How can I go wrong? ( retiring early )

[Mike Holmes]

Experienced investors, please explain if I'm being unrealistic.

I'm middle aged, and my home is mortgage free.

I also have 3 rental houses in Las Vegas, which I purchased at the ideal time a few years ago. Those are running smoothly with a good property manager, but they have appreciated to a point where the rent to value ratio now looks low.

This might sound like I've been relatively successful, but frankly I'm miserable. I desperately want to stop wasting my life worrying about how I'll make money in the future. The methods I've used in the past are no longer working well. My current income is low.

My plan is to sell the Las Vegas properties, netting approximately $400K. I would then reinvest that by purchasing eight <$40K (after repair) middle America houses renting for >$800 month. Leaving $10K in reserve for each house.

Assuming 50% expenses, those should cashflow approximately $3200/month before tax. Not sure what tax would work out to; 20% maybe? That would leave me $2560/month to live on, which is enough for my modest lifestyle indefinitely. 40+ years I hope.

At this point, I could consider myself "retired", in the sense that my only job would be managing the managers of my proprieties.

So, am I dreaming? Don't hesitate to tell me if I'm being foolish. I am seeking any constructive advice or criticism, as well as recommendations on the best places to purchase these sort of properties. My inclinations would be to get a good geographical spread, maybe two each in four markets. Or would you just stick to one city for easier management?

Thank you.