Serious about success? Read on
Who wants to be a millionaire? Most of us. But if you’re out to make a quick buck in real estate, this book may not be for you. This guide is geared to the serious investor, not the get-rich-quick crowd.
Serious investors -- new or experienced -- should read this well-researched book because it attempts to organize and reveal the attributes of successful realty investors. The profiles of some of the millionaire investors interviewed provide many examples.
The basic theme is “buy real estate right, pay it down and pay it off.” The ultimate goal of investors, according to Keller, should be to own substantial amounts of real property free and clear for maximum cash flow. To get started, the authors suggest buying at below-market prices and flipping, or reselling, properties to create cash flow to buy more real estate.
Keller, founder of the Keller Williams Realty International, has for years observed successful (and probably unsuccessful) investors. For the book, he interviewed many successful ones and shared their advice, along with his own opinions.
Sidebar quotes from some of those interviewed are a special feature of the book. For example:
* Robert Kiyosaki of Scottsdale, Ariz.: “One of the beauties of real estate is you don’t need money. If you can find a great deal, people will throw money at you.”
* Jimmy Napier of Chipley, Fla.: “People try to overcomplicate real estate investing. You can’t pay $5,000 a month if you’re not making $5,000 a month.”
* Jack Miller of Reno: “There’s room for the little fellow in this business. Houses are too small for big guys to get started.”
Keller recommends trading up to larger rental properties and to “think in units.” That means consolidating into easier-to-manage multifamily and commercial buildings rather than a lot of single-family houses.
Although not every successful investor would agree with that advice, the advantage is ease of management. But the disadvantage of such a move is that single-family rental houses usually appreciate faster than rental buildings, which depend on their net operating income for increased valuation.
The book bogs down a bit when delving into various investment “models.” A reader will find it easier to digest the book in small portions. Also, some chapters are highly technical and may be difficult to comprehend.
It may even be necessary to read the book two or three times to fully understand all the models and diagrams. Some diagrams help to simplify models. Others just seem to add to the confusion.
This would make a good textbook for a college course on realty investment because of its academic nature.
Although challenging, the book is filled with valuable and detailed information for serious long-term investors.
