Jamell Tousant is a licensed Realtor and consultant in Northern California. Colleagues and clients alike praise him for his ethics and efficacy as a Realtor. Tousant resides in the Bay Area and has extensive experience helping buyers and sellers achieve their goals. He strives to help everyone he works with to find their dream homes. He has worked in the Northern California real estate markets since 2001 and became a licensed California real estate agent in 2005.
Over the years, buyers, sellers, and colleagues have come to count on Jamell for his insight and experience in the real estate industry. That being the case, we asked Jamell for some tips he would give to someone just getting started in real estate investing. Here is some of what we learned.
Oakland native, Jamell Tousant, has worked hard for the lessons the real estate industry has given him, and he says many new investors ask him for advice. According to Jamell, the following are the best ways to get an investing career in this field off the ground, especially in the Northern California climate.
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1. Look for Rental Properties in Developing Neighborhoods
This tip ties in with the last one on Jamell’s list: to find properties to rent in new and emerging residential areas. Markets everywhere are rapidly tuning into seller’s markets. This means many buyers are looking to renting as a more affordable option. It’s a trend that appears to have lasting power, making rental property investing a smart move.
2. Don’t Over-Rehabilitate
Many new investors are excited about making high-profit margins by rehabilitating homes in low demand due to an acute need for repair and maintenance. Because this niche has been so popular for so long, many new investors overdo it. Jamell warns that getting in too deep can spell trouble since rehab construction always has unforeseen difficulties.
3. Diversify Your Holdings
So far, we’ve talked about two of the most popular ways to make money in real estate. It’s essential to keep in mind that markets change, trends shift, and what’s valuable today might be junk tomorrow. That means getting into just one or two types of investing is risky.
You should build a portfolio out of at least three types of real estate if you want your holdings to be able to weather uncertainty.
4. Don’t Leverage Excessively
We all know that a dollar now is worth more than a dollar tomorrow. That’s why lending is a viable business strategy. But over-leveraging is like getting too far out on a limb. You’re asking too much of your stability, and it’s not worth the risk.
5. Consider Single Family Rentals
Finally, families tend to be stable. Parents are highly motivated to protect and provide for their children. Therefore, single families make good renters. The market can be easy to get into, and your tenants will be among the highest quality.
Jamell Tousant explains that these tips, if executed correctly and with some luck, will give new investors a solid foundation on which to stand and grow their portfolios. He believes that stability and integrity should be top priorities, like in construction and architecture. Excessive risk-taking, he argues, is synonymous with gambling and does not qualify as a strategy for success.
