Something that we (especially Kim) get asked about quite a lot is how women can make it in real estate investing. In fact, some of you may have even heard Kim speak about this in person. We felt that this concern was important enough to address it here.

What it Takes to Succeed

There are actually no differently magical keys for women who are looking to have a successful real estate investing career. In fact, the same things that apply for men apply for women. The same things that apply for couples apply for single people. Well, that’s not entirely true. There is one thing that women need to make sure that they have, that most mean possess naturally. That one thing is the knowledge that they can do it and that they deserve it. Because real estate investing is typically seen as a man’s world, men never question their right to be there. They feel like it is their right to move through that world and be successful while they are doing it. Some women, on the other hand, feel as if they are interlopers. They know that real estate investing is a good thing, but they don’t feel like they can do it by themselves. In fact, countless women will get themselves a male partner (at least when they are starting out). The partner may not bring anything to the table other than testosterone, but it helps many women feel comfortable operating in that world. Unfortunately, many women will find themselves deferring to a partner who has less knowledge and/or experience than they do, simply because he is a man.

So, how can a woman feel at home in the world of real estate investing? How can she feel entitled to be there and to be successful? As you know, we have first hand knowledge of this, so we have laid out some things that are important to any female real estate investor’s success.

Education

We can’t stress this enough. If you have talked to us, then you know how important getting an education was to our real estate investing career. We jumped right in, and didn’t get any formal training at first. Instead, we found ourselves enrolled in the school of hard knocks. It was not a fun place to be, believe us. It wasn’t until we began really educating ourselves with books and courses and started attending seminars and boot camps that things really took off for us, and we were able to fix some of the mistakes that we made in the beginning.

This was especially important for me (Kim). When I knew how things were supposed to happen, I was able to speak to vendors and clients more effectively. It is sad to say, but many men will use the "little lady" approach with you. They will not give you enough information and sometimes they will not even give you the correct information. They assume that, because you are a woman, you just don’t know. Well, you can surprise them too. Educate yourself. Get a firm foundation of good knowledge. And remember, if you don’t feel comfortable doing business with someone, or if they are patronizing, don’t do business with them. It is your choice, and you don’t have to feel bad about it.

Mentoring/Coaching

Having a mentor or a coach is important for all real estate investors, male or female. A mentor can help you get to where you are going. They have already been where you are, so they understand the challenges that you face in your business. When you are getting together with a mentor, there are a few things that you should look for:

Your mentor should be actively doing the business. How can someone coach you along to success, when they are not even doing what you are trying to achieve? This is very important. You want to make sure that the things you are being taught work in the current market.

Your mentor should be accessible. In today’s busy world, e-mail is usually the most common and effective way to communicate with a mentor or a coach. Face to face meetings, phone and fax are other options. However, e-mail has the benefit of being written and easily organized in an electronic format. You can save all of your e-mails and review them to make sure that you stay on top of your game.