learning resources
Real Estate Investor · canby, OR · Member since 2010 · 13 posts · 0 votes
hi everyone. my name is Andrew and im new to investing and to bp. ive spent a couple days reading posts here and it seems the general census is to steer away from all the guru programs do to the lack of info for the price. ive been looking at books to purchase on amazon and ebay and was curious as to which books you guys think would be most benificial for a newbie?? books on wholesales and on real estate investing in general. ive flipped through some at my local books store and a couple seemed like only a seasoned investor would understand.. thanks in advance for what i know will be great input!!!!!
Hi, I urge new people seeking a career in the real estate industry as just that, a career and an industry. If you start with guru stuff, that's what you will learn, guru stuff. Yes, you'll make money, well, probably. If you have no knowledge of the industry, the legal, economic and financial aspects of real estate you'll never make as much as you could have. It's the difference between the car salesman and the agency owner is knowledge.
I am making this short! lol
Learn real estate! Go to a real estate school for real estate agents, I did not say get a license, just take the course. It's quick, maybe three weeks, You'll learn legal aspects of contracts, contract law, title requirements, surveying, land uses, zoning requirements, construction componets and basic techniques, types and styles of housing, regulations that effect landlords, tenant and landlord law, what consitutes discrimination and how to deal with it, real estate financing and appraisal techniques and more! You'll never get that in a guru book!
Why is it important? Because if you can't recognize that a property has a better use than for what it's being used for, you don't know if the price is a deal or not! This is a simple concept and I have never seen this in a guru book. If you have a $40K house that I can turn into a $150K office building for $30K, you'll always think you have a $40K house!
Get guru books for marketing ideas, copy the hype they use, but if you have knowledge first, you'll know you're getting snowed when you read some of that stuff! Newbies don't know what they are getting. You're all excited about the money they promise!
Also, get some college level text books, the 101 level, if you can read, you'll get it! Get your hands on a Real Estate Today text book, a Wests business law text book. You'll see what needs to be in a contract. Get an Economics 101 Text book, it's at the mico or personal level. You can see concepts that are used in real estate. And yes, reading an accounting 101 text won't hurt you either since you will be running a business!
Go to professional web sites for Appraisers. Read what they must do and how they arrive at values. Go to HUD sites, not homes for sale, but the financing, housing regulations, and settlement regulations.
Allocate so much of your day for REAL study, not wishful thinking and morale boosting stuff from a guru course.
Spend time on sites like BP, interact, ask questions and get answers from those who have been there and done that.
You can do a guru thing while you do all this, you can begin with Options for example, but do not get caught up thinking you're making real money. Markets change and you must be nimble and quick to change with whatever makes money. If you have the basics throughout the industry, you'll know where and when you can profit.
I promsie you this will work, but it is work! Good Luck, Bill
Andrew,
Welcome to Bigger Pockets!
I have seen several RE Investment books referred to here on BP that look very good for the beginning RE Investor. I am planning to p/u those books, myself.
As to the guru systems/courses, I bought the DC Fawcett short sale system and have not made any money off of it. I am going to ask for my money back and send the system back to them.
Best of luck in your REI career!
Scott
Welcome Andrew.
Before I go buy a book, or order a tape system, I'd spend awhile on BP. Read different pots and threads on subjects you think you might be interested in.
There are many new members here and they have varied methods of learning. After awhile, you'll find posters you have absolutely no interest in. You'll also find other posters you'll really enjoy and like learning from. Then, go select some books if you want, to fine tune your learning. I always urge new posters to not die of "analysis paralysis". Get busy and enjoy the diversity here on BP. Good luck. Rich
I 2 am also new to RE investing and I have a passion to learn Real Estate. I would appreciate any help. What books would you recommend ? or courses. I am interested in Larry Goins. Is it for Real?
Thank you for any help
Eric
thanks for the great replies. i am soaking up all i can here on bp, but the post lack the real ABC's of things. there is not question that they are informative. i feel i might benifit more from all the great infor here if i solid knowledge of basics. any tips on which books, ebooks, or other resources that will help me accomplish this task? thanks again!!!!!!!!!!!
im particularly interested in any books that would be helpful in getting started in wholesaling
Andrew,
I have personally read through "Vena Jones-Cox" Wholesaling & Advanced wholesaling courses. The courses include Audio on CD which basically is a reinforcement of the information in the book. She charges around $600 for the course on her website, but you can pick it up on Ebay for a cheaper price. I picked up a copy for $200 on Ebay, read through it all and then sold it back on Ebay and essentially broke even.
I HIGHLY recommend her material, even at the full $600 price it would be worth it. She gave me exactly what you were saying you needed, an ABC guide for how to wholesale. It won't include 100% of everything, but you can fill in the gaps using bigger pockets.
Hi, I urge new people seeking a career in the real estate industry as just that, a career and an industry. If you start with guru stuff, that's what you will learn, guru stuff. Yes, you'll make money, well, probably. If you have no knowledge of the industry, the legal, economic and financial aspects of real estate you'll never make as much as you could have. It's the difference between the car salesman and the agency owner is knowledge.
I am making this short! lol
Learn real estate! Go to a real estate school for real estate agents, I did not say get a license, just take the course. It's quick, maybe three weeks, You'll learn legal aspects of contracts, contract law, title requirements, surveying, land uses, zoning requirements, construction componets and basic techniques, types and styles of housing, regulations that effect landlords, tenant and landlord law, what consitutes discrimination and how to deal with it, real estate financing and appraisal techniques and more! You'll never get that in a guru book!
Why is it important? Because if you can't recognize that a property has a better use than for what it's being used for, you don't know if the price is a deal or not! This is a simple concept and I have never seen this in a guru book. If you have a $40K house that I can turn into a $150K office building for $30K, you'll always think you have a $40K house!
Get guru books for marketing ideas, copy the hype they use, but if you have knowledge first, you'll know you're getting snowed when you read some of that stuff! Newbies don't know what they are getting. You're all excited about the money they promise!
Also, get some college level text books, the 101 level, if you can read, you'll get it! Get your hands on a Real Estate Today text book, a Wests business law text book. You'll see what needs to be in a contract. Get an Economics 101 Text book, it's at the mico or personal level. You can see concepts that are used in real estate. And yes, reading an accounting 101 text won't hurt you either since you will be running a business!
Go to professional web sites for Appraisers. Read what they must do and how they arrive at values. Go to HUD sites, not homes for sale, but the financing, housing regulations, and settlement regulations.
Allocate so much of your day for REAL study, not wishful thinking and morale boosting stuff from a guru course.
Spend time on sites like BP, interact, ask questions and get answers from those who have been there and done that.
You can do a guru thing while you do all this, you can begin with Options for example, but do not get caught up thinking you're making real money. Markets change and you must be nimble and quick to change with whatever makes money. If you have the basics throughout the industry, you'll know where and when you can profit.
I promsie you this will work, but it is work! Good Luck, Bill
wow thanks for all the great information. eric thank you for letting me know what was useful to you. i will look into purchasing that course. and thank you bill for all of the helpful pointers. i wasnt trying to imply that i wanted to learn everything from a guru course, but i have to start somewhere. and i currently spend a couple hours a day educating myself through sites like bp and also books, But like i said earlier some of the books out there are so complicated that it seems only a savy investor could understand them. i have also thought about taking courses for getting a license however i will probably only use it for the knowledge and not actually persue a license. i figure it would be a great step to getting a foundation on real estate basics. once again thank you all for your great insight.
i would like to follow up by asking if there is anyone out there who would like to share some of the things that they found helpful when getting started in this industry as well as anything they found particularly difficult. i know this will help me a great deal and i feel it can contribute greatly to all the other newbies out there!!!!!!!!
Andrew,
When I first started educating myself, I made it a point to read anything I could get my hands on. As for books, I made it a point to go to my local public library and check out books that pertained to real estate investing. Some of the books were GREAT! Some, we completely worthless. I feel that I gained some useful knowledge.
If you are looking for a few places to find info online, check out some of the Blogs that members here on BP write. I have found some of them very informative. (I found lots of great info from the contributors on BiggerPockets Blog.)
Another great way to learn is to find a local investor that is conducting business the way you want. Ask them if you could schedule some time to spend with them, watching what they do. Ride along, take notes, ask questions. They will be of great help, since they know the local situations.
Another great way to learn is to start a thread on here and ask your questions. You will be amazed at how many people offer assistance. As you read and get questions answered, other questions will arise. Continue asking!
I hope this has helped!
Good point James! Take an investor to lunch, a Realtor the next day, a rehab guy, etc!
And, some of those books that only a savy investor can understand, well, it's not that they are savy as much as educated. That's why it's important to read texts outside of real estate, like accounting and economics (which is really easy if you look at them) because what seems complicated about real estate is not understanding the basis of the analysis at hand. None of this is rocket science and you don't need a finance degree! Bill
great info. thats probably one of the biggest thing i took away from this thread is to educate yourself in all things pertaining to real estate such as accounting and economics. what a great point. it makes so much sense but i never would have thought of it had it not been for your great suggestions, what a great website.
that seems easy enough, but are there many investors out there that are willing to do this? also i want to make sure that i allign myself with someone sucessful and most importantly ETHICAL!! how can i make sure i find someone like this without offending anyone?
also when i ask new questions like that, should i post it in a new thread? or is it acceptable to use it in the same thread? i want as much replies as possible!!
that seems easy enough, but are there many investors out there that are willing to do this? also i want to make sure that i allign myself with someone sucessful and most importantly ETHICAL!! how can i make sure i find someone like this without offending anyone?
The only way you will ever find our if an investor is willing to allow you to "ride" along is to ASK. Some might tell you no, but keep looking, eventually you will find an investor that will like the idea.