Where to Start As a Real Estate Investor?

Paolo Abate
Jul 26, 2017 · 2 min read

As far as getting started to become a real estate Investor, it’s very easy. Most people make it harder than it is to get started. I know a guy who’s spent 50K on courses and hasn’t yet “gotten started”. You don’t need to know everything, just have people around you who do.

First, find yourself a trusted mortgage broker that you like. That means looking at different banks and see how they operate, their policies and so forth. How much pull does your broker have within the bank? There are brokers who work with one bank and brokers that have 16–17 banks under their umbrella. Royal, Desjardins, BMO are those who have in house/independent brokers. The reason this is so important is the relationship you develop will help when you have a lot of questions, and to email them a listing for their opinion when necessary.

Second, find out how much you can borrow from them and also B lenders, joint ventures, borrowing other’s RRSPs, etc., so you know exactly where you stand and what your options are for financing. This is very important because great deals go very quickly, as fast as one day.

When you’ve finished the above, and you have a very clear idea of the type of building and location, go shopping with your Realtor. It’s as easy as that. This is where most newbies get stuck. They feel that contacting a Realtor to help them out is bothering them. That is the furthest thing from the truth.

Finding an experienced great realtor is key to your success. The good ones will always call you back ASAP, have their fingers on the pulse of the market, know resources to help you out, are terrific problem solvers and get the information you need for you to move forward without delay.

All the next steps in the process the realtor will/should guide you through. Courses and reading on the subject matter will help. I’ve been in business as a Realtor for 8 years now and every deal is different and it’s amazing the complexities I’ve come up against. Leave the new agents to people buying and selling their homes.

The gateway to your success is staying focused and driven. Don’t spread yourself thin in too many directions and don’t take no for an answer. Developing relationships are a necessity and will raise the bar of your success rate.


Paolo Abate

Written by

Paolo Abate heads HAVEN Developments, a Toronto and GTA based residential and commercial development company. http://paoloabate.ca/

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