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With the growing availability of affordable real estate and the growth of online investing, becoming a real estate investor has never been as tempting. Whether you have a few hundred dollars or thousands to invest, there is plenty of mortgage-qualified real estate opportunities. Even if you don’t plan on getting into real estate as a full-time business venture, it’s still an excellent side gig or part-time hobby that can earn you extra cash when the right opportunity arises. As with any other type of investment, however, buying property as an amateur requires a bit of know-how and sound financial planning. If you’re ready to start but don’t know where to start, read our top six must-know tips for beginner investors in the real estate market.

Find Good Deals By Researching

When starting as a real estate investor, there are a few things you’ll need to do to find good deals. First, you’ll need to conduct thorough research on different properties in your area. You’ll want to look at the address, property type, maintenance and renovation details, and other factors to determine if the deal is right for you. You can also find real estate deals by scouring various websites, including Facebook and real estate websites.  Once you find a property you’re interested in, you can take steps to invest in it.

Join an investing platform

Setting up an account with an investing platform allows you to keep track of every real estate deal you purchase and hold.  Once your account is set up, you can buy a property using your investor account. You can then track the deal yourself or outsource the tracking to an automated investing tracking application. Many tracking applications are available, some of which offer free trial periods. 

Know your local real estate laws

One of the things you might not know about real estate is that every area has its own laws and dynamics. That’s why you need to know your local real estate laws. If you do this right, you can avoid breaking the law and hurting your portfolio. For example, if you invest in a condo deal and your local laws allow you to rent out the property, you’re not breaking the law as long as you don’t break any of the terms of the deal. However, if you sell the property before the agreed-upon time and price, you’re breaking the agreement and possibly hurting your portfolio. 

Stay Organized – Keep Good Notes and Track Transactions

Keeping good records of every transaction is essential when investing in real estate deals. This will help you stay organized, find deals, and be able to track your portfolio. To stay organized, you can use a paper or digital spreadsheet to follow all the deals you make and the transactions occurring. 

You’ll want to make notes about each deal you buy and ensure you don’t forget anything, like the date and name of the deal. You can also use a spreadsheet to categorize each deal by year and location. It’s also a good idea to list all the real estate deals you’re interested in and create a portfolio of deals you love. This portfolio will help you stay focused on the deals you love while allowing you to quickly move on to other deals if necessary.

Don’t be afraid to walk away from an investment

When investing in real estate, it’s important not to get emotionally attached to a single deal. This is because many deals won’t work out, and you’ll have to walk away from them. To prevent yourself from getting emotionally attached, we recommend walking away from deals that don’t make financial sense. This way, you’re not losing money and can still move on to other deals that make more sense. 

Know how to market and sell a property

As a real estate investor, learning how to market and sell a property is essential, especially if you invest a sizeable chunk of money into the property. To begin with, you should consult a seller’s guide to understand how to start selling your property.  You’ll want to get your property listed on multiple online listing sites. It’s a good idea to learn how to use an online marketing system like HubSpot, which will allow you to create all the content you need to market your deals. This includes blog posts, videos, and other content that will inform potential buyers about your properties. 

Once a deal is listed on your online marketing system, you’ll need to start marketing your deal. This means sending potential buyers regular updates about the deal, including photos, videos, and information about the location and other factors.  You might also be responsible for preparing the property and showing it to the buyer in person. In this case, it is essential to create a warm, tidy atmosphere to attract potential buyers.