We’re well into the first month of 2023. Though it’s still too soon to know exactly how the year will shake out for real estate investors, there are some clear market realities we must contend with. Even buy-and-hold investors who don’t depend on day-to-day market fluctuations must keep their fingers on the pulse of the market.

Every stage of the real estate cycle – even recessions – provides opportunities for investors who know where to look. Your success in this business isn’t up to fate or the turning tides of the market. Ultimately, success comes down to how much you’re willing to work for what you want – and whether you take hold of the opportunities in front of you.

You may have noticed that the real estate industry seems to have taken on a tone of pessimism. Between tight inventory, rising interest rates, and the return of a buyer’s market, there has been no shortage of dismal and doomsaying headlines.

If you’re a go-with-the-flow real estate investor, you’ll never reach your full potential. You can be perfectly comfortable with average results, but is that really what you want to be? Average? 

2023 is likely to bring a real estate market shakeup. While our strategies will pivot, our ultimate goals will not – real estate is and has always been the best way to generate lasting, reliable wealth. Looking back at market statistics from the last year isn’t to say that things will continue along the same path – only that the market is always changing and always exists in a particular context.

We’re always evaluating the best way to secure our best financial future. There are countless strategies at your disposal – a hundred different assets to invest in and even more strategies to utilize. One of the most popular avenues of investment, however, is the stock market. While the S&P 500 has been on a rapid upward swing since 2020, 2022 saw a turn.

If real estate investors are learning anything from the ups-and-downs of the 2022 real estate market, it’s that buy-and-hold investing is a solid – and lucrative – strategy.

If there’s one thing we can say for ourselves, it’s that REI Nation has just about seen it all.

We were founded in 2003 – meaning the upcoming year will be our 20th anniversary! And in those twenty years, we’ve seen the market twist and turn from the 2008 Housing Crisis and Great Recession to the COVID-19 pandemic and all the ups and downs in between.

The real estate industry has taken its fair share of lumps this year. We’re no strangers to the challenges brought by rising interest rates, inflation, recession, and big price tags. 

Investors with entrepreneurial spirit tend to be very passionate about what they do. They get excited. They’re about the big picture, the process, the vision, the inspiration! Big ideas that are as thrilling to talk about as they are to reach for.