Real Estate Investors Checklist for
Working with JV Partners
by Julie Broad
"I made a list of the happiest periods in my life, and I realized that none of them involved
money. I realized that building stuff and being creative and inventive made me happy."
~ Tony Hsieh (CEO of Zappos.com)
Money is a funny thing. It's an object of much desire. It's the number one marriage killer. And it
doesn't seem to matter how much money you have, you probably want more. At least you will want more unless you've
come to realize that money is simply a tool not an end result.
I know - it's a bit of a deep thought - especially for Wallstreet movie fans who are taught "Greed is
Good!" but my point is simply that too many people believe money will make them happy instead of realizing
that money can facilitate the time and space to do the things that make you happy but will not, by itself, fulfill
you in anyway.
What's this have to do with real estate investing?
Everyone has a different goal around money. And before you get out there and start talking to
prospective JV partners, it's a good idea for you to get a good
understanding of what your thoughts around money are and why you're investing in real
estate (is it just for money or is for freedom or for comfort in retirement or some other
purpose?).
I've met a lot of real estate investors in the past 24 months that are miserable. These are people who have bought
30 or more properties at a rapid pace. They achieved their cashflow goal or their goal to buy x number of
properties by x date. They have, by the goals they set for themselves, achieved success. Yet, they are miserable.
In speaking with some of them, I realized many failed to ask themselves a lot of these questions before they took
the investing world by storm. And now they are cleaning up a mess or anxious to grow further because achieving
their first goal still has them feeling empty.
It's kind of the same thinking that was behind a comment made to me by a real estate author on a blog post I wrote.
He said "if you did it the way I do it, you could be buying 4 or 5 houses a month instead of just the one per month
you guys are doing."
I disregarded the comment because more isn't better.
More is just more.
And, in fact, more could just mean a lot more problems! A couple of guys I met at a conference
earlier this year had some serious headaches because they had a different joint venture partner for each property,
tenant troubles and quite a few properties that were worth 20% less than they had paid for them. More properties
meant a lot more stress!
| 
