Integrity

 Integrity is a word that we don’t hear very often. Perhaps those who say it most are trying to cover the fact that they have forfeited theirs. Yet the fact remains that to be a successful real estate investor, you must have integrity. The poet John Donne said, “No man is an island,” which also holds true in real estate investing. No one can be everything needed to become a successful real estate investor. No one can own, sell, find, purchase, rehab, rent, and maintain all the necessary properties to be a successful real estate investor. A lot has been written on ways to cut corners to increase your bottom line. It is hard to find one that speaks of guarding your integrity, yet several articles are written on the keys to keeping a client happy. It may be because it is nearly impossible to win a client back once you have proven you’ve forfeited your integrity.

Others have claimed that it takes longer to reach your goals without a few modifications to the pathway of success. I do not believe that to be so. Integrity has its costs, but it also has its rewards as well. To succeed, I must climb over others to reach the top. The good book says that we are not to muzzle the oxen that tread the corn. Treating others honestly makes us more likely to build a good reputation. Our reputations proceed us. It will draw people to us or repel them from us. 

In business, there is the 80/20 rule, which is based on the finding of V. Pareto, an Italian economist who said that 80% of Italy’s wealth was held by 20% of the population. If we were to apply this rule to our investing, we would concentrate on the 20% that created 80% of our wealth. We would do what we do best and allow others to do likewise. We would not try to beat them out of their just rewards. We would not muzzle the ox that treads the corn. We would give the ox all the slack it needed to eat more comfortably.  In college classes, they like putting people together and forming teams to concur on projects.  Invariably, there seems to be someone in the group who doesn’t pull their weight. They would like to see how the new team will handle this problem. You remember the slackers in class and choose not to team up with them again. In life, you remember the slackers and decide not to be involved with them again. They may have ridden your back to get their A, but they only did it once. To become a successful real estate investor, you need a team of fellow entrepreneurs who pull their own weight. If you wish to have those who display integrity working with you, you must display integrity.

Sometimes, our integrity causes us to suffer, but that pain is short-lived because integrity carries its reward. That group of professionals, which we need to depend upon, will respond to our needs. Who do you think they’ll go to for help when they have a need you can fulfill? Do you think they go searching for help, or will they come to you with someone they know has integrity because you’ve always respected them as professionals with integrity?

A shortcut may help you over the obstacle, but it will not help you navigate the path of success. Many times, shortcuts present more obstacles to overcome. Also, many of the professionals you need to be successful real estate investors are also real estate investors, and by displaying your integrity, you will discover they will help you through some rough paths along the path you’ve chosen.

Note: Images on this blog site are from a free source or taken by the author. No image or group of photos is intended to represent the people the author serves. The author does not care about Race (that is a politically correct term that he does not like because we are all of the same Race, the Human Race. He prefers the term ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender, marital status, disability, genetic information, national origin, source of income, Veteran or military status, ancestry, citizenship, primary language or immigration status.) He is a service provider for all people. We will all rise together when we band together and help one another. Joseph Erwin is a Real Estate Broker, DRE # O2131799, and a CA general contractor # B 696662. He’s a member of the CRMLS and The East Valley Association of Realtors located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California.