There are more than a few ways to invest in real estate. Deciding the best strategy for your financial goals, your personality type, and your desired level of involvement can be overwhelming. You’ll hear talk of BRRR and FIRE, buy-and-hold, flipping, and wholesaling.

I want to address some common misconceptions I’m hearing in my conversations recently. There are a lot of investors who believe passive and active investors should take the same approach to due diligence.

After 23 years buying and selling real estate, 18 years owning and operating a passive, turnkey investment company with my family, and having personally made or witnessed every mistake an investor can make, I believe it’s my duty to share my insight.

If you read this and take away nothing else, please take this: There is a fundamental difference in the approach a passive investor should take in doing due diligence as compared to an active investor.

This year, we’ve embraced a new identity as REI Nation. In the beginning, we had our sights set on Memphis, Tennessee, to provide investment opportunities for passive real estate investors. Memphis remains a huge part of our story — it’s our home base, our first love, and looking better than ever in terms of investment opportunities. 

We know by now that there are countless ways to invest in real estate. If you’ve heard the term “turnkey real estate investing” you may have some ideas in your head as to what this is and what it isn’t. Unfortunately, “turnkey” has become something of a buzzword in real estate. We have to be careful when looking for turnkey opportunities.

Turnkey real estate can be a divisive concept. Just like anything, there are die-hard believers who wouldn’t dare criticize the method and others still who will come up with every excuse as to why it’s a bad idea. We’ll be honest with you — turnkey real estate isn’t for everyone. Just like any investment strategy, it comes with its own share of risks and rewards. 

Security is something we all value. We want to live our lives without having to worry about money. Whether that means having the confidence to pay for unexpected expenses or the ability to take a vacation worry-free, we all crave that kind of comfort and confidence in our personal lives.

If you’ve ever watched any sort of house-hunting show, you will inevitably hear the phrase, “totally turnkey,” as a pitch for the ease of a property. No renovations need doing, it is a move-in ready home. However, the context of “turnkey” for a real estate investor is a little bit more complicated. More nuanced.

If you look around online, you’ll find numerous articles on why you should invest in real estate young — as young as your twenties. Does that sound out-of-reach to your present or past self? It very well might. However, investing in real estate, like any avenue for passive income, is most effective when it is given time to grow and produce fruit.

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.

There are many ways to invest in real estate. As an investor, you can take any number of paths and adopt varied strategies that suit your goals and your personality. However, there’s one variety of investing in real estate that always offers an advantage: self-directed real estate investment.