7 Things You Can & Can’t Control In Real Estate (500th GL Real Estate Podcast Episode)

Performance Property Real Estate Question

Happy 500th Episode! Special thanks to everyone in my Real Estate Insider family for tuning in and checking out my weekly podcast and video blog over the last 9 years! It has been a long, challenging but rewarding journey. It was an accident that I got involved in real estate in the first place (you can check out my bio if you’re interested in that back story). Today for my 500th podcast episode, we’re going to go through 7 things you can and cannot control in real estate. We’ll start by talking about 7 things you cannot control in real estate, which unfortunately but predictably are the real estate topics that you hear about most in the news. The media tends to focuses on these 7 areas you cannot control because they are more convenient to track and report about. Since the media tends to focus on these 7 things that you can’t control in real estate, most people in turn focus most of their attention on these 7 items–we’ll discuss why that is a mistake.

7 Things you CAN’T control in Real Estate:

Interest rates
Inflation
Property Taxes
Price of Insurance
Price of Land
Price of Building Materials
Price of Labor

Despite the fact that the media focuses on many of these 7 topics you can’t control, people make decisions to buy and sell residential real estate based on life events much more so than based on macroeconomic factors.

For example, in the 1980s when mortgage interest rates were almost 20%, people still bought and sold houses because for the most part people make decisions to buy and sell homes based on life events like marriage, divorce, illness, death, new baby, new job or job loss rather than because of macroeconomic factors like inflation or interest rates.

My advice is not to fret or dwell on things you cannot control because that is a waste of time as well as a waste of emotional and psychological energy. It is much wiser to look at these 7 things you cannot control as constraints and focus your attention on areas where you can make an impact.

There are certain things in residential real estate that we have no control over and other things that we have complete and total control over—knowing the difference and then acting on that realization is one of the keys to real estate investing success. With that in mind, here are 7 things you can and should control in real estate:

7 Things You Can & Should Control in Real Estate

The condition of your property
The price you pay when you buy
The people and real estate professionals you choose to work and do business with
The amount of money you choose to pay professionals that you choose to do business with
Guidelines you set for managing your real estate investments
Tenants you choose to rent your property to
Terms and contents of any contract you choose to sign

The condition of your property: Real estate affords owners much more control than they would have with most other assets, so use that control to your advantage by maintaining your property and making appropriate repairs and capital improvements as needed. This is especially important if you are a landlord trying to attract & retain the best tenants or you are a property owner trying to refinance and pull money out of a property that you own.

The price you pay when you buy: The person with the money decides the price in a real estate transaction (even in a so-called sellers market). You have 100% control over your money, so use it wisely and never overpay for property when you buy. Buyers control the price in a property sale. Another buyer may agree to pay more than you do, but the higher the price you pay as a buyer, the lower your return on investment (ROI) will be.

The people and real estate professionals you choose to do business with: Work with the very best people you can work with and be very careful about who you do business with. Unfortunately, as in any business, there are crooks and liars in the real estate business—avoid these people like the plague. Your reputation is your most important asset and it will be affected by the company that you keep.

The amount of money you choose to pay professionals that you choose to do business with: Always negotiate the best deal you can for services you pay for and remember that the person with the money ultimately decides the price paid.

Guidelines you set for managing your real estate investments: You need rules and regulations to reduce risk, maximize returns and effectively manage your real estate investments. I tell people all the time I can’t change my business processes and requirements for every person I do business with–you can’t scale any business that way.

Who you allow to rent your property: Screening tenants effectively is critical for landlords to maximize their return on investment (ROI).

Terms and contents of any contract you choose to sign: Each term and condition in a contract creates an obligation, the breach of which can give rise to a lawsuit, so pay close attention to the specifics in any contract before you sign (i.e. purchase/sale contracts, listing agreements, leases).

Let’s recap that 7 things you can and cannot control in real estate:

Can’t Control 7: (Interest rates, Inflation, Property Taxes, Price of Insurance, Price of Land, Price of Building Materials, Price of Labor)

Can & Should Control 7: (The condition of your property, The price you pay when you buy, The people and real estate professionals you choose to work and do business with, The amount of money you choose to pay professionals that you choose to do business with, Guidelines you set for managing your real estate investments, Tenants you choose to rent your property to, Terms and contents of any contract you choose to sign)

Thanks again to everyone in my Real Estate Insider family for listening to my podcast and video blog for the last 9 years!

Testimonials

“Thanks for sharing your knowledge and for your good advice. We were able to work things out with our lender and get our mortgage loan caught up and current.”

Vaughn | Westfield, New Jersey

“Good afternoon, Gerald, I appreciate you for staying consistent and helping me with my mortgage lender for the last few months. The free guide you gave me helped us figure out the right path to take. I finally got all the money to make my loan current by the end of the week.”

Stephen Brunson | Plainfield, New Jersey

“Sir Gerald Lucas..my Knight who rescued me from the prison of Rushmore. At last I feel freedom to stop worrying about keeping myself financially afloat. You came into my life and gave me peace of mind. I will always remember your kindness and generous spirit. You are daily in my thoughts and prayers. May your gratuitous services to me be The Blessing it was,and may you be rewarded with many Blessings in return. I prayed to God for help and He sent YOU. Much love.”

Mary Elizabeth Robinson | Wilmington, Delaware

“Hi Gerald I just want to take this moment to thank you and express my gratitude for a job well done. When I thought that everything was lost you appeared and delivered hopes. Your professionalism and endurance are out of this world. Thank you thank you. I will always be grateful.”

Berkis Castro | Clifton, New Jersey

“Thank you so much for helping me. My property was haunting me for quite sometime. We tried for so long to sell but couldn’t. My family and I never thought we would resolve this problem so easily, but you facilitated the whole process and made it swift and painless. We can’t thank you enough for this.”

Sal Rizzo-Cascio | Jersey City, NJ

“Thank you so much for all your work, effort and time you put in helping me. I think things went really smoothly, way better than I’d hoped for! I’m sure it’s because of you. I really appreciate all of your help!”

Bridget Hieronymus | Jersey City, New Jersey

“I was not able to pay my mortgage and the Bank started the Foreclosure proceedings against me. I spoke with Performance Property about their process and they gave me hope. They were very diligent and did all the negotiations on my behalf. They were very professional, sincere and hardworking. I would recommend Performance Property’s services to anyone.”

Samuel Manoharan | North Bergen, New Jersey

“My family and I want to thank you so much for helping us. You did an outstanding job negotiating with our bank and keeping us informed. Thanks to your help, I now have more money to pay down bills and repair my credit.”

Marko Shafik | Bayonne, New Jersey

“If you find yourself in my situation, I highly recommend Performance Property. Always attentive, thoughtful and understanding, Performance Property will keep you informed every step of the way and will not rest until the job is done.”

Sean Daughtry | Jersey City, New Jersey

“As I began my morning today, I came to the conclusion that it was the dawn of a brand new start for my family. The burden is finally behind us. I have you to thank for that. You stuck by us, slogged through the swamp that is Chase Bank, put up with my constant questions and anxieties. I wondered if this day would come and lo and behold, it has. If good karma is to be had, I think you hit it big today. I am profoundly grateful for your hard work that has truly made a difference in our lives. We can now move forward with rebuilding our lives focusing upon a renewed perspective of what the important things in life are. Thank you again for your time and dedication.”

Melinda | Bayonne, New Jersey

“Thank you so much for all your help. I feel a huge weight has been lifted. The experience and knowledge that Performance Property provides is invaluable. In every step of the process, you were extremely courteous and professional. Thank you again.”

Gita Gorji | Hoboken, New Jersey

“Our loan modification was finalized. Got all the documents. Even got legal documents stating that foreclosure proceedings were cancelled. Our rate went from a 4.75 to a 3.4 and our mortgage payment went down almost $200 a month. So all is good. Thank you so much.”

Crystal | Totowa, New Jersey

“Finally the bank called me and said that my loan modification was approved! I thank you so much for your help it really meant a lot to me...I really appreciate you. Thank you Thank you Thank you”

Camille Perry | Newark, New Jersey

“Hey Gerald wanted to give you a heads up that they offered me a loan modification. Thanks for all your help!"

Robert Evans | North Arlington, New Jersey

“I appreciate everything you were able to do with my lender, I am immensely grateful to you."

Carol Cunningham| West Orange, New Jersey

“Thank you so much for your help, Gerald. I feel like a huge weight has been taken off me."

Iradys Rivero| North Bergen, New Jersey

“At this point, Gerald, you are the only person I can trust. I appreciate all your efforts to assist me."

Deborah Dowe| Plainfield, New Jersey

“I want to thank you for helping me to get the courage to work on this problem because I didn't want to face it. Your help with the phone call to the mortgage company & other assistance was so appreciated. Thank you so much."

Evelyn Rudnicki | Rochelle Park, New Jersey

“I'm not trying to be a pain in the neck but I would like to thank you for your advice. I think things are going to work out for me. I did exactly what you told me and I think the mortgage company is going to work with me. I appreciate your advice. You are a Godsend. The world needs more people like you. Thank you and God bless you."

Jimmy Armstead | Roselle, New Jersey

“My mortgage problem is resolved. God bless you for all your help. You are a very good man, Gerald."

Virgilio Rodriguez | Paterson, New Jersey

“I followed the instructions Gerald from Performance Property gave me and I proved to my lender that I can pay back my mortgage.”

John Nikoe | Linden, New Jersey

“God bless you.”

Ravinder Thota | Jersey City, New Jersey

“My bank gave me a permanent loan modification. Thank you very much!!”

Jim Armstead | Roselle, New Jersey

“You helped me a lot more than the lawyer I hired. I should have gone to you in the first place. You were very kind. Thank you so much.”

Aileen Collucci | Little Falls, New Jersey

“After speaking with you I feel like I can wipe the sweat from my brow.”

Barbara Herbert | Union, New Jersey

“You have been my saving grace. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.”

Amoy Frost | South Orange, New Jersey

“Thank you very much. I appreciate all your help.”

Sabur Abdul-Wahid | Budd Lake, New Jersey

“You helped me get money and get rid of my nightmare tenant! Thank you so much for all your help.”

Dion Lowe | Rahway, New Jersey

“Thank you so much. You’ve been so helpful! I really appreciate it.”

Melody Melendez | Elizabeth, New Jersey

“You have been my saving grace. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.”

Amoy Frost | South Orange, NJ

“I appreciate all your help from the beginning and throughout the process. Thanks to you I was able to refinance and keep my house.”

David Brown | Rahway, New Jersey

“Thanks Gerald...I appreciate the time and effort you put in to this. You never gave up on it and I get my life back. I am grateful for everything. Thanks again.”