If you look at television, on almost any given day there is a television show featuring home improvement, real estate investing, or some combination of the two. From shows that teach people how to sell their lackluster homes to shows that teach viewers that it is possible to buy, repair and re-sell a home for astronomical profits in a matter of weeks, there are shows that have attracted a cult of entrepreneurs in viewers around the globe.
These shows have made and lost viewers rich by convincing them that they too can do the same miracles they see on television. The truth is that many viewers are capable of doing these things, but television never really shows how hard the work actually is. Television doesn’t always show the blood, sweat and tears that went into making these projects work, and rarely mentions the countless complete and utter failures that occurred along the way.
Nor is the camera eager to show up at 4 a.m. and film after midnight when the day’s work is done. It doesn’t capture heart attacks and nightmares as credit cards are dangerously close to being completely maxed out and dreams of getting rich quick fade right before investors’ eyes.
This doesn’t mean that every project is doomed to failure, just that things aren’t always as rosy as the TV show shows. Speculation may seem somewhat glamorous and easy to get started. The problem is that few people really realize how much work goes into the project on a hands-on basis. It’s not easy money, no matter how much the TV cameras try to convince you otherwise.
If you keep your cool, use your head and buy and sell under the right conditions, it is very possible to realize significant profits in a relatively short period of time. The problem is that many people don’t think about the big picture and find themselves in a bind and out of money before the project is even close to completion.
One thing television has done for the business is to make competition for saleable homes more intense. The early bird gets the worm, and while the cheapest house is not always the best candidate, in this case the less competition the higher the price. Our goal is to buy low and sell high. So far, most people don’t have much competition in the overpriced selling section. At this point in time, the real trouble is in the low-buy section, because there are more real estate investors interested in buying cheap properties than actually seeing the project from start to finish.
So yes, television has dramatically changed the way people invest in real estate. Whether this is really good or bad for the overall real estate market remains to be seen. Given the recent downward trend in real estate, it is predictable that some popularity may diminish. Sadly, it is still one of the best, if not the best, way to make a large amount of money legally and fairly quickly in the world today. You can make or break a fortune in real estate; the trick is placing your bets on the right properties at the right time. For those who are willing to take the risks associated with this type of investment in today’s market, and those who are willing to wait for the market to improve a little, the profit potential is amazing.