MooreJamie Moore
    Participant
    @jamie-m
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 5,069
    The Dark Knight wrote:
     Having said that I haven't had a holiday in 3 years so maybe that's my biggest problem lol

    Now that's a decision I never hesitate to make! I like to have at least two o/s trips planned each year. No point in working hard if you can't enjoy holidays :-)

    Cheers

    Jamie

    Jamie Moore | Pass Go Home Loans Pty Ltd
    http://www.passgo.com.au
    Email Me | Phone Me

    Mortgage Broker assisting clients Australia wide Email: [email protected]

    Profile photo of Heinz57Heinz57
    Participant
    @heinz57
    Join Date: 2012
    Post Count: 26

    I meant – do I continue to buy property in the geographical area I  know well, or do I diversify by buying in other parts of Australia / the world. 

    Profile photo of Jimmy86Jimmy86
    Participant
    @jimmy86
    Join Date: 2013
    Post Count: 46

    Don't discount the benefit of seeking independent financial advice. Have a licensed financial adviser prepare you a statement of advice based on your goals. 

    No one would buy a house without a pest and building inspection, but it amazes me how many people invest without seeking licensed financial advice.  – and its about the same price.

    Jimmy86 | Future Assist SMSF Specialists - Bris | Melb | Syd
    http://www.futureassist.com.au/setupansmsf
    Phone Me

    Self-managed super specialist administrators and advisers

    Profile photo of Jamie MooreJamie Moore
    Participant
    @jamie-m
    Join Date: 2010
    Post Count: 5,069

    Hi Jimmy

    What sort of independent financial advice are we talking about?

    Cheers

    Jamie

    Jamie Moore | Pass Go Home Loans Pty Ltd
    http://www.passgo.com.au
    Email Me | Phone Me

    Mortgage Broker assisting clients Australia wide Email: [email protected]

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