Last updated: 17th December 2020
New Year’s Resolutions are over – 2021 is all about ‘Habit stacking’.
2020 is behind us, and you’ve learned some surprising yet invaluable lessons from the year. What next?
If December is the time to reflect, then January is the time to take what you’ve learned and put it into action.
‘Habit stacking’ is where you take a few small and simple actions and feed them into your daily or weekly routine. It’s something Rob & Rob have spoken about previously on this podcast episode.
You can habit stack things in your personal life and your work life. And once you’ve cracked it, they’ll soon come as naturally as brushing your teeth or checking the morning headlines.
If you’re serious about finding the best property deals on the market, then you’ll need to be quick – and dedicated! Nobody wants to find that they’ve missed out on a goldmine simply because they spent too long watching Netflix instead of doing research.
You may already know what to look for in a good property deal, but that’s only going to be a benefit when you already know what’s on the market.
Pick a day of the week and make it your designated deals day. Make your morning coffee and block out half an hour to trawl through your preferred websites (Rightmove, Zoopla, etc.) to see any new properties that have popped up on the market.
Be more diligent and you’re less likely to miss out on some cracking deals. You can even set up alerts on sites like Rightmove. Schedule these so they arrive in your inbox on your chosen day, and that’ll do part of the work for you.
Easy!
People rarely succeed with investing in property without educating themselves first, and that’s why our second tip also focuses on research.
While we suggested taking one day a week to dive into the best property deals on the market, market changes can happen pretty quickly so it’s worth being on the ball here.
Google alerts are your best friend, and you can set them up for as wide-reaching (‘Buy-to-let’, ‘Landlords’) or as niche (‘Manchester property’) results as you want. Either way, the news you need is coming straight to your inbox.
And if you’ve been a Hubber for a while, you’ll know there are some key fundamentals you’ll need to keep an eye out for in any potential investment area.
Factor these into your research, and this’ll help you stay in the know earlier and could be the difference between you striking while the iron is hot or completely missing out on a hotspot.
Whether you read these alerts on your morning commute, or while eating your breakfast, there’s no wrong way to do this – just make sure it happens.
Estate agents sometimes get a bad rep, but a solid relationship with them can bag you a great investment deal. We covered this in our course on how to get a good property deal, but it bears repeating – estate agents are a great source for deals.
Of course, 2020 has restricted the way we build relationships face to face, but that shouldn’t stop you. If you’re just starting out, it’s good to reach out and say you’re interested in their area and want their insight. Once the communication line is open, keep in touch to see what market changes they’re seeing and what new properties they’ve got coming to market.
Don’t forget, estate agents are people too. Last year was a hard year for everyone, so they’ll appreciate a friendly message before you dive into the market chat. Grow the relationship in a professional yet personal capacity and it’ll take you far.
Scheduling a monthly call should be a good way to stay in touch, without running the risk of irritating them.
If last year taught us anything, it’s that you can’t take any situation for granted. It won’t pay to assume that just because your portfolio is profitable now, it always will be.
Regular reviews of your property portfolio will allow you to spot (and fix) any problems as early as possible, and align yourself with your goals more often.
Here’s a handy checklist of what you should be reviewing often;
We’ve covered the importance of the above in an episode of The Property Podcast, and making it a habit will be a major boost to your success.
Whether your property portfolio is simply a second income stream or it’s your primary job – investing in property can still take up your time (unless you choose to outsource everything and be completely hands-off).
There’s a culture that suggests that being insanely busy is the marker of success, but it’s vital that you take time to relax and focus on yourself.
2020 gave us more free time than ever, and even as the world inches closer to normality, it’s important to take some of that free time into the new year.
Set aside time at least one evening a week to stay on top of your own personal interests – the more personally enriched you are, the less stressed you’ll be as you make business decisions.
If you’re in need of good shows, podcasts and books to read, Rob & Rob have compiled their favourites of 2020, which is a great place to start.
Notice that we’ve said to invest time in your property education. We don’t think it’s necessary to invest extortionate amounts of money into property courses, especially when we’ve got a load of online courses for you to take, for free!
We’ve always wanted to simplify property investment and that this information should be as readily available as possible. And we do this through our online courses, the podcast and all the other property education we carefully curate.
You might just be getting started on your investment journey, interested in finding the next property hotspot, or are keen to learn about the best ways to get your property let… no matter what stage you’re at, you’ll be able to find an online course, video or resource to help you.
So there you have it. You don’t need to completely overhaul your life, just introduce small changes that will ultimately help enhance your property portfolio and improve your knowledge of the market.
Start the year on a good footing.
Thank us later.