Published in 2024

Are you considering investing in real estate? Not just buying your own house, but investing your money in properties to earn long-term returns. This book provides an in-depth discussion of various types of real estate investments, using as examples the author’s real-life experiences. A comprehensive method to analyze investments is presented, which includes the proper recording of revenues, expenses, and taxes that will determine the investment’s cash flow. The book starts with a discussion of basic real estate principles, which includes:

• Real Estate Principles: common real estate terms are defined, like real property, title, deed, equity, and liens.

• Agents and Contracts: how best to work with a real estate agent, contracts used to purchase and sell property, how commissions work, how to make sure your legal rights are protected.

• Real Estate Loans: a mortgage loan is a pledge of real property as security for a promissory note. The different types of loans are discussed: conventional, FHA, and VA, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each.

• Real Estate Taxes: taxation affects the profitability of the investment. There are different types of taxes to consider: capital gains, depreciation, recapture. The book provides many examples on how taxes affect RE investments.

• Establish an Investment Company: Most small businesses start out as sole proprietorships but there are better ways to decrease liability and protect personal assets. The pros and cons of setting up an LLC or a corporation are discussed.

Six real estate investment strategies are discussed in detail. Each chapter shows how to evaluate the investment with a financial model that incorporates all aspects of the deal. Examples are given from the author’s investment history.

• Flipping a House: the book relates my experience in buying a cheap house, fixing it up, and then selling it. There are important considerations to execute a house flip strategy successfully. This book shows what can go wrong.

• Sequential Investing: you buy a home, live in it at least two years, then buy another home. You rent out the first home and go live in the new purchase, because lenders will give you a better loan if you occupy the house. As time passes, you buy a third, then a fourth, then a fifth. How best to execute this strategy is discussed in the book, along with an analysis of the financial return.

• Buy a Duplex: when you buy a duplex, you can live in one half of the property and rent out the other half. The rental income will pay for your mortgage. The book compares this investment strategy to the other ways of investing.

• Buy a Tax Delinquent Property: when property owners fail to pay the property tax, the property may be auctioned and sold at a real property tax sale. Some states sell deeds to real property to recover delinquent property taxes. Tips on how to buy properties at auctions are discussed and analyzed.

• Build a Tiny House: the steps to buy land and install a prefabricated tiny house. How to prepare the land, pour the slab, transport the house. The finances of a tiny home on a lake lot are analyzed.

• Buy a Foreign Property: buying a property overseas can be lucrative when done correctly. The purchase of two properties are analyzed; one in El Salvador, one in Spain.

At the end of the book is a summary of the different strategies, and a ranking of the best ways to invest in real estate.