Veterans of the real estate investment industry know that success isn’t a destination; rather, it’s a process that requires careful planning and expert execution. After all, hitting your target once isn’t enough: you have to hit it consecutively, over the course of years and decades.

If it sounds difficult, that’s because it is; there’s no shortcut to success, but there are roadmaps that help you find the most efficient path. But of all the roadmaps available, the best one has to be a business plan. Sales consultants for small businesses will tell you that a business plan is one of the most –if not the most –important document for any business, but it’s doubly important for a real estate investment company. That’s because REI companies can potentially move millions of dollars in a given fiscal year, which means that having a plan of action is crucial to ensuring your continued success (not to mention maintain the trust of your clients and investors).

What is a Business Plan for Real Estate Investment Companies?

At its most basic, a business plan for REI companies is a document that provides an operational framework for your company. Ideally, this document includes your goals for the future and organized directions to get you from where you are now to where you want to be. This will vary from company to company, and no true template can be made, but that’s ok: your REI company’s business plan should be unique and customized to fit your specific plans for the future.

Ideally, a business plan should discuss the direction that you want your company to take over the next 1 to 5 years. This allows you to find your footing and make ROI over a reasonable amount of time while giving your REI company room to grow after the initial 5 years. This also allows you to stay ahead of real estate trends and gives you ample room to react to unexpected events while still maintaining a clear line of sight on your initial goals. In many ways, a well-written business plan also convinces both clients and investors that you can be trusted with your money, not only because you know what you’re doing, but because you know how you’re going to do it.

Business Plan Basics

Again, each REI company’s business plan is going to be different from each other, but ideally, it should contain two important things: short-term goals and long-term goals. After all, your long-term future can only be secured if you achieve the necessary steps in the short-term. Breaking down lofty, long-term goals into manageable, actionable, and detailed short-term steps is key to ensuring a smooth ride from point A to point B. It’s also advisable to add your organizational structure, relevant financial information, marketing plans and strategies, and so on and so forth.

Attention to detail will be important in crafting the short-term steps your REI company needs to take in order to reach their long-term visions. If this sounds like a daunting and arduous task, well, that’s because it is. There’s no secret, no magic formula, or ‘hack’: you need to sit down, think about what you want and how you’ll get there, and then writing it into a document. And while there’s no single template per se, here are some things you should include in your REI company’s business plan to help you maximize the efficiency of your journey to success:

• • Outline Your Mission and Values: these are the ideals that your company will base its movement on. It acts like the north star, a guiding light for your company that takes you in the right direction.
  • Define Your Long-term Goals: these goals can be idealistic, heck, even improbable. These are dreams and aspirations that can happen if you…
  • Break Down Those Goals into Short-term Steps: by defining your long-term goals and then working backwards, i.e. defining what steps you need to take from point B to point A, you add logic and reason to an otherwise lofty target.
  • Be Honest about Your Company’s Strengths and Weaknesses: take a good, hard look at your company and determine what aspects you’re great at and what functions you need to improve.
  • Propose Investment Strategies for the Properties You’re Handling: these investment strategies are designed to give you and your investors an idea of how you’ll grow these properties.
  • Formulate Possible Marketing and Branding Efforts: marketing is essential to building your REI company’s reputation, and branding helps you establish credibility and trust.
  • Add Relevant Financial Information: your clients will want to know how you plan to execute your growth strategies, so make sure to mention all relevant investment opportunities that you will draw your funds from.
  • State Your Organizational Structure: give your clients and investors a clear idea of who is running the business and how your organization is structured.
  • Have Brief Contingency Plans: this is more for the peace of mind of your clients and investors. brainstorm some “what if” scenarios that they might think of and create brief exit strategies.

Take Your REI Company to the Next Level with Shawn Tiberio!

As one of the most successful sales consultants for small businesses, Shawn Tiberio has one thing that sets him apart from other business consultants: he’s had decades of successful experience in the real estate and property management industry. This means that Shawn knows the ins-and-outs of the business better than most people and understands the unique needs of your Real Estate Investment company. Contact us, today, to learn more about how Shawn can help take your REI Company to the next level!