Building an “empire” might sound a bit over the top, but the fact of the matter is that real estate is the most tried-and-true wealth-building method there is.
As an investor, I’ve seen personally what a few basic strategies– and some hard work– can do to completely transform my financial situation for the better.
The best part? Becoming a real estate investor is easier than ever.
Below, we’ll take you through everything you need to know to start your real estate empire from the ground up– whether you have tons of capital to get started or not.
What Is the Nost Profitable Form of Real Estate?
This is a common question but also a common misconception, so let’s get it out of the way first.
There is no “most’ profitable form of real estate. It all depends on the market and your goals.
The best and most successful real estate investors have something they’re known for, but their real estate investment portfolio is filled with every REI method there is.
For example:
- House flipping is great for short-term capital and ideal in certain markets
- Rentals are amazing as a long-term strategy for rental income and investing in market growth
- Wholesaling allows you to “sell” a deal to another investor which may not be a fit for your portfolio, in exchange for a commission. Perfect for generating additional cash flow from otherwise dead leads
- REITs allow you to own a percentage of another property, like stocks. Great for getting a piece of larger real estate that would otherwise be outside your means and for generating passive income streams
- Creative financing is perfect as an alternative way of obtaining a property for less money down or when you can’t obtain funding
- Different property types such as single-family, multi-family, and commercial all have their unique advantages as well
And that’s just scratching the surface.
As you read through this guide, think of each of these strategies– and many more– as tools in your toolbelt rather than an either-or choice.
You may start with one, but the goal will be to branch out over time and diversify your portfolio to all types of properties and investment methods if you’re looking to build a true real estate empire.
How to Build a Real Estate Empire (Step-by-Step)
Now, let’s break down step-by-step how to build your real estate investing empire.
The name of the game here will be leverage, as the more of it you have, the faster and easier you’ll be able to build a large portfolio with less work.
Let’s get started:
1. Learn the Real Estate Business Inside and Out
When it comes to real estate, knowledge is as important as anything else. And there is a lot to learn.
Chances are, if you’re new to real estate investing (REI), you’ll be quickly overwhelmed with all the information there is out there.
Don’t rush this stage thinking it’s not important. Take the time necessary to understand how every part of real estate investing works, as it will make a big difference when it comes time to implement.
Suggested REI learning topics:
- Obtaining capital
- Generating leads (i.e. finding sellers)
- Closing deals
- Joint venturing (JV) with other buyers
- Wholesaling
- The importance of knowing your real estate market
- And real estate investments (methods such as flipping, rentals, BRRRR)
2. Join Rei Communities (Local and Online)
Real estate investing has always been about networking and connections.
Whether it’s:
- Finding sellers who are interested in selling you their home
- Buyers who want to JV with you
- A great title company that has your back
- Or someone else
… this business is built on great relationships. Build great relationships now, and cash in on the benefits of these connections later. A broad network makes investing in real estate that much easier.
Nowadays, you have the advantage of joining Facebook, Discord, and other social groups online that have made it incredibly easy to build these relationships both more quickly and easily.
Do a quick Facebook search for smaller local groups in your area, and you’ll likely find several, not to mention general online groups with larger communities:
If you’re new to real estate investing, you’ll likely overlook this step– don’t.
It’s vital that you start building strong industry connections now, as they’ll help make everything easier.
3. Find a Source of Funding
In real estate, nothing moves without money.
Traditionally, you’d need to get approved by a bank for a loan to put a down payment on a property.
That’s still a common way of obtaining funding for a property investment. However, you can also:
- Start slow and save up your own capital for your first rental properties.
- Use creative financing to obtain property for a lower initial investment.
Another great way to get started is to use what we suggested in #2 to link up with local investors who are looking to throw their investment capital into something worthwhile.
If you engage in online and local communities, you’ll find lots of real estate investors who have tens or even several hundred thousand in capital that they’ve allotted to invest in real estate. They’re just looking for the right deal.
You could even partner with one of these investors by proving that you know how to find and close deals (creating a partnership where you do the work while they provide the cash), something you could learn by starting via wholesaling (more on that later).
Either way, you’ll need to know how much you’ll need to start in your chosen investment property as well as how you’re going to acquire that capital.
4. Build a Team You Can Lean On
You’re not out to just build a portfolio but a real estate empire, right?
To do that, you need to build a team.
Some of those may be employees you hire, but others will be professional relationships with experts who help you manage your real estate business (such as a good title company).
For example, over time, you’ll want to have:
- Virtual assistant(s) (cold calling, lead management)
- Closers (for follow-up calls)
- Disposition manager (in charge of finding buyers)
- Funding source(s) (bank, partner, or local investors you meet online)
- Local real estate agents
- Title company
- Contractors
- Attorney
5. Close your first deal and obtain your first property
Nothing teaches like first-hand experience.
To build out your portfolio, you’ll need to first learn what it’s like to purchase and manage your own property.
It doesn’t matter if this is a fix-and-flip or a rental property that you plan to hold onto long-term. The idea is to go through the entire process yourself to get the hang of things, learn lessons, and optimize your process.
For example: if you’ve never owned a fix-and-flip, you won’t fully understand how long it can– and should– take to fix up your average property.
How can you know if your contractors are taking too long and if they’re doing a good job? What other issues might you run into, such as a surprise plumbing job you didn’t catch in the initial inspection?
Hands-on experience is a great way for you to score more deals faster and really start building your portfolio on overdrive. If you bypass this step and go straight to partnering with local investors, you’re going to make those same mistakes on their dollar. So, the chances that they’ll work with you on another deal after that one is slim.
Getting your first deal under your belt will be valuable to local cash investors who are looking for fix-and-flippers or rental experts to partner on deals with.
Once you’ve done that, you can begin to really crank up your operation, as you’ll have a win under your belt that shows local investors that you know what you’re doing.
That will then allow you to get funding more easily and close more deals quickly.
6. Build out your platform and position yourself online
To really crank out more deals in a way that begins to approach a more passive income, you need to position yourself online as a local investor.
It might seem tedious, but even a post or two a week long-term to platforms such as Instagram and Facebook can go a long way toward attracting local investors and wholesalers who will bring you deals.
If you’re truly looking to build a real estate empire, consider creating content once you have a few properties under your belt. Or start now by documenting your journey to becoming an investor.
The more you put yourself out there, over time, you can build up a steady flow of deals that come straight to you. That not only saves you money on lead generation but saves you time calling and following up as well.
Want to dive deeper? Check out How to Build a Real Estate Empire, a book that offers a concise breakdown of real estate strategies you can use to get started.
How to get started in real estate with no money
If you’ve gotten this far, you’re seriously considering real estate as the vehicle for your financial freedom.
However, one nagging thought may have been holding you back:
I don’t have any money to invest in real estate right now.
If that’s the case, you’ll be happy to hear that there is more than one way to get yourself started with essentially little to no starting capital.
Here are two ways to start building your real estate portfolio with little to no money:
Learn wholesaling
Wholesaling is the perfect combo if you’re starting out but don’t have the capital to invest right away.
Wholesaling is when someone finds a seller, links them up with a buyer who wants that property, and makes a commission on the sale.
Wholesalers are a huge source of property leads for investors and likely something you’ll take advantage of at some point.
Why is this a good place to start when you don’t have starting capital?
As a wholesaler, when it comes to generating leads and talking with sellers, you’ll be doing exactly what investors do.
You’ll learn not only how investors find sellers but also how to communicate with them and close deals.
Wholesale commissions typically range from $10,000 – 20,000, making it the perfect vehicle for generating investment capital while you learn.
Plus, if you invest in a VA and build a solid buyer’s list you can make it an almost passive income stream that requires very little maintenance.
You can start out by using wholesaling as a side hustle while keeping your 9-5. This way, you can learn the business as you build toward your first deals and start accumulating enough capital to begin investing.
Use creative financing
Popularized recently through real estate investing gurus such as Pace Morby, creative financing is an umbrella term that refers to any method of obtaining real estate other than traditional bank financing.
Typically, that refers to one of two methods. Both involve paying periodic (i.e. monthly) payments to the owner as though they were the bank:
- Seller finance: Used on properties that are 100% paid off.
- Sub-to: Used on properties that have a loan balance that needs to be paid off.
Investors can easily set up servicing companies that handle all payment management so that you and your seller have nothing to worry about.
Why is this a great way of getting started with little or no capital?
With creative financing, you don’t need to be approved for a loan to cover a down payment.
Depending on the deal, you may need to offer a small bit of capital up front as a down payment. However, that’s typically not more than a few hundred or a thousand dollars depending on the terms of the deal.
Get started in real estate investing
Becoming a real estate investor doesn’t have to be difficult. It just takes a little know-how.
In fact, there are countless ways to make money with real estate.
You can even monetize land you purchase by using it to start a micro-storage business using peer-to-peer storage marketplaces like Neighbor.
With a tool like Neighbor, you can link up with local renters in need of convenient and affordable storage for their vehicles or personal belongings.
No matter what path you decide to take to begin building your real estate empire, we hope this guide helped you get started right.
