Are you putting your hard earned money in bank accounts? Stocks? Shares? Then you could be losing thousands in missed opportunities every year!
It's so good in fact, that it is estimated that nearly 90% of the world richest individuals become rich by investing in property! So let's find out exactly how anyone, including you, can plan for and build property empire, and make you a millionaire!
1.Finding The Time
Have you ever wondered why you are always working and never seem to have enough money?
The money I save allows me to purchase cash generating properties which means that I am not dependent on a 9-5 office job. I have more time to spend with the people I care about. Before this happened I always had a feeling that I wasn't using my time effectively. Do you sometimes fell like this as well.
There were days where I would work, go home, watch TV go to bed, work, get home and watch TV again. Basically, I was in a rut. One of the most useful things I found was finding the time to focus on the things that really mattered.
So how do you find the time. Let's have a look at some of the things that really takes up a lot of our time:
1- Watching TV.
2- Do less work and overtime
3- Plan your time more carefully.
Surveys show that after work and sleep, watching TV is the third main use of people's time.
Don't get me wrong, there are times nothing better than watching TV, but sometimes it can take up too much of our time. Time is the most precious commodity. Personally speaking, given the choice between time and money, I will always choose time. After all there is an abundance of money, but only a finite amount of time.
What with the age of retirement continuing to rise and then pensions not being large enough for out retirements, people are increasingly thinking more and more about securing their financial future.
You owe it to yourself and your family. ANYONE who can understand money and how to make it work for them, rather than them working for it, can become financially independent within 5 years.
2. Setting Goals
Let's imagine that two people are driving somewhere they have never been before. The first driver sets off straight away as fast as he can. The second driver first spends some time looking at a map and deciding on the best route to go.
Which driver do you think will get there quicker and easier? This is the same for property investments. To be successful you have to declare where you are heading and set your targets.
Goals are important for many reasons:
a.They call you to action.
b.They help you make choices. Go for some things and reject others.
c.They introduce accountability.
d.They motivate you.
e.They increase your confidence to get you where you want to be.
When setting your own goals be honest with yourself. A great tip is to write them down on paper and refer to them. It's a proven fact that those with written goals perform better than those without. A goal is a tangible result that is unambiguous and measurable.
Sir Alex Ferguson did not become one of football's greatest managers by telling his team to just see how it goes this year '...that `hopefully we will do well again'. He tells them 'by Christmas we will be in the top three and by the end f the season, on May 17, we will be number one!'
"I want to own 100 properties as soon as possible" -that's not a goal.
"I want 1,000,000 in my hank account by December 31, 2008" -- now, that's a goal!
Set yourself a clear, measurable goal now. Then break it up into smaller, more manageable tasks so you know exactly what you need to do in order to achieve it.
3. Deciding On Your Strategy
Goals are WHAT you want. Strategy is HOW to get them
Here are some of the questions you need to be asking yourself when setting your strategy.
- Have I got my goals clear?
- Has someone I know double checked that my goals are realistic and properly set out and written down?
- How much do I need to make financially to hit my yearly goals? Break down your overall goal into smaller chunks.
- What kind of property investment meets my risk profile?
- What kind of property investments are going to help me reach my goals?
Off-plan investments are a popular choice; buy-to-let renovations;
- How much time do I have on a weekly basis to make my goals happen?
- To whom am I accountable for reaching my weekly and monthly goals?
- What reading and researching do I need to do each week?
- What support do I need to buy in or nurture such as accountants, lawyers, finders, lenders and brokers?
Have I prepared a budget and a business plan? For example, here was my goal when I first become interested in property investing.
Main goal- To become financially independent in 5 years.
Tasks needed to achieve this:
Education.
a- Take a course in property investment.
b- Read 5 books on the topic.
c- Join a property investment forum to learn from other people.
Money
a- Cut back on unnecessary expenses every month.
b- Save 40% of my salary each month, which was approximately 500 pounds at the time. This was to use to make property investments.
Investments
a- Purchase my first property within 6 months.
b- Purchase a new property every year.
As you can see, it helps to be very specific with your goals. If you can give specifics and values as this gives you something concrete to achieve.
Consider these two targets:
"Save money each month" is a little vague and might mean you only save a very small amount.
"Save 500 pounds a month" is more exact and also pushed me to be really careful with my money.
It was really hard work, but it means that I was able to put down a deposit on my first property within the 6 month time limit.
Once you have set your goals, review them every 2 weeks or so to see if you are going Anything that does not fit all of these criteria does not even get considered further by me. It's important that you think about your own.
4- Good Financial Ground Work
If you are managing your personal finances badly to start with, getting involved with property will not help. Property is there to generate cash for you, so don't be borrowing unsecured loans. Property should also be sued as the collateral.
You need to sort out the cracks first so that when you do invest, the money you make doesn't fall through them.
Try to keep your property investment and personal use accounts separately. Use separate bank accounts. Try to keep you personal funds and your investment funds separate. That way you won't overstretch yourself. You need to have a firm grasp on your finances to prevent problems
The simple answer that will solve all your money problems is to spend less than you earn and invest the difference!
5-Summary
Make time for your financial freedom. It's well worth it. You will be surprised to find that securing your financial future can be done in less than 10 hours a week. Consider that this is less than a third of the time that the average adult watches TV each week.
Make goals that you are happy with and create a strategy to show how you are going to achieve it. If you can do this and stick to you plan, then you will have laid th4e foundations to creating your financial future and it will only be a matter of time before you make your first million with careful and informed property investment.
Overseas property investment
