First Rental Property

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.

Yesterday I received an email from a blog reader.

In the email, the reader provided some feedback as to why they had unsubscribed from  the First Rental Property blog.

With a blog readership in the thousands, I get messages from people all the time that have chosen to unsubscribe.  This is just the nature of having a blog with a large readership.

Some of the common reasons that I get from people who have chosen to unsubscribe are listed below:

• I am no longer interested (in general)
• I am no longer interested in buying a rental property
• I am getting too many emails
• No reason stated

These are the standard reasons as to whey people unsubscribe and I hear them all the time.

However, the most recent explanation that a reader gave me, struck a cord with me.

The reason they had stated, as to why they unsubscribed from First Rental Property was because:

• They wanted more VALUABLE information

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.

If you are a person who is looking to buy your first rental property, the topic of this blog post will be of great interest to you.

Currently I have 5 mortgages.  This is because I own 5 properties.  When I first started investing in real estate, I had no idea how to obtain more than one mortgage.  This was back in the year 2005.  Since then I have gone on to purchase Oakville real estate, Hamilton real estate and Toronto real estate.

It amazes me how few people know that they are able to obtain more than one mortgage.  The bulk of society (who have mortgages) are conditioned to believe that they are only able to have one mortgage at a given time.

If you are a new real estate investor, you need to know that:

You can have more than one mortgage.

Having more than one mortgage is essential if an individual is looking to build a real estate portfolio.

Dealing With Non-Believers

Whenever there is a minority of people doing something different than the majority of people, the minority is often critisized.  Staying with this theme, I often witness single mortgage holders being criticized by multiple mortgage holders.

Non believers make the assumption that:

“You cannot have more than one mortgage.”

Who Are The Non Believers?

Non believers are people that tell you that you CANNOT have more than one mortgage.

There are always people giving advice and false information to new real estate investors.  As a new investor, you have to very careful who you listen to and who you take advice from.  I have said over and over, that you should only take advice from someone who has accomplished something that you are trying to achieve yourself.

How Does a Real Estate Investor Obtain More Than One Mortgage?

In order to obtain more than one mortgage, you have to speak to a Mortgage Broker or Mortgage Specialist who has experience in getting multiple mortgages approved.  Some real estate investors are told that Mortgage Brokers are the only ones who are able to grant more than one mortgage to a real estate investor.  This is not always the case.  In many situations, major financial institutions are able to grant an individual borrower more than one mortgage.

In Summary

In summary, it is absolutely possible for someone to have two mortgages at the same time.  If you are new to real estate investing and want to purchase a rental property, you can feel reassured knowing that you can obtain two mortgages through the help and guidance of either a mortgage broker or a bank.

Happy Investing!

Best Regards,

Neil

ps: If you are serious about buying your first rental property, take a quick second and sign up for The First Rental Property Newsletter.  You can sign up in the top right hand corner of the blog.  When you sign up, you will get tips and tricks from experienced real estate investors on how to buy your first rental property, delivered straight to your Inbox, free of charge!

Hi Friend,

I hope you are keeping well.

One of the biggest mistakes that new real estate investors make when they buy their first rental property is:

Failure to communicate with their tenants.

Failure to communicate with your tenants ALWAYS results in a poor relationship with them and potentially future Landlord and Tenant issues.

If you are a regular reader at First Rental Property you know that I always talk about some of the fears that hold people back from purchasing their first rental property.

A couple of the major fears that people experience include:

• The fear regarding managing tenants, and
• The fear regarding the repairs and maintenance of a rental property

Far too often I see new real estate investors purchase a rental property, and then outsource the management of their rental property to a property manager.

There is a constant debate regarding whether or not new investors should hire a property manager or not for the management of their first rental property.

After you finish reading this article, click here to learn how to overcome your fears about purchasing rental property.

I personally am an advocate for new investors to manage their first rental property themselves.

The implications that arise when an investors does not manage their rental property themselves is severe.

When a new investor outsources that management of a rental property to a third party, a property management company, the investor becomes removed from the management of the property.

When you are removed from the management of the property itself, you are no longer communicating directly with your tenants.

Ideally, the property management company that you have hired is communicating with your tenants on a regular and ongoing basis.

Unfortunately, this is not the case in many scenarios.

Due to the nature of property management companies, their time is limited as they are managing hundreds of properties.

When a company is managing hundreds of properties, they often have no time to make warm and fuzzy calls to tenants.

The warm and fuzzy calls is what builds relationships with your tenants.  

As a new real estate investor, you need to be making contact with your new tenants once a month.

I recommend that on the first of each month, you call your tenant in order to touch base.

Do not hide behind email or text.  Actually call your tenant.

Email and text messaging is not as good of a tool when you are trying to build a relationship with your tenant.

Calling them is the way to go.

So there you have it!

As a new investor, you need to be calling your new tenants once a month, on the first of the month.  Touch base, say hello, and see how they are doing.

You will be amazed at how beneficial these telephone calls are in the long run.

This is because very, very few landlords actually do this…

Don’t be afraid.  Call your tenants every month.

Happy Investing!

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: If you are serious about buying your first rental property, sign up for The First Rental Property Newsletter.  In the newsletter you will read about tips and tricks from experienced real estate investors on how to buy your first rental property!

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.

The expert marketers at Nike once coined the slogan, Just Do It

What a great slogan this has become.

It is such a great slogan that it can literally apply to any aspect of your life.

What were the experts at Nike thinking when they came up with such a slogan?

Just do what?

Just buy Nike shoes?

I have no clue what they meant to be honest, and probably most people had no clue either.  What I do know is that this slogan is a perfect slogan for new real estate investors to  live by.

When a new real estate investor is on the fence and deliberating whether or not they should buy a rental property, I say…

Just Do It.

If you are a new real estate investor looking to buy your first rental property, you need to Just Do It  because:

• Most people don’t ‘Do It’
• Be different, and make things happen
• If you don’t ‘Do It’ and buy a rental property you will not benefit financially
• There will always be fear associated with buying a rental property
• Real Estate education is good, but over thinking and second guessing yourself is not
• You could be able to fund part of all of your retirement if you invest wisely in rental properties
• You will become an entrepreneur and will be able to share your experiences of owning rental property with others
• You will learn with time, that owning a rental property is not hard.  You just have to stay committed to it

I think that one of the reasons why Nike was so successful with their slogan is because it resonated with people on many levels.

People like action takers.  People gravitate toward others who say they are going to do something, and they do it.

Keep this all in mind as you navigate your way towards purchasing your first rental property.

Happy Investing!

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: I am an experienced real estate investor and Licensed Realtor.  I help people like you every day purchase their first rental property.  If you are interested in buying your first rental property, send me a message at NEIL@FIRSTRENTALPROPERTY.COM and I will help guide you through the process!

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.

The bottom line is that I want to help you purchase your first rental property.

The reality is that most people who ‘want’ to buy real estate as an investment, never end up doing so.

Yesterday I wrote about New Year’s resolutions for Real Estate Investors.  If you missed the post, check it out here:

Article Number 1

Top New Year’s Resolutions For Real Estate Investors

I was not the only one who was writing about New Year’s resolutions for real estate investors.  When I ‘Googled’, “new years resolutions for real estate investors” this is what I found…

5 Real Estate New Year’s Resolutions You Should Make

This article was straight forward and well written.  In the article, the author talks about resolving to think of a property as a ‘product’.  An interesting point.  The article is worth checking out.

Article Number 2

7 New Year’s Resolutions For Successful Real Estate Investors

The first point addressed in this article by author Paul Esajian was bang on.  Paul said that real estate investors need to “keep eyes on the big picture”.  Far too often experienced real estate investors lose sight of why they are investing.  This is a dangerous thing because when you are not focused on the end goal, it can cause you to make short term decisions that do not benefit you.  (i.e.: sell a property)

Other Articles

There were a LOT more articles that came up when I ‘Googled’ the topic, “new years resolutions for real estate investors“, however, the above 2 were the most relevant to share.

So What Now?

Everyone talks about new years resolutions, but the vast majority of people never follow through on them.  If you are a new real estate investor and you are interested in purchasing your first rental property, and you have not done so yet, you need to get to work.

I suggested this in a previous article and I will suggest it again.  If you are new to investing and you live in the Toronto Area, consider attending one of my FREE real estate workshops.  The workshops are called, “Landlord Bootcamp For Beginners“, and they are designed to help educate the new real estate investor.  Click HERE to register for an upcoming workshop.

In Summary

Lots of people make new years resolutions.  Most people break them.  Don’t be someone who makes a resolution to buy a rental property in 2013 and does not follow through.  Use all of the resources at your disposal to help educate yourself further so that you can take action and buy your first rental property!

Happy Investing!

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: I am an experienced real estate investor and Licensed Realtor.  I help people like you everyday purchase their first rental property.  If you need help with purchasing your first rental property, send me an email at NEIL@FIRSTRENTALPROPERTY.COM and I will help you get started…

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.

With the start of a New Year upon us, many people have no doubt made some New Year’s resolutions.

I have never really put much thought into what some of the Top New Years Resolutions are, however, I am wondering if you have…

In my mind there is only one New Years resolution that new real estate investors should have.

If you are a new real estate investor, and you want to purchase your first rental property, then your singular new year’s resolution should be to:

Purchase A Rental Property

 Will You Pass or Fail?

Why do New Year’s Resolutions Fail?  Depending upon who you ask, there are a variety of reasons as to why New Year’s resolutions fail.  One of the biggest reasons as to why I believe New Year’s resolutions fail is because people do not have a clear and specific plan as to how they are going to fulfill their resolution.

Failure Is Not An Option

Since most people fail with fulfilling their new year’s resolution, you have to ensure that you do not fall into this category.  The best way to guarantee that you will be successful in achieving your New Year’s resolution is by creating a plan of action.

As a new real estate investor, if you are not currently doing the following things, you must start immediately.  You need to:

1) Attend Real Estate Workshops or Meetings where you can learn from experienced real estate investors

You are only going to learn about real estate investing from people who have done it already. As such, you need to start hanging out with real estate investors if you are not already.  There is so much that you can learn from them.  Most important:  Stop taking advice from people who do not own any rental properties.

2) Obtain a referral for a Mortgage Specialist or Mortgage Broker

You need to work with someone who can obtain financing for your rental properties.  Mortgage Brokers, Mortgage Specialists and Lenders who work with real estate investors are the best people to obtain your financing from.  They understand how to finance a rental property.  The advice and knowledge that you will get from them will be invaluable.

3) Obtain a referral for a Realtor who understands rental properties and how to work with real estate investors.

Working with a Realtor who understand rental properties and who understands how real estate investors operate is key.  You need to work with someone who knows how to find a good deal and you need to work with someone who knows how to analyze a property.  You can obtain this referral from any current real estate investor that you meet at one of the real estate workshops that you are attending.

4) Set Deadlines

Nothing gets done if there are no deadlines.  Make sure that you set deadlines for all of the above mentioned activities.  If you do not, the weeks and months will drag on, and you will not end up taking any action.  Deadlines are important.  Without them, you will not move forward.

5) Be Accountable To Someone

Share your goals, ideas and dreams of buying a rental property with someone that is close to you.  Tell them all about your plans of owning and managing a rental property.  By sharing this with them, it will hold you accountable to doing it.  You will not want to let them down, by not following through on your word.  It is also a smart idea to have them check in on you.  Ask them to periodically check on your progress.  Ask them to help hold you accountable.  This will be a huge help in pushing you into action.

Happy Investing!

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: I am an experienced real estate investor and licensed Realtor.  I help people like you everyday purchase their first rental property.  If you are interested in purchasing your first rental property, send me an email at NEIL@FIRSTRENTALPROPERTY.COM and I will help you get started.

pps: If you live in the Toronto Area, consider attending my FREE monthly real estate workshop called, Landlord Bootcamp For Beginners.

To read what new real estate investors are saying about the workshop, click HERE.

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.  If you are from the Toronto area and happen to be a Baseball fan, this is an exciting time for you.

The Toronto Blue Jays have made some serious moves this off season in order to bolster their lineup for the 2013 season.  It has been 20 years since Toronto’s World Series Back To Back Championships.

With some serious off season acquisitions, the fans of the Toronto Blue Jays are excited more than ever and ready for a long awaited playoff run! Also, Las Vegas made the Blue Jays World Series favourites for 2013.

As a new real estate investor looking to purchase your first rental property, there is a lot that you can learn the The Toronto Blue Jays Front Office.

This Winter the Blue Jays Brass went for it!

They took a shot and said that this year was going to be THEIR year.

They made a decision that the year 2013 was going to be the first of many winning seasons…

The Blue Jays Front Office made a massive decision.  They made the decision that they were going to WIN!

When it comes to real estate investing, you also have to make this very same decision.

You have to make the decision that in 2013, you are going to WIN by buying your first rental property.

Sometimes in life big things happen when big decisions are made.

I would like to see many of you make the decision to finally take the plunge and buy your first rental property.

Why wait?  The Blue Jays didn’t.

If the only Canadian Major League Baseball Team can make a run at he World Series this year, anything is possible!

Happy Investing!

Best Regards,

Neil.

ps: I am an experienced real estate investor and Licensed Realtor.  Every day I help people just like you purchase their first rental property.  If you would like me to help you purchase your first rental property, and you are in the Toronto area, send me an email at NEIL@FIRSTRENTALPROPERTY.COM, and I will help to get you started.

pps: Don’f forget to check out the following post which gives a detailed breakdown of How To Buy Your First Rental Property

Hi Friend,

New real estate investors are just like experienced real estate investors.  The similarity between these two groups is that they are both afraid of the same things when it comes to real estate investing.

The experienced real estate investors have learned how to deal with the fears that they experience.  Whereas, the new real estate investors have not yet learned how to handle or cope with the fear that they experience surrounding real estate investing.

When I first started investing in real estate back in 2005, there were many things that I did not know and there were many things that I was afraid of.  I was able to fight past these fears and I have since gone on to purchase Oakville real estate, Hamilton real estate, and Toronto real estate.

Here is a complete list of the:

Top 10 Things That All Experienced Real Estate Investors Dread…

1)  CALLING TENANTS

When a real estate investor has to call their tenant, they become nervous because at that time there may be something that needs to be fixed.  At this time the item that needs to be fixed could be big or small.  The investor may have no idea how to fix the item, and may not know anyone that they can call in order to have the item fixed.  As  a result of this, the investor delays calling their tenant, because they are avoiding the problem.

What can you do about it?

You must set up a time and call your tenant every “first of the month.”

•  Force yourself to do it.
•  Make it a routine.
•  Put it in your calendar.

There should be at the very least, communication via telephone with your tenant once a month.  Email and text is not as effective communication versus over the phone.  Face to face is the best.

2)  REPAIRS AND MAINTENANCE

All real estate investors are  afraid of the potential repairs and maintenance that arise with their rental properties.  They are afraid of this because they always want to remain profitable, and they don’t want to lose money on their investment.  When people lose money on an investment it causes them to begin to question their investment..

What can you do about it?

Have a reliable person you can always call upon for repairs and maintenance.  Deal with repairs and maintenance issues as they arise.  Don’t put them off.  If you put them off they can become worse with time.  As such, a repair that may have cost $200 may end up costing you $2000 due to increased damage to the property.

3)  RENT COLLECTION

Experienced real estate investors worry about rent collection and if a tenant will pay rent on time.

What can you do about it?

Be firm.  Do not bend the rules.  If the rent is late, you submit the proper notice.  Make sure that the tenant keeps their word.  If the rent is late and the tenant says that they will provide it by a certain date, if the rent is not provided by the date, don’t’ keep on giving them grace.  Call them on it, and enforce the non payment of rent through the proper means.

4)  OPERATING LINE

Some experienced real estate investor worry about their operating lines going “too high”, and their revenues not being sufficient enough in order to bring it down.  More eloquently put, they worry about drawing too much of their operating line, and  fear that the revenue (rent collected) will not be sufficient in order to pay down the operating line.

What can you do about it?

Think like a bank..  Some Canadian Banks like BMO Bank of Montreal  lend 10 to 15 percent of a company’s gross annual sales in the form of an operating line.  Consider only borrowing that amount, and thus drawing your operating line to that amount.  This will give you peace of mind and will ensure that yhou are not over extending yourself.

5)  WATER LEAKS

Experienced real estate investors worry about leaks in the bathrooms and the damage it will cause to the house, overall if not looked after.

What can you do about it?

Inspect regularly for water damage.  Make sure you do caulking on a regular basis. If you notice water seepage early, make sure that you do the work to repair the damage before the damage becomes more severe.  Have someone inspect the property who has an eye for detecting water damage.

Interested in learning about the NEXT 5 Things That All Experienced Real Estate Investors Dread?

Check back into First Rental Property for the conclusion of this blog post…

Happy Investing!

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: I am an experienced real estate investor and licensed Realtor.  I help people like you everyday buy their first rental property.  If you are interested in purchasing  Toronto real estate, Ottawa real estate, Brampton real estate, Hamilton real estate, Richmond Hill real estate, Oakville real estate, Mississauga real estate, North York real estate, Kitchener real estate, or Brantford real estate send me an email at NEIL@FIRSTRENTALPROPERTY.COM.

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.

There is one big similarity between new real estate investors and babies that I have observed and which I am going to share with you in today’s blog post.

Before doing that, I am going to tell you a little bit about how I got started in real estate investing.

My Story

I purchased my first rental property in 2005.  The property that I purchased was a townhouse and was located in Oakville, Ontario.  I purchased the property for $250,990.  The property was new construction, meaning that the property was in the process of being built.  When I purchased the property from the builder, the deposit requirements from the builder at the time was $15,000.  I obtained a First Mortgage from Royal Bank of Canada, which is one of Canada’s and North America’s leading banks.  The interest rate on the mortgage at the time was 4.25%.

When I bought my first rental property, I was not a member of an awesome real estate investment group, nor did I know anyone very well that was an experienced real estate investor.  As such, I had no one that I could ask questions of.  If I had a real estate specific question, I had to figure out the answer on my own.  Due to the fact that I had to learn everything on my own, it took me approximately one year from the time in which I began researching potential rental properties to the time in which I bought my first rental property.  When I purchased my first rental property, I had no one to hold my hand and help guide me through the process.  I was on my own.

Why New Real Estate Investors Are Just Like Babies

You as the new real estate investor need to have your hand held, just like you had your hand held when you were a a baby.   When you were a baby, you had your hand held by older people who simply knew better than you.  Your hand was held in order to provide you with some guidance and with comfort.

For example, if you were crossing a very busy and dangerous street, your hand should have been held by an older person who was able to keep you by their side until there was a break in traffic and until the street was safe to cross…

Further, when you were a baby, if something startled you and you became scared, an older person would hold your hand in order to provide you with some comfort.

The Same Applies In The Real Estate Investing Game…

…If you are a new real estate investor, you need to have your hand held.

You need to have experienced real estate investors lead you through the path of least resistance.

You need to have someone there who can answer your questions and help eliminate your fears.

Most importantly, you need someone to hold your hand and lead you to the right real estate investment opportunities.

When you are a new real estate investor (or baby for that matter) you have no idea about right from wrong.  You have no idea about what real estate investment is right for you.  As a result, you need someone there, who is experienced and trustworthy who can hold your hand, and help guide you in the right direction and toward the right real estate investment opportunity.

If you never have anyone there who is guiding you towards the appropriate investment opportunities, chances are is that you could be spinning your wheels and never end up buying your first rental property.

The reason why I say this is because I encounter hundreds of new real estate investors who do this. They don’t have the right guidance, they spin their wheels and they never take action, and never buy their first rental property.

If you want to do it right, get someone who you can trust who can hold your hand and lead you to the right investment!

Happy Investing!

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: Remember, I am an experienced Real Estate Investor and Licensed Realtor.  I help people like you buy your first rental property.  If you are interested in buying Toronto real estate, Ottawa real estate, Brampton real estate, Hamilton real estate, Richmond Hill real estate, Oakville real estate, Mississauga real estate, North York real estate, Kitchener real estate, or Brantford real estate, send me an email at NEIL@FIRSTRENTALPROPERTY.COM and I will help you get started in the right direction !!

Hi Friend,

I hope you are doing well.

One night can change your life or be a complete waste of time.  Whether you experience the change or you misuse your time is entirely up to you and no one else.

When I was first starting out as a real estate investor, I was obviously looking for advice on how to buy a rental property.  Initially, I was never a part of any real estate investment monthly workshop like the Landlord Bootcamp For Beginners.

I was able to navigate things on my own at the beginning and ended up purchasing Oakville real estate, Hamilton real estate and Toronto real estate.

Today things could not be easier for the new real estate investor.  There are lots of quality real estate investment groups that exist that provide support and guidance to the new real estate investor.

If you reside in the Greater Toronto Area, the following real estate groups are ones you should consider joining if you are looking to purchase your first rental property.

Thornhill Wealth Forum

Real Estate Investment Network

Landlord Bootcamp For Beginners  ( I run this group, along with a few key Team Members)

A word of caution to you.  These groups are for serious action takers.  If you are looking for a social night out, you are better served by attending  a local pub in your area.

 I have a Beef To Pick

My beef to pick is as follows…

I have noticed over the course of the past 7 years as a real estate investor that the majority of people that attend Real Estate Investment Workshops do so as if they were on a ‘social night out’!

Most people attending these workshops don’t take them seriously.  They don’t soak up all the information there is to offer at these events.  They attend meeting after meeting after meeting, but never end up taking any action and buying a rental property.

Even better, I have observed people who become members of several real estate investment groups.  Each of these groups could have a meeting once a month.  Therefore, there are people who are ‘new real estate investors’ who are attending several meetings each month, month after month and year after year, without taking any action…

A word of caution if you fit the profile of the ‘new real estate investor’ I described above…

Stop joining real estate investment groups!

Pick ONE group that you find is very valuable and stick to it.

One valuable real estate investment group is all that you need.

When you do attend these monthly sessions, take on a proactive role and not a reactive role.

Meaning, come prepared with questions that you would like to have answered.

Make it your goal to speak to experienced real estate investors during the session and get your questions answered!

If you are serious about getting started, don’t delay!

Join a quality real estate investment group and attend the meetings with your OWN agenda.  Get your questions answered and gain the support you need in order to help you take action and buy your first rental property.

Happy Investing!

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: Remember, I am an experienced real estate investor and Licensed Realtor.  I help people like you buy their first rental property.  If you are interested in purchasing Oakville real estate, Hamilton real estate or Toronto real estate, send me an email at NEIL@FIRSTRENTALPROPERTY.COM and I will help you get started !!  🙂