Can Anyone Do Property?

 

CAN ANYONE DO PROPERTY?

I used to think that anybody would be able to do property, But now I’ve been in the industry a few years, I’ve changed my mind. 

Hey, it’s ok to change your opinion about anything, based on new information!

So having learnt more and experienced more, I have come to this conclusion.

Being in property is not for everybody.

You need to have a certain set of characteristics and traits in order to do well in property.

When I think of the vast amount of people that I’ve met over the years, who have been all keen and eager to get cracking in property…

...And then I think of the ones that have actually stuck with it and made it work for them, sadly, it is only a fraction of people who have stuck it out.

And that’s because the truth is property is hard - despite what you might have been taught on some educational training course.

It really isn’t for everyone.

It is hard work, stressful, frustrating, and certainly isn’t the ‘get rich quick’ scheme that you were led to believe!

So here’s a few key attributes that I believe you should have if you’re seriously considering investing in property as a long-term career.

 

Key Attributes Required:

👊 A positive nature.

 

I’ll be honest with you here, the majority of days in property aren’t that great. You might get up to 10 really good days a year in property (new keys, refurb complete, new tenants), the rest are only average days or bad ones.

 

Take into account refurbishment problems, tenant or rent problems, and maintenance problems, and then acknowledge that these are all regular problems that occur on a regular basis.

 

You’ve got to have a naturally positive nature to avoid being dragged down, discouraged and downhearted by these issues.

 

👊 Resilience.

 

 It’s very important that you are able to recover quickly from difficult situations. When things go wrong, some people bury their head in the sand and avoid problems, which is not the way to go in property. If you run away and hide from issues in property, you often make the situation worse - such as a accruing rent arrears from a naughty tenant, or a leak which may then get worse and destroy the entire property.

 You’ve also got to have “bounce-back-ability” - the ability to keep going even when things have gone wrong.

 

👊 A thick skin.

 

Things do go wrong in property… often.

You shouldn’t allow yourself to get too upset by them, or take things personally, as that is a sure-fire way to make the situation worse, when emotions get involved.

Try to think logically about problems, even though they may be frustrating and not your fault.

Keep a cool head at all times, and remain impartial. It is pointless to wallow emotionally and be upset thinking “Why has this happened to me? / Why is the tenant behaving in this awful way to me?” It’s nothing personal, as it’s likely to be nothing to do with you!

 

👊 Tenacity and Determination.

 

 

It is crucial that you have a nature that doesn’t give up easily. You must never stop trying to improve or fix things, and you must do whatever is required to fix a goal.

 

This is especially important if you work for yourself, because you are fully responsible for your property and business - and no one is going to come and save you.

 

I mean that in the loosest possible terms; obviously maintenance contractors and advisors can help you fix certain things, but you’ve got to bring about those solutions yourself. A touch of personal stubbornness helps here, and an willingness to never give up!

 

👊 Finally, a couple of other traits that are important as a property investor: an ability to deal effectively with stress, patience, honesty, proactive, decisive, and integrity - if you always want to do the right thing by your tenants and investors, then you won’t go far wrong.

 

So that’s a little insight into some of the key personality traits needed in property. You should ask yourself honestly if you possess all these traits, because if not you will find it more difficult than most.

And if you don’t, hey, that’s ok too; as I’ve said, property is not for everybody.

Perhaps you could just focus your skills, time and energy on other things that you love, and invest passively with property developers, without being hands-on.

But if you really wish to get involved with bricks and mortar, vendors, agents, keys, properties, refurbishment, contractors, building materials, expensive problem fixes, tenancies, tenants, and all the associated issues, then I wish my very best of luck to you... because I know how hard it is! 😁👍

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Kellyann is a property investment strategist from Leeds. 

In her work she creates wealth for private investors through refurbishing properties. 

Visit her website for more details:

https://kellyannmartin.co.uk/investment/