So You Want to Become A Successful Real Estate Investor?
Make Sure You Avoid These Newbie Mistakes

Regardless of what the real estate Guru you follow might have said when he sold you his course, being a successful real estate investor takes not only knowledge, it also takes effort, organization and most importantly: time. Yes, you can close one deal here and there with relative ease, however, those investors who make consistent earnings know it takes systems and patience to achieve real results.

We noticed two trends among out real estate lead buyers; some investors where having consistent success, month after month while others where struggling to close even 1 deal and ended up cancelling the lead service, claiming that the leads were not really motivated. The odd thing is, the frustrated investors had been receiving leads from similar and even better real estate markets as the successful ones.

It was frustrating to see this phenomenon happen again and again so I decided to get to the bottom of it. After cancelling yet another client account, I got on the phone with Kevin, one of our most successful lead buyers. Here is what I found are the differences between successful lead buyers and those just throwing their money away:

1. Successful Investors Call their Leads Right Away. Struggling investors wait hours, or even days before they get in touch with the seller. By the time they contact the seller, they are usually already working with another investor. Experience investors know how to nurture their prospects and build rapport; they listen to them and show compassion for their situation. Some of our top producers are known for inviting the sellers out to lunch if the deal seems feasible. At the end of the day, sellers prefer to sell to someone who they feel comfortable with.

2. Successful Investors Have Patience. A home seller might have very high expectations of what his house is worth, and might need to experience some frustration before they finally agree to your offer. Struggling investors usually abandon the lead as soon as they say “No”. Successful investors interpret a “No” as “Not Now”.

3. Successful Investors Have Systems. When a seller says no, Kevin understands thisis part of the game. Instead of abandoning the lead forever, Kevin inputs the lead into his lead tracking software. “It is easy to follow up twice a month with 3 sellers, but as you invest in your marketing, managing everything with excel becomes hard and unproductive (although not impossible).”

Some of the most popular lead tracking systems include podio, FreedomSoft, InfusionSoft (expensive), and RealeFlow.com. Make sure you choose a system that allows you to move prospects through a pipeline — from initial contact to the closing table.

4. Successful Investors Follow the 80/20 Rule. If spending $500 on your marketing seems like too much, its going to be hard to get a consistent flow of quality leads. While you can spend your time looking for deals on Craigslist, you should know that most other investors are there too. Experienced investors don’t put up their own yard signs, don’t build their own website and don’t mail their own pieces. They hire people to do this work while they focus on what they are best at, closing the deal.

Regardless if you are new real estate investor or a seasoned veteran, make sure your business follows the behaviors of successful investors and that you are not making the deadly mistakes that could cost you hundreds of thousands in unrealized profits.