“Happy Birthday to you.  Happy Birthday to you.  Happy Birthday Dear First Rental Propertyyyyyyy.  Happy Birthday to you!”

Guess how old First Rental Property is?

One year old, as of today.

The first article that I posted to First Rental Property was on December 17th 2009.

The blog has come a long way thanks to all of it’s great readers!

The next year for First Rental Property is going to be very exciting.

Check out my video in order to find out what is in store for First Rental Property in it’s second year.

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

ps:  You will also want to check out the first five blog posts ever written for First Rental Property.  Here they are:

How To Find The Money To Buy A Rental Property

4 Crucial Tips When Selecting A Mortgage Broker

How To Become A Better Real Estate Investor

Real Estate Investors Are Liars

What Is A Transitional Area?

pps: Be a part of the excitement of First Rental Property during it’s second year.  Don’t miss out! Subscribe to the blog today!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9WNBTfuUl0[/youtube]

The automatic doors jolted open and a frigid wind blew into the train and right onto my face.  Gasping for air I stepped off the train and lost balance on the ice.  I almost went down like a sac of potatoes, ready to be trampled on by aggressive commuters coming at me from all directions.

This happened to me this morning.

It has been almost 5 years since I have made the commute downtown.  I simply had forgotten how intense it was.

In fact the commute seemed increasingly intense.  A lot more intense than I had remembered it 5 years ago.

Or, maybe it’s no more intense that it used to be.  Maybe I am that one that has changed, and now see things differently

Yeah…

I like this theory better.  I am the one that has changed.  Not the intense commute.  The commute has remained the same.  Intense.

After my narrowly averted tragic demise this morning, I found myself navigating my way through downtown Toronto’s Underground Walkway.  More affectionately known to Torontonians as The PATH. Check out the Muddy York Blog for a great explanation of the Toronto PATH.

My journey became more complicated in The PATH.

It seemed that somebody, somewhere opened up the flood gates, and in came all of the marching commuters, flowing in from all of the doorways and hallways in sight.

Left-Right-Left-Right-Left-Right-Left-Right-Left-Right-Left-Right-Left-Right-Left-Right-Left-Right.

You better keep pace and not slow down, otherwise you will be trampled from behind.  Don’t even dare cutting diagonally through the crowd, otherwise you may get pushed to the ground and stomped on for getting in someones way.  You don’t believe me?  Have you ever tried cutting diagonally?  Try it, and then tell me what your experience was…

I make it seem that I had a terrible time this morning.  However, in reality, I actually learn a great deal from experiences such as these.  Which brings me to my explanation of:

How I Became a Successful Real Estate Investor

I have always been a very self aware individual.  Some people are self aware and some people are not.  In order to find out how you can become more self aware, read the article 11 ways to be more self aware today at Mary Jaksch‘s blog Goodlife Zen.

Due to this high level of self awareness I have always known that people want to fit in and be accepted.  As a result, people will do things or say things to be accepted.  People will also be less likely to act up or say something that draws attention to them, at the risk of being labeled as someone that does not fit in.

This phenomenon can in someway be referred to as  Groupthink.

Irving Janis was a Research Psychologist at Yale University who defined “Groupthink” as:

“A mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members’ striving for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action.“

Here lies the secret as to how I became a successful real estate investor.

1. I have always been efficient at fighting off the effects of Groupthink.

2. Further, I never care what anyone else thinks about me.  I make my decisions independently of any body’s influence.

My secret sounds overly simple and to the point.  It is!

People become successful as real estate investors when they start to go against the norm and not follow everyone else.  Real estate investors don’t think like the majority of the population.

If you are a newbie just starting out as an investor, you have to understand this and embrace it.

Using the example of my eventful commute this morning,  I present you with the following analogy.

Wok with me here…

All of the commuters walking in the same direction in Toronto’s PATH represent the thought process of the majority of the population.

A real estate investor would be someone trying to cut diagonally through this group, or event better, walking in the opposite direction and into this sea of oncoming commuters.

The point that I am trying to make is that the thought process of the real estate investor differs.  It is not the same as everyone else.  You can’t fall victim to Groupthink.  Fight it.  Be unique.  Always.  That is how you will become successful.

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

ps: Don’t follow the crowd.  Be unique and become successful by subscribing to my blog!

pps: Here is an oldie but a goodie video that was recorded early in 2010.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lrxe-cR-LoI[/youtube]

The world’s richest man doesn’t care about making money.  He thinks it’s crazy if you keep on buying things.

Carlos Slim is a telecommunications tycoon that was ranked by Forbes as the world’s richest man in 2010.

He firmly believes that electronic communications is now the nervous system of society.

In an interview with CNN‘s Larry King, Carlos opened up about money, life, business and family.

Carlos shared some incredible insights.  These great insights should be studied carefully by new real estate investors.

Here is what you ought to know about The World’s Riches Man

1. Family is the most important thing to him.
2. His happiness does not come from buying things.
3. He thinks that someone is “crazy” and that they “have a problem” if they “keep on buying things.”
4. The more that you buy, the more that you will want.  Materials things don’t matter.
5. Family should not be looked at as an obstacle.  Rather, you should turn to family for support.

Understanding Carlos’ point of view is very important for new real estate investors.  If you completely understand and practice what Carlos preaches, you will have a much more fulfilling real estate investing career.  Buying rental property should never be about making money hand over fist…which leads me to my next point…

1) Never buy rental properties solely for monetary gain

Your long term happiness as a real estate investor has more to do with than just making money.  Don’t get me wrong…  There is absolutely nothing wrong with monetary gain.  However,  you have to have other, more dominant motivations, fueling your desire to invest.  If you just invest to make money, you probably will not fully enjoy the experience of being a real estate investor.  Any super successful real estate investor, like Donald Trump will be the first to tell you that you have to do what you love.

2)  Your family can help you become a better real estate investor

View your family in a positive light.  Gain strength from them. Work as a team, not against each other.  Look to them for support during tough times.  This is what Carlos believed, and continues to believe today.  Many real estate investors, including myself got to where they are today because of the support of their family.

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

PS: Learn from the most successful people in the world, and learn how to become a real estate investor simply by subscribing to my blog.    

Hi Everyone,

I hope you are doing well.

The picture you see below is a picture of me!  This was taken on top of a “Harvester”.  A “Harvester” is a $300,000 dollar machine used by Wine Makers to ‘harvest’ grapes.  This Harvester was being driven by the son of the Owner of this Winery!  Hang on!

Here I am…

Here is what a ‘Harvester’ looks like…

This past weekend I attended a wine tour in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

For those of you not familiar with this area, this is an area in Southern Ontario, Canada, where a lot of grapes are grown and a lot of wine is produced. (This area is very well known for ‘Ontario Ice Wines’)

Regardless of where I am and what I am doing, I have reached the point where my eyes and ears are always looking and listening for anything “real estate”.

Even when I am here, I am thinking real estate…

Primarily, what I was thinking about when I stood here and took the picture above, was how much the land I was standing on must be worth.

Wine is produced off of hundreds upon hundreds of acres of farm land in this region.

Land values have historically proven that they go up in value with time.  In a stable political and economic country, if you buy land and hold it for the long term you will prosper as the land increases in value.

My interest was peaked during this wine tour when I got an opportunity to speak with one of the owners of a Winery.

The owner was a very vibrant and well spoken lady at 77 years young!

Since I was taking the tour with a large group (approximately 30 people in total), we had an opportunity to sit down with the owner and taste a number of wines.  She told us about the history of the region as well as the history of her winery.

After she addressed the group, we were then guided into the store, where we were able to purchase some of the wines that we had been tasting.

Since I always try to capitalize on interviewing successful business people, I took this opportunity to speak to the owner of the Winery in further detail and in an impromptu fashion while in the store.

Here she mentioned some amazing things that we can all learn from.

• She said that in 1955, when her and her husband were 22 years old, they bought 26 acres of farmland there for $13,000 Canadian Dollars.
• I asked her what she thought was the single thing that had contributed to her success and the success of her Winery over the years….She responded that she had been able to remain successful for so many years because she always focused on the quality of her product (wine).  She always produced the best product possible.

If we examine the 2 points above, we can obviously realize the tremendous benefits that result from buying and holding real estate long term.  Today’s value of that land surely is worth many times over what the land was bought for in 1955.

If this wine maker were every to sell her land, it would be bought in a heartbeat.  I would not be surprised if the selling price was in the “millions”.

So what were the lessons learned from this Ontario Wine Maker?

1. Buy and hold real estate long term, and
2. Always focus on producing the best quality product you possibly can (no matter what your line of work is)

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

PS: To keep up to date with my blog, enter your e-mail address on the LEFT hand side of the blog.  To received The First Rental Property Newsletter, enter your e-mail address on the RIGHT hand side of the blog.  In the Newsletter, experienced real estate investors will share with you how they bought their first rental property.  They will also share with you some tips and tricks in order to help you get started.

Hi Everyone,

I hope that you are all doing well.

Today I am going to talk about what has already been talked about many times before…

Personal coaches, real estate coaches, and successful people in general have covered this topic in great depth.

What I am sharing with you in this blog post or other blog posts is no different than what you may have already been exposed to.

People who are trying to become successful at at something, for instance real estate investing will always wonder about the ‘sure path to success.’ They will wonder what the ‘secret’ is to becoming a successful real estate investor…

Aspiring real estate investors often look at successful real estate investors and wonder how they got to where they are. Often times newer real estate investors look up to the more experience real estate investors in amazement. New investors often doubt their own abilities.  They worry that they may not have what it takes takes to one day become successful.  They feel that their attempt at real estate investing is a struggle and that there is a chance that they will never end up making it…

Let it be known that…

…It is not difficult to become successful at investing in real estate, but then again it is very difficult.   Ihope I have not confused you… Follow my train on thought here…as I will explain…

It is not hard to become successful at investing in real estate because all you have to do is copy what successful people, successful real estate investors have already done.

Pretty simple, right?!

Easier said than done!

In my experience, I have observed very few people take this advice.

Out of say for instance the last 10 people that I have talked to that are interested in investing in real estate, perhaps only one of these 10 people have followed in the footsteps of real estate investors more successful than them. As a result, 9 of these people continue to struggle and spin their wheels.  Whereas the one individual who simply copied what successful real estate investors were doing has ultimately experienced success as a real estate investor.

The advice is straightforward and the advice is this…

• “Success leaves clues”

• “To become successful at investing in real estate, copy what successful investors are doing.  In fact, copy what they have already done!”

I will leave you with this to ponder…

Think of the following example.  In the great classic, The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy, Toto, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and The Lion were given one piece of advice.

The advice was to follow The Yellow Brick road.

If they did this, they would encounter no trouble. However, if they deviated off of the road, trouble would soon be upon them…

In the end, they finally ended up getting to their desired destination, The Emerald City.

Be like Dorothy and her crew and follow the sure path to success.  Stay on the road that successful real estate investors have paved out for you.  Follow this road all the way to your own Emerald City!

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

P.S. To follow my blog, enter your e-mail address on the LEFT hand side of the blog.  To receive The First Rental Property Newsletter, enter your e-mail address on the RIGHT hand side of the blog.  In the Newsletter, successful real estate investors will share with you how they bought their first rental property.  They will also share with you some tips and tricks as to how you can get started!

Hi Everyone,

I hope that you are all doing well.

I am trying to keep up with my catchy titles for my blog posts.  What do you think about today’s?  If you like it, Tweet the article now.  I can usually tell if people like an article or not depending on the number of tweets.  So if you like this one, Tweet away!

Like many of the topics I write about, today’s topic is quite simple.  Simplicity is often overlooked though. I find that I don’t like to complicate things by talking about confusing real estate topics.

Rather, I like to focus on topics that are relevant to new and aspiring real estate investors.

Now for today’s topic…

One of the greatest mental battles  that you will ever engage in with regards to real estate investing, will be the battle around dealing with CHANGE.

As with life, change is the only constant we can rely on when we are investing in real estate.

The extremely successful real estate investors are the ones who are able to embrace change, and not lose focus in the face of change.

Here is an examples to illustrate exactly what I am talking about…

• Throughout the course of a real estate investor’s career, the investor experiences many thoughts.  There can be times in which the real estate investor could be very motivated to grow their real estate portfolio, and they do so by acquiring a number of properties.  This could be their dominating thought at the time.

• Furthermore, during this same real estate investor’s career, there could come a time in which the real estate investor is no longer interested in acquiring any more properties.  As such, they enter a ‘holding period’ in which they are simply managing the portfolio of rental properties, and have no desire to buy anymore properties.

What happens though if and when a real estate investor hits a slump?  A slump in which they find that they are disinterested in real estate, and that they no longer want to invest in real estate?

What do they do now?  What has changed?

Do they sell of their portfolio all together, and get out of real estate completely?  Or do they just stick with it, despite the fact that they feel they have lost all of their interest in investing?

These seem like a bunch of questions a dummy would ask, don’t they?

Well my dear real estate investors, these are not dumb questions at all. These very questions go through the mind of many experienced real estate investors at some point.

How do I know this?

I know this because I have asked myself these very same questions.

The point I am trying to make is this…

When times change for us as real estate investors, and we feel that we are in a spot in which perhaps we don’t want to invest anymore, or perhaps we have lost interest in real estate investing, what do we do?

We keep on investing!

We keep on investing for 2 reasons:

1) The first reason is because as I mentioned above, change is the only constant we can rely on.  As such, our levels of motivation with respect to investing in real estate may fluctuate…this is normal.  One year, we may feel super motivated in invest, whereas the next year, we may want to quit investing in real estate all together.  We know that we are going to have a changing attitude, as we go through life.  Accept that this is normal, and persevere and continue to invest.

2) Reason number 2 as to why we keep on investing, despite our changing attitude is because all the successful real estate investors are the ones who persevere.  If you give up and throw in the towel, plain and simple, you have given up.  In order to be the best at your game…the real estate investing game, you have to keep on forging ahead.  Giving up early is not going to benefit you.  Accept the fact that your attitude towards real estate investing may change…however….

Don’t give up!!!

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

To keep up to date with my blog, enter your e-mail address on the LEFT hand side of the blog.  To receive The First Rental Property Newsletter, enter your e-mail address on the RIGHT hand side of the blog.  In the newsletter, experienced real estate investors will share with you how they bought their first rental property.  They will also share with you some tips and tricks that will help you get started!

Hi Everyone,

I hope that you are all doing well.

I am trying to come up with some more catchy titles for my blog posts these days.  What do you think of today’s title?

I titled today’s article, Real Estate Investing for Dummies in order to impress upon people how easy investing in real estate can be…

Let it be know that you do not have to be an intellectual or have a very high IQ in order to invest in real estate and become successful at it.  I will be the first t admit that I am not an academic (although I tried to force myself to become one for a long time).  For a long time, I was hard on myself for not being a great academic…

However, as time went on and I started to become more successful in the real estate game, I became at peace with the fact that I wasn’t a smart academic.

A person with average academic intelligence, can become a super successful real estate investor, there is no question about that!

Your success as a  real estate investor has nothing to do with your academic intelligence, rather it has everything to do with your specialized knowledge.

In one of my favourite books, Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill, the topic of general knowledge and specialized knowledge is discussed.

Napoleon had studied the most successful business people of his time and had found a common trait within the most successful people.  The common trait that these successful people had was that they were very rich in specialized knowledge, not general knowledge.

What this means, as it relates to real estate investing is that you are increasing your chances of success, and you are becoming a smarter real estate investor, when you read and study about real estate investing.  You do not need to concern yourself too much with filling your brain with a lot of general knowledge.

I will repeat that just in case you missed it…

You do not need to concern yourself too much with filling your brain with a lot of general knowledge.

This has been one of my greatest discoveries, as there was a time in which I used to try to fill my brain with as much information as I could.  I thought that one’s measure of intelligence was directly related to how much ‘stuff’ I knew.  I could not have been more wrong, and I am glad that I came across and read Think and Grow Rich when I did.

So, to summarize my rant, which I hope has not been too confusing, here is what you need to do…

As a new or aspiring real estate investor:

• Do not get down on yourself if you are not smart academically (you do not need to be in order to become a successful real estate investor).

• Focus on acquiring specialized knowledge, not general knowledge. (this means read as much as you can about real estate, learn strategies, talk to other experience investors, fill your brain with ‘everything’ real estate)

The more you begin to take a proactive approach with regards to real estate investing, the more knowledgeable you will become and the less AFRAID you will be as well!

A lot of people are never able to shake the fears that they have about investing in real estate simply because they do not have any knowledge on the topic.

It is their  lack of knowledge which results in them becoming uncertain.  When someone is uncertain about something, they often experience anxiety which results in PARALYSIS in many cases. (Paralysis simply means people do not end up taking any action at all)

Become less afraid and more knowledgeable by acquiring specialized knowledge on real estate!

Don’t be a Dummy!

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

To keep up to date with my blog, you can enter your e-mail address on the LEFT hand side of the blog.  To receive The First Rental Property Newsletter, enter your e-mail address on the RIGHT hand side of the blog.  In the newsletter experienced real estate investors will share with you how they bought their first rental property.  In addition, they will share some tips and tricks as to how you can get started!

Hi Everyone,

I hope you are doing well.

Today I would like to share with you some observations that I have made with regards to land lording.

Many people looking to invest in real estate never end up doing so because they become terrified of the concept of becoming a ‘landlord’.

Some of these aspiring real estate investors believe that once they become a ‘landlord’, they will become a hated person.  A hated person by their tenants, and perhaps a hated person by their friends and family (so they think).

There is a belief out there that all landlords are unappreciative, wealthy Land Barons, who do not have their tenants’ best interests at heart.

I can dispel that myth for you right now.

As with any walk of life, there are bad apples out there that ruin the reputation of the good.

Of course there are some terrible landlords out there that do the unspeakable of things.

We do not care about that group of people, because we are the ones that have to focus on ourselves, and what we are doing in order to create and maintain a good relationship with our tenants. After all, we cannot control other people’s actions, we can only control ourselves!

Personally, as I look back over the past 5 years, in which I have been a landlord, I can confidently say that I have taken serious initiative in order to maintain a good relationship with all of my tenants.

Becoming a landlord that your tenants both like and respect is not hard…

…It does however take effort and consistency.  You also have to be coming from a place of authenticity.  If you are not genuine in what your are doing, it is better to replace yourself with someone who is.

Here are some of the actions that I have taken over the past 5 years as a landlord.  I am continually learning myself and adjusting and tweaking what I do as time goes on.  You can use this list as a guide. Use this list as a resource as well.  These are things that have worked for me.  Maybe you can add to this list, or speak to other experienced and good landlords who will be able to add to the list.  Also, feel free to make recommendations to me as well, so I can add these to my list!

How to become the nicest landlord your tenants will ever have

• When interacting with them, listen 80% of the time, talk 20% of the time
• Do what you say you are going to do
• Return their phone calls and e-mails promptly (same day)
• Smile
• Be proactive — (contact them on a regular basis)
• Don’t let maintenance issues get out of control – deal with them. (now)
• When they first move into your property, give them a nice welcome present (I give a Welcome Basket)
• Around Christmas (a.k.a. ‘The Holiday Season”), drop off to them a present (again, I like giving a good ‘basket’ or a gift certificate)
• Don’t be reactive — (if you are a reactive landlord, in my opinion, you are not doing your job)
• In order to gain respect, you have to show respect.  –(show respect to your tenants)
• It is better to over communicate with them than under communicate

So there you have it!

The above list is by no means an exhaustive list, however, these are the things that I have done over the past 5 years, which have helped me to continually become a better landlord.  Again, feel free to add to the list with some of your recommendations!

To keep up to date with my blog, you can enter your e-mail address on the LEFT hand side of the blog.  In order to receive The First Rental Property Newsletter, you can enter your e-mail address on the RIGHT hand side of the blog.  In the Newsletter, experienced real estate investors will share with you how they bought their first rental property.  They will also share with you some valuable tips and tricks on how to get started as a real estate investor!

Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh

Hi Everyone,

I hope that you are all doing well.

This week I closed on a rental property in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Yay!

The process of purchasing rental properties is becoming very familiar to me now.  The process almost feels automatic.  However, it wasn’t always that way…

One of the biggest discoveries that I have made recently, that I would like to share with new and prospective real estate investors is this…

There is a secret to becoming a successful real estate investor.

This ‘secret’ as I like to call it, may not seem obvious at first.  The secret is however the linchpin to all future success in real estate investing.

Once you understand what this secret is, it is easy to see how some people become very good and experienced at real estate investing, while others who attempt to become successful, fail.

The secret is simply this…

Successful real estate investors are afraid of investing in real estate, however, they are able to manage this fear.

This may seem like a confusing statement.  It is however not confusing at all.  Let me explain…

No matter how successful a real estate investor becomes, the individual always experiences a degree of fear with regards to real estate investing.

This fear may be centered around having a vacant rental unit, selecting tenants, obtaining financing, or growing their real estate portfolio.

I know all about this fear because I experience it.

Here is where this blog post gets interesting… (if it has not already)

• Successful and experienced real estate investors are able to manage this fear.

The key to success is being able to manage this fear.

For example, as I mentioned above, I closed on a townhouse in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada this week.  With every property purchase that I have made, I have experienced a degree of fear.  More appropriately put, this fear has more so been anxiety that I have experienced.

I think that every experienced real estate investor feels some sort of anxiety or fear with each property acquisition, no matter how many properties they may have.

For myself, I was experiencing anxiety with regards to finding tenants for this property.  I was concerned that due to the time of the year (the end of summer), the property may sit vacant for a couple of months, as the rental market that I invest in, tends to slow down a bit come September.

New and aspiring real estate investors allow this fear to consume them.  Fear paralyzes them, and because of this, they end up never taking any action!  Which translates into….

NEVER BUYING THEIR FIRST RENTAL PROPERTY!!!

Experienced real estate investors are able to manage this fear because they are resourceful, and they know where to get answers when they need them.

For example, I am resourceful, and I rely on my real estate team.  Members of my real estate team have strengths that I do not.

I am become more confident about real estate investing because I know that my real estate team is good at what they do.

For example, my fear of having a vacant unit was quickly reduced when the property manager that I work with ADP Property Management, contacted me 2 days after my closing date, with a tenant that wants to move in September 1st.  If this works out with the tenant, they will move in simply 7 days after I closed on the property.  Not bad in my books!

Once again, I was able to manage this anxiety  by working with the right people.  My property manager has the knowledge and the network, in order to provide me with a list of potential tenants that I can chose from.

So as you can see, although I keep on plugging away as a real estate investor, there are still things that I am afraid of, or that I experience anxiety over.  In this example, it was the anxiety of having a vacant unit for 2 months plus…

I know how to eliminate and reduce this fear, because I know where to get answers.

This is the biggest difference between the experienced real estate investors and the investors just starting out.

The new investors trying to get things going, often do not know where to get the answers to their important questions.  They often do not know who the right people are to network with.  It is because of this, that many of the new investors fail at real estate investing, or don’t even start investing because they are too overwhelmed.

In order to become better as  a real estate investor, you have to understand and embrace the fact that you will be afraid of certain things, however, you have to forge ahead and manage those fears.

Your resourcefulness and the people you know in your real estate network will help you to manage and or eliminate these fears.

To keep up to date with my blog, you can enter your e-mail address  on the LEFT hand said of my blog.

To receive The First Rental Property Newsletter, you can enter your e-mail address on the RIGHT hand side of the blog.  In this newsletter, experienced real estate investors will share with you what they went through when they purchased their first rental property.  They will also share with you some tips and tricks that you can implement when you buy your first rental property.

Best Regards,

Neil.

Hi Everybody,

I hope you are all doing well.

Today I want to talk to you about your real estate network, and how powerful it truly can be.

When you are first starting out as a real estate investor, chances are that you have not established a solid network of like minded people.

The more time you spend involved with real estate investing, the more real estate investor meetings and investment groups you attend, the larger your network will become.

While you are attending all of these meetings, you are no doubt meeting a lot of people, who potentially will be able to help you down the road.

You are not going to stay in touch with all of the real estate investors that you meet along the way, rather, if you are able to make a handful of strong relationships with other investors, this in my belief is all you need at the end of the day.

Personally, I leverage from time to time on my network of fellow real estate investors. I have a small group of  real estate investors that I go to for advice whenever I do not know how to deal with an issue. (some of whom will be reading this post!)

The interesting observation I have made with this group is that, I consider most if not all of the people in the group to be smarter than  I am.  They are smarter than me when it comes to running a business, they have great instincts, and they are very smart entrepreneurs.

I feel no shame due to the fact that they are smarter than I am.  This is  because I know that whenever I need help with something and I go to one of these people for help, I am going to get very valuable feedback, which will help me to solve my problem.

As a new real estate investor just starting off, you want to establish a network of people that know more than you do, and who have more experience than you do investing in real estate.

Many novice investors make the mistake of establishing a network of fellow investors who have the same skill set as they do, or who have the same level of experience.

Although, you might be able to learn a thing or two from one another, when you are faced with a very difficult problem, chances are that no one in your network will be able to help you.

In summary, the greatest discovery that I have made about building an effective network of fellow real estate investors is to…

Surround yourself with a network of people that are smarter than you

It will take a while for you to realize the benefits of doing this.  For me, it took me over 2 years to realize how important and valuable the network was that I had established.

For example, today I was dealing with a challenging real estate investing issue.  As a result, I sent an e-mail out to a small group of fellow real estate investors, who have also become my friends.

Within a few hours, I recieved responses from them as to how I should deal with the issue that I was facing.

The advice that they provided me with, I am going to implement.  In addition, the advice that they provided will help me to effectively solve the current problem that I am facing.

The Power of your network is incredible.  Build it well, and take care of it.

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Best Regards,

Neil Uttamsingh