No matter what assets you invest in, your return on investment (ROI) is the metric that matters. ROI shows how profitable an investment is compared to purchase and operating costs. When investing in real estate, there are ways you benefit that aren’t reflected in pure profits.

When you invest in something, you want to know that it’s worth your while. Regarding real estate, we live in a culture that romanticizes the idea of flipping. Turn to any home improvement channel and you’ll find shows all about sprucing up and reselling homes. On the screen, it looks easy. The idea of making tens of thousands of dollars on a flip just seems like a no-brainer.

The old adage says that time is money. Real estate investors know just how true this is. It’s a time-consuming business, particularly as you grow and strive for personal success. However, real estate investors don’t have to break their backs or sacrifice all of their time and energy in the pursuit of their investments.

ROI is one of those buzz words in real estate investment. People say it all the time but no one really seems to know what it means or how to actually measure it, do they? ROI, or return-on-investment, can generally be summed up as the profitability of any given investment.

Just like positive cash flow, the notion of a good ROI has long been the gold standard for real estate investing. ROI can come in the long term through appreciation (which is what most people who take on big property renovations are banking on), but also through the short-term (such as just buying an investment property and achieving positive cash flow).