{"title":"Best Sellers","description":"\u003cp\u003eJohn's Best Sellers across topics\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment","title":"How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment","description":"\u003ch2\u003eStep-by-step actions to take getting started\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBefore you make a purchase, How to Get Started in Real Estate will show you how to set financial goals, select the strategy that best matches you, get educated correctly, and then help you buy your first property, or your next property. Find out if you need a mentor and if so, how to find one who does not charge you anything. Practical, ethical, real-world advice. The antidote to the unscrupulous gurus who prey on beginners in order to take advantage of their ignorance of the field.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/IieirCplefY?list=PLXZ7ceEvsqO6hjpGkhO5s0WNhHeQukQ6j\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eNot just for beginners\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen I suggest this book, many customers tell me, “Oh, I’m not a beginner. I already own some properties.” I still recommend the book because most experienced investors did not begin correctly. How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment enables them to tie up loose ends they left when they started and to get onto the optimum track if, as is common, they began in a less-than-optimal way. Indeed, the longer they delay reading How to Get Started In Real Estate Investment, the greater the probability that they are compounding mistakes they made at the beginning of their investment careers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment-table-of-contents\" title=\"How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment contents\" style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-reader-comments\" title=\"How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment reader comments\" style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003eReader comments\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment-front-matter\" title=\"How To Get Started in Real Estate Investment front matter\" style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003eFront Matter (Copyright date, \u003c\/a\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment-news-release\" title=\"How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment news release\" style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003eacknowledgements, etc.)\u003c\/a\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment-news-release\" title=\"How TO Get Started in Real Estate Investment news release\"\u003eNews Release\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment-index\" title=\"How To Get Started in Real Estate Investment index\" style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/real-estate-related-courses-taken-and-taught-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"John T. Reed’s Real estate investment background\"\u003eJohn T. Reed’s real estate investment background\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/what-buying-the-book-how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment-will-not-do-for-you\" title=\"What How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment will NOT tell you\"\u003eWhat How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment will NOT tell you\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003eChanges to How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapters include setting your goals, selecting your strategy, acquiring real estate knowledge, the correct way to get a mentor, getting a job in real estate, and finally, making your first purchase.\u003cbr\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_V_FtraZPFM?list=PLXZ7ceEvsqO6nYmOOBLiwZAj6KGrNWASG\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSetting your goals\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThroughout the book, I list ACTION steps you should take. I don't want this book to be another reason for investors to procrastinate. Part of the process is setting goals that you thought through logically. Many investors, including myself, start by making goals based on impressive round numbers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"I had several financial goals when I was in my early twenties. One was to have a five-million-dollar net worth. Another was to own 100 residential units. In pursuit of those goals, I became a millionaire, then a former millionaire.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhy 100 units? Why $5 million? You should decide on a number because it makes sense, not because of how impressive it sounds. You should make a shopping list of everything you want to be able to buy in your life, add it up, and that's your goal.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSelecting your strategy\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReal estate investment is a broad topic, with many sub-topics that often differ greatly from each other. There's residential, office, retails, industrial, agricultural, recreation, raw land, schools, hospitals, airports, parking lots and garages, churches, etc. As a general rule, you must pick one of them. Each is so specialized that you would find it extremely difficult to be expert in more than one.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn top of that, each of these topics varies greatly based on different factors. Don't think you can profit buying a golf course in New York because you did very well with golf courses in Arizona. And climate is just one factor. Learn about the other factors in Chapter 2.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eAcquiring real estate knowledge\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnce you pick a strategy to focus on, you can start acquiring the expertise necessary to succeed using that strategy. How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment tells you where to go to get the specific information for your strategies and other techniques to help you, including where not to get information.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou also need to understand general real estate law as well as various related topics like finance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eMentors\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA mentor is a more experienced, usually older friend who gives you free advice and watches out for you. Notice my emphasis on the word FREE. See my chapter on Mentors for more.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eGetting a job in real estate\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn excellent way to learn about real estate is to get a job working in real estate. Crazy, I know, but if you're a medical doctor, you probably cannot afford to quit your practice to become a title-company officer. When I was in the Army, I devised a six-year plan of working to learn. For the first two years, I was going to work as a house real estate salesman. Then I was going to work two years as a property manager. Then I was going to work two years as a mortgage loan officer. Looking back on it, I had the right basic idea, but the details of my plan were flawed. (See Chapter 5)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eYour first purchase\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo after setting specific goals, selecting a strategy, acquiring knowledge on that strategy, maybe talking extensively to a mentor, and maybe working in real estate, you are now prepared to buy a property. The final chapter of How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment talks about how I made my first purchase, including the mistakes you should not repeat.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eI also recommend\u003c\/strong\u003e that you get my \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/products\/checklists-for-buying-rental-houses-and-apartment-buildings\" title=\"Checklists for Buying Rental Houses and Apartment Buildings\"\u003eChecklists for Buying Rental Houses and Apartment Buildings\u003c\/a\u003e book before you start looking at properties for your first purchase. It is like a pilot’s preflight checklist and just as no competent pilot would take off without going over his pre-flight checklist, no building buyer should buy without this book. One reader said if had not used this book, he would have overlooked a $15,000 credit to him at closing for rents paid earlier in the month but not yet used up! And I call my \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor\" title=\"Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003eBest Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\u003c\/a\u003e an “\u003cstrong\u003eadvanced fundamentals\u003c\/strong\u003e” book because it contains stuff beginners need to know but is probably more than beginners can easily digest.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/products\/checklists-for-buying-rental-houses-and-apartment-buildings\" title=\"Checklists for Buying Rental Houses and Apartment Buildings\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/CFBRHcover200_large.gif?9038693942875536816\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e    \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor\" title=\"Best Practices fro the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/BPFIREcover200_large.gif?15698788972486178891\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“Beginnings are delicate things,” said Frank Herbert in his novel \u003cem\u003eDune\u003c\/em\u003e. It is extremely important to get off on the right foot and it’s not too late if you already started.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e62 pages, 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback, $29.95\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNot available in traditional or online book stores\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6115223875,"sku":"","price":29.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/HGScover200.gif?v=1440608633"},{"product_id":"how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-and-depression","title":"How to Protect Your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026 Depression, 2nd edition","description":"\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"header\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e324 pages, 8 1\/2 x 11, paperback, $39.95\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis book tells you how to rearrange your assets and liabilities so that you are not devastated by the U.S. dollar hyperinflating or deflating. Each has happened in the past around the world and in the U.S.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy approach is an \u003cstrong\u003einsurance\u003c\/strong\u003e one, \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e a \u003cstrong\u003egambling\u003c\/strong\u003e one. I do \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e tell you to \u003cstrong\u003ebet\u003c\/strong\u003e on either inflation or deflation. Most other writers on the subject \u003cstrong\u003edo\u003c\/strong\u003e tell you to bet. If it does not happen, or takes too long to happen, those bets will \u003cstrong\u003ehurt\u003c\/strong\u003e you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRather, I tell you how to \u003cstrong\u003ehedge\u003c\/strong\u003e or “\u003cstrong\u003einsure\u003c\/strong\u003e” against hyperinflation and deflation in \u003cstrong\u003elow-risk, low cost\u003c\/strong\u003e ways.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you follow my advice and no monetary instability occurs, no harm done. But if the dollar \u003cstrong\u003edoes\u003c\/strong\u003e greatly inflate or deflate, you will be extremely glad you read the book and followed its advice.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat’s at stake in hyperinflation is that it would cause all of your dollar-denominated assets to become worthless. That means cash, bank accounts, bonds, annuities like social security and pensions all become worthless.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2x1yDoz4umI?list=PLXZ7ceEvsqO7K9MdiCcxpE9s2d9K8Mtrl\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan data-jsid=\"text\"\u003eHi John,\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e I can't express my gratitude enough for your book on hyperinflation – best money ever spent on a book; and perhaps the most important financial planning tool I've ever come across! Matt Heckard\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you think the government would never let that happen, you don’t understand hyperinflation. It is \u003cstrong\u003ecaused\u003c\/strong\u003e by the government. They want to spend more than they have so they have to “print” the money to keep spending. But “printing” money faster than the growth of the economy risks hyperinflation and the more you “print” and the longer you keep “printing,” the greater the likelihood and severity of the hyperinflation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e‘It could happen tomorrow.’\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat's the first sentence in my book \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect Your Life Savings from Hyperinflation and Depression, 2nd Edition\u003c\/em\u003e. I continuously write about the increasing crescendo of warning signals that hyperinflation is coming at my \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-hyperinflation-deflation-blog\/68744387-all-hyperinflation-deflation-articles\" title=\"hyperinflation blog\"\u003ehyperinflation and depression blog\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen subprime loans began melting down in 2006, I started studying what happened to make sure I did not make such mistakes and to tell my readers how to avoid the mistakes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen the Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers, AIG, and the stock market crashed in 2008, I figured there was something bigger going on here. So I began to furiously research past financial crises. I wanted to see who won and who lost in each and figure out how I and my readers could protect ourselves.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/kV7M0O7rfQ4?list=PLXZ7ceEvsqO7K9MdiCcxpE9s2d9K8Mtrl\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA friend suggested I title this book \u003cem\u003eHow to Keep What You’ve Got\u003c\/em\u003e. That is partly what my book is about. But when you explain \u003cstrong\u003erisk management\u003c\/strong\u003e, you have to identify which risk you are managing. Each risk requires different protective steps. The main risk we face at present is what economists would call \u003cstrong\u003emonetary instability\u003c\/strong\u003e. Consumers would call it inflation and depression. Depression is another word for deflation. The problem in each case is a radical change in the purchasing power of the dollar.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"right\"\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/changes-to-the-first-edition-of-how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-in-the-2nd-edition\" title=\"changes to H\u0026amp;D\"\u003eChanges and improvements to the 2nd edition compared to the 1st\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/back-cover-of-how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-2nd-edition\" title=\"back cover of H\u0026amp;D\"\u003eBack cover\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/table-of-contents-of-how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-2nd-edition\" title=\"Table of Contents of Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression, 2nd edition\"\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/reader-comments-on-how-to-protect-you-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-2nd-edition\" title=\"reader comments Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression, 2nd edition\"\u003eReader comments\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/front-matter-for-how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-2nd-edition\" title=\"Front matter for Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\"\u003eFront Matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-2nd-edition-index-part-1\" title=\"Hyperinflation index\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/news-release-for-the-book-how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-2nd-edition\" title=\"news release for Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\"\u003eNews Release\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/corrections-and-supplements-to-the-book-how-to-protect-your-life-savings-from-hyperinflation-depression-2nd-edition\" title=\"errata for Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\"\u003eCorrections and supplemental information about the book\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-hyperinflation-deflation-blog\" title=\"hyperinflation deflation blog\"\u003eJohn T. Reed’s hyperinflation and deflation blog\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFederal government borrowing and spending is a runaway train\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe verdict on recent and projected federal government borrowing and spending is universal:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eUnsustainable\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWho says so? Everyone—Greenspan, Limbaugh, Bernanke, Geithner, Beck, Volcker, Obama. Everybody.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOkay. So what does “unsustainable” mean?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt means economics professor \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Herbert_Stein\"\u003eHerbert Stein\u003c\/a\u003e (Ben’s father) was right when he promulgated \u003cstrong\u003eHerbert Stein’s Law\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eIf something cannot go on forever, it will stop.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI hereby promulgate John T. Reed’s Law:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eIf something is unsustainable, it will not be sustained.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut what does it \u003cstrong\u003estopping\u003c\/strong\u003e mean?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eToo horrible to mention\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe politicians named above won’t tell you the truth, or they won’t tell you the \u003cstrong\u003ewhole\u003c\/strong\u003e truth. Because it’s ugly, illegal, and immoral. I’m talking default on the national debt, hyperinflation, draconian cuts in entitlements, order-of-magnitude tax increases, and forcing U.S. citizens to buy overpriced U.S. government bonds because no one will buy of their own free will.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat the federal government needs to do is obvious: eliminate Medicare and Obamacare entirely, turn Social Security and Medicaid into programs that only the truly destitute can qualify for, cut military and other federal retiree pensions and benefits down to the civilian level, “broaden the tax base” (that means making the lower and middle classes pay taxes again), eliminate the cabinet departments created since 1960 and their employees, etc.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn other words, the overspending has gotten ridiculous. We have to live within our means. Our means at present are tax revenues of $3 trillion (2014 revenues from all types of federal taxes) Our projected spending is around $4 trillion plus more to pay off U.S. government bonds coming due each year. That means we have to borrow. Where do we get that money? By selling U.S. government bonds or “printing” it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eNo one bids on our bonds\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat “it will stop” means is that the buyers of our federal bonds in the U.S. and around the world will eventually say, “No, thanks. Your U.S. national debt is so high in relation to your income that we no longer trust you to pay us back and keep the purchasing power of the dollar steady. We think you are either going to default or inflate the dollar or both.” When that happens, and it arguably already has, the U.S. government must stop paying all its bills or pay them by “printing” money. “Printing” money causes inflation. “Printing” lots of money causes hyperinflation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf we cannot borrow those amounts, the government has to cut spending by huge amounts! That’s why they have to eliminate Medicare and so on as I said above. You say Medicare is too popular to cut? The bond market doesn’t care. And the politicians and voters squealing like stuck pigs doesn’t pay the bills. Only the bond market can pay the bills, and they are starting to complain about the amount of risk they are taking paying bills for Americans. Indeed, the bond market will tell you Medicare is one of the biggest parts of the problem. The bond market will not lend money to us until Medicare and other spending are reduced to reasonable levels. And reasonable levels are WAY below current levels.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCannot tax our way out\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCan we \u003cstrong\u003etax\u003c\/strong\u003e our way out of debt? No. The U.S. cannot double or triple its current tax levels.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCannot grow our way out\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCan the U.S. \u003cstrong\u003egrow\u003c\/strong\u003e out of the debt problem as in the past? No. It’s too big. 3% annual growth would be extraordinary. That would be 3% x $16.8 trillion (\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_States\"\u003eU.S. Gross Domestic Product\u003c\/a\u003e) = $500 billion increase in the U.S. economy. Since World War II, U.S. annual tax revenues have been about 18% of GDP no matter who has control of Congress and the White House. 18% of $500 billion is only $90 billion. It would take a long time to pay off a \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.usdebtclock.org\/\"\u003e$19 trillion national debt\u003c\/a\u003e at a rate of $90 billion per year—200 years to be exact. Furthermore, that $90 billion additional tax revenue would \u003cstrong\u003eonly\u003c\/strong\u003e go to paying down the debt if we starting running a $90 billion a year surplus and used every penny of it to pay down the debt. No one claims that will happen.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003ePoliticians will cut spending—AFTER they try everything else—including hyperinflation\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAre the President and Congress going to cut spending by hundreds of billions of dollars per year? No. What if Republicans take control of the White House and Congress? No. They \u003cstrong\u003edid\u003c\/strong\u003e from 2017 to 2018—and increased deficits spending back up to the $1-T-a-year Obama level.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe politicians in Washington are going to keep the runaway train going until it crashes. Thus my new book \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eGet off the train track before you get run over by the federal deficit\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is going to happen. There is no political will to stop it. The public is too ignorant of finance to realize the catastrophe that may be about to happen. All we as individuals can do is “get off the train track.” \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e tells you, in detail, how to do that.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhy \u003cstrong\u003eboth\u003c\/strong\u003e hyperinflation and depression?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause my research indicates that it is impossible to predict which we will get. Hyperinflation happens because the government \u003cstrong\u003edeliberately\u003c\/strong\u003e “prints” too much money. They do that because they are afraid to cut spending or raise taxes enough to avoid it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDepression\/deflation, on the other hand, is a \u003cstrong\u003eblunder\u003c\/strong\u003e by the government. It is mainly caused by the government waiting too long to “print” more money or by the government slamming on the brakes too hard to stop hyperinflation. It can also be caused by stupidity like protectionist laws, wage and price controls, tax increases, and so on—none of which are beyond our politicians.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eNot gold or TIPS\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost somewhat informed people believe gold and\/or Treasury Inflation Protected Securities protect you from inflation. That’s wrong. You have to read the fine print of the pertinent laws. When it comes to gold, if you think it’s a good inflation hedge, you must not know the history. There are a \u003ca title=\"gold disadvantages\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-hyperinflation-deflation-blog\/60940227-disadvantages-of-gold-as-an-inflation-hedge\"\u003ebunch of reasons why gold is not a good inflation hedge\u003c\/a\u003e. With TIPs bonds, the reason why they are no good is the indexes adapt \u003cstrong\u003eway\u003c\/strong\u003e too slowly. \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e covers gold in a chapter on “Gold and Other Commodities.” TIPs are covered in detail in the “Bonds” chapter.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCondemned to repeat it\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePerhaps the greatest danger to Americans today with regard to hyperinflation and depression is the fact that very few have experienced and remember either hyperinflation or depression. So they do not fear it enough. Since they have not experienced it, they unconsciously believe it cannot happen.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOh, yes it can. \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e takes care of that deficiency in your experience and memory with a detailed chapter on the human history of financial crises as well as historical examples all through the book.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eTax law is big in hyperinflation and deflation\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIncome and property tax law interact big time with hyperinflation and depression. \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e explains how. I am also the author of the book \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/products\/aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investor\" title=\"Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate investors\"\u003eAggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors\u003c\/a\u003e now in its 20th edition. As an expert on both the tax law and the history of financial crises, I recognize interactions that even the top tax lawyers might not recognize. One of the “trains” coming at you on the hyperinflation track is the income-tax law “train.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eInsurance, pension plans, college savings plans\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe same is true of insurance, retirement accounts, and college savings plans. During German hyperinflation in the early 1920s, university endowments, annuitants, owners of insurance policies with cash value, and so on were completely wiped out. Deposit insurance did not exist then, but it would not have mattered because deposit insurance does not protect you from loss of purchasing power. Pension plans like IRAs, SEPs, and 401(k)s did not exist then either. Furthermore, they have never been tested in a real financial crisis. Depending upon the details, the right pension account can save you financially, or destroy you if we have hyperinflation or depression.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eGovernment and institutional reaction is predictable\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGenerally, it’s impossible to forecast the future. But when it comes to the way government and banks and insurance companies and so on behave during financial crises, forecasting \u003cstrong\u003eis\u003c\/strong\u003e possible. How so? There have been national financial crises since 301 A.D. Politicians, kings and dictators do not change their spots. Time and again, the leaders of governments and institutions did almost the same thing repeating the same mistakes initially, then finally doing the right thing when they had no other choice. But they will repeat the mistakes for many years before they are forced to do the right thing. If you get wiped out by the typical behavior of government and institutions before they \u003cstrong\u003efinally\u003c\/strong\u003e do the right thing, their doing the right thing \u003cstrong\u003eeventually\u003c\/strong\u003e won’t do you any good.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe Consumer Price Index? Forget about it.\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe chapter on indices explains the limitations of the main official measure of inflation: the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index. In fact, it does not work for other than moderate inflation. In \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e I tell you about warp-speed, real-time market- rather than bureaucrat-based inflation indicators that you can use to try to deal with hyperinflation. Hyperinflation always ends and ends overnight. In theory, the CPI indexes will then catch up. But that would just start the hyperinflation all over. There is not enough money in the world to pay all the U.S. federal spending promises the politicians have made. So they will terminate the CPI indexing promises wherever they have been made. They must to end the problem. But that means CPI indexing has to be reneged upon and outlawed even by private parties.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eSimple and complex\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe list of solutions to \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e includes both simple and complex techniques. I am biased in favor of \u003cstrong\u003esimple\u003c\/strong\u003e, few-links-in-the-chain solutions, but I also discuss the complex ones that involve institutions and financial engineering. Advance Purchase and Sale is one of the longest chapters and will take care of a great deal of the protection you need and do so in the simplest manner.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eBarter\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBarter is not a Plan A or even a Plan B. But I have to tell you about it as at least a Plan C. In the 1990s, many Argentinians, suffering hyperinflation, were saved from starvation only through barter. There are tricks to it. Tax laws apply to it. Read all about them in the Barter chapter.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eStocks, real estate, foreign currency, bonds, Swiss bank accounts, and all that\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWill well-selected stocks, real estate, foreign currency and so on protect you? Stocks are a crap shoot. Depends on what’s on the financial statement of each corporation. Well-chosen foreign currencies are great. I have six and they have to be located outside of the U.S.  Read any book on past hyperinflations and you will find the citizens spend almost all day every day trying to get foreign currencies with which they can buy food, fuel, medicine. The rest of their days are spent on barter, black markets, and evading authorities. I discuss those subjects mainly to convince you why their reputations for inflation protection are incomplete at best and wrong at worst.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe stuff you do not think about enough\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSome of the most important chapters in \u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e cover stuff you probably rarely think about. Like what? New forms of money that spring up during financial crises like scrip or warehouse receipts. Liquidity. Counterparty risk. Exchange risk. Depository institution risk. Bankruptcy risk.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eRisk management\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHow to Protect your Life Savings from Hyperinflation \u0026amp; Depression\u003c\/em\u003e is a risk-management book. 99.99% of American have almost no clue about risk management. Yet they are currently marching like lemmings toward our unsustainable financial future blissful in their ignorance of hyperinflation risk, deflation risk, exchange risk, depository institution risk, counterparty risk, tax risk, political risk, index risk, model risk, currency risk, non-recourse mortgages, bankruptcy exemptions, correlated assets, and so on. In hyperinflation or depression, that sort of ignorance can kill you financially, and too often in the past, literally end your marriage, health, and even life. Wise up fast before it’s too late.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e I also talk about risk management in my books\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor\" title=\"Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003e Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/dret\" title=\"Distressed Real Estate Times\"\u003eDistressed Real Estate times\u003c\/a\u003e. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e\u003ca title=\"Succeeding book 3rd edition\" href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/succeeding\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/succeedingcover200_480x480.gif?v=1440608531\" alt=\"\" style=\"margin-right: 15px; float: left;\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e 39% of those who buy the hyperinflation\/depression book also buy the Succeeding book\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"float: left;\"\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"\" src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/DRETcover200_large.gif?12664741428457080432\" style=\"margin-right: 15px; float: left;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eYou get a \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ediscount\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e on domestic shipping if you buy \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003etwo\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e books and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003efree\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e domestic shipping if you buy \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ethree or more\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e at the same time. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6115232643,"sku":"","price":39.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/hyperinflationcover200.gif?v=1440608581"},{"product_id":"succeeding","title":"Succeeding, 3rd edition","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis is a book that tells you how to succeed in life. It focuses mainly on picking the right goals for you, the right career for you, and the right spouse for you. If you get those three correct, the rest of it kind of falls into place. 324 pages, 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback, $34.95\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e\u003ca title=\"How to Spot Dishonest Arguments book\" href=\"https:\/\/www.johntreed.com\/products\/how-to-spot-dishonest-arguments-and-keep-your-own-thinking-straight\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/HTSDA_cover_front_edge_line_240x240.jpg?v=1589226234\" alt=\"How to Spot Dishonest  Arguments book\" style=\"margin-left: 15px; float: left;\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e\u003ca title=\"The Unelected President novel\" href=\"https:\/\/www.johntreed.com\/collections\/the-unelected-president-novel\/products\/the-unelected-president-novel\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/FisherUnelected5-6-16_240x240.png?v=1469693911\" alt=\"The Unelected President novel\" style=\"margin-left: 15px; float: left;\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/acOKOstjaMo\" height=\"315\" width=\"560\" allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong style=\"line-height: 1.4; color: #0000ff;\"\u003e\u003ca title=\"Succeeding comments, part 1\" style=\"color: #0000ff;\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/succeeding-reader-comments-part-1\"\u003eReader comments about the book\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca title=\"about succeeding\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-succeeding-blog\/68737795-all-succeeding-articles\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBlog on Succeeding\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003ca title=\"about succeeding\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/john-t-reed-s-succeeding-background\"\u003eJohn T. Reed’s succeeding background\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong style=\"color: #0000ff; line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e\u003ca title=\"Succeeding table of contents\" style=\"color: #0000ff;\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/succeeding-table-of-contents\"\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong style=\"color: #0000ff; line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e\u003ca style=\"color: #0000ff;\" title=\"Succeeding index, part 1\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/succeeding-index\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca title=\"changes to Succeeding\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/change-to-the-various-succeeding-editions\"\u003e\u003cstrong style=\"color: #0000ff; line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eNew material in the 3rd edition\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong style=\"color: #0000ff; line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e\u003ca style=\"color: #0000ff;\" title=\"Succeeding front matter\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/front-matter-for-succeeding\"\u003eFront matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/errata-for-the-3rd-edition-of-succeedig\" title=\"Succeeding errata\"\u003eCorrections and supplements to the book\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"right\"\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/3faVSDBD64o\" height=\"315\" width=\"560\" allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003eI encourage you to read the reader comments linked above. I am very proud of all of them and astonished at how strong many of them are. Here are some examples:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1400000690760_31611\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eAbsolutely and Totally Excellent... in every regard! In fact, I am overwhelmed.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eIt's not just the information... it's the willingness for you to share your personal info... and to \"call it like it is\" regarding your life experiences!\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eI know I will need to read \"Succeeding\" many more times to get the full benefit.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eYou are an inspiration.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003e Sincerely, \u003c\/em\u003e\u003ca href=\"mailto:mcfeecoach@netzero.net\"\u003eTravis McFee, DDS\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003e“Hello to Marty and John, I have purchased all three of your previous editions of Succeeding. Now I am buying them for other people. It is the best non-fiction book I have ever read. Even at 58 it is not too late for me to learn from it. Many thanks...\u003c\/em\u003e \u003ca href=\"mailto:bill.orland@tinker.af.mil\"\u003eBill Orland\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eNew 3rd edition of \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e\n\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cstrong\u003enew third edition\u003c\/strong\u003e of the book I sell the most of has new chapters on:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBeing yourself as a \u003cstrong\u003ecompetitive advantage\u003c\/strong\u003e in both career and romance\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003erecognizing that many activities, like hitting a golf ball, are \u003cstrong\u003eZen\u003c\/strong\u003e, but that others, like bunting a baseball, are NOT Zen; non-Zen skills can be acquired by practice; Zen ones, by allowing your subconscious to take charge\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003echange over time including how to handle both \u003cstrong\u003einternal\u003c\/strong\u003e (inside your body, mind, and family) and \u003cstrong\u003eexternal\u003c\/strong\u003e (like technology, fashion, and laws) \u003cstrong\u003echanges\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e‘I wish I had this book when I was young’\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the most common comments I heard from readers about \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e. My response is, “Me, too.” Although I \u003cstrong\u003ewrote\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e, I could \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e have written it until after I was in my fifties. I had to try all the things I tried in a rather varied life and see what worked and what did not.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI graduated from West Point and Harvard Business School, was an airborne ranger platoon leader and company commander in the military and the Vietnam war, worked for the government and private companies and myself, coached dozens of athletic teams, met an extraordinary number of attractive women through The System a friend and I invented and which is described in detail in \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e, appeared on TV shows like \u003cem\u003e60 Minutes\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eGood Morning America\u003c\/em\u003e, got married to my current and only wife 40 years ago, raised three sons who are now adult college grads, tended bar, invested in real estate in three different states, written 39 books and over 5,000 articles. I have succeeded and failed many times and watched my family, college and grad school classmates, and many others do the same. I have read thousands of books, attended hundreds of seminars and clinics and speeches, etc. etc. trying to figure out the best ways to deal with all sorts of life’s challenges.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMr. Reed,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1394991063533_1997\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eSucceeding is a book that's worth its weight in gold. \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1394991063533_1996\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1394991063533_1995\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eI've read the book cover-to-cover several times, and even now, every time I read a section, I learn something new.  All of the advice in Succeeding pertains to topics that are hugely important to me. I appreciate the details regarding achievement, risk, success, and happiness. \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1394991063533_1938\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhat impresses me most is that the advice in Succeeding is highly credible.  You have a collection of impressive achievements, longevity, and no hidden agenda.  As a skeptical reader who has read over a hundred self-help books, it is often hard to determine what advice I can trust.  I pay especially close attention to your words because you are someone who, based on decades of experience, understands what it takes to achieve goals that are universally respected.  You include your failures, and the lessons you learned from them. \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhat I can say is that the vast majority of your advice is damn good, and my life has been greatly enriched by studying Succeeding carefully.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1394991063533_2051\"\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eWarmest regards, \u003c\/em\u003e\u003ca href=\"mailto:AYHS2013@gmail.co\"\u003eAlex\u003c\/a\u003e   \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe real world stuff grown-ups were too embarrassed about to teach you\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePeople tell you that all you need to succeed is an education, that is studying some subject like chemical engineering or business management. Bull! The world is not a college or a high school. Most success in organizations stems from your ability to play office politics, not your knowledge of your college major. If you want to be judged on your merit, not your ability to suck up, read \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e. It tells you how to succeed on your real merits either in your own business or working for others—but in the right organizational and incentive structure where your true value will be visible, undeniable, and rewarded.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv dir=\"ltr\" id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1394991063533_1939\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"yui_3_7_2_1_1394991063533_2052\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHello Mr. Reed,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eI am a college senior currently reading Succeeding. I haven't read a personal development\/success book as dense with valuable content as yours.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSincerely,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ca href=\"mailto:oliverhud@gmail.com\"\u003eOliver Hudson\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFar more competitive world\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnother reason why \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e is needed is that the world is far more competitive than it was just eight years ago. Globalization, astonishing leaps in communications, the Internet, and technology, unemployment, foreclosures, emerging countries, are changing all the rules.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBureaucracy did not become any more fun in the last eight years. And corporations did not become any more loyal to their employees. More than ever before in modern times, \u003cstrong\u003eyou are on your own. Your children and grandchildren are going to be on their own\u003c\/strong\u003e. More than at any time in recent memory, we need the best possible advice on how to make the most of our strengths, and work around our weaknesses in order to prosper.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eDon’t try to change your personality\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMillions of people are wasting huge amounts of time trying to change their personalities to please their boss or their girlfriend or boyfriend.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNumber one, you \u003cstrong\u003ecannot\u003c\/strong\u003e change your personality. All you will accomplish is turning yourself into a \u003cstrong\u003ephony\u003c\/strong\u003e. Secondly, and more important, you \u003cstrong\u003edon’t have to\u003c\/strong\u003e change your personality. What you \u003cstrong\u003edo\u003c\/strong\u003e have to change, if your personality clashes, is your boss or your career or your girlfriend or boyfriend.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYour success and happiness require that you recognize those things about you that you \u003cstrong\u003ecan\u003c\/strong\u003e change and those you \u003cstrong\u003ecannot\u003c\/strong\u003e. And you are going to know which they are because I put lists of each in \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e. I also discuss item by item how you change the things that \u003cstrong\u003ecan\u003c\/strong\u003e be changed, for example, when moving to a new geographic location is advisable and when it will \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e solve the problem in question.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDear Mr. Reed,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eI have recently finished reading your book, Succeeding, and reviewed it twice. It was by far the best success book I have ever read. To put it more accurately, this is the first and only book I read in regards to succeeding, which is authentic, thorough, brutally candid, and relevant to the current time. Almost all of the contents are backed by your real life experiences. I laughed, got emotional and sometimes disturbed.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWell, your readers' raves about this book are certainly right. \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThank you, once again!, \u003c\/em\u003e\u003ca href=\"mailto:yossher@gmail.com\"\u003eYoshi\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e today requires more precise matching\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe main message of my book \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e is that you need to get a very accurate and complete handle on who you are, then match who you are with a career opportunity. The better you do that, the more successful you will be and the happier you will be with that success.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn today’s world, this is more important than ever before. A hundred years ago, the keys to success were believed to be working in your father’s business or the family farm, getting a “good” union job in a factory, or going to college. But in today’s world, where you must compete with others \u003cstrong\u003eworldwide\u003c\/strong\u003e, you’d better find the career that matches you better than any other so you have your best chance to compete.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHi John,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003e I just finished Succeeding. The only thing I hated about reading that book was finishing it. I did not want it to stop. I cannot thank you enough for having produced a work of such insight.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAll the best John!\u003cbr\u003e \u003ca href=\"mailto:Patrick%20Jacques%20%3Cjacqupa@whitecase.com%3E\"\u003ePatrick\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eMarriage is key to career and vice versa\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYour marriage is also key to your success. Your spouse must share your dreams and be able to tolerate the difficulties of your career. For example, if the best career match for you is a career with risks, and your spouse freaks out because of the risks, you have the wrong spouse.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is also true that the quality and character of your spouse or lack thereof can doom you to misery even if he or she has no issues with things like your career choice or the difficulties of that career. You must match up well with your spouse in terms of consumption of alcohol and drugs, child-raising decisions, adultery, and so forth. Divorce rates are still high. Today, many children are being raised by their grandparents or a single parent. This is a very, very bad situation that can happen to anyone and you need to take more pains than previously to do better than that with your spouse choice.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe 3rd edition of \u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e’s second longest chapter is the “Spouse choice” chapter. (The “Career choice” chapter is a little longer.) Most success books say little or nothing about spouse choice. They figure it just happens by chance as you go about your life. Seriously!? That is a formula for a life disaster. It is the most important decision you make.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6115466755,"sku":"","price":34.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/succeedingcover200.gif?v=1440608531"},{"product_id":"coaching-youth-football","title":"Coaching Youth Football, 4th edition","description":"\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football \u003c\/i\u003ehas 272 pages covering offense, defense, and special teams. The book features the single-wing offense and 10-1 defense, but discusses other offenses and defenses at length.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eAs with all my books, \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e is \u003cb\u003ereal world\u003c\/b\u003e and \u003cb\u003epolitically incorrect\u003c\/b\u003e. The other youth football, or Pop Warner football, coaching books are quite politically correct and psychologically correct and tell you things like always be positive, focus on the fundamentals, make sure the players eat right, and speak of football generically without recommending any particular offense or defense. My book would have all that stuff, too, \u003cb\u003eif\u003c\/b\u003e it worked.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"ul1\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cb style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e248 pages, 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback, $29.95\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/coaching-youth-football-4th-edition\" title=\"Coaching Youth Football table of contents\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eTable of contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/roaching-youth-football-reader-comments-part-1\" title=\"Coaching Youth Football Reader comments Part 1\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eReader comments\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/coaching-youth-football-changes-from-prior-editions\" title=\"Changes to the latest edition of Coaching Youth Football\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eImprovements made to the latest edition\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/back-cover-of-coaching-youth-football\" title=\"Back cover of COaching Youth Football\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eBack cover\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/coaching-youth-football-index\" title=\"Coaching Youth Football index\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"s1\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/front-matter-for-coaching-youth-football\" title=\"Front matter of Coaching Youth Football\"\u003eFront matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e (copyright page, etc.)\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/coaching-youth-football-corrections-and-supplemental-material\" title=\"Coaching Youth Football corrections and supplemental material\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eCorrections and supplemental material\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/coaching-youth-football-news-release\" title=\"Coaching Youth Football news release\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eNews release\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/warning-about-other-books-that-copy-my-title\" title=\"Beware of other books copying my title\" style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eBeware of books by other authors that have adopted the title of Reed’s Coaching Youth Football\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIn fact you should relate to the players approximately as you do to your own children and as the parents of your players relate to their own son. Being positive all the time will not get the room cleaned up and the homework done. Kids \u003cb\u003eneed\u003c\/b\u003e tough love. Fundamentals are nice. You have to teach fundamentals when it comes to the rules, safety, and the basics of various football actions like holding onto the football, keeping your head up, and so on. But most youth coaching books, and most youth coaches, spend far too much on fundamentals to the neglect of more important things like making sure the kids know their assignments. Making sure the kids eat right is a joke. Should their parents do that? Yes, but good luck. Mine didn’t. Do yours? In any event, it's not a youth football coach's role.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p4\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eFree Special Report: Common Mistakes Youth Football Coaches Make\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eTalking about football coaching generically, as I do about offense in defense in my Freshman\/JV book because varsity coaches rule that area, is not what youth coaches want or need. They want detailed instructions on exactly what to do. You cannot give readers detailed instructions without picking an offense and defense first.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e is my most comprehensive football coaching book. It covers offense, defense and special teams. My only other tackle football book that does that is \u003ci\u003eCoaching Freshman \u0026amp; Junior Varsity High School Football\u003c\/i\u003e, but that book offers no specific offense or defensive schemes because freshman and JV coaches almost always have to use the same schemes as their varsity team.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p5\"\u003eTestimonial: Outscored opponents 283-25\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eMy name is Jeff Bateman, I coach little league football in Lynchburg Va. This year I put in the  singlewing and the GAM defense.I coach with my uncle who has been coaching for over 20 years.I ran the offense and he ran the defense. I change some things to make the offense my own but I left the key points in place. We scored 283 points in 10 games, the defense only allowed 25 points in those games. My 1st string tailback rushed for over 1100 yards and scored 21 touchdowns, this kid was only 8yrs.old. Thanks to you parents and even other coaches are asking what I’m running. I can’t wait until next year when I put the spin series in. Thanks again and you made a believer out of me!!!!!!!!!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p5\"\u003eTestimonial: 34 pts\/game, recovered 4 of 7 ONSIDE KICKS\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\"Most of your offensive strategies\/philosophies are ringing true for us. We're averaging 34 pts\/game, almost 500 yards total offense per game and between 50-60 offensive plays per game. Recently we beat the Steelers 59-20, scoring the most offensive points in the history of the league. We recovered 4 of 7 onside kickoffs. On offense, we're basically unstoppable. I can tell you that I know had I not found your book, I might have done OK, but certainly would not have done as well as we have without it. Keep writing about football. My son can't wait to graduate from college and begin coaching at the high school level so he can try it there.\" David Garic, Radcliff, KY\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eMany buyers of \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e bought only that book and still reported great success in their local league. I recommend that you also get my \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003eSingle-Wing offense book\u003c\/span\u003e, my GAM\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e defense book\u003c\/span\u003e, and my \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/products\/football-clock-management-5th-edition-book-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"Football Clock Management\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003eclock management book\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e, but the \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e book does cover those topics, albeit in much less detail. Once upon a time, I only had two coaching books: \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003eCoaching Youth Football Defense\u003c\/span\u003e and \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e. It was during that time that many only had the \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e book and had great success implementing it with their teams.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIf you are a head youth tackle football coach and you only get one of my books, get \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e. Offensive coordinators would be better off with the \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003eSingle-Wing book\u003c\/span\u003e although many offensive coaches have had great success just working out of the \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e book. Defensive coordinators are better off with the \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eGap-Air-Mirror Youth Defense\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e book, but they still need the Coaching Youth Football book for its tackling and wide pursuit drills. They are not in the \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003eGAM book\u003c\/span\u003e because they are generic and apply to all types of defense, not just the GAM. If you are a youth special teams coach, you need either \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e or \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eCoaching Freshman \u0026amp; Junior Varsity High School Football\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e. \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football\u003c\/i\u003e is obviously more targeted at youth level but there is not much difference between the levels when it comes to special teams other than kick distances.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eFor more reader success stories, click on the reader comments link above. \u003ci\u003eCoaching Youth Football \u003c\/i\u003eis a 248-page, 8 1\/2 x 11, paperback book\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause it covers so much it cannot get into the depth you find in my offense and defense books. I recommend getting all three to achieve optimum success on the field. Here are those other two books:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/football-coaching-books\/products\/single-wing-offense-for-youth-football-book-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"Single-Wing Offense For Youth Football\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/SWOcover200_large.gif?705308354752747249\" alt=\"Single-Wing Offense for Youth Football\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/football-coaching-books\/products\/gap-air-mirror-defense-for-youth-football-2nd-edition-book-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"Gap-Air-Mirror Defense for Youth Football\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/GAM2cover200_large.jpg?705308354752747249\" alt=\"Gap-Air-Mirror Defense for Youth Football\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'San Francisco', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: 1.4em;\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e \u003cstrong data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eYouth football is also known by some as Pop Warner football or pee wee football or junior football. I am not affiliated with Pop Warner and never coached in that organization \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci style=\"font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'San Francisco', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: 1.4em;\"\u003eper se\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'San Francisco', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: 1.4em;\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6115481475,"sku":"","price":29.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/CYF4cover200.gif?v=1440608698"},{"product_id":"best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor","title":"Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor","description":"\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"header\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe nature of this book is such that merely reading the following Web description of the book will make you a better investor with better understanding of the real estate investment process. \u003cbr\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/QmDMbzBqOIs\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"right\"\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/real-estate-related-courses-taken-and-taught-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"real estate about\"\u003eJohn T. Reed’s real estate investment background\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor-table-of-contents\" title=\"table of contents for Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/reader-comments-on-best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor\" title=\"Reader comments for Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003eReader comments\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/front-matter-for-best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor\" title=\"Front matter for Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003eFront Matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor-index\" title=\"Index for Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/news-release-for-the-book-best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor\" title=\"News release about Best Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003eNews Release\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/supplemental-material-for-best-practices-for-the-intelligent-real-estate-investor\" title=\"corrections to Best Practice for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\"\u003eErrata\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/pi38sS0mZ0g\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHere is another similar book I wrote about the big picture of real estate investment. \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/how-to-get-started-in-real-estate-investment\" title=\"How to Get Started in Real Estate Investment\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/HGScover200_large.gif?705308354752747249\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eHow to profit from skill and boom markets and protect yourself in down markets\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter writing 22 different real estate investment books (64 real estate books if you count editions) and over 5,000 real estate investment articles over 33 years, I finally felt qualified to write a book on the \u003cstrong\u003efundamentals of real estate investment\u003c\/strong\u003e. The two missing links were 1. explaining the difference between what the rent and expenses said the buildings were worth and \u003cstrong\u003ewhat they were actually selling for in the real world\u003c\/strong\u003e—and 2. \u003cstrong\u003emanaging risk\u003c\/strong\u003e. Two new fields—\u003cstrong\u003ebehavioral finance \u003c\/strong\u003eand\u003cstrong\u003e financial engineering\u003c\/strong\u003e—came into being in recent years and provided understanding of those two important parts of real estate investing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSpeech by John T. Reed at real estate investors meeting\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHere's a montage of clips and sound bites from my speech on this book. I was only able to talk about the first few chapters, but here's a peek at some of the topics covered in the book and my general approach towards real estate investment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSee more of my videos \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.net\/youtube.html\" title=\"Reed You tubes\"\u003ehere\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cembed src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/v\/QmDMbzBqOIs\u0026amp;hl=en\u0026amp;fs=1\u0026amp;\" type=\"application\/x-shockwave-flash\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" movie=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/v\/QmDMbzBqOIs\u0026amp;hl=en\u0026amp;fs=1\u0026amp;\" height=\"340\" width=\"560\"\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSophisticated fundamentals\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eBest Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\u003c\/em\u003e is \u003cstrong\u003ethe book I wish I had when I started\u003c\/strong\u003e investing in real estate in the '60s. It is a book on basics and fundamentals, but a \u003cstrong\u003esophisticated\u003c\/strong\u003e analysis of those fundamentals.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eBut not too simple\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eMost books on real estate investment fundamentals feel they have to make the subject simple. But in doing so, they violate the rule set forth by Albert Einstein,\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMake everything as simple as possible, but no simpler.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSorry, but real estate investment is complex\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReal estate investment is complex. Sorry. It's not my fault. That's just the way it is. You need to know that. Throughout my career as a real estate investment writer, I have told readers what they \u003cstrong\u003eneed\u003c\/strong\u003e to know, in spite of the fact that it is often not what they \u003cstrong\u003ewant\u003c\/strong\u003e to hear. The criminal get-rich-quick gurus will say real estate investment is simple because their main goal is to part you from your money. My main goal is to help you make as much as possible.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/LIGSjMQLYdU?list=PLXZ7ceEvsqO6hjpGkhO5s0WNhHeQukQ6j\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e22 legal specialties\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThink about it. Real estate investment involves 22 \u003cstrong\u003elegal\u003c\/strong\u003e specialties: federal income tax law, state income tax law, state tort law, federal laws pertinent to real estate, securities laws (possibly), bankruptcy planning, estate planning, pension planning, elder law, college financial aid law, landlord-tenant law, partnership law (possibly), trust law with some entities, divorce or family law, foreign law if your entity will be created in a foreign country like the Cayman Islands, HUD law, business law, construction law (possibly), criminal law (possibly), environmental law, labor law, finance\/debt collection law. And those are just \u003cstrong\u003elegal\u003c\/strong\u003e specialties.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eConstruction, external forces\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt also requires expertise in \u003cstrong\u003ecomplex building systems\u003c\/strong\u003e like heating, air-conditioning, plumbing, roofs, electrical systems, and so on. Plus, you need to know real estate subjects like property management, due-diligence, marketing, leasing, mortgage finance, and so on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReal estate investments are affected by \u003cstrong\u003eexternal forces\u003c\/strong\u003e like interest rates, the stock market (as an alternative investment that sometimes draws buyers away from buying your building), recessions, depressions, inflation, deflation, and more.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo, to one degree or another, you have to understand all the ramifications of your real estate decisions and all the forces working on your properties.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOverview 1\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChanging your financial situation 11\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eYour goals 21\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSkill and luck 27\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRisk management 35\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDeedless real estate investing 69\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBad instincts for investing 79\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSources of real estate value 89\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProfit strategies 105\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVacant Properties 113\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLeverage 115\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe history of real estate investment 121\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTax Avoidance 137\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTransaction costs 143\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProperty management 153\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLitigation 161\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to calculate your true return 169\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe emotional roller coaster 175\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNegotiation 179\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMyths about real estate investment 185\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProperty types 191\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDuration 199\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEthics 203\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e\n\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e            Bibliography 207\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e            Index 209\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eChange you can believe in\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe title of Chapter 2, \"\u003cstrong\u003eChanging your financial situation\u003c\/strong\u003e,\" is stated the way it is to help you keep in mind that you can both make money or lose money in real estate investment. In books by other authors, that would be where they tell you how rich you're going to get if you take their seminar or hire one of their \"mentors\" and how wonderful it is to be rich.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCareful goal selection is mandatory\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eChapter 3, your \u003cstrong\u003egoals\u003c\/strong\u003e, customizes what I said in \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/products\/succeeding\" title=\"Succeeding\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eSucceeding\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e about how important it is to be smart about picking realistic goals that are tailor-made and custom-fitted to your strengths and weaknesses. A goal is a \u003cstrong\u003eto-do\u003c\/strong\u003e list, \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e a \u003cstrong\u003eChristmas list\u003c\/strong\u003e. No one is going to give it to you.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the old road sign once said, \"Pick your rut carefully because you will be in it for the next 30 miles.\" Lofty goals take a long time to achieve, including real estate lofty goals. So you need to make sure the goals are chosen carefully so you do not spend decades pursuing an incorrect—for you—goal.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSkill versus luck\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSkill and luck, Chapter 4, is one you won't see in any other real estate investment book, but it belongs in \u003cstrong\u003eall\u003c\/strong\u003e of them. Some aspects of real estate are skills that can be acquired. When they fit the strategy you select, you need to set about \u003cstrong\u003eacquiring the pertinent skills\u003c\/strong\u003e. My other 21 real estate books are about those skills. But all the skill in the world will not help you if you get run over by a \u003cstrong\u003ebad-\u003c\/strong\u003eluck freight train, like the recent 20% to 40% drop in home values.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMany real estate investors believe that \u003cstrong\u003e\"if you know what you're doing,\"\u003c\/strong\u003e you won't get hurt in real estate. But that neglects to tell you that there are a lot of very important things, like interest rates and market values, that you can neither forecast nor control, no matter how hard you try. In those very important areas of real estate investing, it is \u003cstrong\u003eimpossible\u003c\/strong\u003e to know what you're doing. No one can or does.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eMost money was made from good luck\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn the other hand, most of the money that most recent real estate investors made was made by being in the right place at the right time—\u003cstrong\u003egood\u003c\/strong\u003e luck. So whenever possible, you want to be in a position to \u003cstrong\u003eprofit\u003c\/strong\u003e from good luck, if it happens, like all real estate values going up in your market. But you also need to be \u003cstrong\u003eprotected\u003c\/strong\u003e against all real estate values going \u003cstrong\u003edown\u003c\/strong\u003e. Just a year or two of bad luck can wipe out a lifetime of hard work and good luck if you fail to protect yourself. There are various ways to do that.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eReal skills you can learn\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe skill and luck chapter contains lists of those aspects of real estate investment that involved \u003cstrong\u003eacquirable skill\u003c\/strong\u003e and those that involve luck that you can neither forecast nor control. The vast majority of investors have been told, and many believe, that by taking seminars or reading get-rich-quick books, the \u003cstrong\u003eentire\u003c\/strong\u003e process of getting rich in real estate will then be entirely within their control. \u003cstrong\u003eNot even close\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the great philosopher Clint Eastwood once said, \"A man's got to know his limitations.\" So do real estate investors. For example, you can get very good at tenant screening, and you'd better if you become a landlord. (There are other ways to invest in real estate than being a landlord.) But you can \u003cstrong\u003enever\u003c\/strong\u003e acquire any skill at \u003cstrong\u003etiming markets\u003c\/strong\u003e or \u003cstrong\u003eforecasting\u003c\/strong\u003e market-wide appreciation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eRisk and reward\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll investments consist of \u003cstrong\u003etwo\u003c\/strong\u003e main components:\u003cstrong\u003e risk and reward\u003c\/strong\u003e. But all real estate investment books that I know of consist of only \u003cstrong\u003eone\u003c\/strong\u003e component: \u003cstrong\u003ereward\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRisk? What's that?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat would be the possibility that home values all over the U.S. might fall 20% to 40% after the subprime lending bubble, for example.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cembed src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/v\/pi38sS0mZ0g\u0026amp;hl=en\u0026amp;fs=1\u0026amp;\" type=\"application\/x-shockwave-flash\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" movie=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/v\/pi38sS0mZ0g\u0026amp;hl=en\u0026amp;fs=1\u0026amp;\" height=\"340\" width=\"560\"\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e‘Calculated risks'\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eWhen asked about risk, many real estate investors respond, \"I only take \u003cstrong\u003ecalculated\u003c\/strong\u003e risks.\"\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Show me the calculations,\" I say.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSilence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThey cannot. They never did any risk calculations. They would not know \u003cstrong\u003ehow\u003c\/strong\u003e to do risk calculations. I learned how to do them at Harvard Business School, over my 42-year career in this business, and from \u003cstrong\u003efinancial engineering\u003c\/strong\u003e and other studies. \u003cstrong\u003eRisk management\u003c\/strong\u003e, which is absolutely crucial to any investment program, including real estate, is an acquirable skill. (The 4th chapter of my book \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/products\/aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investor\" title=\"Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eAggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e, now in its 19th edition, shows how to use \u003cstrong\u003edecision trees\u003c\/strong\u003e to calculate risks. There are also other ways.)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eList of risks and management strategy for each\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFirst, you need to make a \u003cstrong\u003elist\u003c\/strong\u003e of the risks to which you are exposed by whatever investment strategy you are pursuing. Then you need to manage them one by one. There is no single step that manages all risks in one fell swoop. Chapter 5 of my book has that list then discusses how you manage the various risks.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSome investors say, \"Oh, I'm covered. I have an LLC.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAnd what, pray tell, risk does that protect you from? \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"All of them?\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNo. I'm sorry. That's incorrect. But thank you for playing.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eLLC?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn LLC does \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e protect you from the risk of interest rates going up, or property values going down, which are probably the two biggest risks. It may not even protect you from the risk its knowledgeable advocates claim it protects you from: \u003cstrong\u003etort lawsuit judgments\u003c\/strong\u003e. In most lawsuits against thinly capitalized LLCs, like little old you and your best friend and your wives owning a duplex. The plaintiff's attorney will sue \u003cstrong\u003eboth\u003c\/strong\u003e you individually and your LLC and throw into the complaint a boilerplate clause about the LLC being your \"\u003cstrong\u003ealter ego\u003c\/strong\u003e\" and about your \"\u003cstrong\u003ecommingling\u003c\/strong\u003e the LLC funds with your personal funds\" and all that. If the judge buys the alter ego, etc. arguments, your LLC means nothing as far as protecting you. In some cases LLCs or corporations can \u003cstrong\u003ehurt\u003c\/strong\u003e you by forcing you to include your children in your pension account or by forcing you to hire an attorney for every nickel-and-dime legal matter that sole proprietors handle without an attorney in small claims court.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eInsurance?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOther investors wave away all questions of risk management by saying, \"That's why I have insurance.\" Insurance just covers certain casualty risks like fire and water damage and tort lawsuits. The list of real estate investment risks is far longer than the list of risks you can buy insurance against. Indeed, an LLC and insurance are somewhat redundant. You do not want to manage the same risk twice and pay double to manage it twice. Each management technique has its costs. Redundant risk management is a total waste of your money.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eDiversification?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOther investors think they got risk all covered by \u003cstrong\u003ediversification\u003c\/strong\u003e. \u003cstrong\u003e\"I never buy more than one property per town.\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eInteresting. That would protect you from \u003cstrong\u003emunicipal\u003c\/strong\u003e risk like rent control. But most states pre-empt municipal rent control so, again, you're wearing both suspenders and a belt to keep your pants up. Redundant risk management. Waste of time and money. What about \u003cstrong\u003ecounty\u003c\/strong\u003e? Do you own more than one property per county?\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eYeah. They're all in the same county.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWell then you are not diversified against adverse \u003cstrong\u003ecounty\u003c\/strong\u003e laws like slow evictions. Nor are you diversified against adverse \u003cstrong\u003estate\u003c\/strong\u003e laws, like no rent-control preemption or \u003cstrong\u003efederal\u003c\/strong\u003e laws like the passive loss limits or regional or national \u003cstrong\u003eeconomic downturns \u003c\/strong\u003eor international\u003cstrong\u003e interest rates\u003c\/strong\u003e or\u003cstrong\u003e property type\u003c\/strong\u003e risk like too many office buildings. Diversification only protects you against risks unique to the jurisdiction you are not in twice, in your case, just town government or school-district risk.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eDeedless real estate investing\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHow do you manage those risks in the real world? One way is \u003cstrong\u003edeedless real estate investing\u003c\/strong\u003e, which is the subject and title of Chapter 6.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCaveman biases against good investing\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen I was in my 20s, I took the \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.com\/Reedgururating.html\"\u003eCCIM courses\u003c\/a\u003e. They basically taught a \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.net\/Graham.html\" title=\"Graham review\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBenjamin Graham \u003cem\u003eIntelligent Investor\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e approach to real estate investment analysis. That is, the value of an investment property is the \u003cstrong\u003epresent value\u003c\/strong\u003e of all the cash income streams that will come at you as a result of buying the property, namely, \u003cstrong\u003ecash flow\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eamortization\u003c\/strong\u003e of the mortgage, \u003cstrong\u003etax benefits\u003c\/strong\u003e, and \u003cstrong\u003eappreciation\u003c\/strong\u003e realized when you sell the property. That made sense, until I left the seminars and returned to the \u003cstrong\u003ereal world\u003c\/strong\u003e. (I considered naming this book \u003cem\u003eHow Real Estate Investors Really Make Money in the Real World\u003c\/em\u003e.) In the real world of real estate investing, property values often went up, or down, by \u003cstrong\u003emore\u003c\/strong\u003e than just the changes in the cash flow, amortization, and tax benefits. What was that about?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat it's about is the subject of Chapter 7, \"Bad instincts for investing.\" This chapter is about a new field called \u003cstrong\u003eBehavioral Finance\u003c\/strong\u003e or \u003cstrong\u003eBehavioral Economics\u003c\/strong\u003e. My explanation of it is that human brains evolved during caveman days to deal with the \u003cstrong\u003ebest practices for the intelligent cave man\u003c\/strong\u003e. Those best practices included \u003cstrong\u003esafety in numbers\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eflight\u003c\/strong\u003e is usually better than fight, \u003cstrong\u003ebetter safe than sorry\u003c\/strong\u003e when it comes to physical injury if you have no HMO, if something happens twice it's best to assume it's a permanent \u003cstrong\u003epattern\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003evivid dangers\u003c\/strong\u003e like being stomped by a mammoth are more important than abstract dangers like \u003cstrong\u003einterest rates going up\u003c\/strong\u003e, and so on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat is logical for investors is often the \u003cstrong\u003eopposite\u003c\/strong\u003e of what is logical for being a caveman. In the caveman world, all the dangers were \u003cstrong\u003ephysical\u003c\/strong\u003e: poison plants, attacks by animals or other tribes, falling off a cliff, fire, etc. In the investment world, caveman best practices like the herd instinct can be very bad. Behavioral finance experts call those caveman instincts that are incorrect when compared to more sophisticated analysis \u003cstrong\u003ebiases\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou need to know all of your caveman biases that cause you to make incorrect investment decisions, like Enron employees investing their life savings in their company stock because it's, \"what I know best.\" Ouch!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReal estate investment is most definitely \u003cstrong\u003eNOT so simple that even a caveman could do it\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e‘Rational man'\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapter 7 lists all the biases pertinent to investing, explains them, and tells you how to override them. Those caveman biases also explain \u003cstrong\u003ewhy property values sometimes rise or fall\u003c\/strong\u003e more than the fundamentals that seemed to make so much sense in Benjamin Graham's book or the CCIM courses. Those biases explain why Graham and the CCIMs do not fully explain price movements. Behavioral finance experts are also often contrasted with traditional economists. Traditional economists speak only a \"\u003cstrong\u003erational man\u003c\/strong\u003e.\" The rational man of classical economics texts always knows all there is to know about a business decision, is totally logical, and always acting in his own interest. Behavioral economists respond, \"When you say ‘rational man,' are you speaking of that fat guy smoking a cigarette and standing in the long line to buy Super Lotto tickets? You figure he's logical, well-informed about what he is about to do and always acting in his self-interest?\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e‘Real world screwed-up man’\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBehavioral economists don't assume \"\u003cstrong\u003erational man\u003c\/strong\u003e.\" They assume \u003cstrong\u003ereal world screwed-up man\u003c\/strong\u003e. Behavioral economists therefore come closer to the correct analysis. Economist and author Robert Shiller, co-author of the currently primary \u003cstrong\u003eCase-Shiller Home Price Index\u003c\/strong\u003e, wrote a book called \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eIrrational Exuberance\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e which is a phrase he got from former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan that describes crazy run-ups in the stock and real estate markets. Shiller also speaks of \u003cstrong\u003eirrational despair\u003c\/strong\u003e, which is where investors and home buyers get stupid in the other direction, like valuing a company's stock so low that its market cap (total number of shares x current price per share) is less than the amount of cash it has in the bank. Or valuing a home so low that it costs less to \u003cstrong\u003eown\u003c\/strong\u003e it than it would to \u003cstrong\u003erent\u003c\/strong\u003e it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy new book, \u003cem\u003eBest Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\u003c\/em\u003e is \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e about \"rational man.\" It is about \"\u003cstrong\u003ereal world man\u003c\/strong\u003e\" who, at times, behaves quite \u003cstrong\u003eirrationally,\u003c\/strong\u003e thereby creating both opportunities and dangers to those of you who read my book so you can can recognize and deal with them appropriately.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou have probably read a number of books on real estate investment and attended some seminars. I'll bet what you just read above doesn't bear much resemblance to what the get-rich-quick gurus said in those books and seminars, does it? That's because I have been trying to understand real world real estate investment all these decades, and tell you what I learned. The get-rich-quick guys have been trying to figure out how to get you to give them your credit card. They have found that \u003cstrong\u003efantasy-world stuff\u003c\/strong\u003e—you'll put $50,000 in your pocket at your first closing—works best for that purpose. I have found that hard study and experience works best for figuring out what \u003cstrong\u003ereally\u003c\/strong\u003e goes on in real estate investment and how you can maximize your chances of profiting from it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eLayer cake of values\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cstrong\u003emain focus\u003c\/strong\u003e of real estate investment is the \u003cstrong\u003evalue\u003c\/strong\u003e of the property and its hoped-for or deliberately-caused \u003cstrong\u003eincrease in value\u003c\/strong\u003e. Yet the vast majority of investors do not know where value comes from in real estate. In fact, the value of a property is like a layer cake. Investors have generally heard about the \"bundle of rights\" that comprise legal ownership—right to occupy, lease, improve, sell, etc. They \u003cstrong\u003eneed\u003c\/strong\u003e to know about the \u003cstrong\u003elayers of value\u003c\/strong\u003e. They got a harsh lesson about \u003cstrong\u003eone\u003c\/strong\u003e of those layers—the availability of cheap, high-loan-to-value financing—when the early 2000's bubble burst in response to subprime lending being taken away.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapter 8 of \u003cem\u003eBest Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\u003c\/em\u003e makes sure you understand \u003cstrong\u003eall\u003c\/strong\u003e the value layers that can dramatically affect your net worth and equity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWhere's the profit?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you think about it, hardly any real estate investment books discuss \u003cstrong\u003emaking a profit\u003c\/strong\u003e. They just \u003cstrong\u003eassume\u003c\/strong\u003e that owning property is profitable—because of \u003cstrong\u003emarket-wide appreciation\u003c\/strong\u003e in prices. Chapter 9 of \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e discusses the three categories of \u003cstrong\u003etrue profit strategies\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003cstrong\u003ebargain purchase\u003c\/strong\u003e, e.g., foreclosures, IRS auctions\u003cbr\u003e • \u003cstrong\u003eadding value\u003c\/strong\u003e, e.g., physical improvements, better zoning\u003cbr\u003e • \u003cstrong\u003edouble-digit cap rates\u003c\/strong\u003e, i.e., purchase price so low in relation to net building income that you get a 10% or higher return\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the securities, \u003cstrong\u003ehedge fund\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eprivate-equity\u003c\/strong\u003e industries, the first two are called \u003cstrong\u003e\"active\" strategies\u003c\/strong\u003e. \u003cstrong\u003eDouble-digit cap rates\u003c\/strong\u003e is a sort of Benjamin Graham \u003cem\u003eIntelligent Investor\u003c\/em\u003e value \u003cstrong\u003epassive\u003c\/strong\u003e strategy. What the vast majority of investors actually do is a passive or non-strategy I call \"\u003cstrong\u003ebuy and hope\u003c\/strong\u003e.\" It is the real estate equivalent of trying to cross the Atlantic on a raft with no oar, motor, or sail. In 2009, millions of buy and hope investors are lamenting the loss of a large chunk of their net worth. It is also the real estate equivalent of buying lottery tickets, except you can’t be sued for owning a lottery ticket. You don't have to \u003cstrong\u003ehope\u003c\/strong\u003e for profits in real estate. Indeed, you should \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e just hope for them. You can \u003cstrong\u003emake them happen on purpose\u003c\/strong\u003e by using your \u003cstrong\u003eskill\u003c\/strong\u003e and simultaneously \u003cstrong\u003eprotecting yourself\u003c\/strong\u003e from bad luck beyond your control.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eIf it's vacant, you have to move at a frantic pace\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMany real estate investors own \u003cstrong\u003evacant\u003c\/strong\u003e properties, usually because they are fixing them and hope to turn them over quickly. It better be \u003cstrong\u003ereal\u003c\/strong\u003e quick as explained in Chapter 10 of \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e The \u003cstrong\u003ecarrying costs\u003c\/strong\u003e can very quickly eat up all your profits.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eMore to leverage than infinite returns\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNewbie real estate investors love to talk about the \u003cstrong\u003einfinite returns\u003c\/strong\u003e they get from \u003cstrong\u003enothing-down\u003c\/strong\u003e purchases. As Chapter 11 explains, it ain't that simple. For one thing, there arguably are \u003cstrong\u003eno true nothing-down deals\u003c\/strong\u003e because you have to spend extra amounts of your \u003cstrong\u003etime\u003c\/strong\u003e to get them and time is money, too. Then there is the \u003cstrong\u003erisk\u003c\/strong\u003e. Almost all other gurus are trying their best to keep you from thinking about the risks. \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e makes sure you understand them and deal with them appropriately, like getting \u003cstrong\u003enon-recourse mortgages\u003c\/strong\u003e whenever possible.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Leverage chapter also makes sure you can calculate the situations where leverage is \u003cstrong\u003epositive\u003c\/strong\u003e and where it is \u003cstrong\u003enegative\u003c\/strong\u003e (loan constant exceeds cap rate). It also explains what almost all investors do not understand, but need to. That is, \u003cstrong\u003einflation\u003c\/strong\u003e, contrary to what everyone thinks, is \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e necessarily good for real estate investors. For one thing, high inflation tends to \u003cstrong\u003eraise mortgage interest rates\u003c\/strong\u003e which depresses resale values. Only when inflation is \u003cstrong\u003ecombined\u003c\/strong\u003e with a fixed-rate mortgage does your equity grow in \u003cstrong\u003ereal\u003c\/strong\u003e (adjusted for inflation) terms as a result of inflation. Free-and-clear buildings do \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e increase your \u003cstrong\u003ereal\u003c\/strong\u003e equity from Consumer Price Index increases in value.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapter 11 also explains why use of lots of leverage proves your \u003cstrong\u003eignorance\u003c\/strong\u003e more than it proves your \u003cstrong\u003emanhood\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eExperience matters\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eExperienced people understand things better than inexperienced people. Chapter 12, \"The History of Real Estate Investment,\" gives you much needed \u003cstrong\u003eartificial experience\u003c\/strong\u003e if you lack the real kind. For those who already have been in real estate investment for a long time, it \u003cstrong\u003ecorrects and completes your faulty memories\u003c\/strong\u003e. The Chapter lists historical stock market \u003cstrong\u003eprice-earnings ratios\u003c\/strong\u003e, what's misleading about \u003cstrong\u003eRealtor® median home price\u003c\/strong\u003e stats, U.S. bond\u003cstrong\u003e interest rates\u003c\/strong\u003e since 1890, \u003cem\u003emortgage interest rates \u003c\/em\u003esince 1965, \u003cstrong\u003einflation\u003c\/strong\u003e rates since 1890, \u003cstrong\u003eCase-Shiller home price real appreciation\u003c\/strong\u003e rates since 1890, top \u003cstrong\u003efederal income tax and capital gains\u003c\/strong\u003e tax rates since federal income taxes began in 1913, major \u003cstrong\u003efederal income tax law changes\u003c\/strong\u003e since 1913, dates of all \u003cstrong\u003ebooms\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003erecessions\u003c\/strong\u003e since 1854, average length of \u003cstrong\u003ebusiness cycles\u003c\/strong\u003e since 1854, important \u003cstrong\u003enon-tax real estate-related historical events\u003c\/strong\u003e since 1920, various famous \u003cstrong\u003efinancial doomsday forecasts\u003c\/strong\u003e since the 1970s, the real-estate-related records of all \u003cstrong\u003epresidents\u003c\/strong\u003e since Nixon, states that have pre-empted municipal or county \u003cstrong\u003erent control\u003c\/strong\u003e laws, and the history of major U.S. \u003cstrong\u003enatural disasters\u003c\/strong\u003e since 1811.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eHold down your taxes and transaction costs\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapters 13 and 14 give the real estate version of the advice in virtually all good stock market books. You must \u003cstrong\u003eminimize taxes and transaction costs\u003c\/strong\u003e to maximize your after-tax, after-transaction costs profits. This is especially true of transaction costs which in real estate are scandalously high. \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e has a chapter on the minimization of each. I also wrote a book called \u003cem\u003eAggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors\u003c\/em\u003e which is now in its 19th edition.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWhere you spend most of your time—too much time\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapter 15 is about the\u003cstrong\u003e most time-consuming and unprofitable \u003c\/strong\u003easpect of real estate investment: \u003cstrong\u003eproperty management\u003c\/strong\u003e. I also wrote a whole book about it called \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/products\/how-to-manage-residential-property-for-maximum-cash-flow-and-resale-value-6th-edition-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"How to Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value, 6th edition\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eHow to Manage Residential Property For Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e which is now in its fifth edition. If you can structure your approach so that you spend less time managing property you will make \u003cstrong\u003emore\u003c\/strong\u003e money by doing the things that \u003cstrong\u003eare\u003c\/strong\u003e profitable: finding \u003cstrong\u003ebargains\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eupgrading\u003c\/strong\u003e the property value, and so on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo you should \u003cstrong\u003ejust hire it out, right?\u003c\/strong\u003e I wish.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEssentially there are no good outside property managers. My book sets forth the evidence of that in detail. If you think that cannot possibly be true, go hire one. Here is my advance, \"I told you so.\" You have to \u003cstrong\u003edo it yourself \u003c\/strong\u003eor\u003cstrong\u003e hire an in-house person\u003c\/strong\u003e who is on salary, not 5% of the gross, to you to do it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Chapter also talks about \u003cstrong\u003eturnaround\u003c\/strong\u003e situations, \u003cstrong\u003edisasters\u003c\/strong\u003e, the need for totally passive real estate investors to invest via \u003cstrong\u003eREIT and Case-Shiller derivatives\u003c\/strong\u003e rather than actually owning properties directly, looking for \"professionally\"-managed property that you can buy cheap because of \u003cstrong\u003emismanagement\u003c\/strong\u003e, helpful trade associations, unhelpful \u003cstrong\u003etrade association\u003c\/strong\u003e training of your managers, the need to gain technical expertise in complex building systems like HVAC, roofs, plumbing, pavement, termites, \u003cstrong\u003eabsentee\u003c\/strong\u003e management, and so on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eLitigation\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLitigation sucks. So you just avoid it, right? Sorry. If you own more than a tiny amount of rental property, \u003cstrong\u003eyou will be sued\u003c\/strong\u003e. So I put Chapter 16 which tells you how to avoid it and how to handle it if and when it happens. Like anything else, it's an important skill.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFor once in your life, actually calculate what you actually make on your investments\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapter 17 tells you \"How to calculate your true return.\" It's \u003cstrong\u003enot that complicated\u003c\/strong\u003e, but there is a correct way to do it. Almost everyone does it \u003cstrong\u003ewrong\u003c\/strong\u003e. One major issue is making sure you take into account the \u003cstrong\u003evalue of your time\u003c\/strong\u003e. If you invested passively in \u003cstrong\u003esecurities\u003c\/strong\u003e, including real estate-related derivatives, you would spend \u003cstrong\u003ealmost no time\u003c\/strong\u003e. So to get a proper result, you have to take into account the value of your real estate time when comparing real estate with securities investment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou also have to \u003cstrong\u003estop ignoring closing costs\u003c\/strong\u003e, both buying and selling, and the \u003cstrong\u003etime value of money\u003c\/strong\u003e. Money to be received in the future is worth less. And you need to \u003cstrong\u003estop ignoring so-called \"one-time\" capital expenditures\u003c\/strong\u003e like a new roof or a new refrigerator. Who are you kidding? Those \u003cstrong\u003emajor\u003c\/strong\u003e expenses are a big part of your return or lack thereof. And you need to always look at \u003cstrong\u003ecurrent\u003c\/strong\u003e return on \u003cstrong\u003ecurrent equity\u003c\/strong\u003e not current return on your ancient-history down payment. That's another who-are-you-kidding move. Finally, you have to get to the \u003cstrong\u003eafter-tax\u003c\/strong\u003e numbers because other investments, like municipal bonds, have the \u003cstrong\u003esame\u003c\/strong\u003e return before and after tax. Real estate does not.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKidding others about your return is relatively harmless, like fish stories. But kidding \u003cstrong\u003eyourself\u003c\/strong\u003e about how much you are making on your real estate is dangerous to your financial health.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eEmotional roller coaster\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReal estate investing ain't knitting. It often puts you on an emotional roller coaster the likes of which you may not have experienced in your prior life. Some \u003cstrong\u003etenants\u003c\/strong\u003e are bad. So are some of the \u003cstrong\u003eemployees\u003c\/strong\u003e you hire.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSomeone once said, \"The meek shall inherit the earth, but they won't get the mineral rights.\" Mineral rights are real estate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMany real estate investment strategies are \u003cstrong\u003edeal oriented\u003c\/strong\u003e. In deal-oriented businesses, \u003cstrong\u003eif you snooze, you lose\u003c\/strong\u003e. That's why real estate brokers put their home phone number on their business card. The only listing of mine that ever expired when I was an agent was one that expired when I was on vacation. That \u003cstrong\u003ealways-on-duty\u003c\/strong\u003e aspect freaks out some people.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReal estate investment also requires you to \u003cstrong\u003esign on the dotted line\u003c\/strong\u003e committing yourself to pay back a loan of hundreds of thousands of dollars. There is also \u003cstrong\u003elitigation\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003edrops in market values\u003c\/strong\u003e, difficulty finding \u003cstrong\u003efinancing\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003efire\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eflood\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003epestilence\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003edrug dealers\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003edeadbeats\u003c\/strong\u003e and more. You need to understand that is a possible part of real traditional estate investment. There are strategies that avoid many of the possible stresses. And there are ways to handle the \u003cstrong\u003estress\u003c\/strong\u003e. That's why Chapter 18 covers the emotional side of the business.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eNegotiation\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou need to know negotiation to be a real estate investor. But \u003cstrong\u003edon't overestimate\u003c\/strong\u003e how much negotiating skills alone can accomplish. There are \u003cstrong\u003esome tricks\u003c\/strong\u003e to making sure you are prepared. One trick is that it's generally better to negotiate \u003cstrong\u003eface-to-face\u003c\/strong\u003e, even though almost everyone in the business says the opposite. Another is to check out the \u003cstrong\u003enegotiating history\u003c\/strong\u003e of the person you are negotiating with. And on the other side, getting a \u003cstrong\u003ereputation\u003c\/strong\u003e as a great negotiator can \u003cstrong\u003ehurt\u003c\/strong\u003e you. If you are a great negotiator, keep it secret. Understanding a relatively new branch of mathematics called \u003cstrong\u003eGame Theory\u003c\/strong\u003e can help. The book and movie \u003cem\u003eA Beautiful Mind\u003c\/em\u003e are a true story about one of the pioneers in game theory. I list other good books on the subject in \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eReal estate investment myths\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn most fields, you just tell people how to do it. But in real estate investment, since 1980 when Robert Allen’s book \u003cem\u003eNothing Down\u003c\/em\u003e came out, we honest real estate investment writers have to devote space to \u003cstrong\u003erefuting the many get-rich-quick seminar myths that abound\u003c\/strong\u003e. I do that quickly in chapter 20 “Myths about real estate investment.” It covers such things as “\u003cstrong\u003ebird dogging\u003c\/strong\u003e,” whether it’s easy to get \u003cstrong\u003epositive cash flow\u003c\/strong\u003e, the notion that \u003cstrong\u003ereal estate values always go up\u003c\/strong\u003e, the wisdom of multiple nothing-down deals, recommendations to hire outside property managers and other members of your “\u003cstrong\u003epower team\u003c\/strong\u003e” of advisers, paid “\u003cstrong\u003ementors\u003c\/strong\u003e,” “\u003cstrong\u003ewin-win\u003c\/strong\u003e” negotiations, the profitability of \u003cstrong\u003ecosmetic renovation\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI also had to devote a chapter to it in my book \u003cem\u003eHow to Buy Real Estate for Little or No Money Down\u003c\/em\u003e because almost all of the get-rich-quick gurus push some bogus form of nothing down.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eProperty types\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRoughly speaking, there are \u003cstrong\u003etwo main categories of property types\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003cstrong\u003esingle-family houses\/condos\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003ecommercial \u003c\/strong\u003ereal estate including both residential and nonresidential. Too many investors think commercial is to houses what high school is to grade school. They see going into commercial as a move up, a higher status form of real estate investing. A more macho form of real estate investing. There is some truth to that, but there is also a price to be paid—maybe too high a price.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSingle-family is extremely \u003cstrong\u003efinanceable\u003c\/strong\u003e—in a totally different league from commercial. Commercial generally does \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e offer 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, other than some HUD loans for apartment buildings. And short-term financing, including \u003cstrong\u003eballoon mortgages\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eadjustable-rate mortgages\u003c\/strong\u003e are simply unacceptable. It is an ancient bedrock rule of finance that you \u003cstrong\u003edo not finance long-term assets with short-term loans\u003c\/strong\u003e. Commercial real estate has become a lot like raw land where the only financing is \u003cstrong\u003eseller financing\u003c\/strong\u003e. That’s not much fun when you consider that sellers also generally will not make 30-year, fixed-rate loans. And it’s no fun when you consider that if you are a buyer today, \u003cstrong\u003eyou\u003c\/strong\u003e will probably be a seller tomorrow.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnother issue is \u003cstrong\u003epolitical risk\u003c\/strong\u003e—also a totally different league between single-family and commercial. For example, \u003cstrong\u003erent control \u003c\/strong\u003elaws, which are devastating over the long term, generally exempt smaller buildings like duplexes and single-family. Adverse tax laws like the federal \u003cstrong\u003epassive loss limits\u003c\/strong\u003e, beat up on commercial property owners but exempt small property owners through the $25,000 ceiling on deductible passive losses. There are countless laws that hit commercial owners hard, but exempt single-family owners, simply because the politicians do not want to anger the large numbers of single-family home owners, but they \u003cstrong\u003eare\u003c\/strong\u003e willing to anger the much smaller number of rich commercial property owners.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eI lost $750,000\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI \u003cstrong\u003elost $750,000\u003c\/strong\u003e on two apartment complexes in the late 1980s and early 1990s because of \u003cstrong\u003epolitical risk\u003c\/strong\u003e, namely the \u003cstrong\u003eTax Reform Act of 1986\u003c\/strong\u003e and the \u003cstrong\u003eDepository Institutions Act of 1982\u003c\/strong\u003e, both of which were signed into law by President Reagan. The Tax Act knocked income property buildings down 25% overnight. Since 25% was also my down payment on those buildings in 1983, poof went my equity. Don’t \u003cstrong\u003erepeat\u003c\/strong\u003e my mistake out of ignorance. Learn how to avoid it from my hard-won School of Hard Knocks experience.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Depository Institutions Act permitted the savings and loans to grotesquely overbuild apartment complexes in Texas (where I was) and Oklahoma which drove my negative cash flow to $35,000 a year on each building. I was lucky to survive that financially. The savings-and-loan industry did \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e survive it. Do \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e take political risk lightly. It can wipe out your life savings. And the current Congress and White House probably pose more political risk to capitalists like real estate investors than any since the Franklin Roosevelt Administration of the Great Depression.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHaving said all that, which I explain in greater detail in \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e, I \u003cstrong\u003edid\u003c\/strong\u003e own or manage all sorts of property types and have researched them in my writing career. Accordingly, in \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e I am able to discuss in detail the unique and surprising-to-laymen characteristics of each property type including \u003cstrong\u003eapartment buildings, condos, townhouses, detached single-family houses, industrial, office, retail, mini-warehouse, co-op, duplexes, triplexes, four-plexes, high-rise, low-rise, and land\u003c\/strong\u003e. I also discuss the various property types in terms of \u003cstrong\u003efinancing\u003c\/strong\u003e, importance of non-residential \u003cstrong\u003etenant mix\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eeconomies of scale\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003ediseconomies of scale\u003c\/strong\u003e, need for \u003cstrong\u003eon-site employees\u003c\/strong\u003e, short- versus long-term \u003cstrong\u003eleases\u003c\/strong\u003e, consumer versus business \u003cstrong\u003ecredit\u003c\/strong\u003e, household-name \u003cstrong\u003ebig corporate tenants\u003c\/strong\u003e, office \u003cstrong\u003ecleaning\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003etenant improvements\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003esecurity\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003etechnological obsolescence\u003c\/strong\u003e of nonresidential buildings, and other risks unique to each property type.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFlips versus long-term\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChapter 22 is about the “Duration” of your ownership. That can range from \u003cstrong\u003ezero\u003c\/strong\u003e to “\u003cstrong\u003euntil death do you part\u003c\/strong\u003e.” Each duration has its advantages and disadvantages. One big point is most of the money made on purpose in real estate is made \u003cstrong\u003eprior to purchase\u003c\/strong\u003e in the case of a \u003cstrong\u003ebargain\u003c\/strong\u003e-purchase strategy or \u003cstrong\u003ewithin months\u003c\/strong\u003e after purchase in a \u003cstrong\u003evalue-adding\u003c\/strong\u003e strategy. So continuing to own after that exposes you to \u003cstrong\u003emany risks \u003c\/strong\u003eand\u003cstrong\u003e consumes great quantities of your time\u003c\/strong\u003e in return for little or no profit.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn the other hand, never selling reduces \u003cstrong\u003etransaction and capital gains tax costs\u003c\/strong\u003e, thereby increasing your net profits and return. Indeed, if you own until your death, your heirs get the benefit of “\u003cstrong\u003estepped-up basis\u003c\/strong\u003e” which means they can sell your properties right after you die and pay zero capital gains taxes. Whatever capital gain you accumulated over your life gets wiped out by your death.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere are other duration tax considerations like \u003cstrong\u003elong- versus short-term capital gains\u003c\/strong\u003e tax rates, \u003cstrong\u003edealer\u003c\/strong\u003e status, and the \u003cstrong\u003e$250,000-per-spouse\u003c\/strong\u003e principal residence appreciation gain \u003cstrong\u003eexclusion\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith regard to duration, you also must make sure you look at your \u003cstrong\u003ereturn on current equity\u003c\/strong\u003e, not return on your ancient-history down payment. Return on down payment goes up most years, but it is an apples-and-oranges ratio with no meaning. Dividing \u003cstrong\u003enow\u003c\/strong\u003e by \u003cstrong\u003ethen\u003c\/strong\u003e gives you credit for investment genius when all that’s going on is the \u003cstrong\u003evalue of the dollar is declining\u003c\/strong\u003e. Return on current equity, on the other hand, typically goes \u003cstrong\u003edown\u003c\/strong\u003e every year—because equity get bigger faster than net operating income. Return on current equity is also the proper focus because it lets you accurately compare what you are earning on that equity with what you could be earning, with less risk and times-consumption, in alternative investments like federal bonds and securities.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eEthics\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe final chapter of \u003cem\u003eBest Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\u003c\/em\u003e covers ethics. There are basic ethics that apply to everything like telling the truth. There are also formal codes of ethics that apply to various professions including those in real estate. And there are ethical, moral dangers that ought to be in a \u003cstrong\u003ereal estate investors code of ethics\u003c\/strong\u003e but there is no such code, outside of my books, nor is there any body to enforce such a code.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eInvestors need instruction on the real estate investor ethical code that ought to be because the considerations are\u003cstrong\u003e not obvious to newcomers\u003c\/strong\u003e or even to many who have long been in the business. One is \u003cstrong\u003esuitability\u003c\/strong\u003e. That is an ethical principle that says a sophisticated person should not be selling sophisticated things to unsophisticated persons. Getting a little old lady widow with no financial training or experience to take back a nothing-down mortgage from a buyer with no cash, no credit, no job, no experience, and no sense, for example, would violate every suitability principle of the securities industry and violates some laws like \u003cstrong\u003etaking unconscionable advantage\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSome investors who are being foreclosed out of a rental property figure “Why make the mortgage or any other payments like taxes and utilities if I’m going to lose the house anyway? At least I’ll make a profit for six months or so until the foreclosure auction.” That is a violation of \u003cstrong\u003ecriminal law\u003c\/strong\u003e called rent skimming or equity skimming. It is prohibited by both state and federal laws. If you have a \u003cstrong\u003enon-recourse\u003c\/strong\u003e mortgage, there is likely a clause in it that says rent skimming turns your non-recourse mortgage into a \u003cstrong\u003erecourse\u003c\/strong\u003e one. That means they can go after your other assets and income to get paid back for the money you kept.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e lists the various aspects of real estate where greater temptation to violate ethics exists like \u003cstrong\u003ebribing\u003c\/strong\u003e officials for better zoning, \u003cstrong\u003elying\u003c\/strong\u003e in litigation, hiding assets from creditors, lying about occupancy or financial situation on \u003cstrong\u003emortgage applications\u003c\/strong\u003e, and others. In addition to being ethical violations, these are also typically \u003cstrong\u003ecriminal felonies\u003c\/strong\u003e punishable by jail sentences. You are most likely to stay out of such trouble if you are warned about it before you get too far out on the slippery slope. \u003cem\u003eBest Practices...\u003c\/em\u003e gives you those warnings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eRecommended other books and trade associations\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBest Practices for the Intelligent Real Estate Investor\u003c\/em\u003e also tells you about other books to read and all the good trade associations to join or get information from.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e223 pages, paperback, 8 1\/2 x 11, $39.95\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"footer\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6332090883,"sku":"","price":39.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/BPFIREcover200.gif?v=1440126811"},{"product_id":"aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investor","title":"Aggressive Tax Avoidance For Real Estate Investors, 20th edition book","description":"\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"header\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis book is for real estate investors, both experienced and novice, and their tax advisors: accountants, attorneys, and other real estate professionals. \u003cstrong\u003eThe taxes you pay are too high\u003c\/strong\u003e. I will show you \u003cstrong\u003ehow to make sure you aren't paying one more cent in taxes\u003c\/strong\u003e than the law requires.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUntil Biiden changes the tax law, the binding of this book will be a comb-binding instead of the usual paperback. If Biden does change the tax law, there will likely be a new paperback edition of this book.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"content\"\u003e\n\u003cblockquote\u003e“…the best real estate book ever written. Not the best real estate \u003cstrong\u003etax\u003c\/strong\u003e book—the best real estate book.” Tom O’Dea. Editor, \u003cem\u003eReal Estate Intelligence Report\u003c\/em\u003e newsletter\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\u003ciframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6uAikViknUg\" height=\"315\" width=\"560\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; encrypted-media\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt covers the big picture of legal tax avoidance, depreciation deductions, expenses, dealer property, installment sales, passive loss limitations, exchanging, how to find an aggressive tax advisor, breaking out personal property and land improvements, justifying the highest possible improvement ratio, the $250,000 per spouse homeowner long-term capital gain exclusion, home office, first-year expensing, and more. Includes Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"right\"\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca style=\"line-height: 1.5;\" title=\"Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors reader comments\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/reader-comments-on-the-book-aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investors-19th-edition-by-john-t-reed\"\u003eReader comments\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca style=\"line-height: 1.5;\" title=\"Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors, 19th edition table of contents\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investors-19th-edition-table-of-contents\"\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca style=\"line-height: 1.5;\" title=\"real estate about\" href=\"Real%20estate%20related%20courses%20taken%20and%20taught%20by%20John%20T.%20Reed%20%20\"\u003eJohn T. Reed’s real estate investment background\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca style=\"line-height: 1.5;\" title=\"Aggressive Tax Avoidance index\" href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.net\/ATAindex.html\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca style=\"line-height: 1.5;\" title=\"changes to Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors, 19th edition\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/improvements-and-updates-to-aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investors-19th-edition-by-john-t-reed\"\u003eImprovements to the 20th edition since the 19th edition\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca style=\"line-height: 1.5;\" title=\"Front matter for the book Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/front-matter-for-the-book-aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investors\"\u003eFront Matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca style=\"line-height: 1.5;\" title=\"Aggressive Tax Avoidance for Real Estate Investors Introduction\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/aggressive-tax-avoidance-for-real-estate-investors-introduction\"\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca title=\"IRS Letter of Commendation to John T. Reed after an audit\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/letter-of-commendation-from-the-irs-following-tcmp-audit-of-john-t-reeds-1988-federal-income-tax-return\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eReal Estate investment blog \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eLetter of commendation\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003e from IRS following TCMP audit of John T. Reed's tax return\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e214 pages, 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback book, $39.95\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis book is not available in book stores.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLeigh Robinson, author of the book, \u003ci\u003eLandlording\u003c\/i\u003e, called the book \"seminal…an English-language translation of tax laws affecting real estate investors.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“…superb job…” \u003cem\u003eTax Angles\u003c\/em\u003e news-letter “…great book…” \u003cem\u003eMoneytalk\u003c\/em\u003e newsletter\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“I am currently researching exchanges in preparation for writing our Third Quarter \u003cem\u003eInvestor Outlook\u003c\/em\u003e, and in that process, I have read over fifty articles and eight books on the subject. \u003cstrong\u003eYour work is the best I’ve seen\u003c\/strong\u003e.” John B. Allen, Director of Investment Properties, Grubb \u0026amp; Ellis Commercial Brokerage Company and author of \u003cem\u003eSelling Income Property Successfully\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“The only ‘How To Invest’ book I’ve ever read in one evening. Written so well \u003cstrong\u003eI didn’t want to put it down\u003c\/strong\u003e.” Tom Collins, Real estate broker, Burlingame, CA\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“…excellent…highly recommended…\u003cstrong\u003eIf you were to read only one book on real estate investing and tax avoidance\u003c\/strong\u003e, be sure that it is this one.” Bob Karch, Real estate broker, El Paso, TX\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI also recommend that you get my book \u003ca title=\"How to Do a Delayed Exchange\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/products\/how-to-do-a-delayed-exchange-2nd-edition-by-john-t-reed\"\u003eHow To Do a Delayed Exchange\u003c\/a\u003e. \u003cem\u003eAggressive Tax Avoidance\u003c\/em\u003e… covers exchanges but does not focus on delayed exchanges. The Delayed Exchange book actually has the document you need to do one. I did not write it. The IRS did in the form of a remarkable regulation. All I did was slightly modify their regulation so the agreement is essentially the regulation. How are they going to challenge that? \u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eRead it now! Tax time is too late\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eShould you \u003cstrong\u003ewait until tax time\u003c\/strong\u003e to buy the book\u003cstrong\u003e? No!\u003c\/strong\u003e That is explained in the book You need it \u003cstrong\u003enow\u003c\/strong\u003e so that you do not take some action that unnecessarily raises your taxes. \u003cstrong\u003eTax time is too late\u003c\/strong\u003e to learn about the tax ramification about the actions you take in real estate. Buy it now so you can read it now so you can be smart about tax-related real estate decisions starting now.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca title=\"How to Do a Delayed Exchange\" href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/products\/how-to-do-a-delayed-exchange-2nd-edition-by-john-t-reed\"\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"\" src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/HTDDEcover200_large.gif?9038693942875536816\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"footer\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6490810115,"sku":"","price":39.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/ATA_20_cover.jpg?v=1520788791"},{"product_id":"youth-baseball-coaching-3rd-edition-book","title":"Youth Baseball Coaching, 3rd edition","description":"\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #ff0000;\"\u003eStop wasting precious practice time\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost youth coaches either have \u003cstrong\u003eno effect\u003c\/strong\u003e on their teams or actually cause them to play \u003cstrong\u003eworse\u003c\/strong\u003e, especially in the batter’s box and on the base paths. The almost universal practice format of 45 minutes of infield and 45 minutes of batting practice is a waste of time. \u003cem\u003eYouth Baseball Coaching\u003c\/em\u003e was written by an experienced youth coach who tried all the stuff you’re \u003cstrong\u003esupposed\u003c\/strong\u003e to do, found most of it did \u003cstrong\u003enot work\u003c\/strong\u003e, then \u003cstrong\u003eexperimented\u003c\/strong\u003e with different coaching methods. This books tell you about \u003cstrong\u003ethe ones that worked\u003c\/strong\u003e. Not only youth baseball coaching approaches that work, but that work \u003cstrong\u003efast\u003c\/strong\u003e because a youth season is too short for methods that work slowly. The book is also \u003cstrong\u003ereal world\u003c\/strong\u003e covering subjects like \u003cstrong\u003echeating in the draft\u003c\/strong\u003e, the \u003cstrong\u003eparents\u003c\/strong\u003e meeting, and how to deal with the \u003cstrong\u003eweakest players\u003c\/strong\u003e. See my other \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.com\/bbarticles.html\"\u003earticles\u003c\/a\u003e on youth baseball coaching.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"right\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e286 pages, 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback, $34.95\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/john-t-reed-s-baseball-coaching-background\" title=\"baseball about\"\u003eJohn T. Reed’s baseball background\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/youth-baseball-coaching-table-of-contents\" title=\"Youth Baseball Coaching table of contents\"\u003eTable of contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-baseball-coaching-blog\" title=\"Baseball coaching blog\"\u003eBaseball articles\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/youth-baseball-coaching-changes-in-the-latest-edition\" title=\"Youth Baseball Coaching  changes in the various editions\"\u003eHow the various editions have been improved\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/youth-baseball-coaching-front-matter\" title=\"Youth Baseball Coaching front matter\"\u003eFront matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/pages\/youth-baseball-coaching-index\" title=\"Youth baseball Coaching index\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/youth-baseball-coaching-reader-success-stories\" title=\"Youth Baseball Coaching reader success stoies\"\u003eReader success stories\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e“The difference between our team and the remainder of the league was remarkable...your strategies are more fundamentally sound and offer more of a competitive advantage than all of the other books I have read, combined...we were able to take an inferior team (talent-wise) and win the championship.”\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.com\/YBCcomments.html#testimonialBrad\"\u003eBrad\u003c\/a\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“...after purchasing your baseball book and managing my team to its first league championship...we went on to be in the championship game three more times...we won one more of those. I attribute our success to what I applied after carefully reading your book...Thanks again for all of the great experiences over the past few years.” \u003cstrong\u003eDennis Rapkins\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“Last season...the team hit .267. This year, after reading your book, we...hit .406 as a team. .606 on base percentage too!” \u003cstrong\u003eRobert J. Merlino, Jr.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs their kids get older, some who bought Youth Baseball Coaching also buy \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/john-t-reed-s-baseball-coaching-books\/products\/coaching-teenage-and-adult-baseball-book-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"Coaching Teenage and Adult Baseball\"\u003eCoaching Teenage and Adult Baseball\u003c\/a\u003e:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/ABCcover200_large.gif?2307210628812489478\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6561836355,"sku":"","price":34.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/YBC3cover200.jpg?v=1440608115"},{"product_id":"fundamentals-of-real-estate-finance-by-john-t-reed","title":"Fundamentals of Real Estate Finance","description":"\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"header\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is Volume 1 of the series How to Use Leverage to Maximize your Real Estate Investment Return\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHow to measure the time value of money, developing your leverage strategy, Reed's Rules of real estate finance, the tax ramification of financing real estate, and how lenders decide whether to say yes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is volume 1 of a 3-volume set.\u003cbr\u003e Volume 2 is \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/how-to-buy-real-estate-for-little-or-no-money-down-2nd-edition-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"How to Buy Real Estate for Little or No Money Down\"\u003eHow to Buy Real Estate for Little or No Money Down\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Volume 3 is \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.myshopify.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/how-to-structure-your-mortgage-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"How to Structure Your Mortgage\"\u003eHow to Structure Your Mortgage\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/how-to-buy-real-estate-for-little-or-no-money-down-2nd-edition-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"How to Buy Real Estate for Little or No Money Down\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/LONDcover200REG_large.gif?14585414598241124701\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e    \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/how-to-structure-your-mortgage-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"How To Structure Your Mortagge\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/files\/HTSYMcover200_large.gif?14585414598241124701\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Buy 3 books at the same time and there is NO shipping.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"right\"\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/real-estate-related-courses-taken-and-taught-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"John T. Reed real estate investment background\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJohn T. Reed’s real estate investment background\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/fundamentals-of-real-estate-finance\" title=\"Fundamentals of Real Estate Finance table of contents\"\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/fundamentals-of-real-estate-finance-reader-comments\" title=\"Fundamentals of Real Estate Finance reader comments\"\u003eReader comments\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/fundamentals-of-real-estate-finance-front-matter\" title=\"Fundamentals of Real Estate Finance front matter\"\u003eFront Matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/fundamentals-of-real-estate-finance-index\" title=\"Fundamentals of Real Estate Finance index\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cform method=\"post\" action=\"http:\/\/order.store.yahoo.net\/cgi-bin\/wg-order?johntreedcom-store\"\u003eWant all 3?\u003c\/form\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"site\"\u003e\n\u003cform method=\"post\" action=\"http:\/\/order.store.yahoo.net\/cgi-bin\/wg-order?johntreedcom-store\"\u003eFree shipping for 3 or more books\u003c\/form\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e70 pages, 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback, $29.95\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"alert\"\u003eNot available in traditional or online book stores\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"at20mc\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"at16pcc\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":6779465923,"sku":"","price":29.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/FOREFcover200.gif?v=1440961339"},{"product_id":"how-to-manage-residential-property-for-maximum-cash-flow-and-resale-value-7th-edition","title":"How To Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value, 7th edition","description":"\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis book is for owners, property managers, and resident managers. It tells how to \u003cstrong\u003emaximize\u003c\/strong\u003e your income and resale value, \u003cstrong\u003eminimize\u003c\/strong\u003e your expenses, and \u003cstrong\u003ereduce\u003c\/strong\u003e the hassles of residential management. It is practical, street-smart, aggressive, and thorough.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"right\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSee my real estate investment videos \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.net\/youtube.html\" title=\"John T. Reed You Tubes\"\u003ehere\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMany readers buy one, read it, then order a \u003cstrong\u003ehalf dozen\u003c\/strong\u003e more for their managers and tell them, “This is our procedure manual from now on.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-j6CW3sUcKg\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI must have read your book on apt house investing in 1995 \u0026amp; it changed my life for the better. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"mailto:twg@gmsi1.com\"\u003eThom Garlock\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI have actually purchased about 5 copies of this over the years, and I give them away to friends and clients. It is the best real estate book I have ever read!\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eAnd not that it makes me a better critic, but I am a real estate lawyer and investor. I have probably read more than a hundred books on the topic. I can always learn something from a book, but often have to wade through quite a bit of trash to find that \"gem\" with other authors.... I really enjoy your writing style and the information is the best I have seen. \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.johntreed.net\/osowski@alaska.com\"\u003eShane Osowski\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThanks John!  Your books and newsletter are the best in the industry. Keep up the great work. I have quite a few of your books, and a lot of books by many others. Yet I only ever reread and refer back to your books. Your books have substance, specifics and details where others are general and wanting. \u003ca href=\"mailto:mailto:\u0026lt;tracy@parrotrealtyinc.com\u0026gt;\"\u003eTracy\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI have  been a subscriber to your news letter for 10+ years, and have purchased many  of your books.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI have found your writings to be marvelously helpful and entertaining reading. You are a real straight shooter.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBased on what I learned from you, I did 1031 exchanges [in]  Haddonfield[, NJ] into [an apartment] complex in Burlington, VT.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eI have also developed two commercial facilities in  Vermont, and used your arguments and court cases to support component depreciation of 15 years rather than [39] years for landscaping depreciable life on these. Since one of these properties was built on enormous landfill, this was a huge  difference in tax deferral. Any one of the things I did above would have paid for your newsletter subscription and books many, many times  over. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"mailto:LawrenceKruse@aol.com\"\u003eLarry Kruse\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e$39.95, \u003cstrong\u003e266\u003c\/strong\u003e pages, 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Shipping is free if you buy 3 or more books at the same time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIncludes:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ctable cellspacing=\"2\"\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to screen out bad tenants\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to recruit, supervise, and how much to pay resident managers\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhat is cash flow and how to increase it\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhat to put in your lease\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to increase rent \u0026amp; how much to increase it\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to reduce property taxes\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to set up a bookkeeping system\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhen and how to discipline misbehaving tenants\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to manage on an absentee basis\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to set rents at the optimum levels\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhy the typical excuses for not raising rents are not valid\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChecklists for the most important period: move in and move out\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"bookcontents\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to maximize income other than rent\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to deal with emergencies\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhat policies to adopt\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhich energy conservation measures really make economic sense\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to minimize water and sewer expenses\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to minimize telephone expenses\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to minimize trash collection expense\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to get a flat roof repaired or replaced cheaply and reliably\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to purchase needed supplies and replacement parts as cheaply as possible\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhat insurance you need and how to get it as cheaply as possible\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to deal with the unique management challenges associated with single-family rental houses\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to turned unused or underutilized space into rentable space\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProperty management bibliography\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Full of nuts and bolts information,\" says Ted Willis, Fairfield, CT.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/real-estate-related-courses-taken-and-taught-by-john-t-reed\" title=\"John T. Reed real estate investment background\"\u003eJohn T. Reed real estate investment background\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/front-matter-for-how-to-manage-residential-property-for-maximum-cash-flow-and-resale-value-7th-edition\" title=\"front matter for How to Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value, 7th edition book\"\u003eFront matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-real-estate-investment-blog\/table-of-contents-for-how-to-manage-residential-property-for-maximum-cash-flow-and-resale-value-7th-edition\" title=\"Table of Contents for How to Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value, 7th edition book\"\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-real-estate-investment-blog\/index-for-how-to-manage-residential-property-for-maximum-cash-flow-and-resale-value-7th-edition\" title=\"Index for How to Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value, 7th edition book\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/reader-comments-on-how-to-manage-residential-property-for-maximum-cash-flow-and-resale-value-7th-edition\" title=\"reader comments for How to Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value, 7th edition book\"\u003eReader comments\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-real-estate-investment-blog\/changes-form-the-6th-to-the-7th-editions-of-how-to-manage-residential-property-for-maximum-cash-flow-and-resale-value\" title=\"Hw T Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value, 7th edition book\"\u003eChanges from the 6th edition to the 7th\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":27260812547,"sku":"","price":39.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/HTMRP7_cover_no_spine_2016.jpg?v=1472840328"},{"product_id":"an-american-principal-residence-is-the-most-advantaged-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours","title":"An American Principal Residence is the Most Advantaged Investment on Earth: Maximize Yours","description":"\u003cp\u003eDon’t make the mistake I made of assuming \u003cstrong\u003ereal\u003c\/strong\u003e real state investors buy larger rental properties like apartment buildings and office buildings. After 54 years in the business, I figured out that “There’s no place like home” for your real estate investment money. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e$34.95 8 1\/2 x 11 paperback 189 pages\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eMost favored investment\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHouses get about two dozen special good deals not available to other investments. Income tax deductions and exclusions, financing terms, personal loan liability, HECMs, life estates, property tax discounts, very small political risk, bankruptcy homestead exemptions in some states, not counted for Medicaid eligibility and many college loans, you can live in it, and more.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAny disadvantages? You cannot put it into your IRA or 401(k). But it already has the main benefit of those pension plans or better—tax benefits like the $250,000 per spouse capital gain exclusion.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/table-of-contents-for-an-american-principal-residence-is-the-most-favored-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours\" title=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/table-of-contents-for-an-aAn American principal residence is the most favored investment on earth maximize yours\"\u003eTable of contents\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/front-matter-an-american-principal-residence-is-the-most-favored-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours\" title=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/front-matter-an-aAn American principal residence is the most favored investment on earth maximize yours front matter\"\u003eFront matter\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003ca title=\"Index of An American principal residence is the most favored investment on earth maximize yours book\" href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/index-of-anamerican-principal-residence-is-the-most-favored-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours\"\u003eIndex\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003ca title=\"John T. Reed’s Real Estate Investment Background\" href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/real-estate-related-courses-taken-and-taught-by-john-t-reed\"\u003eJohn T. Reed’s Real Estate Investment background\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/news-release-new-book-by-john-t-reed-released-an-american-principal-residence-is-the-most-advantaged-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours\" title=\"news release for An American Principal Residence is the Most Favored Investment on Earth: Maximize Yours book\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/news-release-new-book-by-john-t-reed-released-an-american-principal-residence-is-the-most-advantaged-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours\"\u003eNews release: New book by John T. Reed released An American Principal Residence is the Most Advantaged Investment on Earth: Maximize Yours\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ctime pubdate=\"\" datetime=\"2021-07-28\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cem class=\"text-light\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eJul 28, 2021\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/time\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/pages\/reader-comments-about-an-american-principal-residence-is-the-most-advantaged-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours\" title=\"reader comments on An American Principal Residence is the Most Advantaged Investment On Earth: Maximize Yours\"\u003e• Reader comments on this book\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/blogs\/john-t-reed-s-news-blog\/errata-and-supplemental-material-for-the-book-an-american-principal-residence-is-the-most-advantaged-investment-on-earth-maximize-yours\" title=\"An American Principal Residence  is the Most Advantaged Investment on Earth: Maximize Yours!\"\u003eErrata and supplementary information for this book\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBelow are other John T. Reed real estate investment books that buyers of \u003cem\u003eAn American Residence is the Most Advantaged investment on Earth: Maximize Yours\u003c\/em\u003e may also benefit from reading:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen you buy 2 books at the same time, you save $2.55 on shipping to U.S. addresses. Buy 3 books at the same time and there is NO shipping.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: start;\"\u003e\n\u003ca title=\"Checklists for Buying Rental Houses and Apartment Buildings book\" href=\"https:\/\/www.johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/checklists-for-buying-rental-houses-and-apartment-buildings\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/CFBRHcover200_480x480.gif?v=1440481483\" alt=\"\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/CFBRHcover200_480x480.gif?v=1440481483\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003ca title=\"How to Buy Real Estate for At Least 20% Below Market Value  volume 1 book\" href=\"https:\/\/www.johntreed.com\/collections\/real-estate-investment\/products\/ho-to-buy-real-estate-for-at-least-20-below-market-value-volume-1-by-john-t-reed\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/20V1cover200_480x480.gif?v=1440961911\" alt=\"\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/20V1cover200_480x480.gif?v=1440961911\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eNo bullseye on you\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you own rental property, you are a landlord! Horror of horrors. Not only do they not have any of the principal residence advantages, they have serious class-envy disadvantages like the anti-landlord passive loss limits of the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Landlords are the most-often-sued category of businesspeople. Homeowners rarely get sued for owning a principal residence.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf you have a duplex where you occupy one unit or a house where you rent rooms, generally, the ferocious anti-landlord laws do \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e apply to you.\u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eIf you own stocks or bonds, you are in a millionaires-billionaires realm where politicians scream that you are not paying your fair share. That is not good. But you rarely hear that about homeowners.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eLeverage\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe most powerful return multiplier in finance is leverage. That is, you buy a $300,000 home but you only put down, say, 10% or $30,000. If in the first year you own it, it goes up in value 10%, you doubled your investment. At the end of that year, your equity (current value minus mortgage balance) would have gone from $30,000 to $60,000.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIs leverage dangerous? It can be, but it is far less dangerous in principal-residence mortgage lending than in borrowing to buy other types of investments like apartment buildings, stock, or bonds.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst\u003c\/strong\u003e there are the percent down payments you can make:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• VA—zero\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• FHA—3.5%\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• PMI (private mortgage insurance)—5%\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• Seller finance—whatever the seller will agree to\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTerms are typically \u003cstrong\u003efixed-rate, self-amortizing, 30-years, no prepayment penalty\u003c\/strong\u003e. Borrowing to buy other assets like stocks, commodities, and even rental real estate will force you to make far \u003cstrong\u003elarger down payments, pay balloon payments, accept adjustable rates, meet margin calls\u003c\/strong\u003e, and so on. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSecond\u003c\/strong\u003e, there are legal, ethical ways you can avoid paying the mortgage balance if the foreclosure proceeds are not enough. In AZ and CA, for example, they have an \u003cstrong\u003eanti-deficiency-judgment\u003c\/strong\u003e statue for owner-occupied, purchase-money, conventional mortgages. That means if you get foreclosed or deed the property to the lender in lieu of foreclosure, your property alone is responsible for paying off any amount not covered by the present market value. In other words, the lender cannot come after your income or other assets.\u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eOther states have \u003cstrong\u003eone-action rules\u003c\/strong\u003e and\/or \u003cstrong\u003eunlimited-dollar homestead bankruptcy exemptions\u003c\/strong\u003e. Roughly speaking, those laws make it possible for you to \u003cstrong\u003ewin\u003c\/strong\u003e unlimited amounts on your home equity if it appreciates, but \u003cstrong\u003elimit your losses to your equity\u003c\/strong\u003e or, with the bankruptcy exemption, you do not even lose your equity! \u003cstrong\u003eYou can win but you cannot lose\u003c\/strong\u003e. Or \u003cstrong\u003eyou can win unlimited amounts, but your ability to lose on your principal residence is limited or zero\u003c\/strong\u003e. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThird\u003c\/strong\u003e, if you refrain from lying on your mortgage application, which you had better because it is a felony, you generally will not be allowed to overstretch your ability to buy. The Subprime Crisis of 2008-9 was traumatic for the world and America. Many reforms were put in place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNowadays everything from the appraisal to the credit report to the source of your funds to your income are thoroughly checked. Is it possible to get into trouble and not be able to pay your mortgage or to find that your equity is all gone so it no longer makes sense to make the mortgage payment? Yes. But is the post-Subprime Crisis mortgage market, that is rare.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eYou can USE it!\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost investments have \u003cstrong\u003eno use to you\u003c\/strong\u003e except selling them to buy something else. Not so your principal residence. Yes, it is an investment and the main source of senior wealth in America.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou cannot live in or eat or drive gold or stocks or bonds. The only other \u003cstrong\u003einvestments you can use\u003c\/strong\u003e are non-residential real estate \u003cstrong\u003ewhere you have your business\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003estockpiled food\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat’s more, living in your principal residence investment or eating stockpiled food are \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e taxable events. If you want to use gold, stocks or bonds to pay for a place to live or to eat, you must first sell it then use the sale proceeds to pay for the home or the food. Selling it \u003cstrong\u003eis\u003c\/strong\u003e a taxable event, furthermore, during high inflation, the tax on your phantom gain due to the falling purchasing power of the U.S. dollar will be horrendous.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eYou can use ACTIVE profit strategies\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost homeowners are passive about increasing the value of their home. They hope it goes up in value, and it usually has, but they do not do anything to increase the value or buy at a bargain price. But y\u003cstrong\u003eou do not have to be passive\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI have written four books on \u003cstrong\u003eactive profit strategies\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003cem\u003eFixers\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003cem\u003eHow to Buy Real Estate for At Least 20% Below Market Value\u003c\/em\u003e volumes 1 and 2\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e• \u003cem\u003eHow to Increase the Value of Real Estate\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFixers\u003c\/em\u003e is about how to make cost-effective changes to your properties to increase their value. \u003cem\u003eHow to Increase the Value of Real Estate\u003c\/em\u003e tells you how to increase the value of your property by realizing unrealized potential in the property through cost-effective changes, both tangible and intangible like better zoning. \u003cem\u003eHow to Buy for At Least 20%  Below Market Value\u003c\/em\u003e is about ways to make bargain purchases so you have already made an extraordinary profit on the day you \u003cstrong\u003ebought\u003c\/strong\u003e the house. You can do those things with a succession of principal residences and thereby make more profit than your neighbors do from their purely passive approaches.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eDeal with variations in home prices around the U.S.\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen I started in real estate investing in 1969, the median home price was about the same in all regions of the U.S. The highest priced area was within about 5% of the median and so was the lowest priced area. And the median income was about \u003cstrong\u003ehalf\u003c\/strong\u003e the price of the median priced home.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHa! No more. Now, the median household income is $79,900. But the median home price is $350,000—4.4 times the median income. And the lowest-priced metro area—McAllen, TX $84,500—is 1\/13.7th of the highest—San Jose, CA $1,160,000. So my book tells you how to deal with those regional price variations. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eLife phases\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYour housing needs usually change dramatically over the course of your adult life. My case was fairly typical: Army for eight years, civilian bachelor, married, grad school. Wife went to grad school in Boston, moved from Philadelphia area to San Francisco area, had three sons, they went off to college and their own homes. Those normal housing need changes over the course your adult life are a big part of this book.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eTransaction costs\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTransaction costs in real estate are a scandal. They are anachronistic, excessive, dubious morally and ethically. This book would have you be more aggressive at moving to a more expensive house more frequently and would therefore result in more transactions and more transaction costs. So it addresses each such cost and tells you how to minimize each. It is easier said than done, but doable.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eRisks\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll investments have risks. Home ownership has eleven.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis book thoroughly discusses the risks of owning a home and shows over a century of home price increases and decreases.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd it discusses when to bail out temporarily—1921, 1985 in Texas, maybe 2007. Also, litigation, lead paint, asbestos, toxic contamination, overbuilding, recessions, depressions, single-industry areas like military towns or factory towns, political risks, fire, flood, slide zones, tornado, freezes, wildfires, volcanoes, sinkholes, avalanches, and virus pandemics.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGenerally, your principal residence is the least risky of all investments. Certainly that’s true of political risks like new laws that hurt homeowners. Politicians know not to mess with homeowners. But they are generally hostile to all other types of investments.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eWorking at home\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI have been working at home at least part time since I was 22. I started working at home full time at age 32. I was working at home before it became cool in 2020. That is an \u003cstrong\u003eadditional\u003c\/strong\u003e use of a home. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe had our current home custom built including a 360-square foot, north-facing home office for me and a garage big enough for four cars where I store about 15,000 books. I am a writer. Other occupations would have different needs. But I can assure you that whatever business you are in, the 15-foot commute is great.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy chapter on that discusses the pertinent tax and other laws, your ability to convert home business space to non-business, home-office design.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eSchools\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEven if you have no kids, public schools are an important investment characteristic when it comes to principal residences with more than one bedroom. The buyers of your home will likely have school-age children even if you do not.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eClimate, not climate change\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWould you like to live where you have almost no need for air-conditioning and no expense of the electric bills and repair and replacement costs? No problemo. Move to Moraga, CA where I lived before my current home. There are also plenty of other towns in coastal California where the weather is nice, but you only need A\/C about five days per year. And you can get that from an inexpensive window unit.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGrowing up in NJ, I knew that more northern areas were colder and more southern areas were warmer. But I thought that was all there was to climate. No way, Jose.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEven staying within the US, climate is like Alice’s Restaurant. You can get anything you want. Low humidity. Low rainfall. No freezing temperatures. And you can get all that just in the state of California. In the Sierra Nevada mountains, they measure snowfall in feet not inches—Lake Tahoe, Squaw Valley. In coastal California and the agricultural Central Valley, it generally does not rain in the summer. The closer you get to the Pacific Ocean, the cooler it is. They are called microclimates in our area.\u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eOne often overlooked way to minimize climate control costs is to live and work where there are few degree days. Degree days are deviations from about 72 degrees. Both in Hawaii and Coastal CA, you can buy a home where you almost do not need any climate control.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLiberals are pushing hard on “renewables” for energy. What I m advocating—because of simplicity, not politics—is one of the things liberals pushed before they heard of renewables: Mother Nature. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eInstead of worrying about which artificial source of the energy your home uses, why not skip almost all artificial sources—even solar cells and windmills? In Moraga, CA, you are relying on the sun itself, not panels. You are also relying on the Pacific Ocean and the hills there. Those three things produce a very mild, moderate climate twelve months of the year. \u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eThat is a sort on non-taxable annuity like living in your house and eating stockpiled food are not taxable events. Enjoying year-round moderate weather is non-taxable “income” of a sort.  You are protected against rises in fuel prices or solar panels or windmills. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis can also be accomplished by being a snow bird where you migrate in the Spring and Fall from an in-season great \u003cstrong\u003esummer\u003c\/strong\u003e area to a different great \u003cstrong\u003ewinter\u003c\/strong\u003e climate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eProperty and other taxes\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy house is now worth about $3 M. If I had figured out what is in this book earlier in my life, my current house would be worth more like $10M. And my property taxes would still be about what they were in 2020: $8,482 a year.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat is $8,482 ÷ $3,000,000 = .28%. That is the same as the state with the \u003cstrong\u003elowest\u003c\/strong\u003e rate as a percentage of current value: .27% in HI. HI is a special case with a lot of ground leases. But I wanted to make the point that notwithstanding its reputation as a high tax state, we long-term Californians generally have vey low \u003cstrong\u003eproperty\u003c\/strong\u003e taxes as a consequence of another special case: A 1978 California referendum known as Proposition 13. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy bigger point is you can minimize property taxes—your biggest expenses after mortgage interest—by where you choose to invest. Ditto sales taxes, inheritance taxes, and estate taxes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eGetting after-market improvements really cheap\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou want a pool? Cheap?  Buy a house with a pool. Do \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e call a pool guy and have him install one at your house.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eRemodeling\u003c\/em\u003e magazine does an annual study of the cost of various remodeling projects and how much that project adds to the value of your home when it is done. \u003ca title=\"Remodeling magazine cost versus value study\" href=\"https:\/\/www.remodeling.hw.net\/cost-vs-value\/2021\/\"\u003ehttps:\/\/www.remodeling.hw.net\/cost-vs-value\/2021\/\u003c\/a\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThey range from 47.7% for an upscale master suite addition to a garage-door replacement 93.8%. The garage-door replacement costs $3,907 and raises the home value by $3,663. The master suite addition costs $320,976 but only increases the value of the house by $152,996.\u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eActually installation of a pool is not on the list. But HGTV says online,\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eReal estate experts estimate that an average 14x28-foot in-ground concrete pool potentially adds 5 to 8 percent to the real estate value of your home. If your property is worth $400,000, you’ll realize a boost to the value of your property of about $20,000 to $32,000. But the average cost of installing a 14x28-foot in-ground concrete pool is about $50,000, which means you’ll only recoup a portion of your original pool investment.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eSo if you buy a house with a pool already installed, you pay about $20,000 to $32,000 for it. But if you hire a pool installer to install one at the house you already own, you will have to pay full sticker price of $50,000.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eSame math applies to getting solar panels, adding a room (generally), adding another bathroom, tennis court, basketball court, standby emergency generator, theater, slate roof, stone siding, concrete pavement instead of asphalt, and the like. Buy \u003cstrong\u003eexisting\u003c\/strong\u003e versions of that stuff. Do \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e install them \u003cstrong\u003enew\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBy the way, my wife and I designed our current and had it custom built. The admonition to buy existing not new does \u003cstrong\u003enot apply to the entire home. \u003c\/strong\u003eWe did that because we did \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e want a \u003cstrong\u003epool\u003c\/strong\u003e and all the existing homes had one and because we \u003cstrong\u003ewanted\u003c\/strong\u003e a \u003cstrong\u003e360-square foot office\u003c\/strong\u003e which none of the existing homes had.\u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eWe are quite glad we did that. Indeed, I recommend building a custom home once in your life for the experience. It \u003cstrong\u003eis\u003c\/strong\u003e a powerful experience.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eTelecommunications\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eIt used to be that all houses had an AT\u0026amp;T landline, maybe two. Ha! We told the builder to put a phone jack in every room other than the formal living room. That turned out to be so many we had to run off the ringers in many of the. The power in an old AT\u0026amp;T landline was not enough to ring so many phones.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWe also told them to put cable TV lines in every room other than bathrooms. That was really smart. The house next door to us was built on spec. It had one cable outlet in the kitchen.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWe also told them to make all the electric outlets in the office quadruple, not double and to put four outlets in the middle of the floor.\u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eMore than enough? Not even close. We had to install more cable lines when cable became our main TV, internet, phone, and business link to the outside world. And we use a ton of surge protector extension cords.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eAnd in today’s world, when you buy a home, you need to make sure it has good mobile phone service, WIFI, and is not on the north side of a high hill (for satellite service)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eLiving off your land\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThere are many cable TV shows nowadays about living off the land in AK and elsewhere. That is prohibitively difficult. Also not my area of expertise. But I researched it thoroughly and give you the broad parameters of what you would need to do it or have a chance of doing it. \u003cbr\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eIf you are thinking about that, you probably need to be talked out of it. If you insist, you need a different book than mine. Mine basically says that a house that is \u003cstrong\u003eVERY\u003c\/strong\u003e unusual is generally \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e a good investment. (The only one who wants it is you. And there is plenty of cheap land in the boondocks such that people can and generally would want to do their own thing on another piece not buy yours.)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eAn American Principal Residence is the great overlooked advantages investment. Don’t you make that mistake. Make the most of the series of homes that you buy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eSocial Security\u003c\/strong\u003e probably will \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e take care of you in your old age. It is going \u003cstrong\u003ebankrupt\u003c\/strong\u003e. But the advice in this book combined with a series of well-chosen principal residences probably \u003cstrong\u003ewill\u003c\/strong\u003e take good care of \u003cstrong\u003eyou and your family\u003c\/strong\u003e in your old age. And you will \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e have two of the scourges of modern real estate investor life in America: Tenants and employees.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"John T. Reed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39402291167347,"sku":"","price":34.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0958\/9924\/products\/APRcoverNEW.jpg?v=1627076026"}],"url":"https:\/\/johntreed.com\/collections\/best-sellers.oembed","provider":"John T. Reed","version":"1.0","type":"link"}