I’ve become quite a fan of real estate and have had success as a landlord. Although I’m in no way shape or form a real estate investor, I would like to continue growing our ‘portfolio’, which is a collection of properties that you own. Everybody’s will look different because everyone will have different goals. Some will buy inexpensive properties, do work on them and sell them for a profit. Others will purchase property to rent. Some will do a mixture of both. The portfolio will show all your achievements throughout your time as an investor and will catalog all of the assets you have. When you are first starting, it may seem intimidating to try and grow your portfolio, so here are a few tips on growing your portfolio successfully:

What is it you want to achieve?

If you don’t have an idea of where you’re going, you certainly won’t ever get there! So, it’s very important to set goals and formulate a plan when it comes to real estate investing. What kind of property portfolio do you want? Do you want to buy property that you will be able to sell for a profit, or do you want to own property that will give you a good income through rental? Do you want property that is ready to go, or fix up jobs? It could be that you want a mixture of both, but you have to start somewhere. If you have a limited budget, you will have to pick one and build from it. Setting out without a specific goal in mind will help you to know what is essential to you so that you don’t get sidetracked by the idea of something else.

For Mrs. Money and I, our goal right now is for property that generates rental income. A fixer upper seems out of our comfort zone right now, having BabyMoneyFinance takes up plenty of our time!

Don’t do too much at once

If you are going to buy your first property, stick to that one to start with. Trying to invest in multiple properties when you do not have much experience could end badly. At least with your first property, you can spend your time learning what you should and shouldn’t do and allow yourself room for mistakes. 

When you get more experienced, and you know about the process of everything that you are doing, you will be able to build your portfolio more quickly. Don’t rush yourself in the beginning. Buying and selling property takes time and money and is not for the faint of heart!

Mrs. Money and I probably looked at 50 houses before buying our first one, and similar for our second one. We did our homework, knew the neighborhood and found the right one (as best we knew) each time.

Keep organized

You need to keep everything organized, especially when you have more than one property. Keep an eye on your cash flow and make sure the money you are making from the property’s covers all the expenses and leaves you with money left over. You also need to make sure that you are tracking it accurately for your portfolio. Taxes are likely going to be a beast and so keep good records (likely in a spreadsheet) with copies of receipts if possible!

Don’t forget about your rented properties. They may feel like they are running themselves, but you still have tenants that will need things from you. They need to be satisfied so that they continue to rent the property, so you need to keep on top of repairs and check in with them now and then. Whether this is doing a scheduled walk through once during the lease or just driving by, it’s good to keep an eye on things!

If you find yourself being too busy to manage some of your properties, you could outsource the work to property management companies who can do the work for you. They can ensure that the property gets let, the rent is paid, and repairs are completed amongst other things. You can find out more information by visiting ihpropertymanagement.com. Mrs. Money and I went back and forth on using a property manager and decided for right now we don’t need to. We previously lived in the house and know it well, and feel comfortable doing repairs, quickly. We only live a few minutes away and can be responsive if and when something comes up.

Investing in real estate can make a lot of sense, but does require time and effort. There will be some stress involved but we personally find it worth it!

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