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The 6 traits of successful small business owners—and real estate investors

This week, I spoke with Beau Eckstein about the common traits he sees in successful small business owners and franchisees.

Beau has over 20 years of experience in residential and commercial finance and business consulting and is a member of the One Rental at a Time Community.

While Beau came up with this list with small business owners and franchise owners in mind, all of these qualities are also essential to real estate investors in every stage of the journey.

1. Ability to follow a system

Beau says that if there are 100 franchises of a certain system, there will always be the top 25% performers. These top people are the real go-getters and are the ones following the business playbook to a tee. 

As real estate investors we also have a playbook: 

1. Create a buy box, 

2. Watch it for 20 minutes a day

3. Write disrespectful offers 

4. Make sure your property is cash-flowing from Day 1 

5. Prepare for a 10-year process

The folks who follow this system closely find success. Those who lose focus rarely yield the results they want. 

2. Commitment to building culture

Culture is very important. You’ve got to get around the right people and get in the right rooms. The One Rental at a Time community is a great example of this—the success of our members is rooted in the culture and like-mindedness of the community. Culture keeps you accountable and it gives you access to people who understand the highs and lows of your journey.

Beau says culture is key to real estate projects specifically because it helps establish a common goal and vision from the jump. In a real estate flipping project, for example, many people miss the mark because they don’t have a culture or rapport within the groups of people working on the project. 

Basically, if every member of a team has a different definition of what a successful result is, that can create issues.

3. Effective time management

Effective time management is essential to success, especially when you are maintaining your W2 job. There’s a reason I harp on doing the work for 20 minutes every single day rather than putting it off to two hours every weekend. 

We are all very busy individuals, but consistency is key. The work has to integrate with your lifestyle—that’s how you get the most out of your time. You have to be able to see the daily changes, but you also have to get on with your life and spend time with the people you love. 

4. Desire to make a change

If you are doing the work right, the first five years will suck. 

You’re going to be putting in a lot of time and making sacrifices, so you have to have a fire that keeps you burning. Having higher goals and aspirations in mind—either for yourself, your family, or the world—will keep you motivated when things feel tough. 

5. Clearly defined business criteria

In the case of real estate investing, your criteria is your buy box. A well-defined focus is crucial, and a buy box is permission to ignore everything else.

In my case, when I created my buy box for my first properties in Fresno, California, I didn’t even know the rest of Fresno existed other than that search criteria for almost three years. This focus enabled me to make wise investment decisions. Your business should be specific and clear. 

6. Understanding your “Why”

While the journey to financial freedom is simple, it is not easy. Things will come up and times will feel tough. Throughout that, you need to have an unwavering burning desire that remains bigger than any tribulation or obstacle.

ResiClub chart of the week: 

This week, ResiClub’s Lance Lambert took a look at the trajectory of home prices over the past year according to four major indices. All four indices show national home prices decelerating over the last 12 months.

1. Case-Shiller —> +4.3% (decelerated from +6.2% in January 2024)

2. FHFA —> +4.2% (decelerated from +6.7% in January 2024)

3. Freddie Mac —> +3.6% (decelerated from +6.7% in January 2024)

4. Zillow —> +2.4% (decelerated from +3.6% in January 2024)

Why is this happening? Here’s what Lance says: 

“After a brief correction in national home prices during the second half of 2022—mostly in prominent Western housing markets amid the mortgage rate shock—national home price indices stabilized in early 2023. That stabilization occurred in an environment where active inventory remained tight and far below pre-pandemic levels.

Fast-forward to 2024, and Sun Belt housing markets, in particular, have begun to soften again. Strained housing affordability and slowed migration have suppressed housing demand. That reduced housing demand, combined with competition from homebuilders—who, where and when needed, are using affordability adjustments like buydowns to maintain sales—has caused active inventory in the resale market to rise year-over-year, especially in Sun Belt markets.”

Number of the week: $100,000

If you pay attention to the market at all, you know this has been quite the week. The stock market is up, the bond market is higher, and Bitcoin is up substantially, hitting an all-time high ( at the time of writing this) of over $93,000.

Some folks—including 85% of people in the One Rental at a Time community based on a poll I did on Wednesday—say Bitcoin is on track to hit $100,000 before the end of the year. 

I like those odds.

Personally, I think there will be more and more wealthy people moving a single-digit amount of their net worth into Bitcoin.

Olivia and I did this in 2018, and we think of it as an insurance policy and protected asset, especially as we move into a new administration that’s understood to be the most crypto-friendly one yet.

Join the One Rental at a Time Skool Community

The One Rental at a Time community on Skool is more than 330 members strong.

We’re creating more opportunities for you to interact with those who have achieved financial freedom through real estate investing. 

Being surrounded by people at all stages of their real estate investing journey is crucial to your success, and joining us on Skool is an easy way to do just that.

It is only $20 to gain access to my monthly (or more) live streams as well as various millionaires answering your questions in real-time and connecting with people who can help you. 

Learn more about how I am organizing the ORAAT Skool community content and calendar.

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