• Real-estate investors shared their predictions for 2025 and top advice.
• One investor says to think long-term and don't expect interest rates to drop.
• Another says to spot opportunities by looking at 'days on market' on a listing.

Experienced real-estate investors don't expect mortgage rates to drop significantly in 2025, but they tend to agree that it could be an excellent year to invest in a property.

Arguably, any year is a good time to dip your toe in if you're financially prepared.

"Some of the best advice I can give somebody is just understand that you can never perfectly time anything," said Matt Laricy, a Chicago-based investor and agent who has done over $1 billion in sales and closed thousands of deals.

His advice applies to prospective homeowners, as well: "You have to live somewhere, so is it really worth waiting one or two years to maybe get it for 10% less, but in the meantime, you spend 20% more on rent? Are you really winning?

"Just know that the best time is when you're financially ready."

Here's what Laricy and other veteran investors and agents predict will happen in the real estate game in 2025.

Dana Bull says to think long-term and not wait for rates to drop

If you're looking to buy a home or invest in real estate in 2025, don't wait for rates to drop before making a move.

"I wouldn't base my whole plan around, 'Well, I keep hearing rates are supposed to drop,'" said Massachusetts-based investor and agent Dana Bull, noting that current rates are in line with the historical average. "This is kind of where rates sit. So, if they were to drop, that would be great, but I wouldn't be banking on it."

Instead, figure out how to make the numbers work in a high-rate environment. That'll mean getting creative.

"Look at some alternative leasing approaches. Usually, they're more lucrative if they're shorter," said Bull, who has always done long-term rentals but is experimenting with mid-term in 2025 to improve her cash flow. "One idea would be to start with something like an Airbnb, with the goal of transitioning after two or three years into something more passive, like a long-term rental."

Real estate is a long-term game, she added: "You have to look beyond year one — the numbers are always going to be tight year one, no matter what the market conditions are — so, what are your projections going to be by year five?

"And then, what can you do in the interim to maybe make this property work? That would be focusing on neighborhoods and communities where you can balance both of these plays: It's going to attract a short-term rental tenant but, down the road, you can pivot into a longer-term tenant."

Matt Laricy predicts the market will 'take off like a rocket ship'

"I expect 2025 to be the best market since 2022. I think the market is going to take off like a rocket ship," said the top Chicago real-estate agent, adding that, "obviously, every market is extremely local."

In his market, rents are very high, and, "it's almost cheaper, when you factor out your down payment on a monthly basis, to buy than it is to rent," he explained. "So, you are getting a lot of people who are going to buy just as a result of that." Plus, employees should have more certainty around their company's return-to-office plan, which could promote settling down and buying: "A lot of people rented because they were uncertain of their future."

Laricy also predicts that prospective buyers will adjust their rate expectations: "I think people have now realized that 2 and 3% are never going to happen, and are like, 'At a certain point, I either have to continue to be a renter for the rest of my life, or I have to be a buyer.'"

His advice for navigating a competitive market is, first and foremost, understand the basics: where you want to buy, what type of property you want to buy, and a realistic budget.

"It sounds easy. But for buyers, it's really hard," he said.

Regarding your budget, Laricy said to assume a home will sell for higher than what it's listed at. Study your market to see how much homes typically go over the asking price and factor that in. If it's $50,000, for example, and your budget is $500,000, look at homes listed for $450,000.

If you know exactly what you want and what you can afford, you'll be able to move quickly, which is essential in a competitive market.

"Know that you have to do things on their time, not your time," said Laricy, referring to the seller. "When something comes on the market, you need to move, and you need to move fast."

Mike Zuber says it'll be a good market for investors and to focus on 'days on market'

California-based investor Mike Zuber expects 2025 to be a "unique" opportunity for investors.

"I think there are some people that will just have to sell — life events, death, divorce, all of that," he said. "And unless the house is perfect, no owner is going to buy it. The general public is basically out of the housing market. So if you have a house that's a little dated, a little old, a little bit too close to busy streets, you're going to eventually have to sell to an investor — and we're going to write offers that make sense at a high cost of capital, call it 7, 8%."

His advice is to pay attention to the number of days a property has been on the market to land the best deals.

"Go on the general MLS, Realtor.com, Zillow, Redfin, and just look for homes that have been on the market for 50 days, 60 days, 90 days, 100 days," he said. "We're seeing days on market explode, and that just tells you that that seller is eventually going to be motivated or they're going to just take it off the market. So, do they need to sell or do they want to sell?"

If they need to sell, you'll be in a better position to negotiate.

As for what number to look for exactly, start by understanding the average 'days on market' in your area. Then, look for listings where that number is double, said Zuber: "Anything that's two X the average days on market is a good sign to go fishing."

Nyasia Casey says to know the laws in your area and understand seasonality

Rules and regulations that may affect real-estate investors are constantly shifting. In New York City, where investor Nyasia Casey lives, a new law going into effect in June 2025 shifts the burden of broker fees from renters to landlords.

"Essentially, landlords have to pay broker fees now — not the tenants. So, if you're a landlord, you have to factor in that cost now," said Casey, who rents in NYC but invests in Baltimore. "A lot of landlord and tenant laws are changing in certain areas that you need to be mindful of because it will affect how much money you're putting in and how much money you have to set aside."

She also emphasized that seasonality matters, whether you're buying and holding or buying and flipping.

She said that as a general rule of thumb, "buy in the winter, sell in the spring."

Whether you're listing a rental or trying to sell a flip, you want to find a tenant or a buyer in the summer.

"Once you get past October, you're going to have a difficult time, and you may lose money, whether it be you have to lower your price for a flip, or you have to lower your rental price just to get someone in there so that you don't bleed money," she said. "So just be mindful of when you're putting that house on the market, when you're buying it, and when it's going to be finished."

Ludomir Wanot encourages investors to save up to make a move

"As of October, we're seeing about a 29% year-over-year increase in homes for sale, so what I'm seeing is the market is showing signs of balancing and the conditions are becoming more favorable for buyers compared to the last five years," said Seattle-based investor Ludomir Wanot, who built his wealth wholesaling and now runs an AI company that helps lenders communicate with their clients. "And so the best thing right now we could do is save our money for opportunities that arise."

He doesn't expect rates to drop significantly in 2025, "so learning and utilizing creative financing is going to be your go-to," he said, recommending strategies such as seller financing, subject-to agreements, and private lending could help investors lock in better terms and avoid excessive borrowing costs.

Wanot's top advice heading into the new year, however, is to actually implement what you learn about online. Taking action could be as small as joining a real-estate community and networking.

"People are buying programs, they're going to the events, they're watching people come up onstage and talk about how wealthy they got through a particular strategy. But very few people actually implement anything they're being taught," he said.

"The day we actually stop listening to and reading all these stories, podcasts, and YouTube videos and actually apply ourselves is the day we're finally going to start seeing progress in our lives."

• Real estate investor Ludomir Wanot shares strategies anyone can use to find deals.
• He doesn't expect rates to drop in 2025 and encourages investors to lean into creative financing.
• Strategies such as subject-to financing can help investors avoid excessive borrowing costs.

Real-estate investor Ludomir Wanot wants other investors to know that there are deals to be found — you just have to know where to look.

"I love rentals. I love to see the physical, tangible assets," the Seattle-based millennial, who built his wealth wholesaling and now runs an AI company that helps lenders communicate with their clients, told Business Insider. "The proven, consistent strategy that's worked for me over the last seven years is sticking with the rental strategy of buying at a 30% discount to appraised value, making sure it cash flows at least $500 a month, and the property has to be in an opportunity zone — and I find these properties all the time."

He's acquired five units in Oregon in the last five months, which BI verified by looking at settlement statements.

"They're definitely out there," he said. "But sometimes they're not in Washington. Sometimes you have to look outside the state."

Wanot shared strategies that any investor can use to find deals, what types of properties he's looking for and what he's avoiding, and the simplest way for anyone to break into real estate investing in 2025.

Source off-market deals through wholesalers

One strategy for finding deals is to look for off-market properties — meaning, properties for sale that are not listed on the multiple listing service. While more difficult to find, they're typically easier to negotiate thanks to less competition.

There are various ways to find off-market properties, from real-estate auction websites to Craigslist to door-knocking. There's also wholesaling, which is when the person acting as the wholesaler finds and buys a discounted property and then sells the contract to another buyer.

Having done wholesaling for years, Wanot is aware that "there are wholesalers that consistently find discounted properties, and you can find those people on Facebook, through investment communities, they're all over."

He encourages investors to meet with wholesalers in their area and provide them with specific property criteria. If you're new to investing and haven't yet built a network, start by attending real-estate meet-ups or joining online real-estate communities.

As Wanot has learned, "Surround yourself with people who know more than you, ask questions, and build relationships with all different kinds of people you meet because you never know when you can work with them down the road."

Maximize cash flow with creative financing

Wanot doesn't expect rates to drop significantly in 2025. To get a property to generate positive cash flow in a higher-rate environment, he recommends leaning into creative financing.

"With interest rates remaining high, traditional financing methods may not yield the best returns," he said, but strategies such as seller financing, subject-to agreements, and private lending could help investors lock in better terms and avoid excessive borrowing costs.

Seller financing is when the buyer buys directly from the seller. The seller acts as the lender and provides a loan with agreed-upon terms about things like the interest rate and schedule of payments.

With subject-to financing, the buyer takes over the existing financing. The buyer doesn't actually assume the mortgage — it remains in the seller's name with the same terms — but will make mortgage payments on behalf of the seller.

Private money lending is another way to avoid a bank or traditional mortgage lender, and can be a "great way to avoid high interest rates and fees," said Wanot, adding: "I've had a lot of luck sourcing private money lenders through real estate Facebook groups."

Look for single-family homes that need work

"If you're a new investor, I'd definitely go after the distressed, small single-family homes," said Wanot.

Another tip is to look for property where the seller has "at least 50% equity in the home and has owned it for a long time," he said, as they might be more motivated to negotiate, especially if they're managing it from out-of-state. "I'm looking at owners who are over the age of 50 because the older owners tend to want to get out of the real estate space. It is so draining and requires a lot of physical and mental work."

Wanot owns multi-family properties but has found that they're more difficult to make the numbers work, at least in his current market.

"If you're a sophisticated investor, yes, small or large multi-families are good if you actually have run your numbers 1,000 times and you know exactly what you're looking for," he said. "There have been probably five properties that I was going to buy in the last year that I didn't pull the trigger on because the profit and loss statements that were given to me were significantly different from the actual bank statements."

A common mistake he's seen investors make, especially when it comes to these big multi-families, is just paying attention to the P&Ls, "which are made by the property managers or the owners of the property and show one story," he said. "They're not actually going through the bank statements and seeing what actual revenue is coming in and what expenses are going out."

He also advises avoiding the BRRRR — buy, rehab, rent, refinance, and repeat — method in a high-rate environment: "It hasn't really been working the last couple of years because the interest rates are so high right now, and so smart investors are moving away from that."

The easiest way to get started: Rent a portion of your home

For most new investors, the simplest and most risk-averse way to get started is "creating rentable units in their single-family home space," said Wanot, referring to a strategy known as "house hacking."

This requires owning a primary residence and converting a garage, basement, or even a bedroom into a rentable space. If you have a bigger budget and meet zoning requirements in your area, another option may be to build an ADU.

At a minimum, renting out a portion of your home will reduce your mortgage — and could even fully cover it. Lowering your monthly housing payment could then help you save up to buy a proper investment property.

Wanot's top advice heading into the new year, however, is to actually implement what you read about and learn. Taking action could be as small as joining a real estate community and networking.

"People are buying programs, they're going to the events, they're watching people come up onstage and talk about how wealthy they got through a particular strategy. But very few people actually implement anything they're being taught," he said.

"The day we actually stop listening to and reading all these stories, podcasts, and YouTube videos and actually apply ourselves is the day we're finally going to start seeing progress in our lives."