Posted by spideymanrdpd@aol.com on March 20, 2006 at 22:35:46:
When the networth or passive income or some mixture of the two goes in the positive direction.
I think of success as the baby steps. I think of being successful as the bigger picture .
What is success? - Posted by Jerry
Posted by Jerry on March 19, 2006 at 13:33:58:
Just curious what posters on this site consider success. At what level of success in real estate do you consider yourself or someone else to be successful?
Is is a net worth of $1 million? $2 million? $10 million? or having owned 10 properties? 100? Or is it being about to retire and now worry about money?
What is your definition of someone being successful in real estate investing?
Re: What is success? - Posted by Tom NH
Posted by Tom NH on March 21, 2006 at 05:00:23:
I just started reading Kiyosaki’s “The four quardrants” and in there he talks about how wealth is not measured in monetary terms, but how long your money will last paying your expenses if you didn’t work.
Would your money last you 30, 60, 90 days?? How about 10, 20, 30, 100+ years? I like how he says that you become wealthy when your passive income meets and exceeds all your expenses. This is when you can quit your job and travel the world or do whatever it is you’d like!
What is success? At LEAST a $5 mill net worth. - Posted by LandVestor
Posted by LandVestor on March 21, 2006 at 02:50:57:
Today real estate millionaires are a dime a dozen. The ones at the top have a net worth of at least $5 mil, and more likely a lot more than that.
Re: What is success? - Posted by Natalie-VA
Posted by Natalie-VA on March 20, 2006 at 15:12:46:
Success is being able to do WHAT I want, WHEN I want, HOW I want.
–Natalie
Re: What is success? - Posted by Sailor
Posted by Sailor on March 20, 2006 at 12:12:57:
Success to me is time together w/family, & that was a goal I set 25 years ago. I met it 15 years ago, so anything else is just gravy.
Tye
Success in not being average - Posted by Luke Hoppel
Posted by Luke Hoppel on March 20, 2006 at 10:00:01:
Great Question Jerry! I am alwasy fascinated by the differnt answers to this question. I am not, however, one of the people that think their is a wrong answer to this question.
To me, success is not being average, which is also my life’s mission statement.
I don’t want to have an average car, average income, average wife, average family, average career, etc…
Of course you can not be average in a bad way but of course I want everything to be better.
Great discussion though.
Thanks,
Luke
Re: What is success? - Posted by Frank Chin
Posted by Frank Chin on March 20, 2006 at 07:42:35:
Jerry:
I agree with most of the others. Everyone has a different definition of success.
-
Some think its having a few million in the bank, then sit home and sleep. Those who succeed stay home 24/7, gets into fights with the wife, and looks to get out of the house again, or start a second career.
-
My dad’s defintion of success is getting enough income to live on, then spend as LITTLE as possible, bragging that he banks all his rent money, and have $200.00 left from the social security checks. He stays at home, put on 50 pounds, watches TV 12 hours a day, and records another 12 hours.
-
My wife’s defintion of success is leaving this world a better place theat you found it. Both her mom and her had done volunteer work. Making deals, and putting a million in the bank every year is not a priority.
-
Historical names like Newton, Einstein, Dr. Salk (polio vaccine) measure their success on their contribution to mankind. Can’t imagine Einstein’s defintion of success being sitting on a couch watching TV 12 hours a day, knocking on doors doing flips to bank 200K a year. If Einstein showed up on my doorstep, I probably chase the looney looking guy away.
Frank Chin
Re: What is success? - Posted by Joe C. (AR)
Posted by Joe C. (AR) on March 20, 2006 at 24:02:33:
Success to me is contentment with my life and how I’ve lived it, and continue to live it. If I’m satisfied, screw what anyone else thinks. If I’m not, it doesn’t matter how much I’m worth, apparently it’s not enough.
just my .02
Joe C. (AR)
Re: What is success? - Posted by Ed Garcia
Posted by Ed Garcia on March 19, 2006 at 15:19:41:
Jerry,
I don?t think success is necessarily monetary.
To me one of the most successful people in the world are school teachers who touch the lives and education of our youth.
As for Real Estate Investing, I think you might have success mixed up with goals.
When you ask, ?Is a net worth of $1 million? $2 million? $10 million? or having owned 10 properties? 100? Or is it being about to retire and now worry about money??
In your question you may have given measuring sticks of success however to purchase a property and sell it at a profit, is no question a successful move in Real estate investing.
So your answer is, SUCCESS is what we as investors determine it to be. It can be momentary or a lifestyle.
Many of us set goals and once we accomplish them we raise the bar.
Ed Garcia
Re: What is success? At LEAST a $5 mill net - Posted by Potash
Posted by Potash on March 21, 2006 at 21:42:50:
It is good to see everyone on this site is not a pollyanna. I’d have to say a $2 million net worth would be the standard, a $3 million net if one lives in one of the highest price areas.
Re: What is success? At LEAST a $5 mill net worth - Posted by Rich
Posted by Rich on March 21, 2006 at 15:39:03:
Agreed. Especially with the number of “house rich” California investors there are floating around. I can’t talk to an agent anywhere in the country without tripping over some CA investors. Usually noted with tones of derision because the norm seems to be buying without doing any homework. That kind of millionaire is more like an heir - didn’t do the work - just got the money.
I would say that the actually dollar level would depend on where you live. In CA, $1MM means very little because of housing costs. In San Antonio, that would be a fairly comfortable level to live at.
I would also add in a level of professionalism and education in areas related to running a small (or maybe a larger) business - because those are the folks who have what it takes to outpace the crowd.
At LEAST a $5 mill net worth. - Posted by alex(Ca)
Posted by alex(Ca) on March 21, 2006 at 04:43:42:
HaHaHaHaHa. Ok big shot.
RE Success Goal - Posted by Mike-OH
Posted by Mike-OH on March 20, 2006 at 14:36:28:
I would consider someone a success at real estate investing if they had at least $1,000,000 in equity and more than $10,000 per month in positive cash flow.
I would consider someone rich from real estate if they had at least $3,000,000 in equity and at least $30,000 per month in positive cash flow.
How about some other concrete answers? I’ll just stipulate that everyone wants to spend a lot of time taking long walks on the beach with their family.
Mike
Re: What is success? - Posted by Rich
Posted by Rich on March 21, 2006 at 15:46:58:
I agree. I think everyone needs to sit down and paint the picture of what success looks like to them before setting out to pursue it. Just to make sure they arrive at the destination they had in mind. There are stresses that energize a person, those would probably help guide you to what success is for you. There are stresses that destroy health and relationships. That would not be a good one unless you don’t value either.
But each has his own definision and should mark it out before starting on the race. For too many, its just money. Then what?
Re: What is success? - Posted by Robert Campbell
Posted by Robert Campbell on March 20, 2006 at 08:24:30:
To me, success is happiness.
What is happiness?
Pursuing a goal that is much bigger than money - by doing something that will make people remember you for more than 2 weeks after your dead.
Robert Campbell
Re: What is success? - Posted by Mark(wv)
Posted by Mark(wv) on March 19, 2006 at 18:12:07:
Ed, How are you… I can think back to when success was having enough money to pay for food and pay the electric bill…now it’s different things at different times of the day and even month… do I want to go fishing in the Cayman Isls next month or maybe just go to the lake for a couple of weeks… and one thing hasn’t changed when working I work … when playing I play no mixing of the two…after nearly 40 years I feel lost if I haven’t put in at least 70 hours a week LOL
Re: What is success? - Posted by Jack
Posted by Jack on March 19, 2006 at 17:20:22:
Success means different things to different folks. Ed sums it up pretty well. You have to determine what success means to you.
Re: What is success? - Posted by Levi
Posted by Levi on March 19, 2006 at 16:17:07:
Success to me is having enough income to quit the ol’ 9 to 5!