Raj Girn: Hi everyone! Welcome to another exciting episode of the ‘Transform Your Confidence’ podcast, the show where we bring you into real conversations with thought leaders, change makers and experts who are transforming the way we think about confidence, leadership, and of course, the big one, self-worth.
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In today’s show, we will be focusing on Branding & Marketing with the theme of “Why Now Is The Right Time For Women To Build Wealth Through Real Estate?”
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In today’s show, we will be focusing on Branding & Marketing with the theme of “Why Now Is The Right Time For Women To Build Wealth Through Real Estate?”
My guest today is Ellen Silverman, who has worked in real estate since 2016 after a seasoned career as a Wall Street analyst. Born and raised in Manhattan, she graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a BS in Business Administration and Mathematics and went on to receive her MBA from Zicklin School of Business.Â
Ellen has earned the coveted certified biorepresentative and master certified negotiation expert designations and her client roster, guys, is all over the world: New York, Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Israel, Japan, China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam—and so, so many more other places.Â
Ellen, thank you so much for agreeing to come on the show to share your insights on why now is the right time for women to build wealth through real estate, even though, you know, the climate seems to feel like it’s insecure. We don’t know where things are going, but that’s the thing with real estate. Real estate is one of those things that is more of a long game. So you’re not in it for the quick in and out unless you are.Â
So I’m not going to put words in your mouth, thank you so much for agreeing to come on the show.
Ellen J. Silverman: Oh, well, thank you so much. That’s quite an introduction. And thank you for allowing me on your show. Yes, real estate is a long-term investment. You don’t day trade apartments the way you do stocks.Â
And it is a good hedge against market volatility. We do see whenever the stock market has a drastic drop, a lot of people are buying real estate. So I think it’s just a good way to diversify your wealth and your portfolio. And yes, it’s always a good time to invest in real estate.
Absolutely. So, Ellen, let’s start from ground zero here—no pun intended. What are the first steps you’d recommend for a woman—since that’s our audience—looking to build wealth through real estate? Let’s start there.
Yeah, well, first you have to have good credit. So work on getting your—if your credit isn’t good, work on getting your credit score improved, do what you need to do. I work with a lot of credit specialists and they can work with clients to build their credit and make it strong so that you have the ability to borrow money. Because most people on their first home will probably need to finance their purchase. So, good credit is number one.Â
Number two is to at least—have an idea of what you want to buy, the size of your apartment, the market you want to buy in and what your budget is. Most apartments require 10 to 20 per cent down, as the down payment in cash. So you need to have that amount of money available in cash.
And that’s typical across North America as well, pretty much, right?
Yes. Whenever I meet buyers for the first time for New York city purchases, I go through a list of preliminary questions – What is your budget? What do your finances look like as assets, liabilities, income? What size apartment are you looking for? Why are you buying, who’s living in the unit? What neighbourhoods do you think you’re interested in living in? Do you have pets? Do you have kids? Are there special amenities you want? Are there special features in the apartment that you have to have?Â
So I go through a basic list of 10 questions to get an idea of what someone wants and needs. And then I’ll put together a collection of listings and send them to the client. And if everything looks good, we go out and we look at apartments. Because the only way to make a decision is to really physically go and look. I do work with a lot of international buyers and I have done deals remotely.Â
I don’t suggest doing that because it’s always better to really go and see the apartment, go and see the building, and go and see the neighborhood because you’re not only buying an apartment in New York City, you’re buying the building. You’re buying the people in the building. You want to make sure, you know, the people in the buildings are people that you want to live among.Â
And you’re also buying the neighborhood. What’s the neighborhood like? Do you feel comfortable at night as you do during the day? Is there good subways and transportation and food and Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s and all those things that you need to live your life. So I really, I think education is just learning by doing and learning by seeing. Â
Real estate is a long-term investment. You don’t day trade apartments the way you do stocks.
~ Ellen J. Silverman
Absolutely, I love that. So in addition to, this is more a question for first-time home buyers, in addition to the amount of money that you need to put down, what else do you need to consider from a budgetary perspective, like taxes, for example, and other things like legal expenses.Â
Can you run through that? Because that seems to be also something that people don’t consider. Their mind is focused on, do I have the down payment? But what about all the other things like the running costs, etc.
Sure, well, in New York City, we have co-ops and we have condos. We also have townhouses, but let’s just focus on condos and co-op for first-time buyers. There are closing costs involved and those are for the legal expenses. And if you’re financing, there are bank fees, there’s mortgage tax, there is title insurance, there’s a variety of costs that are involved.Â
And so I would say for co-ops. For co-ops, the closing costs are roughly 3 to 4%. Condominiums are a little bit higher, 4 to 5 per cent. I will say, though, that for co-op, the co-op market is about 20% of the market in New York City, and there are more financial rules for coops. I’ll leave it there because it gets complicated. Everything in New York is more complicated than the rest of the country.Â
But there are a little more financial restrictions with the co-ops. But basically I would count on 4 to 5 per cent with the closing costs. And with most apartments, with co-op you have a monthly maintenance expense, with condominiums you have property taxes and common charges. And that varies building to building. Depending on the neighborhood, the type of building it is, the financials of the building, it really varies greatly.
You know, and really what I’m getting out of this, Ellen, is that the key here for someone that’s buying real estate is that they need to do their research and ensure that they are covering off every possible expense for the specific type of real estate they’re purchasing, correct?
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, have that extra 4 to 5 per cent of the purchase price ready in cash. Some of it you may be able to borrow from your mortgage. It depends on the bank and then also just runs the numbers – what is my monthly mortgage expense?Â
What is my monthly or we call them common charges here in New York. What are my monthly property taxes? And usually, banks want to see no more than, I would say, 25 per cent of your gross income going to housing expenses.
And that’s challenging in today’s market, right? So let me talk a little bit about people who are looking at real estate as an investment strategy. What are some of the things that they should be looking at from that specific perspective? So not living in it, but as an investing strategy.
Well, again, you have to figure out, as an investor, what are my monthly costs in owning this apartment? And then you have to look at the rental, what are the rents going for in this specific building for this type of apartment? And you have to do the math, do you have a decent return on investment? Even if you buy an apartment all cash in New York City the rate of return is, or rate of investment, return on investment, ROI, is around 4 per cent, 3 to 4 per cent, which isn’t all that high.Â
New York is tough because we have high property taxes and high common charges, even if you’re a cash investor. So it really, you really have to do the spreadsheet. You know, what is this apartment gonna cost me? And what do I expect in monthly rent?.Â
What’s your profit and is it worth it to you as an investor, and you have to take on the cost of renovating the apartment after a render leaves, there may be damages, there may be things that need touch ups a new paint job, a new floor, you know, all these have to be taken into account.
Absolutely. And that’s a really fair comment because a lot of people don’t realize truly what goes into just the maintenance when someone else is living in your property. It’s not the same as when you’re living on your property. So I’m really glad that you shared that point.Â
And how much do you think percentage wise a person should have on hold in between renters to be able to do these types of fix ups? What do you think they should have on hold? You mean how many months between renters? No, actually how much money should they have on the side to be able to do anything that may require fixing?
It really depends. I was just handling a rental in a condo and the renter moved out and the owner had to redo the floors and that was $5,000. But it was a very large apartment. You know it really depends on what the issues are and the type of building it is. But for New York, I would have an extra five to $10,000 put away on the side. Yeah, I mean, being a landlord is hard.
You’re not only buying an apartment—you’re buying the building and the neighbourhood.
~ Ellen J. Silverman
Yes, absolutely it is. But it’s also one of the safer long term investment strategies because real estate consistently keeps going up. So, if you’re looking at putting your money somewhere, real estate, you know from a long haul perspective is a good bet. Correct, Ellen?
Yes, and rents keep going up enormously. That I can definitely testify to, yes.
Absolutely. So I wanna ask you a few questions because we are speaking to a predominantly female audience here. Have you seen any unique challenges or biases women face in this industry, whether they are investors, whether they go into the development side or agent side, and I’m sure that you can attest to your experience as well there.
As a buyer or as an investor, I think it’s all about the finances. If your finances are strong, your cash flow is strong, no one’s going to reject you over that. I don’t think there are biases against women.Â
I really don’t. I think in the co-ops, the coops tend to get more into one’s personal life and relationship status and things that are probably not very kosher and they can be more discriminatory, which is terrible. But I think what, forget the co-ops. I think with condominiums or real property.Â
I personally have not experienced any kind of discrimination. It was all about my finances. And I think as, as a real estate agent, people really want to hire real estate professionals that know what they’re talking about.Â
Does this person understand the market? Do they know the numbers? Do they know what’s selling and what’s in contract? Are they on top of interest rates? Are they a trustworthy and reliable person? And I think that’s really the most important quality for hiring real estate agents.Â
And I don’t think it has anything to do with men or women. In fact, I think women are better listeners and have better empathy skills. So maybe it’s better, I think it’s a good field for women. And frankly, all the major real estate companies in New York City are run by women.
That’s incredible, I had no idea about that.
Barbara Corcoran, Brown Harris Stevens, the Corcoran group, these are run by powerful women. Douglas Elliman, well that’s run by a man, but still there’s some very, the top agents or women.
So you heard it right here, guys, if you’re planning on going into this career sector, there are a lot of incredible role models that you can get virtual mentorship from. If you’re looking at investing, you heard right here with Ellen, it’s about your financial portfolio. It’s not about gender, not through her experience, at least.Â
But let me ask you this, in terms of women, what do they bring to the real estate investing or development space? Is advantageous or can be considered strengths for being a woman.
I think we are good listeners, naturally. And I think we do have more empathy skills, perhaps, than men. And I always joke, when I go into a new development and I see a lot of walk-in closets, I always joke that this must have been designed by a woman, because we need closets. We have shoes, we have a lot of clothes.Â
And so I think perhaps women have a good sense of design and staging and interior decorating. However, there’s an awful lot of men that are fantastic stagers. In fact, some of the top stagers in New York City are men. So I don’t know. I don’t know if it’s really, I think the main advantages women bring are the communication and the listening skills. I will say that.
Absolutely agreed. So let me ask you this, Ellen. Are there any financing programs, grants or loans specifically available to women to invest or entrepreneurs to get into the real estate space where you are? Because we have them here in Canada. I’m just very curious as to whether they have them in the US as well.
I don’t know of anything designed specifically for women. There are lenders that lend at more advantageous terms for neighborhoods that are up and coming. And the city will grant developers tax breaks for building in specific neighborhoods that want to re-re-regenerate neighborhoods of Manhattan. So that I’ve heard of, but specifically for women, I have not heard of anything in New York City.
Okay, perfect. Because, we know that most of the investment dollars in North America go to male founded companies. So it’s a lot harder for women to get support from the investment space. It’s interesting to hear if there is support. Now there are, from my experience, a number of different grants that are available through organizations that specifically target women investors.Â
So wherever you happen to be in North America, I would definitely do some research on that to see if where you are, there is an opportunity like that. I mean, there’s investment capital that specifically like hedge funds, et cetera, where they invest in women founded companies. So I think it’s really worthwhile looking at that as an option if investment dollars is what you’re looking for.Â
You just need to make sure, and Ellen, you know please step in here with your thoughts as well. Just like any other business, you need to make sure that your business plan makes sense and it’s succinct. And that what you are putting out there is going to have a financial benefit.Â
Education in real estate really comes from learning by doing and learning by seeing.
~ Ellen J. Silverman
But the advantage I want to mention also before I let Ellen speak is these types of female centric, female exclusive venture capital or capital companies tend to also look at a lot of value opportunities for women.Â
Is your organization also looking at providing funding or mentorship or grants or anything like that for women who are perhaps not as fortunate as many others tend to be in North America. They have those types of clauses that are included as well. So it’s always good to look at what’s out there specifically targeting women investments. Your comments on that, Ellen.
I think maybe for women-owned businesses seeking commercial spaces, there may be a lot more programs geared for that. But for residential, I have not heard of anything.
Yeah, so that is a great differentiating factor. And I agree with that, because these all tend to be for business centric initiatives and opportunities. I want to ask you this, because this tends to be something that a lot of women are a little bit more shy around if it’s not a natural instinctive part of their DNA. And that is something I’d love your thoughts on.Â
What tips do you have for negotiating deals? And partnerships, especially in this space that tends to be very male-centric. The negotiating tends to be a lot more based on male value systems, for want of a better way of saying it. Share your thoughts on your experience there.
I guess as far as negotiating, it’s really about looking at the seller and looking at the buyer and the seller’s mindset and the buyer’s mindset, and coming in the middle and bridging the two together so that both people agree to making a deal happen.Â
I don’t really look at either buyer and seller as he’s a man, she’s a woman. I really look at it as I’m getting into the mindset of the buyer and the seller and that it probably takes some skills and empathy and listening and really understanding what is going on here, why isn’t the steel closing and what can I do to make the deal happen. So I think it’s more mindset rather than gender specific.Â
As far as negotiating, it’s a skill that I did not innately have. I was an analyst on Wall Street. I was a number cruncher. I was looking at Excel spreadsheets all day long, and I think, again, you just learn by doing. And when you have to do it, you do it. You just do it and sometimes you don’t do it as well as you’d like and but the more you do the better you become and I also don’t, I really don’t think it’s because I’m a woman that I wasn’t quite skilled at it.
I think it was just my lack of experience and maybe it didn’t come to me naturally and maybe that’s part of being a woman. But I think I’m sort of an introvert and a math nerd, really, at the end of the day. So I don’t even know if that’s gender-specific, but there are men in real estate that are strong and come off very arrogant and want what they want.Â
But a deal is not going to happen until both parties come to the table. So . . . I think you just, everyone has to be a little bit humble at the end of the day to get things done.
I love your answer, Ellen, because it’s really interesting that, what comes to me from this is that it really does depend where you come from, from a mindset perspective, what experiences you’ve had.Â
You know, some of us have had very uplifting, positive experiences where we’ve been supported to whether that be family or whether that be the community that we’re in, whether that’d be the work environment, we’ve been supported to push forward and the others of us.Â
It’s been the opposite, whether it’s a cultural thing, whether it is a gender thing, right?Â
So if you are a woman who typically tends to be a lot more nurturing and gentle, and you’re faced with a negotiating scenario where you’re really faced with like that bro, like that Bro male aggressive. So we’re talking about two extremes. Any insights on how to handle that?Â
Because it happens a lot with women who are entering spaces with, which are dominated also by men and the male way of negotiating. So I do wanna address that.
Yeah, a couple of things. I think that I always try to be very, very prepared and really know what I’m talking about. And I’m also very persistent. And I can also match their anger quite well. I’m a New Yorker. So that’s, I guess, innate innately in me.Â
And there are a lot of incredible real estate agents that are women that have great diplomacy skills, better than me and my hats off to them. I think presenting your side clearly, doing your homework, and knowing what you’re talking about. Try not to be intimidated by somebody else.Â
The person on the other side of the deal wants to get the deal done. And nobody gets paid or nobody gets what they want unless the deal is done. You have to get a deal done, that’s the focus. So as much as they want to, the man, let’s say he wants to yell and scream and he’s right and whatever, he still has to come to the table.Â
So, I think it’s just a matter of not getting intimidated and really holding your ground and not giving up and standing and believing in what you want.
Your first property is not just a purchase—it’s the beginning of your wealth-building strategy.
~ Ellen J. Silverman
So everything that you just talked about there, Ellen, what that brings me to is a very simple thing and that’s having emotional intelligence, right? Like, survey the room, see what’s going on with the other person and rather than playing a tennis match, try and get to the key component of what it is that you’re both trying to accomplish and not get pulled into that tennis match. That’s what I feel that you’re saying here, Ellen.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s hard not to get into the drama and it’s hard not to react and it is hard not to get angry. And because by the time you’re negotiating, both sides have done an incredible amount of work. It’s very hard to find a buyer for a seller. It takes time and so by the time you are negotiating the price, you just want the deal done.Â
And you don’t want any more trouble. You don’t wanna hear any more problems. I don’t hear any issues. Come on, let’s go. Let’s get it done. Let’s sign the contract. But you do have to maintain your demeanor. It’s hard. It’s just experience and practice. I’ve certainly made mistakes. I’ve been yelled at and I’ve yelled back and it can get messy.Â
And sometimes you just have to take the high road, and just be extra nice and be a diplomat, even if it’s killing you. And these, it’s sort of like, I guess, being a parent, you have kids and you know you just have to do what you have to do.
Absolutely.
It’s not easy. It’s not easy
And it’s different with every case. So it’s a difficult question to answer because there’s far too many variables that could be a part of it. But I do agree with you that the listening part of it and trying to get everyone on the same page, these things tend to be very pro female skills anyway.Â
So because we have families, we raise children, there’s that whole dynamic there as well. And innately bringing that to the table, I think is also a very important thing because what are we doing at home. That’s also like running a company, right? Like it’s not any different really when it comes to the challenges that you could have, the ways to kind of get everyone on the same table.Â
So I feel that these are great, perfect little back pocket skills that you can have. What I wanna ask you, Ellen, is for those people who are, you know cause there’s a lot, there’s stats out there that supports this.Â
When you’re looking at single men, single women, the stats show that single women tend to buy real estate that they live in more than men do. I’m wondering if you’ve had experience in that or if you may have any insights as to why that may be the case with people who are single, because I’m curious about that stat.
Yeah, well, statistically people are getting married later in life. They’re having children later in their life, or they’re not having children at all. And I think that relationships in general, all over the place these days, so I think a lot of women are doing quite well financially, and they want their own home and they’re not going to wait for the husband or the man.Â
And a lot of people . . . I think just a lot of women are . . . I think it is due to finances. And I think that even if they do end up finding someone, they can still keep their home. They can cohabitate or the guy or they can live somewhere else, or they could live separately or what, whatever, or, they could buy a vacation home together. I see this a lot in New York City, where relationship structure is quite varied. Yeah, so that`s another conversation.
It totally is. But it actually is an important integral piece to consider, which is lifestyle and investment in real estate, they do go hand in hand. You’ve just shared one of the many examples where that could be the case.Â
But I also wanted to, you bring another stat to the table as well. Inheritance-wise, you know, like stats out there show here in North America that 90 percent of inheritance goes over to the female counterpart. So now, there’s a lot of women that are coming into this money.Â
What would you suggest if they haven’t been the primary financial caretaker? What would suggest when it comes to real estate, specifically, that they could do to ensure that they’re safe financially?
Yeah, well, it’s a very open-ended question, but I would look into markets that are appreciating. I mean, Miami and Dubai, for instance, I just had a presentation on the Dubai market, which is exploding, and Miami certainly is exploding with so much development.Â
I’d look into cities that are really developing. Not just in a real estate perspective, but with infrastructure and population and transportation and businesses that are moving into these cities. Those are areas that will have appreciating real estate values.
So maybe I would look at those types of cities. I look at what the costs are for a one or two bedroom apartment. I mean, I’m doing that now with Miami. I’m also getting my Florida license because it looks like a fantastic market for buyers. I’m working with a Compass real estate advisor in Dubai. I’ve never been to Dubai, but my God, it sounds amazing to me. Are you familiar with that market at all?
I’ve actually been really watching the market for the last five years and there’s just, you know, there’s been tremendous traction in the real estate space. They’re also very innovative in the Middle East typically in terms of them creating holistic communities where you’re literally you don’t have to even leave your community because it’s all inclusive of everything you could possibly want.Â
So that’s . . . you know, they’re far ahead of the game than North America. Like they really are the innovators in the world in doing that. And there’s a number of developments that are really show pieces in that regard. So I agree with you. It’s a very exciting time to invest internationally or even out of state.Â
Yeah, absolutely. And when I see another, another indicating factor for me is looking at the developers that are developing and designing buildings in these markets, all the high end. Top developers of New York City are going to Miami, and they’re going to Dubai and the little bit I’ve been seeing in Dubai is just so fantastic.Â
A smart investor studies the neighbourhood as carefully as the property itself.
~ Ellen J. Silverman
I mean, it’s beautiful and. Just the whole text there’s no taxes there’s, this to me is like what is this am I dreaming? Did I hear that right like I keep you know and so I think I would look at it. I would look at cities that are really innovative and going through a lot of growth, not to say that’s not happening in New York but it’s harder here because it’s so expensiveÂ
So I would look at real estate in emerging and innovative cities around the world. I would also look at the stock market, invest money in the stock market, look at mutual funds, look at high dividend growth stocks. I mean, that’s a whole other conversation, but I think it’s best to be in both stocks and real estate.
Oh my gosh, I love that and stocks is a whole other episode.
Yes. I’m not quite the expert in that, as I used to be, but maybe you should have a financial advisor on for that. But yes, I believe in both, and very much so yeah. But again, just understand the numbers. If you don’t understand something, don’t do it.Â
Ask a million questions. No question is dumb. It really, I mean, they might make you feel dumb, but you’re not dumb. You’re dumb not to ask the question. Yes. You just don’t wanna get into trouble. And I really believe I’m a big person that I ask a lot of questions and I annoy a lot of people, but I don’t care. Cause I have to understand it.Â
I have explained it to my client. So if something doesn’t feel right, sounds right, it probably isn’t right. There’s probably something there that is just not clear. And if it’s not clear, then you need to figure it out. And if you’re not getting the right answer, walk away. There’s something else you can do.
You know, you’ve just answered my next question, which literally was what are some of the most common mistakes that new investors make? And how can they be avoided? Is there anything else you want to add to what you said regarding that?
Sure, Well, have a good lawyer. Lawyers also ask a lot of questions and do a lot of due diligence. And I work with a lot of fantastic lawyers here in New York City. I also work with a lot of great lenders that also ask those questions. So both the lender and the attorney do their due diligence and I can do mine.Â
I work for Compass and I have an enormous amount of agents that I can rely on and ask – Hey, have you ever done a deal in this building? What do you know? What’s it like? Are there any red flags that aren’t in the minutes of the board? So I think just really doing as much research as possible is important. And if you’re still not getting the answers, then something is not right.
Absolutely. Oh, my God. This is just advice for life, right? This is advice for life. So, Ellen, yes, it’s just, oh, there’s so much to consider and discuss around this. But you know we’re getting close to the end of our time together on this episode.Â
So I want to kind of ask you a couple of choice questions to just kind of wrap things up and come back round full circle. First of which is what has been your experience as a woman in real estate and what would you do differently if you were to start over?Â
So, if hindsight was there, what would it be that you would potentially do differently? Because that’s also great advice for people that are looking to enter this field, especially women.
I’m constantly learning and constantly improving. Gosh, what would I do differently? I think maybe, maybe just having more systems in place in the beginning so that I have more, so that I’m reaching out to my clients on a more consistent basis and maybe doing a better job at lead generation because I’m self-employed, you wanna have a constant stream of leads and a constant steam of cashflow coming in at all times.Â
So those are getting systems in place earlier, something I would have done. The other thing is stop listening to all the naysayers. There were a lot of naysayers when I entered real estate. A lot of people thought I was out of my mind. What are you doing? It’s so hard, it’s so competitive, it’s so cutthroat.Â
I’m from New York, but I didn’t really know anybody buying and selling when I entered the field. So it was a lot starting from ground zero. And there were a lot of people that told me, you know, that they were not supportive. And it was hard. So I think, believing in yourself and not listening to the naysayers and not listening to news, don’t listen to the news.Â
There’s always going to be a buyer and a seller of real estate, no matter what’s going on in the world. And it’s just about adjusting your mindset and maybe adjusting your marketing or your branding or your systems so you can generate more leads. I mean, that’s it.
I love it, that’s it. That’s a lot. It’s a lot. I know it is. But it’s a lot of value to anyone that’s looking at either being an investor, or being a real estate agent or being both when typically people tend to be both. When they’re a real estate agent, they tend to also be investors on some level.
Yeah, yeah.
Even though that’s not the case, always the other way around. So I want to ask you, Ellen, any final thoughts or insights you’d like to leave everyone with, especially to encourage women to step more into dominant roles in real estate investing? Because it’s always that mindset thing. It’s that fear thing, right? Because you’re not dealing with buying a coat. Like this is a big investment. That can make or break your life.
Preparation and financial discipline make the difference between dreaming about property and actually owning it.
~ Ellen J. Silverman
Well, do your homework, really. Can you afford this? Are you comfortable with this? Are you going to have enough money left so that you can live your life comfortably? Do you love it? You really have to love what you’re buying. I’ve always loved what I bought. I mean, I sold it. I did.Â
You know it’s sort of like a love affair. You meet someone and it’s a great relationship until it isn’t, you know? I found every apartment I’ve had, it was 11 years. That’s my magic number, 11 years, but besides that, I think if you really love a property and you really, as an investment or as something you wanna live in, then go for it.Â
You know life is really short and if you can afford it financially it’s not going to kill you feeling good about the neighborhood, the market, the building whatever it is by all means you know why not. I would also again look at the history of sales in the neighborhood and maybe talk to other people in the neighborhood to see what they think. Get a sense of what’s selling and what’s in contract and what sold and the price history, so you feel comfortable.
Absolutely. So many great words of advice there, Ellen. You know, guys, Ellen is in New York City. So if you guys are looking at that particular market, I highly recommend that you go and touch base with Ellen, and Ellen how can people get a hold of you? How can they hang out with you? How can I learn more about you? How can they come to you if they’re looking at New York as a market?
Fantastic. Ellen, what a pleasure. I’ve learned so much from what you’ve been talking about here and it actually intrigues and excites me more to look more seriously into diversifying into more real estate opportunities. So thank you so much for sharing this.Â
And I really, again, folks, I encourage you to go say hello on Instagram to Ellen. And, she’s a great mentor. She’s a woman in a market that is still very, very heavily invested in by men.Â
She’s a great person to talk to because she comes from that financial background as well. So that’s also a really important thing. And, you know we don’t wanna make emotional decisions here. We wanna make emotionally intelligent decisions. Right, Ellen?
That and informed decisions. Yeah, I mean, never buy on a motion even with the stock market. When the market’s crashing, do not sell, never, never sell. It’s the same thing in real estate. Don’t buy or sell on a motion. Wait a day. Calm down. Look at the numbers. See what’s really going on.
Thank you so much, Ellen. I really appreciate you sharing your words of wisdom and I look forward to the next time we get the opportunity to chat about something else that’s specific in a tranche of investing in real estate. Thank you for your time.Â
And from my perspective, folks, I will see everyone next time with another insightful episode, just like this one. Transform Your Confidence, the podcast folks, you can go hangout with us on YouTube at The Open Chest Confidence Academy. You can also go to The OpenChestConfidenceAcademy.com to sign up for our freebies, our free newsletter. Be a part of our community.
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And as always, I’ll see you next time. Take care of yourself.



