Real Estate Book Online Tips

Robert Bruss: Unique book gives new realty investors daily 'to do' lists

By ROBERT J. BRUSS, Inman News Features
May 29, 2005

Reading "40 Days to Success in Real Estate Investing" by Robert Shemin won't make you a successful investor in just 40 days, but it will get you motivated to take action day by day to work toward your realty goals. Written by a successful investor, this new book provides a unique format of daily "to do" lists for getting started investing in real estate.

Along the way, Shemin shares his sage advice based on practical experiences. The only section to be careful about is on day four when the author discusses investing in foreclosures.

Although he is an attorney, the author got a little "mixed up" on an important issue. When discussing foreclosure priority, he says, "If you haven't paid your federal taxes, the IRS can place a lien against your house that trumps all others."

Shemin must have forgotten IRS tax liens have foreclosure priority based on their date of recording and they do not have foreclosure "super-priority" as do property taxes.

The book is filled with lots of personal examples from the author's many investment experiences. There are also many experiences of other investors Shemin has encountered.

The book's basic premise is it provides a step-by-step list of things beginning realty investors should do to become successful. Along the way, the author explains realty investing techniques, such as how to read newspaper real estate ads, driving neighborhoods, and finding seller's true sales motivations.

Emphasis is placed on building a "team" of realty experts, such as agents, tax advisers, mortgage brokers, attorneys and contractors. Shemin suggests developing contacts with other local realty investors to discuss experiences and "network" for mutual benefit.

The book's best chapters discuss negotiation techniques. My favorite negotiation sentence for a buyer to ask the seller is: "What's the least you'd take for this property and be OK?" I guess that's the way folks talk in Tennessee where Shemin invests.

Interestingly, Shemin recommends using a one-page purchase contract to avoid confusing property sellers. Then he explains the essential clauses that should be included in such a refreshingly short contract, compared to the 6-to-8-page contracts now used by most home buyers.

Toward the book's conclusion, the author discusses advanced investment strategies such as wholesaling (buying at a bargain price and reselling to another investor at a below-market price), lease-options, and long-term investment holding.

Although Shemin once wrote a book on property management, now he recommends realty investors hire professional property managers rather than managing their own properties.

The book's final "bonus chapter" by Heather Seitz is a list of investor mistakes not to make, based on her experiences. This extensive chapter offers practical advice from a novice investor who is apparently now successful but who made considerable learning mistakes.

Shemin's approach to real estate investing is to create a business rather than just an investment. The book's most valuable paragraph says: "If you determine that your hour is worth $200, you won't spend time on activities that won't support that rate. Instead of painting and cleaning carpets, you'll be out finding deals. That's where the real money is."

This unusual book, presented in an unusual checklist style, is designed to encourage new investors to get motivated day by day with daily "to do" lists. Shemin's many personal examples add realism to this fast-paced book. On my scale of one to 10, it earns a solid 10.

"40 Days to Success in Real Estate Investing," by Robert Shemin (John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken, N.J.), 2005, $16.95, 231 pages; Available in stock or by special order at local bookstores, public libraries, and www.amazon.com.

--------------
Buying a Home Foreclosures- Buying a home foreclosures makes you generate quick profit. Step-by-step process in buying a home foreclosures for quick cash.