For someone who is not a licensed agent, how much Real Estate knowledge does one have to know in order to be a Real Estate Investor acting on his own behalf?
Contracts, lingo, transactions, nuts & bolts, etc?
Should I go out and get a book like Real Estate for Dummies to get myself familiar with the world of Real Estate or would a simple Real Estate Investing for Dummies do just fine?
books are overrated. I have read quite a few and they usually dont teach you the real nuts and bolts.
theres so many variables such as different markets, different neighborhoods, your finances etc etc.
You would do good by reading these and other forums. Thats where I get most of my info.
It depends on what you are looking to do as to what to buy. I also agree with Reitobe that most books are overrated. What niche are you looking at getting into maybe we could narrow down your thought’s on what to buy…
Robb
How do you evaluate Out-of-state REO’s and what is my offer strategy be like? And how much knowledge of how a Real estate transaction should I know in order to negotiate effectively with a Real Estate agent?
I believe in using the appropriate professional. If the deal is so thin that using a professional will negate the deal, then I don’t do the deal. What I do is use the shampoo technique. If you read the bottle of shampoo it says lather, rinse repeat. I do the same thing over and over and over again. If you take any of these real estate courses they tell you 15 different techniques to do real estate. They have everything from bird dogging to flipping. But if all you want to do is buy REO properties fix them up and rent them out, you only need that knowledge. The other 90% of the book is only a chance to confuse you as you work your plan. I am a strong proponent of going to the local real estate investors club to find out what the majority of people are doing successfully in your town and do that. You don’t want to lag behind and do the techniques that were in favor years ago, but you don’t want to cut brush either. You may find yourself in the wilderness without a compass. You need to get in the middle of the stream and that will enable you to have a whole lot of examples of how to do those one or two techniques properly. What works in San Francisco, California doesn’t work in Columbus, OH. You only want the knowledge that works where you are. Talk to those guys at the club.