| If you read from the Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad | | | | and set up meetings with people who will be your |
| book series, you may start to wonder when | | | | advisers for the area. Then visit the area and the |
| exactly you can jump in and start buying up | | | | people you contacted. Look for investment leads. |
| investment properties. After all, Kiyosaki spends | | | | Visit sites. |
| the entirety of "Cash Flow Quadrant" telling you | | | | Finally, know the limits of your abilities. McElroy |
| how you will never make your financial goals | | | | advises would-be real estate do-it-yourselfers to |
| come true unless you become an investor, | | | | avoid trying to save a buck in the beginning of |
| preferably a real estate investor. That is, if one of | | | | the game by neglecting to build a team. Even |
| those goals is to become wealthy. | | | | though you need to have a basic knowledge of |
| You may think, "Great! I'll get right into investing!" | | | | every aspect of the real estate game - which |
| only to find that you have no idea how to do | | | | you will continually expand upon - you need to |
| that. Or that you have tons of preliminary work | | | | build a team of experts that will be able to save |
| to do. | | | | you time and money. Even though it doesn't |
| Preliminary work is very important. In "Cash Flow | | | | seem like they're saving you money in the |
| Quadrant," Kiyosaki says that plenty of people | | | | beginning, they are actually saving you from |
| who had followed his advice, subsequently lost | | | | making costly mistakes. |
| everything they had built simply because they had | | | | McElroy advises the investor to begin by hiring on |
| neglected to take their time to learn to do it right. | | | | an attorney, an accountant, a real estate broker |
| Don't be that person. Take the time. Set your | | | | and a property manager. He warns that, before |
| ground work. | | | | you make any purchases, make sure your real |
| Part of that ground work is educating yourself on | | | | estate acquisitions business is set up correctly. |
| the basics - basic accounting, basic tax law, basic | | | | (Yes, it is a business. It is a money-making |
| real estate law. Yes, you will have professionals | | | | venture isn't it? Then it is a business.) |
| doing the bulk of that work for you, but you | | | | After that, you will need to meet with appraisers, |
| don't want to be completely dependent on them. | | | | architects, insurance agents, property tax |
| And you want to know what they're talking about | | | | consultants, income tax consultants, estate |
| when they give you updates. You also want to be | | | | planners, surveyors, structural engineers and |
| able to ask them intelligent questions. After that, | | | | industrial hygienists. Keep searching and meeting |
| you need to consider what type of property you | | | | with people, McElroy says, until you find people |
| want to pursue and where you want to pursue it. | | | | whose goals and business methods mesh with |
| Get to know the area. Get a feel for what you | | | | your own. After all, your livelihood will depend in |
| are getting yourself into. | | | | large part on your team. You want it to be a |
| Ken McElroy, author of "The ABCs of Real Estate | | | | good one. |
| Investing," breaks it down into the different levels | | | | After you have educated yourself, researched |
| of research. First, do online research in order to | | | | the markets, made your goals and set up your |
| find an area to explore for possible real estate | | | | team, then you are ready to begin hunting for |
| purchases. When you choose an area, call ahead | | | | investment properties. |