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You have first-timer freeze! Which deal should you buy? You have the dreaded analysis paralysis and just can't pull the trigger on a property. Don't worry, there's a simple reason you are in this predicament and I (Alan) am going to give you the tools to move forward.

Look at us, mind-melding in total harmony. Ask and you shall receive.

But first, do you know why people get analysis paralysis in the first place? It's probably because they have one main thought:

I'm afraid I'm going to lose money.

Or you think:

• I must be missing something here as it looks too good.
• What if a better deal comes across my plate next week?
• What if [random rare catastrophic event] happens and this investment fails?
• My non-real estate investing parents think this is risky and I should trust them 

Yes, that's what I'm here to do. Let's address these worries. If you think you are missing something in a deal, then you are lacking confidence and haven't done enough deals yet. It comes with experience and you need to start getting experience. 

Also, yes, a better deal may come later and it also may not. Have a buy-box and buy when you find something that fits your parameters. Plan to buy the one you see next week too (with seller financing or some other creative way) if necessary. There isn't one perfect investment and the chances the first perfect one comes next week, month, or year are zero.

Fires, hurricanes, coronavirus, wars, and more all happen and will continue to happen. All investing takes risk, and major uncontrollable world events will definitely affect real estate, but it will also affect stocks, bonds, and any other investment. It's part of life that is not worth worrying about and no investment is world-event proof.

Lastly, listen to your parents advice only if you want your parent's life. It's the simple. You are probably here because you don't want to work until they retire, and that's what I'm trying to teach you. And chances are their real estate knowledge peaked 40 years ago when houses were a nickel.   

Now, let's get you to making offers instead of just reviewing deals and being stuck in limbo-land.  

Step 1: Pick one budget

Are you an investor that tells their agent, "I have a $100k purchase budget for a long-term rental but for the right property I'll go up to $300,000?" Well, guess what? You'll never make a move. That spread in budget is too far apart and you'll sub-consciously compare $300k deals with $100k deals. The lower priced ones will typically always make more money, be more headache, and need more work.  

So, you get in a cycle trying to find $100k returns in a $300k property. It will never come. Narrow your budget within a $30,000 delta and you quickly see the best deals in this price range and be more incentivized to act as those top deals will move quickly to other investors with a much narrower budget.

You need to make this easy on yourself, and the "wide open budget" is working against you. It's not the advantage you think it is when it comes to making decisions on a property to invest in.

Our did I just blow our mind? There are levels to our telepathy, and that actually may be a blog for another day. Regardless, you are ready for more steps....

Step 2: Pick one strategy

You have to narrow you buy box down to one strategy. Comparing a long-term rental to a short-term rental to a flip to a house hack would paralyze the most seasoned investor. Why? You can make money in each of them. It's different money at different times with different effort. There isn't a wrong answer here. But you can't compare apples with oranges, and that is exactly what you are doing if you are split between different strategies you are trying to pursue.

Just like a wide open budget is a detriment to your decision making, the same goes with flexibility in strategy. You must pick one and only look at deals that match. This is the only way to narrow in on the best deal at this time in that niche. You don't want distractions, and that is what you are doing by contemplating the different strategies. (By the way, we cover the pros and cons in our House Money Media courses and mentorships in depth.) 

So how do you pick? 

Sure, that's one way. Which one excites you the most? Which one allows you to create a niche? Do you want to do multiple properties on this strategy? You should, because you are about to have a lot of experience which you'll want to leverage into better deals of the same strategy down the road.

Step 3: Pick one location

You already know where I'm going with this. Don't compare out of state beachfront property with inner city duplexes. It's hard to be an expert in Detroit, Florida, and Costa Rica. Narrow you location to one area to further narrow your distractions.

Pretty soon you'll only be looking at similar properties: same budget, same strategy, and some location. If that is the ONLY thing you are evaluating you will gain the confidence to see a good deal quickly and be sure to move on a property rather than continuing to sit on the sidelines. That is what you want, right?

Perfect, that concludes our mind reading for today. It's just you and me talking now. So, get out there and become an investor instead of just talking about it!  

Nice. It's good to have my brain back.

Summary

• Big budget means big problems
• Flexibly strategies means no strategy
• Looking everywhere means making moves nowhere