How to Align Your Real Estate Goals with Your Investment Phase

What Are Your Goals?

To achieve success, you need to get clear on your goals and understand which mode of business you're operating in. It’s not uncommon to move between different phases over time. Consider where you land within these modes:

- Growth Mode

- Stabilize Mode

- “Retire” Mode

I don't believe we ever truly "retire." Instead, we change our focus. But doing nothing, once you've reached that point, isn’t as appealing as it may sound.

Growth Mode Goals

While I was in Growth Mode, my goal was simple: create cash flow. This singular focus on cash flow drove all my decisions.

- I took on headache properties if they generated enough cash flow because that was my sole priority.

- I wholesaled properties that didn’t produce enough cash flow, again, because cash flow was the main objective.

- The more I focused on cash flow, the more cash flow I found.

Growth Mode is about being willing to take on challenges and manage difficult properties in exchange for the immediate return they provide. It requires a bit more focus on short-term gains to build momentum for future growth.

Stabilize Mode

In Stabilize Mode, the focus is on maintaining and fine-tuning what you’ve already built. This might mean spending time improving your systems or making sure your properties are running efficiently without the constant need for attention.

- You might take fewer risks compared to Growth Mode and choose to invest in properties that are more turnkey or already producing stable returns.

- The emphasis is on minimizing volatility and making sure your income is steady. For me, this has meant focusing on buying properties that require less rehab and newer homes.

“Retire” Mode

When you enter Retire Mode, it doesn’t mean you stop working entirely. It’s more about shifting focus. Perhaps you want to work on passion projects or focus on legacy building.

- In this phase, your business runs on autopilot as much as possible, with the systems and people you’ve built during Stabilize Mode.

- Your main goal is to continue preserving wealth and maybe even start mentoring others who are earlier in their investing journey.

My Current Goals Today

Today, my goals have shifted. I’m no longer in pure growth mode. My current focus is on creating a more stable, predictable business—one that generates passive income with fewer headaches.

Here’s what that looks like for me:

- I'm building out systems and putting a team in place to manage the day-to-day operations, which allows me to look at the business from a higher level.

- My return on investment might be a little lower because of the infrastructure I’m developing, but it’s worth it for the long-term stability.

My main metrics now are:

1. Net income increasing.
2. Net hours required of me decreasing.

When I was in Growth Mode, I was hyper-focused on mobile homes. This focus allowed me to grow rapidly because all my energy was devoted to mastering that one niche.

Today, however, I am able to diversify into different types of properties and opportunities, thanks to the team and systems I’ve built.