My favorite email and comment at a cocktail party, back when we had them- is this: “Scott, if you see a good opportunity to buy an investment property Manhattan, let me know.”  Or “If you see a good deal, something I can’t pass up on, let me know.”

The passing comment is so common.  I’m sure that people don’t realize that in order to execute on that without further discussion, one would have to be a mind reader.  Handling this request for a good deal, thenm is just the opening of a conversation.

While I’m not a wealth advisor (though I often play one), it’s very similar to the longer interrogation that would happen at the beginning on a relationship with one.

What are you investment goals?  What is your risk tolerance?  What do you have in your portfolio now?  What are you using your real estate for?  What is your time horizon?  Are you just blowing smoke?

The last question is probably not one I would actually ask, and I wouldn’t ask the rest just like this, either.  But the ideas are there.  In short, the “good deal” could be very different apartments for different people.  Some people want to buy the “blue chip” property, easy to rent out, lower appreciation, perhaps more cash flow.  What I mean is that the rent might be higher, and you might make more money immediately.  This is in direct contrast to the investor who wants to buy in the up-and-coming neighborhood and see more long-term, or medium-term appreciation.

There’s the investor who wants to flip things.  There’s the investor who would never sell any properties she buys.  Which are you?

There are investors who will want to be very hands on, who may use the property in the future.  There are investors who never want to hear about it again, who are busy making money in some other fashion, and were told to diversify by buying something in New York- but they still can’t get away from the notion of getting a “good deal.”

 

Never mind that it is exceedingly rare to know in that moment that you are buying a great deal.  Usually, time will tell.  What constitutes a good deal is in the eye, and mind, of the beholder.  So if you want a good deal, be prepared for me to ask you a lot of questions, to get to know you, and to certainly have some fun in the process.

And then, yes, I expect to you return my emails and calls when I send great deals to you!  Because education is a key part of the process.  The last thing I want is to send you something I think really is a great deal, and for you to simply ignore it, pass on it because you’re not yet confident of the market!  That’s always a real shame, when I deliver on the request- and you can’t even see how great it is.

We’re living in a time a little like this, when everyone seems blind to the buying opportunities.  I’ll cover this in depth in another post.  But for now, just know that there are very few one-size-fits-all “deals!”

-S