Well, we made it! Hello, 2017! We don’t know about you, but we thoroughly enjoyed the wild ride real estate gave us last year. 2016 was thrilling for our markets—Houston, Dallas, and Memphis. We’re even more excited about what this year will bring!

We’ve been taking a peek at what the experts have been saying for months now. What are the trends? What’s the outlook? What do we absolutely need to know?

Sure, every investor needs to take predictions with a grain of salt. The market can twist and turn in unexpected ways. But that doesn’t mean we need to be ignorant to what expert economists and analysts are saying.

Without further ado, let’s dive in and see what the buzz has been.

As real estate investors, we’re always looking for ways to increase the value in our rental properties. After all, we have a need to maximize the value in what we have before we acquire more properties. Increasing value, maximizing potential—all of that language—can bring a lot of images to mind—and some of those images can be expensive!

Thinking about big renovations, new appliances, granite countertops, major overhauls…

But does it really have to be that way?

The big thing to remember about increasing your property values is that you can do it piecemeal. You can take little steps, strategically, and over time. Ultimately, they will culminate in the most profitable version of your property—without emptying your pockets.

These are just some ways you can boost your rental property values: either in the eyes of prospective buyers and tenants where they feel and see extra value, or in putting real, actual ROI back in your pocket.

As 2017 comes roaring alive, real estate investors can kick back, relax...and start thinking about what they’re going to do to be a lot more awesome at real estate investment this year.  Yeah, right!

Real estate investors have so many opportunities at their fingertips to up their game: from communities of professionals and ingenious marketing apps to financing tools and property finders. There are things out there you didn’t even know were possible! And there’s no time better than a new year to test some of them out.

This is it! The end of another year. It’s been a wild ride in all aspects of life. But hey, there have been some pretty incredible things that came out of the real estate world this past year. It’s been an exciting time to be an investor! Not only has it incredible to be a part of our markets in Dallas, Memphis, and Houston, but we’ve enjoyed watching other things unfold and grow, too

One of the things we love to do is read from the many incredible blogs on real estate investment, both old and new. So many great new resources have been flourishing this year!

One of the unique features of the Memphis Invest story, is the transition from a transaction based company focused on selling houses, to a customer service based company focused on providing an experience.

Have you ever tried to follow a recipe, got to the end, and found that you’d accidentally skipped an ingredient? Maybe you used the wrong ingredient entirely! We’ve all had a good laugh over those really salty chocolate chip cookies, I’m sure.

Recipes gone wrong make a funny story. A good laugh. Sure, you waste a few ingredients and a little bit of money, but it’s just a small inconvenience in the grand scheme of things. It’s far more serious to leave something out of your real estate investment business!

Wait—how can that happen?

Hands off real estate investment sounds like a dream. Real estate investors can kick back and relax while other people worry about the day-to-day details, leaving you to chill while the money rolls in. Right?

We hate to break it to you, but no investment comes that easily—not truly successful investments, anyway. Not the kind that come with long term, mind-blowing success and the results that you really want.

(You know the kind we’re talking about!)

No, truly successful real estate investors know that even passive investments demand work. They need input, and there’s no time to kick back and twiddle our thumbs. Even if you don’t have to be involved in the daily going-ons of your investments, risk management and due diligence are the big two that should always be top of mind.

With Thanksgiving behind us, we’re knee-deep into the holiday season. Christmas trees are going up, carols are on the radio, and it’s hard to escape the lure of cookies, candy canes, and homemade goodies. This is the time of year when most real estate investors are tempted to coast into the New Year.

That said, this time of year is also full of untapped opportunity. You don’t need to hold off until the New Year to be productive! For engaged, motivated investors, the holidays aren’t a time to put your investing career on hold.

Turnkey real estate. Some people hear that word and get excited! Others...skeptical. Truth be told, the concept of turnkey real estate is a little divisive. Many people have had wonderful experiences with great turnkey investment companies, while others still aren’t sure what to make of the whole concept.

When you think about your real estate investment career, what’s the one thing you think you couldn’t live without? Think hard.

It’s a reliable property management team, plain as day.

Even real estate investors who aren’t turnkey...they just aren’t landlords...would probably contest that they couldn’t do it without the help of their property managers. After all, someone has to be there, hands-on, taking care of all of the day-to-day, nitty-gritty details.