Hello all.
I have received several emails asking various questions (Thank you, and keep them coming), but by far the most frequent question I am asked is “How do I get into Real Estate?” This is one of the reasons I have committed to writing and speaking on this topic. There is a whole segment of the Nigerian society, no matter which city, town or village you go to, that is extremely interested in home ownership and this should not be surprising since homes have been owned in this society well before the idea of mortgages came into existence.
The difference now, in my opinion, is that the news has slowly started to filter out into the populace about the possibility of owning homes through mortgage finance and while there is a healthy curiosity, there is also the fear of the unknown.
In a previous article, I discussed the need for practitioners in the industry to retrain them to make their sales pitches in the language their target market would understand rather than in the sophisticated language of the industry. I still believe it is that disconnect in language, that is causing the faltering of the intending homebuyer, and driving them to take out personal loans and build with those funds rather than taking out the more appropriate financial instrument of mortgages.
I have therefore, in recognition of those esteemed readers of mine that are valiantly trying to learn and enter the market, decided to make my next few articles “Real Estate 101” tutorial for intending home buyers, in the most basic language I can. I ask my more seasoned industry readers to bear with us, and maybe even you might find something in here that you can relate to or learn from. So let us begin by asking the most basic questions–
1. Why do you want to get into real estate?
The answer you give to this question must be your guiding light throughout your entire real estate journey. You must be very clear as to what your goal is, or else you will miss your lane. In fact, the answer to this question is the “beginning of all wisdom”. Everything you buy, every financing option you choose, every decision you make, must be to get to that goal you have. So, are you trying to buy a house for you and/or your family to live in? Or to buy a house to rent out for more income monthly? Or to buy many plots of land or other property to hold and sell alter for a profit? You must answer honestly and realistically, so you can decide what is known as your “niche” (the area you want to be in), in the market.
2. What can you bring to the table today?
This question helps you figure out where you are, so you know what you need to do to get to where you need to be. Have you owned property before? Do you have sizeable funds for your investment purchase? After purchase, will you have sizeable funds for property management? Have you managed property before? Is there a program of assistance for you to use (like from your job or the government)..These types of question must be clearly addressed, so you know where you stand as of today.
3. What will you need to get to your goal?
Once you are clear on where you are, you must start to do all the research you can into what you will need to be successful in your plan. By far the most important need must be education. You must be trained in the art of real estate, which is really not as easy as it seems. The sophistication in the industry has moved forward so much, that if you are not well trained, you will be left far behind, and it is not easy trying to catch up to a market that is moving faster that you can. Just by reading this article, you are already training yourself, and that is a wonderful thing.
Please follow me @nikefinancepro on Twitter, or connect with me on LinkedIn. Also visit www.mvpsolutionsinc. com for more information about us.
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