That’s something you want to hear from any customer or business contact in any business. People always want to work with other people who produce high-quality work, on time and on/under budget. The best way to deliver what people want is to stay organized.
Easier said than done…
As real estate investors, we have lots of stuff going on. Here are a few examples:
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Marketing to motivated sellers
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Advertising for renters
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Coordinating rehab projects
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Adding to a buyer’s list
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Networking and following up
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Coordinating all the paperwork
We need a way to stay organized so stuff doesn’t fall through the cracks. We also need to send messages to other people, follow up with them, and make sure they are able to complete the work you need them to complete.
It would be nice to keep all the past projects organized in one place so you don’t have to keep reinventing the wheel when a new one comes along that’s similar to something you’ve already done.
Project Management Made Easy
There is a piece of software that can greatly simplify your real estate investing. And other parts of your life. It’s called Asana. Whether you are a solopreneur investor or the head of a large real estate empire, Asana has features everyone will like.
Asana is primarily built for teams to coordinate and collaborate to complete tasks in projects. It can be used for something as simple as a to-do list, right up to a huge project such as building an apartment complex or other commercial building.
Since Asana is an organizational tool, it would be good to see how Asana is organized.
At the top of the pyramid is the overall organization. For bigger organizations, they might all have their own email domain. In that case, the people in the organization can be added with their work email addresses. They can also be separated into different departments such as ‘Property Management,’ ‘Contractors,’ and ‘Finance.’
On the other end of the spectrum, individual real estate investors might want to create just a workspace for themselves. Workspaces are a collection of people and projects, but will not have teams assigned to them. Think of them as the ‘Organization’ for people with personal email addresses instead of company emails.
Once you are set up with an Organization of Workspace, you can start creating tasks for yourself.
You can either just start typing directly on your list or hit the ‘Quick Add’ button (looks like a red cross) at the top left of the screen. This is a simple way to start entering your To-Do list.
For a project like rehabbing a house to flip, you will have a group of tasks to complete. Chances are, you will want to put these tasks together. To create a project, just click on the ‘Quick Add’ button once again and create a new project.
Within each project, you can create individual tasks and assign them to people. Simply fill out the email address of the person you’d like to help you with the task, and invite them to collaborate with you.
Once they accept your invite, they can comment on the tasks or attach files directly from their (or your) computer, Dropbox account or Google Drive. You can also make them followers for other tasks so they can see the progress of the task. Or you can see the progress they are making on their tasks in your Asana ‘Inbox.’
Your Inbox in Asana is your notification center. It will give you the latest updates on tasks assigned to you or ones you are following. It will also give you updates on the projects you are working on. If you want to turn off email notifications, you don’t have to keep getting emails. You can just look at your Asana Inbox for all the updates in one location.
Project Management On the Go
Asana also provides apps for iOS (Apple) and Android mobile devices. After you have downloaded the app, signed in and opened it up, you will see a list of tasks, similar to what you see on your computer.
You can see what might have been assigned to you, what is due today, and what is coming up in the near future. The ‘My Tasks’ screen is a great way to prioritize your task list and plan your day.
There is also a ‘Quick Add’ button on the bottom of this screen, which will let you add a task or start or join a conversation.
You can create a new project from your mobile device by pressing the ‘List’ button (looks like a bulleted list) at the bottom of the screen. The List screen will come up. Then just create a new project right in Asana.
How Much Would You Pay for Project Management Software?
The good news is that Asana is free for you. If you run the show and just need to assign tasks, you pay nothing. When you start bringing other team members on board, then the price tag rises.
Upgrading to their Premium package will cost $4-$5 per month for each member you add. The Premium package also allows you to make some projects private to hide the tasks from other members. This might be good if you have motivated sellers or a buyer on your list invited to a project, but you don’t want them to see everything.
Asana can really help you simplify your life if you run it. It would be terrible to lose out on a great deal because you were not organized well enough to close it. With buyers and sellers being so fickle these days, organization is essential.
Care to Share?
We want to hear about your experience with Asana or a similar organizational tool. Share in the comments section below.
Organize Your Business – Take some time on a weekend or some slow time to review what you are doing. Is everything all over the place? How can you make it easier on yourself?
Learn Project Management – So much of a real estate investor’s life is taken up by projects. Whether it’s creating a marketing campaign, rehabbing a house or closing a sale, we are constantly doing projects. The more project management skills you have, the better an investor you will become.
Review Your Projects – Once you’ve flipped a house, created a website or sent out marketing materials, take a look at the results. How could you improve the project the next time you run it?
JP Moses
is a real estate investor in Memphis, TN, with experience ranging from land lording to note buying, rehabbing, and wholesaling. However, wholesaling is the area that he enjoys most and where he bring the most experience and expertise to his students.