The First Day

So you have invested in a home? You are ready to turn it into a money making machine by renting it out to tenants, right? If this sounds like you, the first day that you have access to your property can be a difficult one. After all, you need to make a decision on what you are going to do first. And this is not always easy to do since every piece of real estate is different.

The first thing that you need to do is decide on what type of home you have on your hands. In other words, are you going to have to make a lot of repairs? Or should you be able to get by with a few minor fix ups here and there? Believe it or not, the condition of your property will sway the direction that you take on the first day that you open the door.

If you are faced with a fixer upper, you will want to draw up a plan for getting the job done as quickly as possible. In fact, this is a great way to spend your first day. Instead of diving right in and hoping that you get everything right, have a plan that will give you direction starting from the first day. This way you do not find yourself completing jobs out of order, and in turn making more work for in the long run.

On the other side of things, if the home you purchased is in good condition, the first day may be chalked full of minor fixes to get it market ready. Once again you should take the time to make a list, but it will not be nearly as long as a “fixer upper” list. Now that you know what you need to do, you can then get started.

Many people like to dive right into things on day one without ever making a plan. Do you know what this leads to? A few days later they have found out that they missed something, and the backtracking begins. All in all, when you rush ahead on day one you may be making more work for yourself in the end. With a good plan in mind, the first day in your investment home should not be full of stress, but instead full of preparing for the work to come.