This is more of a “big-picture” question. I’m posting it here in the Landlords forum because that’s whose thoughts I care most about
My parents had their own business, but also did very well with their apartment rental investments. They were a true “partnership”… they both had equal like-minded motivation and effort in the goal, and the specific talents of one would compliment the specific talents of the other. It was not some lopsided “psuedo-partnership” with one “genious” and the other “dead-weight” … it was a true partnership. I don’t think either one would have been as successful individually without the other.
In addition to spouses, many times you’ll see textbook examples of siblings who have a successful business. The advantages are obvious… if you have 2 people with like minded goals combined with the inate trust that comes with “family” … it’s often a winner.
Are there any out there reading this who agree, and have done well in Apartments thanks to a like-minded spouse or sibling who has worked as a partner toward the goal along with you?
Or someone who agrees, who wishes they had had a good sibling/spouse partner? (Speaking for myself, I’ve done OK taking over my parents apartments, but I’ve never been able to rely on my siblings or spouse for much help… they hate the Apartment business… and I sure would have appreciated the help)
Or anyone who disagrees with any of this in some way?
having run a good REI business (on the side) and consulting biz with a partner, I would say the following: Good partners are great; medicore partners are baggage. For me personqally, my wife and I have rehab several major projects and its been a real positive influence on our relationship. She is the color and textures (i.e painting and drywall finishing) expert and I do all the dirty work ( give me a Saw-all)
Seems like a hot topic lately, this “spousal” partnership thing. My wife and I own our REI business 50/50 and work together everyday. She is very book smart, keeps track of the bills and bookwork, is getting her realtors license, researches MLS looking for deals, picks out colors, has become a very good painter, and is pretty good looking too! I work with all the contractors, plan the rehabs, inspect the houses, etc. Man, it sounds like she does alot more than me! So far it has worked out great. We have a great relationship so working together has just become an extension of that. The one big thing that has come up is knowing when to turn it off. I feel like sometimes all we do is talk real estate.
My husband and I own our real estate business together.
It works great for us.
I do most of the painting, clean up etc. as my job is flexible and I can allow time for these chores and he can not.
He is great to have around when I need a male voice for collecting the rent.
He is much more conservative then I am and this has worked in our favor.
I tend to put rose colored glasses on when looking at a deal and he has probably saved us tons of $ over the years because he tends to be more realistic.
We couldn’t do it without each other! :
Wendy
My wife and I are equal partners with equal say…she works hard when wee’re doing a rehab…she has gotten real good with a psintbrush/roller and with the landscaping part…
My Wife is a fantastic partner! She is right there with me working on a rehab or getting a vacant unit ready to rent. She can lay some mean tile and use a saws-all with the best.
I have been working with both my wife and my brother and it’s been good at times but a majority of the time it’s more of a headache than seems worth it. I take a more active approach then both of them and have almost come to the conclusion that I will probably have to do this on my own to be completely successful. If I had done this with just my wife it would have probably been better because she feels as though it more me and my brothers thing then it is hers.
IT seems like it has all been said. My wife and I like all the posts here so far work great together. She really has that painting and gardening down to a science. She is not very good with a saw-z-all but give her a three pound sledge and and bring up some bad kid issues or a bad tentant story and she can go off. Demo is the greatest stress relief there is.
My wife is my partner also. She makes sure that all that money I make gets spent. She firmly believes that we have too much money and not enough diamonds and furs.
4R, my wife has been VERY helpful, but I didn’t marry her for Property Mgmt skills In fact, she has a legit reason for disliking the Apt biz… despite good screening, there have still been some “tenants from hell” and she doesn’t want people like that in our lives, particularly since we now have kids.
Aside from spouses, are there any sibling partnerships here?
(IE: brother/brother)
When I first started in real estate a few years ago, I did my research and took the courses and seminars and spent the money to do it. No one believed in me or wanted to know anything about it. Well, after I bought my first property at an auction my sister jumped on the band wagon and “me” turned into “we”.
Being my twin, she is the other half of me and I just could not say “NO” (ahhhh, the family ties that bound an gag…) Well that was two years ago and I am happy to have her as my partner. She pushes me and keeps me on track. She is the organized one and I am the creative one. We bounce ideas and plans off of each other and remind each other that we have bigger and better in store for us when life (a.k.a. our 9 to 5) gets in the way.
We still have a ways to go before we are where we want to be financially speaking but at least having the same goals makes it all the more easier.
Marital bliss and economic productivity are not necessarily synonymous, but when these two qualities coincide, it could lead to a richness beyond the emotional context.
Who you marry (as it relates to your future success) is so critical that Thomas J. Stanley dedicated a whole chapter to the subject in his best selling book “The Millionaire Mind”.
I’m partnering with my sister (she’s a lawyer) on a case by case basis. I think it all comes down to delivering what you say you’re going to do. I offer her an opportunity to make extra money with very little work. She ponies up some cash and lets me do my thing. So far so good, but as i said its only on a case by case basis. If you do what you say you’re gonna do, shouldn’t be a problem. But i still signed a contract to make sure we each knew our duties and how we’d split the profit.
