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Real Estate Riches: How to Become Rich Using Your Banker's Money
A successful self-made real-estate mogul shares his personal recipe for success in the real-estate market, explaining why property investment is so lucrative and offering helpful advice for getting into and making money in this high-profit business. Original.
192 pages, Paperback
First published September 30, 2001
About the author
Dolf de Roos
31 books23 followersReal estate investor and multi-time best selling author.
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May 31, 2021
Main Thing I Want to Remember:
The Deal of the Decade comes along about once a week. "Of course, the more good deals you see, the more you will believe they exist. If you are just beginning and not yet a believer, then the only way out of this impasse is to start looking, and keep looking. You will be amazed at what you will find." (152)
Highlights:
- Pg xv - The author has never had a job.
- Pg xvii - Things the rich have in common: "First, almost without exception, the rich had integrity. Their word was their honor."
- Pg xix - Aim of book: Does not aim to provide mechanics of investing. Instead: "First, I want to share why I think property is so astoundingly simple and lucrative.... And second, I want to give you an insider's view of my approach, my attitudes, my techniques, and my secrets."
- Pg 3 - Contrary to expectations: "it is possible to find a bargain property, or even many of them in a row. It is possible to buy properties using mostly of entirely other people's money. It is possible to buy properties where the returns are 20 or 30 or 50 or 100 percent more per annum. What's more, all these things are easy."
- Pg 5 - What other investment strategy can you so readily get other people to finance your investments, where they are willing to let you use their money to invest it?
- Pg 10 - "Very commonly a property may be sold by people who have no vested interest in getting the true market value for it. This is often the case with foreclosure situations, where the bank is mainly interested in getting its mortgage back, but also occurs when people are asked to look after someone else's affairs."
- Pg 10 - "Each reason why people sell a property at well below its market value is unique, but they are there nonetheless. Believe it and you will find them. Do not believe it, and you can join the masses who can say with complete honesty and accuracy that 'that sort of thing never happens to me!'"
- Pg 11 - "Why would anyone be willing to pay $80,000 for a painted house, but not $60,000 for one in dire need of a $400 paint job? The answer lies in the way we have been conditioned to expect instant results."
- Pg 14 - "The answer is to simply refinance. You get a new appraisal (this time for $3 million) and go back to the bank and ask for a new mortgage. At the 90 percent loan-value ratio, you would get $2.7 million in your hands. After paying off the original $900,000 mortgage, you would still have $1.8 million left over of surplus new cash in your hands."
- Pg 15 - Real estate offers tremendous leverage because: "you can often buy properties at prices significantly below their true value, you can do things to them to further increase their value way beyond the cost of the improvement, and you do not need to sell to reap huge benefits from the increase in value."
- Pg 19 - "Calculated this way, even if the stock market goes up by 15 percent, and real estate goes up by only 5 percent, then any property investors with a modest mortgage of 70 percent would still have done better than their property-averse counterparts."
- Pg 20 - "Trends are slower, less volatile, and with fewer deviations from the average. Thus, the city with the highest growth in any nation in a particular year is very likely to be at or near the top again the following year. In other words it is stupendously easy to beat the national average."
- Pg 30 - "The average payout on a lottery ticket is typically less than 30 cents on the dollar."
- Pg 50 - "Your aim is not to secure as much of the loan as possible against the property being bought, but to borrow as much of the purchase price as possible."
- Pg 51 - "First off, you only ever pay depreciation-recovered tax if you are silly enough to sell."
- Pg 61 - "With sufficient financial intelligence, you gain the confidence to do really well. And with that confidence comes daring. And when you dare to try, you practice. And through practice, you develop ability. And the more you exercise this newfound ability, the more your financial intelligence will go up as you learn new techniques, or nuances of old techniques. It becomes a positively reinforcing circle."
- Pg 67 - "Investing in properties is a numbers game, where the numbers involved are big. And I am not just talking about your profits! I am talking about the numbers of properties you must look at."
- Pg 67 - The 100:10:3:1 Rule. Analyze 100, Offer on 10, arrange financing for 3, and maybe buy 1.
- Pg 71 - "What I mean by 'looking at a property' is evaluating it to the extent that you can explain either why you want to buy this property, or why you want to pas on it."
- Pg 71 - "Each time you look at a property, you discover a reason why you should not buy it (for instance, the returns are not good enough), or, in the absence of any such reason, you have by default found a property that is a great buy."
- Pg 73 - Where can I find properties? Newspaper classified advertisements, Zillow owner-listed buildings, real estate magazines, real estate agents, off-market sales.
- Pg 79 - Rules for using agents:
- 1 "Never stick to just one agent. Why would you? One lone agent does not have access to every property on the market, and he or she does not get to hear on the grapevine about every deal that is coming up."
- 2 "Work with agents who are themselves investors.
- Interview them with simple questions. Ask: "What is the best investment property that you have on your books at present?"
- Pg 84 - "When the people I deal with are fast, knowledgeable, and efficient, I am grateful for the ease with which the work at hand can get done. And when the people I deal with are, to put it politely, in the wrong profession, then I am grateful that most of my potential competition packs up and goes away. You win either way."
- Pg 88 - "The more properties you get to look at or consider, through whatever mechanisms are available, the greater the likelihood that you will find your next deal that sounds too good to be true."
- Pg 90 - Three main methods of calculating return on investment: yield (simplistic measure that doesn't take into account how much money you put into the property), cash-on-cash return (more nuanced but doesn't take into account future changes, it's static), internal rate of return (robust, dynamic calculation that helps compare multiple properties across years)
- Pg 93 - "As most real estate books will tell you, the top three criteria for a property are: Location, Location, Location!"
- Pg 96 - "Property is unique in that you can include just about anything you want in the negotiations. And people often do!"
- Pg 97 - "Indeed, when I open a newspaper to look at real estate, I consider it a bit of a lottery, with the difference that I know that, in all probability, there are several winners right there on the page staring at me."
- Pg 98 - Four clauses that author usually includes in contract:
- 1. Do not always write the contract in your name. (Joe and Betsy often write "Joe and/or Assignees" or is it "nominees"?) This will allow you to sell the contract to others for a short sale. You can assure the seller that this works in their favor since, if the original buyer dies during the contract, he can pass along the contract to an able buyer.
- 2. Include clause that safeguards you from securing good financing. "This contract is expressly subject to and conditional upon the purchaser arranging financing suitable to himself, such financing to be confirmed within 21 working days from the date of signing of this contract." (You can define what suitable means to you then!)
- 3. Legal out in case anything is wrong with property: "This contract is expressly subject to and conditional upon the purchaser's attorney's approval as to title, encumbrances, liens, easements, and any other regulatory impositions that may relate to the subject property, such approval to be given in writing by the purchaser's attorney to the seller's attorney by no later than 5:00pm on the 20th working day after the signing of this contract."
- 4. Having a secrecy clause (in case you're trying to buy two nearby properties but don't want anyone to know)
- Pg 101 - How to make your offer incredibly seductive to the seller: "Staple a check for the deposit to the contract! It makes no difference to your cash flow: If they do not countersign, then they cannot bank the check, and if they do, then you would have to write it out anyway. However, the psychological power of this check stapled to the contract is phenomenal."
- Pg 103 - "Banks want to give you money. Let them give it to you! When you buy property using Other People's Money (OPM), you are gearing your investment through leverage."
- Pg 107 - "One of the most difficult tasks I have is convincing people that they do not need to pay off their mortgages. In fact, I think you would be downright silly to." (He is speaking about investment properties and not primary residences.) Why not use the money to put it towards another investment in a property?
- Pg 109 - "The biggest reason why I buy property is to acquire debt, for the simple reason that the amount of debt stays the same, but the asset against which that debt is secured goes up in value."
- Pg 112 - Carport example of adding value to a property by spending a fraction of the cost for a larger gain. Using hard money lenders (or trusting lenders), you can get a loan based on the future value of the property after your repairs/additions (like a carport), using the excess money as a down payment toward another property. Banks, however, likely will have more restrictions around this since they will only loan against the current, present value.
- Pg 115 - "I am hoping that if someone shouts out loud: 'Property without a carport or garage!' You will immediately recognize that there is an opportunity here to put money in your pocket."
- Pg 116 - "You will either win, or learn. And you never learn less."
- Pg 118 - "Indeed, managing properties yourself for a while is great training to understand the components that you will want to look for in a professional property management company."
- Pg 119 - "In jurisdictions wher you can, ask the prospective tenants how long they were in their last home, what their plans are, where they are from, where their family lives, and what they do for a living. This needn't be in the form of an interrogation! Make it part of the conversation."
- Pg 119 - "Another good technique is to visit the prospective tenant at their present home, if circumstances permit."
- Pg 122 - "The biggest mistake that I see property investors make is trying to be too friendly with their tenants. They are immediately on a first-name basis, stop by just for chats on non-property-related topics, and generally become very familiar."
- Pg 124 - "My opinion is that every hour spent managing an existing property detracts from your ability to find, analyze, negotiate, finance, and own another one.... To put it another way, having a property manager enables you to work on your business, not in it."
- Pg 126 - "As with any other aspect of your life, the more organized you are, the more you can take on."
- Pg 131 - "Assume a tenant's rent was $9,000 per month. Then I would write up the contract to say that the rental was $10,000 per month, but subject to a discount of 10 percent if the rent was paid by the due date."
- Pg 133 - "Over the years, I have noticed that all of my commercial tenants tended to improve their properties, sometimes without even consulting me, and sometimes, as most of my lease contracts specify, by getting my consent first."
- Pg 136 - "Commercial property is far more specialized than residential, and henve it may be more difficult to find a tenant in the areas of specialization catered to your premises."
- Pg 142 - "Having said that, if you are series about having a growing portfolio, then for me I would rather have a large amount of money tied up in commercial property than in residential property."
- Pg 147 - "The reasonable person accepts the world the way it is. The unreasonable person insists on changing the world to suit his own requirements. That is why all progress depends upon the unreasonable person."
- Pg 147 - Eight Golden Rules of Property (chapter):
- You make your money when you buy
- Always buy from a motivated seller
- Fall in love with the deal, not the property
- Never be the first to name a figure--that person always loses.
- Be countercyclical
- Always try to buy with zero or little down. "Consequently, whe it comes to buying a property, we tend to want to put in as much cash as we can. And yet putting in a lot of cash does not make good investment sense."
- Seldom sell.
- The Deal of the Decade comes along about once a week. "Of course, the more good deals you see, the more you will believe they exist. If you are just beginning and not yet a believer, then the only way out of this impasse is to start looking, and keep looking. You will be amazed at what you will find." (152)
- Pg 152 - Sweet story of hiding surprise gifts around the house for his girlfriend.
- Pg 156 - "For instance, there is nothing to stop you from spending two weeks looking at investments in Czechoslovakia, one week in Italy, and then a month in Finland, if that is what took your fancy."
- Pg 158 - "We are going to be dead for a mighty long time. Every moment counts. Make the most of life. Decide what it is you want want to do, and then go out there and do it. If you are not having fun, change something until you are."
-
The Deal of the Decade comes along about once a week. "Of course, the more good deals you see, the more you will believe they exist. If you are just beginning and not yet a believer, then the only way out of this impasse is to start looking, and keep looking. You will be amazed at what you will find." (152)
Highlights:
- Pg xv - The author has never had a job.
- Pg xvii - Things the rich have in common: "First, almost without exception, the rich had integrity. Their word was their honor."
- Pg xix - Aim of book: Does not aim to provide mechanics of investing. Instead: "First, I want to share why I think property is so astoundingly simple and lucrative.... And second, I want to give you an insider's view of my approach, my attitudes, my techniques, and my secrets."
- Pg 3 - Contrary to expectations: "it is possible to find a bargain property, or even many of them in a row. It is possible to buy properties using mostly of entirely other people's money. It is possible to buy properties where the returns are 20 or 30 or 50 or 100 percent more per annum. What's more, all these things are easy."
- Pg 5 - What other investment strategy can you so readily get other people to finance your investments, where they are willing to let you use their money to invest it?
- Pg 10 - "Very commonly a property may be sold by people who have no vested interest in getting the true market value for it. This is often the case with foreclosure situations, where the bank is mainly interested in getting its mortgage back, but also occurs when people are asked to look after someone else's affairs."
- Pg 10 - "Each reason why people sell a property at well below its market value is unique, but they are there nonetheless. Believe it and you will find them. Do not believe it, and you can join the masses who can say with complete honesty and accuracy that 'that sort of thing never happens to me!'"
- Pg 11 - "Why would anyone be willing to pay $80,000 for a painted house, but not $60,000 for one in dire need of a $400 paint job? The answer lies in the way we have been conditioned to expect instant results."
- Pg 14 - "The answer is to simply refinance. You get a new appraisal (this time for $3 million) and go back to the bank and ask for a new mortgage. At the 90 percent loan-value ratio, you would get $2.7 million in your hands. After paying off the original $900,000 mortgage, you would still have $1.8 million left over of surplus new cash in your hands."
- Pg 15 - Real estate offers tremendous leverage because: "you can often buy properties at prices significantly below their true value, you can do things to them to further increase their value way beyond the cost of the improvement, and you do not need to sell to reap huge benefits from the increase in value."
- Pg 19 - "Calculated this way, even if the stock market goes up by 15 percent, and real estate goes up by only 5 percent, then any property investors with a modest mortgage of 70 percent would still have done better than their property-averse counterparts."
- Pg 20 - "Trends are slower, less volatile, and with fewer deviations from the average. Thus, the city with the highest growth in any nation in a particular year is very likely to be at or near the top again the following year. In other words it is stupendously easy to beat the national average."
- Pg 30 - "The average payout on a lottery ticket is typically less than 30 cents on the dollar."
- Pg 50 - "Your aim is not to secure as much of the loan as possible against the property being bought, but to borrow as much of the purchase price as possible."
- Pg 51 - "First off, you only ever pay depreciation-recovered tax if you are silly enough to sell."
- Pg 61 - "With sufficient financial intelligence, you gain the confidence to do really well. And with that confidence comes daring. And when you dare to try, you practice. And through practice, you develop ability. And the more you exercise this newfound ability, the more your financial intelligence will go up as you learn new techniques, or nuances of old techniques. It becomes a positively reinforcing circle."
- Pg 67 - "Investing in properties is a numbers game, where the numbers involved are big. And I am not just talking about your profits! I am talking about the numbers of properties you must look at."
- Pg 67 - The 100:10:3:1 Rule. Analyze 100, Offer on 10, arrange financing for 3, and maybe buy 1.
- Pg 71 - "What I mean by 'looking at a property' is evaluating it to the extent that you can explain either why you want to buy this property, or why you want to pas on it."
- Pg 71 - "Each time you look at a property, you discover a reason why you should not buy it (for instance, the returns are not good enough), or, in the absence of any such reason, you have by default found a property that is a great buy."
- Pg 73 - Where can I find properties? Newspaper classified advertisements, Zillow owner-listed buildings, real estate magazines, real estate agents, off-market sales.
- Pg 79 - Rules for using agents:
- 1 "Never stick to just one agent. Why would you? One lone agent does not have access to every property on the market, and he or she does not get to hear on the grapevine about every deal that is coming up."
- 2 "Work with agents who are themselves investors.
- Interview them with simple questions. Ask: "What is the best investment property that you have on your books at present?"
- Pg 84 - "When the people I deal with are fast, knowledgeable, and efficient, I am grateful for the ease with which the work at hand can get done. And when the people I deal with are, to put it politely, in the wrong profession, then I am grateful that most of my potential competition packs up and goes away. You win either way."
- Pg 88 - "The more properties you get to look at or consider, through whatever mechanisms are available, the greater the likelihood that you will find your next deal that sounds too good to be true."
- Pg 90 - Three main methods of calculating return on investment: yield (simplistic measure that doesn't take into account how much money you put into the property), cash-on-cash return (more nuanced but doesn't take into account future changes, it's static), internal rate of return (robust, dynamic calculation that helps compare multiple properties across years)
- Pg 93 - "As most real estate books will tell you, the top three criteria for a property are: Location, Location, Location!"
- Pg 96 - "Property is unique in that you can include just about anything you want in the negotiations. And people often do!"
- Pg 97 - "Indeed, when I open a newspaper to look at real estate, I consider it a bit of a lottery, with the difference that I know that, in all probability, there are several winners right there on the page staring at me."
- Pg 98 - Four clauses that author usually includes in contract:
- 1. Do not always write the contract in your name. (Joe and Betsy often write "Joe and/or Assignees" or is it "nominees"?) This will allow you to sell the contract to others for a short sale. You can assure the seller that this works in their favor since, if the original buyer dies during the contract, he can pass along the contract to an able buyer.
- 2. Include clause that safeguards you from securing good financing. "This contract is expressly subject to and conditional upon the purchaser arranging financing suitable to himself, such financing to be confirmed within 21 working days from the date of signing of this contract." (You can define what suitable means to you then!)
- 3. Legal out in case anything is wrong with property: "This contract is expressly subject to and conditional upon the purchaser's attorney's approval as to title, encumbrances, liens, easements, and any other regulatory impositions that may relate to the subject property, such approval to be given in writing by the purchaser's attorney to the seller's attorney by no later than 5:00pm on the 20th working day after the signing of this contract."
- 4. Having a secrecy clause (in case you're trying to buy two nearby properties but don't want anyone to know)
- Pg 101 - How to make your offer incredibly seductive to the seller: "Staple a check for the deposit to the contract! It makes no difference to your cash flow: If they do not countersign, then they cannot bank the check, and if they do, then you would have to write it out anyway. However, the psychological power of this check stapled to the contract is phenomenal."
- Pg 103 - "Banks want to give you money. Let them give it to you! When you buy property using Other People's Money (OPM), you are gearing your investment through leverage."
- Pg 107 - "One of the most difficult tasks I have is convincing people that they do not need to pay off their mortgages. In fact, I think you would be downright silly to." (He is speaking about investment properties and not primary residences.) Why not use the money to put it towards another investment in a property?
- Pg 109 - "The biggest reason why I buy property is to acquire debt, for the simple reason that the amount of debt stays the same, but the asset against which that debt is secured goes up in value."
- Pg 112 - Carport example of adding value to a property by spending a fraction of the cost for a larger gain. Using hard money lenders (or trusting lenders), you can get a loan based on the future value of the property after your repairs/additions (like a carport), using the excess money as a down payment toward another property. Banks, however, likely will have more restrictions around this since they will only loan against the current, present value.
- Pg 115 - "I am hoping that if someone shouts out loud: 'Property without a carport or garage!' You will immediately recognize that there is an opportunity here to put money in your pocket."
- Pg 116 - "You will either win, or learn. And you never learn less."
- Pg 118 - "Indeed, managing properties yourself for a while is great training to understand the components that you will want to look for in a professional property management company."
- Pg 119 - "In jurisdictions wher you can, ask the prospective tenants how long they were in their last home, what their plans are, where they are from, where their family lives, and what they do for a living. This needn't be in the form of an interrogation! Make it part of the conversation."
- Pg 119 - "Another good technique is to visit the prospective tenant at their present home, if circumstances permit."
- Pg 122 - "The biggest mistake that I see property investors make is trying to be too friendly with their tenants. They are immediately on a first-name basis, stop by just for chats on non-property-related topics, and generally become very familiar."
- Pg 124 - "My opinion is that every hour spent managing an existing property detracts from your ability to find, analyze, negotiate, finance, and own another one.... To put it another way, having a property manager enables you to work on your business, not in it."
- Pg 126 - "As with any other aspect of your life, the more organized you are, the more you can take on."
- Pg 131 - "Assume a tenant's rent was $9,000 per month. Then I would write up the contract to say that the rental was $10,000 per month, but subject to a discount of 10 percent if the rent was paid by the due date."
- Pg 133 - "Over the years, I have noticed that all of my commercial tenants tended to improve their properties, sometimes without even consulting me, and sometimes, as most of my lease contracts specify, by getting my consent first."
- Pg 136 - "Commercial property is far more specialized than residential, and henve it may be more difficult to find a tenant in the areas of specialization catered to your premises."
- Pg 142 - "Having said that, if you are series about having a growing portfolio, then for me I would rather have a large amount of money tied up in commercial property than in residential property."
- Pg 147 - "The reasonable person accepts the world the way it is. The unreasonable person insists on changing the world to suit his own requirements. That is why all progress depends upon the unreasonable person."
- Pg 147 - Eight Golden Rules of Property (chapter):
- You make your money when you buy
- Always buy from a motivated seller
- Fall in love with the deal, not the property
- Never be the first to name a figure--that person always loses.
- Be countercyclical
- Always try to buy with zero or little down. "Consequently, whe it comes to buying a property, we tend to want to put in as much cash as we can. And yet putting in a lot of cash does not make good investment sense."
- Seldom sell.
- The Deal of the Decade comes along about once a week. "Of course, the more good deals you see, the more you will believe they exist. If you are just beginning and not yet a believer, then the only way out of this impasse is to start looking, and keep looking. You will be amazed at what you will find." (152)
- Pg 152 - Sweet story of hiding surprise gifts around the house for his girlfriend.
- Pg 156 - "For instance, there is nothing to stop you from spending two weeks looking at investments in Czechoslovakia, one week in Italy, and then a month in Finland, if that is what took your fancy."
- Pg 158 - "We are going to be dead for a mighty long time. Every moment counts. Make the most of life. Decide what it is you want want to do, and then go out there and do it. If you are not having fun, change something until you are."
-
September 10, 2011
Very comprehensive. Explains many basic, important principles to real estate investing that are applicable to all types of investors getting a start. I highly recommend this to anyone looking into real estate investing at all. Very easy to read and interesting.
January 24, 2013
The book was a little repetitive. Dolf de Roos has a writing style that I don't much care for. He uses exclamation points like they are going out of style and he seems pretty egotistical in his writing. This might be a good starter book for those who haven't read much on passive income through real estate, however, I only found 2 or 3 chapter helpful. There are many other Robert Kiyosaki books that do a better and more informative job. I'll probably give 1 more of Dolf De Roos' books a chance to see if this was just a swing and a miss. Enjoy!
July 8, 2009
This was good information about 5 years ago. Now in 2009, the economy is a mess and banks are going out of business right and left. It's much, much harder to use these techniques to buy an investment property with 'no money down'. Don't get me wrong, if you are creative enough you can make things happen but you just can't walk into the bank and walk out with a pile of money any longer. Darn, I miss the good ole days.
February 6, 2017
I read this book when it was first released, around 15 years ago, and thought it was brilliant. I have read many property books since then but this remains the most helpful. I used the principles to buy a small collection of rental property which hasn't made me rich but has definitely helped my retirement fund. This is the first time I've reread this book and I think it still stands as a great primer for people who are interested in real estate investment. Highly recommended.
January 7, 2015
Learned about investing with leverage, how to look for deals and increase the value of your properties. Residential versus Commercial Real Estate. Seriously good book that not only sets you up with basic real estate investing theory but also actions steps and things you should look for.
October 27, 2008
A great book on basic real estate investing. I used it before buying my second office and it was helpful.
January 8, 2017
Typical first Part.
Really estate is great because of Leverage. With, for example, $100,000 you can buy more $200,000-however much of real estate. With other investments, like stocks, you can only have purchase and receive the amount you paid for (p.5)
You can buy RE property that is below is actual value. (p.7)
You can increase the value of real estate through forced appreciation (rehab) (p.11)
On a commercial properties you can increase the value by finding a tenant for a vacant space, by agreeing to a longer lease length, attracting a better tenant, or by replacing the carpets. (p.12)
In Real estate you can enjoy the money from appreciation through Refinancing.
Yield-the ratio of the annual income generated by the investment, divided by the dollar amount of the investment (p.20)
Depreciation (p.26)
As assets go down in value, you can claim the decrease in value, or depreciation,against your income. Some of the depreciation you claim may apply to curtains, carpets, the fittings, fixture, and chattels in a house, and also the house itself (Everything but the land) (p.27). When you claim depreciation, it does not cost you any money.
In the U.S. the limit is set at $25,000 per year and decreases as your income goes above $100,000. (p.28) One of the wisest investment you can make when you buy a property is to have an appraiser or registered valuer go trough the property and itemize each and every chattel, fixture,and fitting in the property.
100:10:3:1 Rule
If you look at 100 properties, put offers in on 10, and try to arrange financing for 3, you May end p buying 1 (p.67)
The reason why it is so important to look at a lot of properties is that, in the process of looking at what's out there,you will get a gut feeling for what is the norm about how many bathrooms are normal, or garages, or acres of land. (p.70)
"Looking at a property" means evaluating it to the extent that you can explain either why you want to buy this property, or why you want to pass on it. (p.71)
There is no one magical source for great deals. Cover the field, and manage to find great investments using all kinds of mechanisms. Try Classified Advertisements (p.73), Real Estate Magazines (p.76), Real Estate Agents (p.79), Off-Market Sales (p.85), Write your own Advertisement (p.86), Word of mouth (p.87)
A property is not necessarily worth what a seller, agent, appraiser, or bank thinks it is worth. A property is worth that price at which a willing buyer and a wiling seller agree to transact the property (p.77),
"Never stick to just one agent" They don't have access to every property on the market and one person can't hear about everything brewing. (p.79) Work with agents who are themselves investors. (p.80)
Go into a RE office an ask: "Who would be the best agent to deal with concerning investment properties?
To determine if they're going to be helpful, ask them: "What is the best investment property that you have on your books at present?" When they pick one, ask "Why". Their answer, if it's investment and numbers talk, will reveal their usefulness. (p.81)
Add this to your contracts:
"This contract is expressly subject to and conditional upon the purchaser arranging financing suitable to himself, such financing to be confirmed within 21 days from the date of signing of this contract. "(p.99)
Add a confidentiality agreement so that the discussions of the purchase price can not be disclosed to others until the sale is complete (p. 100)
To make your offer more enticing, staple a check for the deposit to the contract. "It makes no difference to your cash flow: if they do not countersign, then they cannot bank the check, and if they do, then you would have to write it out anyway. However, the psychological power of this check stapled to the contract is phenomena.The seller knows that you are serious (p.101)
An interest-only mortgage is where you only pay interest, until the end of the term, when you pay back all of the principal in one hit. (p.105)
"I recommend drawing up a "proposal for finance" for each investment property you want to buy. This document will spell out exactly what it is that you are offering he bank" let them know it's a sound investment(p.106)
"When you owe the bank $5,000, you've got a problem. But when you owe the bank $5 million, THEY've got a problem"- Dolf De Roos (p.109)
Build and charge for a carport or storage garage on your land, for additional income/value on the property. (p.112)
More smaller ideas on p.115
About the most critical factor in running your properties smoothly is the judicious choice of tenants. The most crucial determinant of the type of tenant you will attract is the area in which you buy your property (p.118)
Phone their references. Ask the question: "Would you have these people as tenants again?"
In conversation, ask the tenant how long they were in their last home, what their plans are, where are they from, what they do for a living (p.119)
Gain the favor of tradesmen (contractors) by *paying them THE SAME DAY THAT YOU GET THE STATEMENT. Write the check write away. (p.121)Word'll spread you pay on time and promptly.
With tenants, make the rent obligations very clear. Spell out the action that will be taken if the rent is in default. (p.122)
Use a Property Management Software, especially when you get more tenants, to be organized an keep track of everything. (p.123)
Property Managers enable you to work ON your business, not in it. (p.125)
Residential property is property that people use primarily for residential accommodation. (Note: Some banks classify apartment buildings as commercial property)
Commercial Property includes offices, shopping malls, freestanding retail shops, strip mall shops, bank buildings, medical offices, funeral parlors, restaurants, and more. If you lease out a home on a commercial lease for use as an office, then that would qualify it as a commercial property from your perspective. (p.129-130)
When you deal with residential property, you are dealing with a person (the tenant). When you deal with commercial property, you are dealing with contracts. (p.130)
You have more control of the leases and agreements in commercial property than residential (p.131-132)
Commercial property leases are typical for multiple years (p.134). Banks will typically lend 50% of the appraised value of a commercial property. (p.139)
Never be the first to name a figure--that person always loses (p.149)
Seldom sell (p.151)
There is no one optimal place to invest. That means that your suburb in the city where you live is not the only place you should consider. (p.158)
Really estate is great because of Leverage. With, for example, $100,000 you can buy more $200,000-however much of real estate. With other investments, like stocks, you can only have purchase and receive the amount you paid for (p.5)
You can buy RE property that is below is actual value. (p.7)
You can increase the value of real estate through forced appreciation (rehab) (p.11)
On a commercial properties you can increase the value by finding a tenant for a vacant space, by agreeing to a longer lease length, attracting a better tenant, or by replacing the carpets. (p.12)
In Real estate you can enjoy the money from appreciation through Refinancing.
Yield-the ratio of the annual income generated by the investment, divided by the dollar amount of the investment (p.20)
Depreciation (p.26)
As assets go down in value, you can claim the decrease in value, or depreciation,against your income. Some of the depreciation you claim may apply to curtains, carpets, the fittings, fixture, and chattels in a house, and also the house itself (Everything but the land) (p.27). When you claim depreciation, it does not cost you any money.
In the U.S. the limit is set at $25,000 per year and decreases as your income goes above $100,000. (p.28) One of the wisest investment you can make when you buy a property is to have an appraiser or registered valuer go trough the property and itemize each and every chattel, fixture,and fitting in the property.
100:10:3:1 Rule
If you look at 100 properties, put offers in on 10, and try to arrange financing for 3, you May end p buying 1 (p.67)
The reason why it is so important to look at a lot of properties is that, in the process of looking at what's out there,you will get a gut feeling for what is the norm about how many bathrooms are normal, or garages, or acres of land. (p.70)
"Looking at a property" means evaluating it to the extent that you can explain either why you want to buy this property, or why you want to pass on it. (p.71)
There is no one magical source for great deals. Cover the field, and manage to find great investments using all kinds of mechanisms. Try Classified Advertisements (p.73), Real Estate Magazines (p.76), Real Estate Agents (p.79), Off-Market Sales (p.85), Write your own Advertisement (p.86), Word of mouth (p.87)
A property is not necessarily worth what a seller, agent, appraiser, or bank thinks it is worth. A property is worth that price at which a willing buyer and a wiling seller agree to transact the property (p.77),
"Never stick to just one agent" They don't have access to every property on the market and one person can't hear about everything brewing. (p.79) Work with agents who are themselves investors. (p.80)
Go into a RE office an ask: "Who would be the best agent to deal with concerning investment properties?
To determine if they're going to be helpful, ask them: "What is the best investment property that you have on your books at present?" When they pick one, ask "Why". Their answer, if it's investment and numbers talk, will reveal their usefulness. (p.81)
Add this to your contracts:
"This contract is expressly subject to and conditional upon the purchaser arranging financing suitable to himself, such financing to be confirmed within 21 days from the date of signing of this contract. "(p.99)
Add a confidentiality agreement so that the discussions of the purchase price can not be disclosed to others until the sale is complete (p. 100)
To make your offer more enticing, staple a check for the deposit to the contract. "It makes no difference to your cash flow: if they do not countersign, then they cannot bank the check, and if they do, then you would have to write it out anyway. However, the psychological power of this check stapled to the contract is phenomena.The seller knows that you are serious (p.101)
An interest-only mortgage is where you only pay interest, until the end of the term, when you pay back all of the principal in one hit. (p.105)
"I recommend drawing up a "proposal for finance" for each investment property you want to buy. This document will spell out exactly what it is that you are offering he bank" let them know it's a sound investment(p.106)
"When you owe the bank $5,000, you've got a problem. But when you owe the bank $5 million, THEY've got a problem"- Dolf De Roos (p.109)
Build and charge for a carport or storage garage on your land, for additional income/value on the property. (p.112)
More smaller ideas on p.115
About the most critical factor in running your properties smoothly is the judicious choice of tenants. The most crucial determinant of the type of tenant you will attract is the area in which you buy your property (p.118)
Phone their references. Ask the question: "Would you have these people as tenants again?"
In conversation, ask the tenant how long they were in their last home, what their plans are, where are they from, what they do for a living (p.119)
Gain the favor of tradesmen (contractors) by *paying them THE SAME DAY THAT YOU GET THE STATEMENT. Write the check write away. (p.121)Word'll spread you pay on time and promptly.
With tenants, make the rent obligations very clear. Spell out the action that will be taken if the rent is in default. (p.122)
Use a Property Management Software, especially when you get more tenants, to be organized an keep track of everything. (p.123)
Property Managers enable you to work ON your business, not in it. (p.125)
Residential property is property that people use primarily for residential accommodation. (Note: Some banks classify apartment buildings as commercial property)
Commercial Property includes offices, shopping malls, freestanding retail shops, strip mall shops, bank buildings, medical offices, funeral parlors, restaurants, and more. If you lease out a home on a commercial lease for use as an office, then that would qualify it as a commercial property from your perspective. (p.129-130)
When you deal with residential property, you are dealing with a person (the tenant). When you deal with commercial property, you are dealing with contracts. (p.130)
You have more control of the leases and agreements in commercial property than residential (p.131-132)
Commercial property leases are typical for multiple years (p.134). Banks will typically lend 50% of the appraised value of a commercial property. (p.139)
Never be the first to name a figure--that person always loses (p.149)
Seldom sell (p.151)
There is no one optimal place to invest. That means that your suburb in the city where you live is not the only place you should consider. (p.158)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 26, 2023
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January 8, 2017
MY BANK WILL NOT GIVE ME A LOAN TO BUY A NEW HOUSE BECAUSE MY OLD ONE BURNT DOWN AFTER I RED A BOOK FROM THIS WEBSITE SO I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO ANYMORE PLEASE HELP ME CAN SOMEONE PLEASE EMAIL ME WITH INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO GET A NEW HOUSE I ONLY HAVE A DOWN PAYMENT OF $$300 BECAUSE MY JOB WILL NOT GIVE ME AN ADVANCED TO PAY FOR ANYTHING I HAVE TO EAT BROCCOOLI THAT I PULLED OUT OF MY NEIRHGBOR'S GARDEN IN ORDER TO SURVIVE AND THAT IS NOT FAIR AND NO ONE WILL LISTEN TO ME WHEN I ASK FOR DONATIONS AT MY CHURCH !!!!!!!!!!
PLEASE SEND ME AN EMAIL WITH INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO BECOME A BATTER MOTHER 4 M Y 4 ANGLES BECAUSE THEY DESERVE A MOM WHO CAN PROVIDE FOR THEM SINCE MY BOYFRIEND JEREMY DIED IN A HOUSE FIRE DUE TO A CURSED NOVEL THAT I BOUGHT FROM THE SITE
love,
TERRY
PLEASE SEND ME AN EMAIL WITH INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO BECOME A BATTER MOTHER 4 M Y 4 ANGLES BECAUSE THEY DESERVE A MOM WHO CAN PROVIDE FOR THEM SINCE MY BOYFRIEND JEREMY DIED IN A HOUSE FIRE DUE TO A CURSED NOVEL THAT I BOUGHT FROM THE SITE
love,
TERRY
January 28, 2022
It would be easy to say that some of the advice given in the book "won't work" because of some specifics about the English and Welsh legal system, however, this would be missing the point...
... This "advisor" is intended to focus in on one part of the overall "Rich Dad" approach to financial freedom, and give more illumination on that part.
The whole approach is about concentrating on, and improving, your financial intelligence, which takes time and effort. However, reading this book will take the prospective landlord a long way.
It's well worth a read, and speaking from my personal experience as a landlord, following one piece of advice in the book returned me the price of the book 6 times over within two weeks.
Berkan
... This "advisor" is intended to focus in on one part of the overall "Rich Dad" approach to financial freedom, and give more illumination on that part.
The whole approach is about concentrating on, and improving, your financial intelligence, which takes time and effort. However, reading this book will take the prospective landlord a long way.
It's well worth a read, and speaking from my personal experience as a landlord, following one piece of advice in the book returned me the price of the book 6 times over within two weeks.
Berkan
November 28, 2018
من الكتب المهمة و الرائعة , اعجبني دمج روبرت تي كيوساكي مع المؤلف , و اللذي يعمل كخبير في شراء العقارات
بالفعل كتاب اضاف لي الكثير لكن تطبيقه صعب لأنه يحتاج الى راس مال لشراء العقارات و الإستفادة منها
بالفعل كتاب اضاف لي الكثير لكن تطبيقه صعب لأنه يحتاج الى راس مال لشراء العقارات و الإستفادة منها
May 31, 2021
This book covers some details retail and rental estate investments. It has some useful tips on how to find deals in any market. However, if you're looking to learn how to valuate a property based on numbers not much guidance us given in those terms. A "good-to-know" guide book to real estate.
March 20, 2024
In my opinion, one of the best books I've read thus far. Dolf explains multiple subjects in the world of real estate. Dolf opened up some concepts for me along with some tips and tricks. I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking into becoming an investor in real estate.
October 9, 2017
Хорошая кника про управление недвижемостью, объясняется как управлять и строить бизнес на недвижимости. Много идей. Короткая, всего 3 часа.
September 8, 2019
Since it was one of my first introductions to real estate investing, I think it made me excited about the field itself. However the returns in the book are based on 15-20 years ago and no longer reflect the current saturated market. This book isn’t the first one I would pick up as there is a lot of good current material.
Read
December 16, 2020Not super helpful with tips, just explains the benefits of REI.
January 18, 2021
Am just beginning to but it more with useful information....
February 8, 2021
Great mind set book with one nice practical piece of advice. 100:10:3:1 rule, repeat.
February 1, 2022
Excellent material, provided by the legends. Just need to put it all to use now.
May 30, 2022
I still have an unanswered question in my mind that is not answered in the book. They don't include what if there is economical crises.
February 17, 2023
Good book for property investment
April 9, 2023
I like these kinds of books because they give me ideas that I can adapt to my own situation -- and not have to take the advice verbatim.
Want to read
February 6, 2024Rather money than tangible wealth
May 12, 2022
"Real Estate Riches"
This is the second book of Dolf de Ross that i read and i am convinced that investing in real state is the best way to invest your money. I strongly recommend this book to my anyone who is planning to by properties.
This is the second book of Dolf de Ross that i read and i am convinced that investing in real state is the best way to invest your money. I strongly recommend this book to my anyone who is planning to by properties.
October 8, 2007
Dr. DeRoos lays out why he believes real estate to be the best game in town. He gives you a clear sense of the prionciples involved in this game.
While I'm not in love with the fact that this book is an entre into other work by him and services he offers, I can see how he really has no choice if he wants to keep this work to a manageable primer. In that sense, he does succeeed and He does gain one's trust so much so that if you are interested, you could probably do worse than follow up with him.
While I'm not in love with the fact that this book is an entre into other work by him and services he offers, I can see how he really has no choice if he wants to keep this work to a manageable primer. In that sense, he does succeeed and He does gain one's trust so much so that if you are interested, you could probably do worse than follow up with him.
September 15, 2006
Some good things in this book, but I read one of Kiyosaki's other books about real estate investing and much of the important stuff was already mentioned in that other book. This was a repeat. I was stoked about reading it and its a great starter read.
October 12, 2008
Again, I am against using a bank's money to make money unless the investor has an invested interest (i.e. 20% or more cash down).
A lot of positive cash flow situations require an initial investment.
I just wish this book would have emphasized this fact more.
A lot of positive cash flow situations require an initial investment.
I just wish this book would have emphasized this fact more.
February 21, 2010
Yet another book cashing in on the real estate bubble. Dolf De Roos is another one of the motley cast of opportunists and scam merchants who jumped on the property speculation bandwagon and helped to fuel the boom of the late 90s and early 2000s.
Nothing to see here. Move along.
Nothing to see here. Move along.
February 18, 2015
This book really has practical strategies. I followed every step and I saw great benefits in just a short period. The book is really good for people who have no idea how to make the best out of the money they have and also the people who are interested in real estate!
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