Cracking self-help property investment books

[just_jd]

I recently posted a thread asking for advice on whether or not to attend a property investment seminar, and the general feedback has been that it is a waste of money.

As such I have decided to do my own research but would appreciate any advice on the best self-help property investment books around. Especially of interest to me is how to buy below market value properties and securing a positive cash flow from rental income (and obviously all other related matters). Do you know of any cracking books on these topics?

Your advice would be extremely helpful.

Thanks a stack in advance!

[Lawcruncher]

The question to ask is this:

If someone has written a book on how to make money why did they bother when they knew how to make money?

A possible answer is that writing books on how to make money is a good way to make money and that this is the only way the author really knows how to make money.

[mind the gap]

I agree. The best books are written by poets in garrets, who will starve if they do not produce something good!

[jeffrey]

poets in garrets
Anagrams:

repeating sorts
grantee riposts
treating posers
[and, my favourite,]
restating prose

[PennyJohnson]

The question to ask is this:

If someone has written a book on how to make money why did they bother when they knew how to make money?

A possible answer is that writing books on how to make money is a good way to make money and that this is the only way the author really knows how to make money.

If a person knows how to make money investing in property, they can make even more money by writing a book about it as well.

[Lawcruncher]

I agree. The best books are written by poets in garrets, who will starve if they do not produce something good!

Poets in garrets may well already be starving. Since they are starving strange things happen in their brains. When that happens they compose masterpieces. They then earn a bit of cash and never starve again. That means their brains return to normal and so they never produce another masterpiece.

The above is the "artists need to suffer to produce art" theory. It is only partly true. Mendelssohn (amongst others) proved it did not apply to him.

Would Rimbaud have astonished the world and epatéd the bourgeoisie if he had stayed at school and done his A-levels instead of deranging his senses? (30 marks).

[jeffrey]

Anyway, poets seem to resign as soon as appointed to office; how disappointing.

[Lawcruncher]

Anagrams:

repeating sorts
grantee riposts
treating posers
[and, my favourite,]
restating prose

How long does it take you to do the Times Crossword?

[jeffrey]

How long does it take you to do the Times Crossword?
I don't. Also, a confession: I obtain anagrams wholesale from http://wordsmith.org/anagram/index.html.

[mind the gap]

I don't. Also, a confession: I obtain anagrams wholesale from http://wordsmith.org/anagram/index.html.

We would never have guessed! ;)

[mind the gap]

Would Rimbaud have astonished the world and epatéd the bourgeoisie if he had stayed at school and done his A-levels instead of deranging his senses? (30 marks).

If it were not for the fact that for many students, doing their A levels seems to do a pretty good job of deranging their senses anyway, I would say that deranging one's senses sounds much more fun.

I bet there's scope for an evening class in that : Sensory Derangement. I think I would want to go straight into the Intermediate class, at least. Maybe even Advanced. (It would have to be on a Friday night though, when I've warmed up with a few glasses of red wine and a toasted teacake).

[jeffrey]

I tried "We would never have guessed". It turned-up 43 479 anagrams.
This is the first: A Deed Werewolves Nevus Hug.
This is the thousandth: A Deed Venue Vowel Sew Shrug.

But I'm off for my tea, now, so you'll have to read all the rest of the 43 477 yourselves.

[mind the gap]

I tried "We would never have guessed". It turned-up 43 479 anagrams.
This is the first: A Deed Werewolves Nevus Hug.
This is the thousandth: A Deed Venue Vowel Sew Shrug.

But I'm off for my tea, now, so you'll have to read all the rest of the 43 477 yourselves.

Well, I suppose they make more sense than some of the things people write on this forum....:rolleyes:

[Lawcruncher]

If it were not for the fact that for many students, doing their A levels seems to do a pretty good job of deranging their senses anyway, I would say that deranging one's senses sounds much more fun.

Good job you cannot get absinthe these days then.

To save Jeffrey the trouble I'll make the joke: absinthe makes the heart grow fonder.

[mind the gap]

Good job you cannot get absinthe these days then.

Why? Aren't I allowed any fun?

[jeffrey]

Good job you cannot get absinthe these days then.

To save Jeffrey the trouble I'll make the joke: absinthe makes the heart grow fonder.
Drat!
But what makes Bridget Fonda?

[Lawcruncher]

Why? Aren't I allowed any fun?

To drink absinthe you need to go to Paris and find a dark corner in a café. (I understand that that is quite difficult these days.) You then have to assume the air of a poète maudit and call for absinthe. (You can in fact buy it now, though it is apparently not what it was.) You then have to prepare it. Absinthe is prepared by placing a sugar cube on top of a specially designed slotted spoon and then placing the spoon on the glass which has been filled with a shot of absinthe. Ice-cold water is then poured or dripped over the sugar cube so that the water is slowly and evenly displaced into the absinthe until the drink is diluted to a ratio between 3:1 and 5:1.

Have you got time for all that?

[Izzycam]

It's easier to drink meths you get the same hallucinations and it's cheaper.:)

[mind the gap]

To drink absinthe you need to go to Paris and find a dark corner in a café. (I understand that that is quite difficult these days.) You then have to assume the air of a poète maudit and call for absinthe. (You can in fact buy it now, though it is apparently not what it was.) You then have to prepare it. Absinthe is prepared by placing a sugar cube on top of a specially designed slotted spoon and then placing the spoon on the glass which has been filled with a shot of absinthe. Ice-cold water is then poured or dripped over the sugar cube so that the water is slowly and evenly displaced into the absinthe until the drink is diluted to a ratio between 3:1 and 5:1.

Have you got time for all that?

No, I just knock mine back mine neat, on the bench outside Sainsbury's, with a big hunk of gorgonzola.

Makes for a quick and tasty tea-time treat.

[hunter]

I recently posted a thread asking for advice on whether or not to attend a property investment seminar, and the general feedback has been that it is a waste of money.

As such I have decided to do my own research but would appreciate any advice on the best self-help property investment books around. Especially of interest to me is how to buy below market value properties and securing a positive cash flow from rental income (and obviously all other related matters). Do you know of any cracking books on these topics?

Your advice would be extremely helpful.

Thanks a stack in advance!


Angela Bryant has published a book "The complete guide to property investing success" that could provide you a solid foundation. I have met her at a few network meets. She and her husband own a portfolio worth over £10mill and manage it themselves. It took them more than a decade to build the portfolio and she is surely not one of the "get rich quick" brigade. Her kids are older now, their property business seems to be running well and she might have simply enjoyed writing the book. Maybe it's something she always wanted to do.

Anyway, it's about £10. You can't go wrong for a tenner. And no, I don't get any commission. :)

[mind the gap]

Or you could just spend the tenner on a slug of absinthe....:D

[Lawcruncher]

No, I just knock mine back mine neat.

In that case you are apparently not geting the full effect.

[just_jd]

Angela Bryant has published a book "The complete guide to property investing success" that could provide you a solid foundation. I have met her at a few network meets. She and her husband own a portfolio worth over £10mill and manage it themselves. It took them more than a decade to build the portfolio and she is surely not one of the "get rich quick" brigade. Her kids are older now, their property business seems to be running well and she might have simply enjoyed writing the book. Maybe it's something she always wanted to do.

Thanks Hunter. Really nice that among the 20-odd replies to my thread at least one concerns itself with the original question. Will defininitely look to get the book. Cheers!

[mind the gap]

Thanks Hunter. Really nice that among the 20-odd replies to my thread at least one concerns itself with the original question. Will defininitely look to get the book. Cheers!

That is unfair. #2 and #5 also addressed your question directly, even if they did not tell you what you wanted to hear!

[TC2009]

I recently posted a thread asking for advice on whether or not to attend a property investment seminar, and the general feedback has been that it is a waste of money.

As such I have decided to do my own research but would appreciate any advice on the best self-help property investment books around. Especially of interest to me is how to buy below market value properties and securing a positive cash flow from rental income (and obviously all other related matters). Do you know of any cracking books on these topics?

Your advice would be extremely helpful.

Thanks a stack in advance!

Property investment is not the sort of industry that you can learn from either books or mentors unfortunately. Research the market yourself - see what properties are fetching what rents and work from there. Buying below market value properties means scouring the auction houses plus the local agents who deal with repos

[Izzycam]

We are being a bit negative and silly.
Seriously, if you read all the backdated posts (other than "take a break") you will get a lot of useful information.
Also research your area street by street either by using the land registry or websites such as net house prices, house prices etc, to see what house price averages are.
Keep in touch with all the estate agent in your area to see what's new in and what can be bought cheaply.
Good luck.

[hunter]

Just to add to some advice given to you already:

- Install firefox
- download http://www.property-bee.com/

It shows you the history of the advertised property on rightmove for example:

History
date event
23 March 2009
* Price changed: from '£72,500' to '£74,995' [Found by n/a]
23 February 2009
* Price changed: from '£74,950' to '£72,500' [Found by n/a]
10 February 2009
* Price changed: from '£79,950' to '£74,950' [Found by n/a]
17 January 2009
* Price changed: from '£84,950' to '£79,950' [Found by n/a]
06 January 2009
* Subtitle changed: 2 bedroom end of terrace house [Found by n/a]
16 October 2008
* Price changed: from '£93,950' to '£84,950' [Found by n/a]
18 September 2008
* Initial entry found. [Found by n/a]

Very good to know ;)


If you would like to buy with discounts I would advise to either:
- do your own marketing (leaflets, newspaper ad, lead generating website...)
- buying leads
- buying ready made deals (only if you are an expert in due diligence)

Getting 30%+ BMV deals from estate agents or auctions is very difficult. The auction start to be swamped with cash rich investors paying over the odds.

Anyway, it's important to learn the basics first. If the book helps....

[Izzycam]

Back to talking about self help books, someone should write a book on crackers tenants and what they get up to, this would put 99.9% of prospective landlords off.
I know if someone had told me some of this stuff before I got into this game I would have run a mile!

[jeffrey]

Crackers tenants? Crumbs. They take the biscuit (or even: cake the biscuit).