Well now that you've made it through getting your taxes done yet again, it's time to start planning for next year! I know, not exactly what you want to hear or even think about but if you get ahead of the game now you won't have to do that last minute scramble next April.
The biggest thing is to get organized and stay organized! I've found that a simple file system works best for me. All I have is regular manila file folders labeled for each category of my life:
1. Real Estate Investing
2. Realtor
3. Rental Property
4. Personal
Then every time we have a receipt, write a check, pay an invoice, etc I put a copy of it in the file. Pretty easy right? Then once an month I go through each file and scan them into our Neat Receipt program (www.neat.com). Then when it comes time for our appointment with our CPA it only takes me 5 minutes to run the report that organizes all the receipts into their appropriate category, print it out, and off we go!
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Kalamazoo Market Watch
Here is your monthly update of how the Kalamazoo housing market is fairing. So far, 2013 has been holding steady numbers on sales but there is still plenty inventory out there!
Feel free to contact me if you are look for any homes right now and I'll see what I can find for you!
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Spinning a Web
As you may have figured out by now (depending on where you are in your real estate journey) that networking is one of your most useful resources. Without networking skills you will very quickly get absolutely nowhere! The following are some of the best ways to get out there and find people who can help you whether you are looking for properties, money, people to help you with the repairs on your current (and future) projects, etc. - whatever you can think of!
1. REI Clubs - Most larger cities have at least one real estate investing club that meets on a regular basis.
2. Banks - foreclosures are still out there in abundance - most banks have a list of properties on their books that they are desperate to get rid of and you never know what kind of great deal you might find.
3. Professional Networking Groups - these expose you to a broader professional network than REI clubs will - there are a lot of people out there (with money) that would love to call themselves a real estate investor but don't know where to start - let your expertise guide them!
4. Social Media - posting ads on Craigslist, being on Facebook, Linkedin, Bigger Pockets, and Connected Investors is some of the best ways to learn who is (or is at least trying to) be investors in your area.
5. EVERYWHERE - the more people that know you are in real estate and have your contact information the better - hand out your business card every chance you get (YES!! YOU SHOULD HAVE BUSINESS CARDS!!!). You never know what their situation is or who they may know!
1. REI Clubs - Most larger cities have at least one real estate investing club that meets on a regular basis.
2. Banks - foreclosures are still out there in abundance - most banks have a list of properties on their books that they are desperate to get rid of and you never know what kind of great deal you might find.
3. Professional Networking Groups - these expose you to a broader professional network than REI clubs will - there are a lot of people out there (with money) that would love to call themselves a real estate investor but don't know where to start - let your expertise guide them!
4. Social Media - posting ads on Craigslist, being on Facebook, Linkedin, Bigger Pockets, and Connected Investors is some of the best ways to learn who is (or is at least trying to) be investors in your area.
5. EVERYWHERE - the more people that know you are in real estate and have your contact information the better - hand out your business card every chance you get (YES!! YOU SHOULD HAVE BUSINESS CARDS!!!). You never know what their situation is or who they may know!
Thursday, February 21, 2013
It's That Time Again...
It's tax season again and it can be confusing, frustrating, and full of scrambling to find every last receipt. Here is an article that I found that may be able to help you (and me) stay on top of our taxes this time around.
http://www.sba.gov/community/blogs/community-blogs/small-business-matters/small-business-tax-preparation-tips-stay-step
http://www.sba.gov/community/blogs/community-blogs/small-business-matters/small-business-tax-preparation-tips-stay-step
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Did I Schedule That?
Making a schedule for yourself is one of the most important skills you need to be successful at real estate investing (or any business for that matter!) Knowing where your time goes and what you're doing during that time is one of the best ways to examine your productivity and effectiveness.
I have attempted many different ways to find structure for myself. I started by just making a to do list for myself every evening for the next day. I would get some stuff done, but I definitely found myself playing favorites and putting the tedious or hard things off every single day until it was panic time and they HAD to get done. Not the best method - it lacks guidance and structure.
Next, I didn't wander to far from my first method - I started writing down the time frame (i.e. 3:15-4:09) for every task I did - still, no structure or accountability, many things were "put off til tomorrow" one too many times.
After that I started getting a little more rigid with myself. I started planning out my days in time blocks. 7:00-7:30 shower and get ready, 7:30-9:00 read real estate books, 9:00-10:00 respond to emails and make calls, etc. This started to get me on the right path. And I also found it helped if I wrote it down in that format the night before and then during the day the next day I would log the time it took me to do each task. This formula held me more accountable and made me really look at what I was doing with my time, but I still wasn't getting everything done that needed to get done - I'd focus on the business too long and not have dinner ready in time, I'd be doing catch up work when I should have been cleaning the bathroom, or I'd shove all my domestic chores into the middle of the night and be exhausted the next day - it just wasn't enough structure and I was pulling my hair out trying to find more hours in the day!!
But now, I have come to a scheduling system that really makes sense and makes it so much easier to get all my tasks done. Inspired by a conversation we had with our pastor, I have come up with what I call the goals and roles schedule. Your goals always, always, always need to be written down to help keep them fresh and at the forefront of your thinking - remind yourself of what you are working for. Your roles are the different hats you wear throughout the day - mine are: investor, realtor, wife, housekeeper, family member, friend, etc. After figuring out your goals and roles you need to determine when you need to "wear" each of your role hats and what goal you are working toward when you're wearing it (i.e. when I'm wearing my housekeeper role I need to get dinner done at a certain time for my goal of having my fiance eat at a certain time per his schedule).
It may seem complex but once you start breaking it down by each role and looking at what you need to accomplish as that person you being to see how it can all fit together to help you get all your projects and tasks done AND keep your sanity at the same time!!
I have attempted many different ways to find structure for myself. I started by just making a to do list for myself every evening for the next day. I would get some stuff done, but I definitely found myself playing favorites and putting the tedious or hard things off every single day until it was panic time and they HAD to get done. Not the best method - it lacks guidance and structure.
Next, I didn't wander to far from my first method - I started writing down the time frame (i.e. 3:15-4:09) for every task I did - still, no structure or accountability, many things were "put off til tomorrow" one too many times.
After that I started getting a little more rigid with myself. I started planning out my days in time blocks. 7:00-7:30 shower and get ready, 7:30-9:00 read real estate books, 9:00-10:00 respond to emails and make calls, etc. This started to get me on the right path. And I also found it helped if I wrote it down in that format the night before and then during the day the next day I would log the time it took me to do each task. This formula held me more accountable and made me really look at what I was doing with my time, but I still wasn't getting everything done that needed to get done - I'd focus on the business too long and not have dinner ready in time, I'd be doing catch up work when I should have been cleaning the bathroom, or I'd shove all my domestic chores into the middle of the night and be exhausted the next day - it just wasn't enough structure and I was pulling my hair out trying to find more hours in the day!!
But now, I have come to a scheduling system that really makes sense and makes it so much easier to get all my tasks done. Inspired by a conversation we had with our pastor, I have come up with what I call the goals and roles schedule. Your goals always, always, always need to be written down to help keep them fresh and at the forefront of your thinking - remind yourself of what you are working for. Your roles are the different hats you wear throughout the day - mine are: investor, realtor, wife, housekeeper, family member, friend, etc. After figuring out your goals and roles you need to determine when you need to "wear" each of your role hats and what goal you are working toward when you're wearing it (i.e. when I'm wearing my housekeeper role I need to get dinner done at a certain time for my goal of having my fiance eat at a certain time per his schedule).
It may seem complex but once you start breaking it down by each role and looking at what you need to accomplish as that person you being to see how it can all fit together to help you get all your projects and tasks done AND keep your sanity at the same time!!
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Kick Fear in the Rear!
Eric Worre is a top network marketing leader and speaker, but this advice can apply to EVERYONE in ANYTHING they do!!
Thursday, January 31, 2013
What's the Plan?!?!
When we first decided to be real estate investors we thought "This will be so easy! Market, sign a contract, go to closing, GET PAID!" But we eventually learned that it's not as cut and dry as that. Yes, those are the basics that you need to have in place and make sure are involved in every transaction, but we were naïve to think there wouldn't be any more than that. People want to know what you do, who you are, what you stand for, how and why you are going to help them, and so much more.
One of the biggest, most helpful things you can do is build a business plan. It can be a long process but you'll see that in the end it's one of the best investments of your time you will ever make! Early on we made attempts to write it on our own and to be honest with you it did not go well. We got frustrated, got in fights, didn't know what to include, didn't know what to leave out, didn't know who we were writing it for (ourselves, for people to invest in our company, our clients, etc.) - it was a MESS!
At that point we decided to find some help and guidance. Lucky for us - you can find anything online! After doing a search for business plan templates and review many of the options that popped up, we decided on using www.LivePlan.com from Palo Alto Software. What a tremendous help! It has everything broken down into sections and has helpful tips and descriptions to help you understand what each section should contain.
So if you are just starting to build your investment business (and yes, no matter what kind of investing you are doing you should treat it as a business - trust me it makes it so much easier on yourself) we highly recommend starting with getting your business plan in place so that you can stay organized and be able to answer any question about your business without hesitation.
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