As a real estate investor, rental property owner, and landlord, your ability to grow your portfolio with high-ROI properties that generate substantial cash flow for you and your family is highly dependent on who you know. The more people of influence and power you know, the more opportunities you get to purchase properties that haven’t yet hit the market. That means much of your success is tied to your ability to network.
You’ve heard the saying that it’s not what you know but who you know. And while it’s become an overused cliche at this point, that doesn’t make it any less true. If you want to be successful in this industry and build a robust real estate portfolio, you can’t do it in a silo. You need to surround yourself with people – the right people. Start networking, it is how you build that circle of influence.
The amazing thing about networking is that it puts you in proximity to people. And as the saying goes, proximity is power. When you network, you aren’t just meeting one person. Every time you meet someone, you’re also gaining access to their entire network of people.
For example, let’s say you meet a guy in town who owns an accounting firm. As you build your relationship with him, you learn that his clients are some of the top business owners in the area. Now, if you maintain this relationship, you have the possibility of getting introduced to those folks.
Networking is an exponential activity that delivers an oversized return almost every time. And while you might not think it’s as important for a real estate investor as it is for, say a real estate agent or financial advisor, that’s simply not true. Embrace networking from the start and reap rewards for years to come.
One of the most important things to remember is that building relationships takes time, so don’t rush it. Focus on making connections both in real life and on social media by finding interesting ways to start a small talk and making eye contact when you meet people.
There are tons of generic ways to network. But if you want to expand your professional network and build powerful centers of influence that allow you to grow as a person, you’ll want to get creative. Here are a few ideas:
While traditional methods play a crucial role in business networking and marketing, incorporating modern and creative strategies can set you apart from the competition. Podcasting is one of these networking hack that is easy to do. It not only elevates your landlord status, but it also helps you build valuable connections with your local community.
Start by creating a podcast that delves into various aspects of property management. Share your expertise on topics like property maintenance, tenant-landlord relationships, legal considerations, and market trends. This positions you as a knowledgeable authority in the local real estate scene.
Once you have a platform and an audience, it becomes easy to reach out and invite guests on your show. In fact, you’ll be able to have conversations with people that you otherwise never would have been able to confidently approach. You might even have successful people start coming to you asking to be interviewed. This will cause your network to explode.
Maybe podcasting isn’t your thing. No big deal! Another option is to start an email newsletter. But here’s the key: Don’t make it a boring real estate newsletter. Make it a community newsletter that focuses on everything happening in your city. This includes events, stories, personal interest features, a calendar of events, and…yes…real estate news.
With a newsletter like this, you become known as an expert in the community. Naturally, this helps you build power partnerships, which can benefit you as you grow your real estate portfolio.
Business owners are some of the most well-connected and well-off people in any community. So if you’re going to prioritize who to rub shoulders with, do it with other business owners. You can find them at various events, conferences, and groups around town. These are the folks who understand the movement within the real estate industry and know about big happenings before they hit the market.
A lot of real estate investors and landlords make the mistake of going too narrow in their networking events. For example, they only attempt to network effectively with other real estate investors. However, there’s some power in broadening your horizons and interacting with successful people in general.
One of the best ways to meet successful people is to find local investor clubs with thriving membership bases. Inside the groups, you’ll find people who have wealth and understand investment strategies (both inside and outside of real estate). This gives you the opportunity to rub shoulders with people who have capital and/or know about properties and deals.
The best investment you can make is in yourself. The question is, are you doing it? Once you open your eyes to the power of self-investment, you start to see new opportunities.
For example, let’s say you have $10,000 to invest. You find a property with a pretty solid cap rate that you could purchase with $10,000 down. However, you’ve also always wanted to write a book, and you know how powerful it would be for your personal brand – giving you a leg up in networking event situations. Hiring someone to help you write and publish that book will also cost $10,000.
Investing in yourself looks like taking that $10,000 and writing the book, which could allow you to buy not just one more property, but 10 more properties in the future (as a result of growing your personal brand and getting more opportunities for good deals in the future).
At Green Residential, we believe in connecting with Houston’s top landlords to provide comprehensive property management services that take the pressure off and allow you to redirect your energy to bigger-picture tasks, like networking.
If you want the best in Houston property management, and you don’t want to overpay for it, we’re here to help. We’ve carved out our name in the industry over the past two decades as the most connected property management company in Houston. Contact us today to learn more!
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