There are so many people who have the opportunity to start investing in real estate, but think they don't have the money! To me, money is a lot like food. If you've ever been on a diet, you can appreciate the analogy. When you start a diet, you realize that you have to cut out a lot of bad food (or spending) but you find better alternatives! Instead of full on ice cream, you might have frozen yogurt. Likewise with money- instead of eating out, you might cook dinner that night. There are people who have made a fortune investing in real estate without making sacrifices. Personally, I've gone without Starbucks for a month or two to save some dough. If you want something bad enough, it won't seem like such a sacrifice!
Make Sure You Have the LOWEST Credit Card Rate
It’s no secret, most of us use credit cards. As a matter
of fact, more than half of the households across the US carry more than a
thousand bucks on a credit card from month to month. During the recession, many
credit card interest rates went up. Now that the financial climate is a bit
better, you may qualify for lower rates. Lower rates that will reduce your
payments and open up more resources for you! Now, your lender likes making
money so, they are not going to call you and say “Hey, you qualify for a lower
rate, do you want it?”! This part’s up to you. All you need to do is call all
of your lenders and say something like, “I was going through my credit card
bills and noticed that you charge the highest interest rate. Can you do
something that makes these balance transfer credit cards less enticing to me?”.
You will be surprised at how effective this can be!
Stop Eating Fast Food
When I was 19, I would think of fast food as a quick,
cheap bite to eat. Back then, I didn’t do the math! The truth is, fast food can
really rack up quite the bill. I found out that my morning breakfast burrito’s
almost every morning were costing me $120 per month! Making my own, about $20.
Although not everyone has a once a fast food habit, most people do eat fast
food at least once a week. Even stopping that can save about $20 a month.
Shop Around The Edges Of The Store
This one is a tip not only to save money but, for health!
Think of how your grocery store is laid out. All vegetables, meat, cheese, milk
bread, ect… can be found around the edges of the store. When you walk into the
center of the store, you find food in boxes and cans, frozen food and highly
sweetened and processed treats. The truth is, any boxed or canned food costs
money to prepare. Therefore, you will always spend more for that portion of
food than you will if you make your own. Although, I can’t personally come up
with a recipe for Doritos, healthy alternatives like carrots and ranch dressing
tend to cost less. This may be uncomfortable in the beginning but, you start to
crave carrots and broccoli. So, save money and get healthy!
Enjoy Free Social Activities
Human Beings are social creatures. If you don’t find free
ways to be around others and have a good time, eventually, you will start
spending money to do it! Check online in your area for hikes, clubs, or
anything that you could think of that would be free and local. Living near the beach, there's always something fun to do! No matter where
you are, I’m sure that if you look hard enough, you will find something free
that you enjoy and involves spending time with others. Who would have ever
thought that having fun could save you money?
Make Money Doing Side Work
Everyone has incredible strengths in one thing or another.
Find yours and solicit your friends, family and neighbors for your services. If
what you love to do involves crafts, sight up as a vendor when the craft shows
come around. If you look online you can usually find somewhere to sell your art
at least once a month! There are tons of great ways to make extra money to get
your investment started. All you need to do is find the one that works best for
you!
Final Thoughts
Getting started in the real estate investment market isn’t about
who has more money. It’s all about who has the strongest desire to succeed.
Those who do have that desire will find ways to save money or make money to get
started! I hope that describes you!
Call me today to talk about your options! Jacksonville, NC has a TON of investment opportunities, ripe for the picking! I would love to help you get started!
