This Issue: Make More Money in Multi-Unit Properties

I’ve been building the Trump brand for several decades. But from time to time, landmarks do come along.

Several months ago my son Eric joined us. So my three eldest children are now with the Trump Organization, helping to expand our brand. Don Jr, Ivanka and Eric are all here now. They are my real Apprentices, and they’re doing a great job. They know that I’m demanding, but they are disciplined and very hard workers, so they are a good fit with the Trump Organization.

 Having a quality brand is very much like having a good reputation. It’s important to consider that fact, even when you are just starting out. Remember that everything you say and do is important. Actions matter. You are, literally, your own brand whether you have a business yet or not. If you are serious about what you’re doing, taking responsibility for yourself starts now.

A real estate developer I know said something interesting to me last week.

“Virtually all the foreclosed properties out there are single-family homes or condos,” he said. “If you can find me more than a handful of foreclosed multi-unit properties, I’ll eat my shirt. It’s because people almost always make money in multi-units, so they don't go into foreclosure.”

An interesting statement, for sure. So I started searching online for statistics about multi-family foreclosures. What percentage of all currently foreclosed properties are multi-units? I had no luck finding out.

But then I went to a popular online foreclosure listing service, Foreclosurewarehouse.com. Sure enough, I found multi-unit properties listed there, but not many. Against single-family homes and condos, maybe two percent of all the foreclosed properties listed were multi-units.

I then talked with some successful developers about why so few multi-units go into foreclosure. Let me share a few of their insights:

Reason one: Buyers of multi-unit purchases really analyze the numbers. Before buying, they analyze the rent roll, carefully weigh taxes and other expenses to make sure their investment properties will be profitable. Many purchasers of owner-occupied single-family homes don’t do that. They buy blind, hoping their income will be sufficient to pay the monthly cost. And sadly, they sometimes fail.

Reason two: Multi-units provide multiple income streams. If you own one, you can raise rents, repurpose properties as retail space or luxury units and take other steps to wring more income from properties. So an astute investor who buys a multi-unit property can create lots of new opportunities to make money.

Reason three: Buyers are lined up for profitable multi-unit properties. If you are lucky enough to own one and need to sell it - perhaps to raise money for an even bigger investment - you will probably not need to wait long for a buyer to appear.

When you add up those reasons why multi-families rarely go into foreclosure, it becomes pretty clear that it is a good idea to invest in multi-unit properties.

What have you learned from your experience? If you’re an investor who has owned multi-unit properties during the current foreclosure boom, please take a moment to post a comment below. Multi-units might just be the best income-producing, foreclosure-resistant investments that are out there today. Let’s explore the topic together.

The more risks you take in your career, the greater the likelihood that you will suffer a setback someday.

Maybe you will be accused of incompetence after one of your  high-stakes projects fails. Or perhaps your accounting firm will be implicated in some kind of malfeasance and your company’s good name will get smeared in the press.

If you suffer a devastating setback, you can’t sit back and wait for the problem to go away. Here’s a five-part strategy to recover quickly and get back on the road to success:

1. Fight, not flight. Face up to the reality of the situation. Distinguish battles that must be fought to restore your reputation from battles that merely drain energy and purpose in escalating rounds of retaliation or revenge.

2. Recruit others into battle. Take responsibility for innocent close colleagues who suffer collateral damage with you. Effectively leverage distant support networks to reaffirm your credibility through the voices of others.

3. Rebuild heroic stature. Explain the true nature of the adversity. Provide a rational explanation of the context behind any injustice or provide authentic contrition over any missteps you made.

4. Prove your heroic mettle. Regain trust by demonstrating that the setback has not destroyed your professional expertise and character strength.

5. Discover a new heroic mission. Don't merely define yourself by your past success or failure. Rather, define a new leadership vision and a new path for personal meaning in your work and you may transcend past triumphs to reach new heights of success.

 Remember, nearly every successful person, from Thomas Edison to Martha Stewart, has fought through serious career setbacks to succeed. The steps I outline above will help you rebuild your reputation and chart a brilliant new future.

Brand-Building Wisdeom from Bud Bilanich, The Common Sense Guy

As a small business owner whose brand is me, I recognize the importance of personal branding. I am a keynote speaker, executive coach, organization effectiveness consultant, and author. I am my business; therefore, my brand needs to speak for me.

When I decided to brand myself, I began by asking everybody I know a simple question. “When you think of me, what is the first thing that comes to mind?” An overwhelming number of people said, “Your common sense approach to business and life.” My first reaction was, “Uh oh, common sense doesn’t make for much of a brand.” Then I started to think about it a little more.

I’d read several very interesting books about personal branding. The best of them was Career Distinction: Standing Out by Building Your Brand, by William Arruda and Kirsten Dixson. A few things stood out in my reading:

•  An effective personal brand is authentic--it reflects the true character of the individual being branded.

•  An effective personal brand repels as many people as it attracts.

•  An effective personal brand is consistent.

 As I started thinking about what my friends and clients said, I began to get comfortable with common sense as the driver for my brand. However, I was still unsure of a tag line for my brand. I experimented with a few things. “Common Sense Coach” was too narrow. I do things other than coaching. “Common Sense Guru” sounded too pompous and New Age all at once.

One day I was speaking with a friend and lamenting the fact that I couldn’t come up with a good tag line. I said something like, “There’s this guy who calls himself ‘The Goals Guy,’ I wish I had enough guts to call myself ‘The Common Sense Guy.’ She said, “What’s wrong with ‘The Common Sense Guy’?”

I hemmed and hawed and said things like, “It’s kind of pedestrian; it’s too informal; there’s already a goals guy.” As I heard myself speaking, I realized I was rationalizing. I have often said to people who were impressed with something I’d done--graduated from Harvard, started a business, written a book--“I’m just a guy.” And, I had already established that I approach my work in a common sense manner. So why not become The Common Sense Guy?

Anyone in business needs a solid brand. Mine is the Common Sense Guy. However, having a well thought out brand is not enough. All brands need exposure. Blogging is the best way I know to get that type of exposure. I’d urge you to learn all you can about blogging so you can put its brand-building power to work for you.