Business Plan
I may have posted this topic once before, I'm not sure, but here goes....
My progress in my business has been inconsistent, and I know it's because of lack of a plan. A formal layout that will outline my business practice.
In order for my business to reach it's full potential, I believe that I need a thorough and detailed business plan.
Does anyone know of a format or a service that can help create a business plan that's catered to REI?
Thanks in advance
Chris1220
Chris,
First you need to establish what area of investing you are going to do, so what area are you interested it?
John $Cash$ Locke
Currently I'm wholesaling and I'm in the middle of two short sales as well. What I need to do is build capital and credit so I can move into rehabs for flips and rentals. The long term goal is to be a one stop shop w/ the ability to pruchase, rehab, sell and finance a transaction.
I find business plans greatly over-rated for small businesses. People spend inordinate amounts of time and money on projections that have little basis in reality.
As John says, a lot depends on what kind of deals you are trying to do. But even more depends on how much time & effort & discipline you spend doing it. In addition because you are one person the variations in your productivity seem extreem (closed 3 deals last month and nothing for 6 months before that) but they will even out over time.
Rather than spend a lot of money or time on a business plan I recommend spending an afternoon thinking about how you use your time. On this point you still cant' beat Ben. Early to bed and all that. Get up every morning and go to work-- have a fixed routine that carries you through the first couple of hours of your work day then go look at properties or whatever. But follow more-or-less the same schedule every day. Periodically review what is working and what isnt and re-arrange your schedule. Don't worry about "I'm going to buy 7 houses in price between $60,000 and $80,000 and flip each house for a $7,000 profit." because life don't work like that. Soon as you make the plan a $90,000 house will pop up or something else which is not in your plan but is a good deal.
I have a plan this year but the whole thing is 5 sentences. It outlines the kinds of deals I plan to do and about how much I intend to net in one of those kinds. More detail than that is, imnsho, time better spent chasing deals.
Chris,
Very admireable goals, seems you have the goals part down.
Looks like your business plan should start out with using your goals as a guideline.
I have Business Plan Pro 2004 and find it very well done and it guides you through setting up your plan.
I would suggest doing it yourself if you need it refined then find someone to help you, but you will have the basics down and probably find you won't need anyone else to help you.
John $Cash$ Locke
Chris,
I have also found the software Business Plan Pro to be very helpful - if not for the final result (I've been working through my plan for 4 months off and on), at least for the processes it has made me and continues to make me work through.
It is very thorough, and in some regards, maybe too much so if all you are looking for is the quick plan and mission statement. But for $80 (price online), it is well worth it. Besides, if you are doing REI, is seems logical that you may also start other business/projects that you could use the software for.
HTH,
Robert
_________________
"Experience is the things in life we never wanted to learn."[ Edited by robertt on Date 05/26/2004 ]
I'm not looking for anything that's tooooo specific. I work F/T as a mortgage broker and I have a newborn at home so, the time I have available is limited.
I do like the idea of getting up extra early and going to work though. I've never done that before, I've always been a night owl.
Am I looking for something that just isn't realistic? I understand that this business is pretty volatile. What I'm looking for is some basic business practices to base my efforts on and a format that will explain that... ( am I being to vague?? It's difficult to express what I'm thinking)
Chris,
Most creative real estate investors are are an entrepreneur by nature, so what Robert related is quite true, what would happen when you start a business plan and you hit on something during your research that may be the next greatest way of wholesaling properties, just for an example.
Let me relate a true story, a few years back I had an idea that took me into two years of writing a business plan, this was before the software was available that is available today.
I took my business plan to an Attorney in Denver Colorado who specialized in putting together "blind pools".
A blind pool is where investors put money into a pool with no idea what the money will be used for except that eventually a company that wants to go public can pruchase the blind pool.
The investors who put the money in wind up with stock in the company so it is real risk factor, but remember risk vs reward is also creative real estate investing.
The blind pool had $250K in it that I purchased for $75K, the attorney sold me the pool based on my business plan.
My SEC attorney filed the paperwork with the SEC, I hired Price Waterhouse for accounting, put the orginization together with some top market makers and took the company public, over the counter stock at first.
Millions of dollars were raised from all over the world based on my business plan. Naturally the stock did very well, I did sell out later on after everything was set up, another one my I think I will retire gestures.
Oh the idea, Online Casino Gaming!
I am not anyway suggesting that you need a business plan to get into creative real estate investing, I don't even recommend it in most cases, however not a bad idea to know how to do it.
But, just in case you may find the next best creative investing idea that could be worth millions to others or you.
John $Cash$ Locke
Are you telling me that you are one of the founding fathers of online gaming???
If so I don't know whether to stand in awe, or come after you for the 2k I lost last year!!! ( smile )
Chris,
Just goes to show you it was an excellent business plan. Maybe I should have hung around for your $2K. LOL
John $Cash$ Locke
Chris mentioned wholesaling......can someone explain to me what that is???
Thanks
Quote:
On 2004-05-26 13:34, cardinalpkb wrote:
Chris mentioned wholesaling......can someone explain to me what that is???
Wholesaleing or flipping has an entire forum devoted to it to get more detail. In a nutshell, it is buying properties as wholesale prices (20-30% or more) below market value and resells them. This has many different flavors. Some people just find the deals and turn around and resell them to other investors and rehabbers for 3K-10K more than they bought the property for. Others, buy at wholesale, rehab the property and resell at retail rates.
HTH,
Robert
[addsig]