How can you learn from your mistakes in real estate?

Real estate is a great way to build wealth if all risks are well understood and strategies to address each are evaluated. Essentially, many risks are beyond our control and the strategies considered must be within our control and viable given the new circumstances. COVID was well beyond any investor's control and imagined risk scenarios and many could not deal with its effects. Unlike storm or fire damage, there was no insurance protection and income dried up for many. Interest rate increases, although predicted, were not expected to escalate to current levels. Many investments will see value corrections and face difficulty to refinance when loans mature. Creative thinking, low leverage and strong liquidity can mitigate these mistakes.

I bought my first investment property from another investor. It had been on the market for a while and a previous buyer had walked away after the inspection report. I took a risk and bought the property since I got a good deal. It was a true fixer upper. On hindsight, I should have put together a capex plan as soon as I bought it. I was not cash ready for all the immediate repairs that I was forced to make. On my subsequent purchases, I make sure that I set aside capex money for repairs when I negotiate the deal. In some cases, I just walk away from fixer upper investments.

From my own experience, ensuring that you can identify risks before their occurrence also helps you create strategies around risk mitigation. It also ensures that you are aware of the situational risks surrounding your project(s), and helps you employ all measures to avert the chance of occurrence as well as the impact upon occurrence.

Just do your homework and never ever get in a bidding war over property- know your budget and stick with it - never be afraid to walk away

I agree that we all learn from our mistakes. But in order to do that, we have to admit that we have made them. Identify how and what went wrong and do whatever necessary to prevent that from happening in the future. Sometimes, that admittance of fault is what drives us to be better in the future. We are all here to learn and grow and nothing grows from perfection except our self perception of excellence. Be humble and learn where your strengths and weaknesses are and then you can turn any situation around.

In my journey as a real estate broker, I've encountered a variety of situations that taught me valuable lessons. One memorable experience was a deal that almost fell apart due to miscommunication with a client who had specific renovation requirements. I realized that clear and precise communication is the key to understanding clients' needs. This instance prompted me to hone my communication skills, ensuring that I could translate their wishes into actionable plans effectively. Just like nurturing my garden, I continuously tend to my knowledge and adapt my strategies to flourish in the ever-changing real estate landscape. 🏡📚💼

Don't delegate the task of communicating the issue. Taking responsibility, especially in a humble and mature way, can make all of the difference when you're working to get things back on track.

Be sure your action is taken with the correct intent (i.e. to solve the problems that arise from it; not just to avoid blame or blowback).

Being honest with your clients is one of the key things that can make or break a developer's reputation. Investing in communication ensures that the clients are kept updated at any one moment, and creates more trust. On the other hand, the developer should ensure that in the event that they need to revise their delivery timelines, they uphold their end of the bargain. Lack of communication / miscommunication creates distrust with the clients, leading to more adverse reactions - including termination of contracts and reputational risk.

One thing i've found helpful is ensuring you accommodate feedback from all stakeholders including clients, colleagues, and other professionals in the field. This can help curate better strategies that be applied in future projects, and overall better results.

Even better: if you don’t know the answer to something, be proactive about asking for advice, and avoid mistakes before they happen. Fears of imposter syndrome can make it hard to do this, but push through!