Building Wealth One House at a Time by John Schaub
It is true that real estate is a long-term investment and this
book fits perfectly with that statement. Building Wealth One
House at a Time shows that anyone can attain financial freedom
through property by repeating the two-step process, which is
1. Buying the property
2. Renting it out
The author John Schaub has 30 years of experience in real estate
investing. His book covers every detail aspects from finding
properties to keeping and managing tenants.
Believe it or not, Robert Allen, the bestselling author of the
Nothing Down series, was once a student of John.
Anyway, Building Wealth One House at a Time covers the author’s
own personal experience in property investing in which he prefers residential homes over shops and offices although he owns both of them.
I fully agree with him because this is where most novice
investors will start. Besides, residential investments require
less money, have better financing terms and better demand than
commercial.
The book also emphasizes why buying “quality” is important over
quantity. What I mean by quality here is not the beauty or size
of the house, but the cash flow that the house can produce. As
John quotes,
“Buy one, rent one, then and only then look for the next
deal.”
Speaking of deals, John covers a lot of tips and strategies such
as:
- Sources of good deals
- Asking questions about the house and the owner
- Best places to look for properties
In his opinion, the best deals are available within the area you
live. This means that you don’t need to have to go past your own
town or state to find good income producing properties.
Once you find a property that looks like a prospective deal, your next step is to approach the seller. This is where chapter 3 helps.
In "Chapter 3: Finding Good Deals", you’ll find two lists
that measure the property owner’s desire to sell and the
profitability of the house. These two lists, which range from
scales 1 to 10, will assist you in selecting the right property.
Building Wealth One House at a Time also include chapters about
making offers & professional negotiating, which are the essential steps for successfully getting the best deal out of an investment property.
John has his own rule when making offers. In Chapter 4: “Knowing how are you going to pay a house before making an offer”, he outlines his simple but powerful rule which he called the “10/10/10 rule”.
The rule simply means:
- put less than 10 percent down payment
- buy at least 10 percent below market
- pay less than 10 percent interest
In addition to the “100-10-3-1 rule” which Dolf shares in his
book Real Estate Riches (
Read more about the book review
) the “10/10/10” rule is a very good indicator because you can
ensure you get the best combination of price, leverage, and cash
flow, thus maximizing the income your property will generate.
While Dolf’s rule focuses on the aspect of making lots of offers
before being accepted, John’s “10/10/10 rule” focuses on property profitability.
The book also emphasizes steps and techniques when negotiating
for a deal. Since negotiation is important in making offers, one
of the key questions to ask before you start to talk is “How are
you going to convince the seller to sell his or her property?
Well there are many ways to do that. What makes it different is
to do it in a win-win situation, allowing both buyer and seller
to benefit from the deal.
John talks about becoming a professional negotiator. He covers
tips on how to ensure every deal is negotiable, where and when is the right time to initiate the negotiation process, and 7
powerful secrets that the pros of negotiators use to good effect.
Another great chapter that comes with Building Wealth One House
at a Time deals with tenant issues. What good is a property if
you bought it with a low down payment with a great offer in a
good neighborhood only to discover that your tenant always skips
paying rent?
According to the author, quality tenants are what you should
attract as they are loyal, make less trouble, and
promptly pays rent.
He also outlines 21 steps in successfully renting a property to a tenant, tips to good tenant management (training, inspection, and eviction), and becoming an effective landlord without having
trouble and taking midnight calls.
What else can you benefit from Building Wealth One House at a Time?
Case studies, worksheet examples, and analysis of property
figures that can help you select the right property. I recommend
printing these pages to assist your property buying decisions.
Overall I think this book is straight to the point, backed by an
experienced investor as well as a landlord who not only cares
about making profits, but also actively involves in providing
affordable housing.
If you are a residential landlord or rental property investor,
Building Wealth One House at a Time can help you improve your
knowledge.
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