Real estate investing is serious business where serious wealth is created. Creating that wealth is not magic. It takes planning. Specifically a solid real estate investment business plan. Solid business plans can easily run 50 pages or longer. Serious investors first read the executive summary before diving into the full plan to determine if the person asking for money has a reasonable idea of how to make money in a specific marketplace.

This article provides a few short examples about how to write the executive summary to a real estate investment business plan that will be well received by potential investors. A well-written executive summary is an extremely condensed version of the key points of the overall plan. The summary should never be more than two pages and a single page is preferred.

The Critical Executive Summary of Your Real Estate Investment Business Plan

The executive summary is an overview of your entire business plan. It needs to convince the reader that you run a competent business and have a bright future. Here is a short example.

"West Real Estate is a California based real estate company offering deluxe rental units for the San Diego, California community. Our condo-style apartments combine security, cutting edge technology, desired amenities, and a positive atmosphere for all tenants. These rentals come with unmatched levels of customer service and attention to details. Profits are projected to be substantial over the next three years."

Another important section of your business plan to be covered in the executive summary are the details of market that you serve. After all, real estate is about location, location, location. Here is another example.

"West San Diego is expected to face a significant shortage of apartments within the next 18 months. As of the last financial quarter, the vacancy rate was a mere 3.5%. That's an amount due strictly to turn over (very low turn over). Yet, population is forecast to grow 1.2% over the same 18 months, with approximately half of the new population becoming renters."

"This is an exciting time for West Real Estate because the forecasted need is for an additional 9,300 rental units but only 1,800 are currently being constructed. Western Real Estate is convinced that our occupancy rate will remain well above 97%, while simultaneously generating premium rents."

Other subjects your real estate investment business plan summary needs to cover are:

• The business strategy
• A summary of the financial projections
• The management team (including experience)
• Specific investments being sought (amount and how it will be spent)

Without those sections of your real estate investment business plan being highlighted in the executive summary, you're not likely to gain the interest of potential investors.

When it comes to real estate investing, your strategy is critically important. You need to stand out from all the other investors seeking financial backing. Here is an example of a well-written strategy paragraph.

"West Real Estate is significantly different from other real estate investing and property management companies because our business model is based on taking lease purchase options on poorly managed properties. This gives us the opportunity to take control of apartment complexes and work to turn them around with expectation but not the obligation to make a final purchase. Our initial commitment is more about time than money. Only apartments that become truly profitable will become part of our long term portfolio."

What to Avoid in the Executive Summary of Your Real Estate Investment Business Plan

Your real estate investment business plan summary should be written in an interesting and enticing manner to lead the investor to read the complete the business plan. Although the executive summary is the first part of your business plan, it is the last section written. It is a summary of the entire plan but it should not be a table of contents to the rest of the plan or a cut and paste from the major sections of your business plan.

The executive summary needs to stand alone as an introduction to your business. Excessive exaggeration and hype only serves to turn off serious investors that have read enough real estate investment business plans to know when they are being given BS.

Please leave a comment if this article was helpful or if you have a question.

Author bio: Brian Kline has been investing in real estate for more than 30 years and writing about real estate investing for seven years. He also draws upon 25 plus years of business experience including 12 years as a manager at Boeing Aircraft Company. Brian currently lives at Lake Cushman, Washington. A vacation destination, a few short miles from a national forest in the Olympic Mountains with the Pacific Ocean a couple of miles in the opposite direction.