sutton-equity

Investing in Commercial Real Estate

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 18:41:40 GMT

Is Real Estate a better investment then the S&P?

One of the best questions we receive from prospective investors is "why should I invest in Real Estate, when the S&P outperforms..." Our investors are generally family offices who have successful businesses and work with the "best" (if you've read "The Intelligent Investor" you understand why I used quotes...) investment advisors in the country. What happens is many are blessed with short-term memory and often forget the importance of diversifying a portfolio.

While it is true that the S&P index will outperform specific investments, it's also true that investors all too often do not benefit from the outperformance. how so? Well, let's take a look at the markets as I write this blog.

Since April 1st, the markets have been taking a beating. To date, the S&P is down about 9% and many fear there is more to come. While the markets tank, fear sets in, and individual investors often panic and sell only to realize the terrible mistake they made. So they proceed to buy back their positions, at a higher price, and then when the next panic approaches, they follow the same actions. This "buy-high and sell-low" strategy isn't unique to any one investor - so don't beat yourself up if you're guilty of this. I'll paraphrase Warren Buffet for a moment to give color on why this happens. The stock market is like a crazy salesperson who is constantly knocking on your door, yelling at you to sell your home at a price they themselves decide on. They keep knocking and knocking and knocking....

So back to the question - why invest in real estate instead of the S&P? Well, the answer is you shouldn't! In fact, you should invest in both the S&P and real estate. Diversification works. While the S&P has been taking a beating the past few days, guess what is working? Yes, real estate! As the markets have gone down, there's been an overall flight to safety which is treasuries. The yields on treasuries have gone lower making it cheaper to borrow money for real estate.

But - here's the bottom line. EVERY investment and asset class has its own set of economic cycles. There are ups and and there are downs. The difference with real estate however is, you do not have a crazy person yelling at you to tell you your investment is worth 50% less! There are no daily updates on the fluctuation of a real estate investments and therefore there is no fear-factor causing a massive sell-off. Think about it - as long as the asset is not over leveraged and the manager is focused, who cares what the value is mid-investment? Stay the course and the targeted value will be achieved when markets come back.

In short, investing in real estate is a diversification from the S&P, not a replacement. While the S&P has pricing updates every second, real estate does not. In both cases, if you believe in an investment when you first invested, don't let the fear in a downturn change your belief. The big benefit with real estate with this challenge is it is much harder to sell when compared to the S&P, and therefore, you will more often than not, ride the wave of the cycles.

Make the most of the season by following these simple guidelines

IMWebsites@Appfolio.com — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 18:05:00 GMT

The new season is a great reason to make and keep resolutions. Whether it’s eating right or cleaning out the garage, here are some tips for making and keeping resolutions.

Make a list

Lists are great ways to stay on track. Write down some big things you want to accomplish and some smaller things, too.

Check the list regularly

Don’t forget to check in and see how you’re doing. Just because you don’t achieve the big goals right away doesn’t mean you’re not making progress.

Reward yourself

When you succeed in achieving a goal, be it a big one or a small one, make sure to pat yourself on the back.

Think positively

Positive thinking is a major factor in success. So instead of mulling over things that didn’t go quite right, remind yourself of things that did.

Keep in touch with site visitors and boost loyalty

IMWebsites@Appfolio.com — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 18:05:00 GMT

There are so many good reasons to communicate with site visitors. Tell them about sales and new products or update them with tips and information.

Here are some reasons to make blogging part of your regular routine.

Blogging is an easy way to engage with site visitors

Writing a blog post is easy once you get the hang of it. Posts don’t need to be long or complicated. Just write about what you know, and do your best to write well.

Show customers your personality

When you write a blog post, you can really let your personality shine through. This can be a great tool for showing your distinct personality.

Blogging is a terrific form of communication

Blogs are a great communication tool. They tend to be longer than social media posts, which gives you plenty of space for sharing insights, handy tips and more.

It’s a great way to support and boost SEO

Search engines like sites that regularly post fresh content, and a blog is a great way of doing this. With relevant metadata for every post so search engines can find your content.

Drive traffic to your site

Every time you add a new post, people who have subscribed to it will have a reason to come back to your site. If the post is a good read, they’ll share it with others, bringing even more traffic!

Blogging is free

Maintaining a blog on your site is absolutely free. You can hire bloggers if you like or assign regularly blogging tasks to everyone in your company.

A natural way to build your brand

A blog is a wonderful way to build your brand’s distinct voice. Write about issues that are related to your industry and your customers.

Tips for writing great posts that increase your site traffic

IMWebsites@Appfolio.com — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 18:04:59 GMT

Write about something you know. If you don’t know much about a specific topic that will interest your readers, invite an expert to write about it.

Speak to your audience

You know your audience better than anyone else, so keep them in mind as you write your blog posts. Write about things they care about. If you have a company Facebook page, look here to find topics to write about

Take a few moments to plan your post

Once you have a great idea for a post, write the first draft. Some people like to start with the title and then work on the paragraphs. Other people like to start with subtitles and go from there. Choose the method that works for you.

Don’t forget to add images

Be sure to include a few high-quality images in your blog. Images break up the text and make it more readable. They can also convey emotions or ideas that are hard to put into words.

Edit carefully before posting

Once you’re happy with the text, put it aside for a day or two, and then re-read it. You’ll probably find a few things you want to add, and a couple more that you want to remove. Have a friend or colleague look it over to make sure there are no mistakes. When your post is error-free, set it up in your blog and publish.