When you think of an investment opportunity, what comes to mind? If we’re thinking generally, we likely have images of handing over a few thousand dollars to a broker, taking on a healthy dose of risk, and hoping that our investment pays out in the end.

In traditional investments like stocks and buying shares in a company, it always feels like something of a gamble. An investor doesn’t have all that much control over what happens—all they can do is hope for the best!

Who doesn’t love a good deal?

With Black Friday and Cyber Monday just wrapping up, we’ve seen just how crazy people can get when they’re faced with the prospect of a good deal. They’ll go to extreme lengths to save money if they think they can.

For real estate investors, we go to our own extreme lengths sometimes. There’s a natural impulse in all of us to look for the best deal and the lowest price. But just like the person who gets punched over a toaster oven on Black Friday, we may find that getting something cheap isn’t always worth it.

Real estate investors: beware of buying properties on the cheap!

Some young people seem to be under the impression that real estate investment is something that you do when you’re older. You don’t need to invest when you’re in college. You don’t need to invest when you’re in your 20’s. You’re still young—why do you need to plan for retirement now?

Here's a hint: you absolutely need to be planning for retirement now!

As a real estate investor, you know by now that you only have so many hours in the day to get everything done that needs doing. Because of this, you're well aware that some things can be a waste of your time and effort. Some things are better left to someone else!

For you, that may mean partnering up with a real estate agent to find and acquire your investment properties. But for real estate investors, it's not as simple as joining forces with just any Realtor. After all, investing in real estate and buying rental properties just isn't the same as buying a new home for your own private use.

There’s something attractive about the idea of a transformation. We see it captured in our media over and over again. It’s famously captured in Shaw’s Pygmalion, it’s on nearly every HGTV show.

We’re enamored with before and afters, fascinated with how something can be turned around. More importantly, in the world of real estate investment, we're interested in how a transformation can turn a profit.

New real estate investors usually have the impulse to invest where they are. They want to stick with the market they’re familiar with, the properties they can visit and see, the things they can control.

The idea that they should invest outside of that in markets that are thousands of miles away sounds preposterous! In actuality, remote real estate investing isn't as crazy as it might sound. In fact, it offers some of the best investment opportunities you'll find in real estate.

In the world of real estate investment, there is a crucial element that makes everything work. Without it, the whole concept falls apart: property management.

As passive real estate investors especially, we rely on property managers to allow us to be passive in the first place. Without their diligent management, we would have to involve ourselves in much of the day-to-day operations of our investments: defeating the purpose of “passive” real estate investment!

Passive real estate investors know that, ultimately, they need to grow beyond a single investment property. It’s the only way to truly grow their passive income! For first-time investors, though, it’s not quite as simple as buying a second property willy-nilly. An investment property is a large purchase that, especially in the beginning, has to be saved for and carefully considered.

What makes a company good? We have many different metrics that define our standards of service. When we work with a company, whether in a short-term engagement (like purchasing a product or dealing with their customer service representatives) or in the long-term (like buying a subscription service or partnering in a long-term arrangement), there are certain expectations that we have. Certain ways we desire to be treated.

Can you believe we’re already in the home stretch of 2017? The year flew by for many of us. The world of real estate is a whirlwind. We’ve seen a lot in the past year—but where have we landed? As we head towards the holidays and a new year, it’s time to stop and assess where we are as real estate investors, a national real estate market, and where we want to be for the future.