INVESTOR IDENTITY
With 2 teenagers in our house, we talk A LOT about identity. Who are you today? What do you stand for? Who are you becoming? Who are you online? We have some surprisingly deep conversations!
But then we realized, real estate investors all develop their own identity and brand. And when you’re first starting out, sometimes developing that identity is quite similar to a teenager’s journey.
New investors are leaving the safety and security of renting, or just owning their own house. As you grow, there will be peer pressure, new things to try, and lots of opinions and judgements. Ultimately, new investors all make their own choices, face their own consequences, and reap their own benefits.
Peer pressure in the real estate investing communities can be quickly dealt with—but it’s not always easy. If “everyone” is investing in multi-family, shouldn’t we be doing it too? If “all the cool investors” are going to a specific area of the country, well then that MUST be the place to be. And if the equivalent of the “prom king and queen” are using a certain strategy, well shouldn’t we all?
The next challenge to a new investor’s identity is “shiny object syndrome.” There are many paths to financial freedom and wealth accumulation—it can be easy to get distracted by each new offer and strategy that comes on the market. Multi-family is incredibly appealing … No wait, short-term rentals … Ooh, suited houses are the bomb! …
In our conversations with other investors, and our own real estate journey, we are noticing that confusion and overwhelm are very common in the first few years. Interestingly, we see a very similar reaction in our teenagers. And we are realizing it takes work, and some internal discipline, to make choices and develop your own brand, your own identity.
As real estate investors, we like properties with positive cashflow. No more apologies for this—it’s part of our identity. We do like a variety of strategies—BUT, we are working with our current strengths to grow our wealth, with our risk tolerance. There are only 24 hours in the day, so we leverage both our Return on Time and our Return on Investment. Again, no more apologies.
Just in case you haven’t had a teenage girl in your house, let me share that they are full of opinions—and on the receiving end of a lot of judgements (real and imagined/perceived). To be clear, real estate investors also have a lot of opinions. One of my favourite quotes from 2020 comes from Jennifer Hunt of the Real Estate Investment Network: “Opinions are like toes. Everyone has at least 10 of ‘em.”
We think the challenge for newer investors is to listen to every piece of feedback, unsolicited opinion, and possible constructive criticism. But then, it’s both your choice, and your consequence/reward. For example, some investors feel the pressure to collect doors faster, or they’re somehow “not good enough” to ____________ (fill in the blank).
Teenagers and newer real estate investors need to resist the temptation to follow someone else’s path, just because it looks and sounds cool. And that requires developing a strong sense of your identity as a real estate investor. If you love new builds, embrace that! If your priority is multi-family, pursue that whole-heartedly. What strategy or game plan will get you to your goals?
Our identity is deeply grounded in family. We have a patient and picky approach to our financial freedom. We recognize that it won’t be “fast enough” for some investors, and we encourage you to proceed at your own pace. As cliché as it may sound, this weekend, this investing year, and this financial freedom, Just Do You.
