1. Cash flow beats appreciation.
Chasing appreciation puts you in a glass house. Appreciation is attractive and it is a powerful wealth-building tool, but in my experience cash flow trumps everything. Cash flow gives you peace of mind. It is the difference between a repair feeling like a minor inconvenience versus a full-blown catastrophe. When money is coming in every month, you operate with confidence instead of stress. You can take calculated risks, move quicker, and think long-term. In 2025, I passed on several opportunities simply because I was over-leveraged and did not have enough cash flow to comfortably support them. Paper gains look great on spreadsheets, but cash flow is what keeps you in the game.
2. Build a buffer for tough times, or you will regret it when they hit.
When running numbers on an investment property, assume things will go wrong. Use the lowest rental comps, not the most optimistic ones. Plan for vacancies, repairs, and market downturns before they happen. The worst position you can be in is holding a property that used to cash flow and now underperforms with no margin for error. Every solid strategy should have a built-in survival mechanism for bad times. If your deal only works when everything goes perfectly, it is not a good deal. It is a gamble.
3. Evict and write it off. Stop trying to save people who will cost you.
It is okay to be a decent human being, but it is not okay to let that turn into being taken advantage of. Sometimes you want to make things work with a tenant because you do not want to deal with the headache of a vacancy. I get it. But if a tenant has fallen too far behind, you have to accept reality. That money is gone. Do not rely on payment plans or promises to fix a situation that is already broken. Dragging it out usually costs more financially and mentally than cutting your losses early.
4. Hold tenants accountable by addressing late payments immediately.
Sometimes tenants fall behind, and that can happen. What is not okay is being overly lenient or avoiding uncomfortable conversations. Late payments should be addressed immediately, and you should be getting regular situational updates. Staying informed allows you to determine whether the situation is genuinely fixable or if it is time to move on. I used to take updates every few weeks because I did not want to bother anyone and because I trusted what I was being told. I assumed they had it figured out and would catch up. I learned the hard way that people will say anything when they are in survival mode. Real estate is not a business you can play half-heartedly. If you do not pay attention to your business, your business will make you pay.
5. Stay on top of maintenance before small problems become big ones.
Deferred maintenance always costs more. It just depends on when you want to pay for it. Ignoring small issues might save money in the short term, but it almost always leads to bigger repairs, unhappy tenants, longer vacancies, and higher expenses down the line. Staying proactive with maintenance protects your property, your cash flow, and your sanity. The goal is not perfection. It is prevention.
6. Sometimes paying someone else is the smarter move.
Doing the work yourself can feel like you are saving money, but that is not always true. There is the learning curve, hours spent on YouTube, multiple trips to Home Depot, and the risk of doing it wrong the first time. Time is money. Delays in repairs can lead to longer vacancies or turn a manageable fix into a major expense. In many cases, paying a professional gets the job done faster, cleaner, and cheaper in the long run. The goal is not to do everything yourself. It is to protect your time and keep the operation moving.