Tag: wealth building

What Happens When You Plan Your Exit Strategy Before You Buy

 Plan Your Exit StrategyWhat Happens When You Plan Your Exit Strategy Before You Buy!

Are you ready to plan your exit strategy before you buy property?  To plan your exit strategy for your real estate investment before you buy, may sound like starting your meal with dessert. However, it can prevent you from getting into a bad deal. In his landmark book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey calls the second habit, “Begin with the End in Mind.” This is especially true in today’s real estate market.

Unless you want to wander aimlessly down a highway you need to know your exit before you get on the interstate.  In real estate investing the same principle applies. To be successful, you need to plan how to exit the deal when you enter the deal.

This article will discuss what happens when you plan your exit strategy for your real estate investment before you buy.

What is an Exit Strategy

 

To begin our discussion, first we will discuss “what is an exit strategy.” An exit strategy is essentially the way that you plan to dispose of the property that you are considering buying. To be successful in real estate investing, you must know your exit strategy when you purchase the property. The goal in real estate investing should be building wealth for you and your family, period. Think about the ways that this investment will increase your wealth. Will the deal give you tax benefits, appreciation, or income? If you are fortunate you may get all three in your deal. Or are you looking to recover your expenses quickly and earn a profit?

Why is it important to have an exit strategy?

 

Many people believe that real estate investing is about buying a piece of property just to possess it. Or, they call themselves “Real Estate Investors”, when they purchase real estate at a specified price and “hope” that that price will increase over time.  These types of “investors” are often disillusioned when the cost of maintaining a property becomes prohibitive or the value of the property decreases significantly.  But knowing how and when you plan to dispose of the property, helps you decide on how to structure the deal. It helps you decide on the price and the time frame that are suitable for your goals.

What would happen if you had an exit strategy?

If you had an exit strategy, you would have a better understanding of the maximum amount of money to spend on your deal.  If the market is good and I know that the property will command premium rents or a long- term lease, then I might use a buy and hold strategy to hold on to the property for long term wealth creation and positive cash flow.  If the property is in an up and coming neighborhood, I know that I can make a quick return by forcing the appreciation of the property. Then I may consider a rehab or fix and flip exit strategy to make a quick return on my investment.

Conclusion/Call to Action

Knowing your exit strategy, gives you the confidence needed to know that whatever the situation, you are making the right decision. Wining at the real estate investing game requires knowledge, skill, and abilities to analyze and evaluate every scenario. You will need several arrows in your quiver to hit the bull’s eye with your investing.

To learn how we help you live the life of your dreams through real estate investmenting, contact us at The Book On Investing or RADAR Investments, Its Always On!  

 

We look forward to hearing from you.

Leave us a comment below!

 

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Growing Wealth in 2016

Growing Your Wealth
Growing Your Wealth

To grow the wealth necessary to live the life of your dreams, you will need a mechanism to do so. It doesn’t matter if your dream is having luxuries beyond your wildest imagination or helping out family members or the local charity of your choice. You need the money and assets to help you accomplish your dreams and goals.

In this New Year, learning how to be wealthy in today’s economy is as much “art” as it is “science” – but both are learnable. It’s not a mystery, and the fact that it’s been repeated throughout history, over and over, in every culture testifies to the fact that yes, indeed, you can learn how to get rich. Sitting on your couch playing video games is probably not going to make you rich, but digging ditches for the next 50 years probably won’t either. So how can you become rich?

1.) Grow Wealth: Invest in Real Estate

This is my favorite way to get rich! Buying real estate has been one of the surest ways to get rich since before there was money. As you know everyone needs it and, as Mark Twain so eloquently stated, “they’re not making it anymore.” There are numerous paths to wealth in real estate, but it generally revolves around buying property that brings in more income than it costs to own, and holding on to that property until the prices go up.

 You can start building your real estate empire right now by reading my book The Book On Investing:The Ultimate Guide for the Savvy Investor.

2.) Grow Wealth: Invest in the Stock Market

The stock market can be an incredible source of wealth for you and your family. There are a lot of different ways to invest in the stock market. From penny stocks to mutual funds to options and more – there is enough to easily make your head spin. If stocks are going to be your chosen path to getting rich – don’t simply throw your money at random companies. Take time to fully investigate the kind of investing you want to do and follow other investors within that niche to learn how they have made their fortunes.

3.) Grow Wealth: Start an Internet Business

Many internet entrepreneurs are building pretty substantial wealth through online websites and web companies. One of the most significant benefits for starting an online business is that barrier to entry is much lower, as you don’t need buildings, employees, merchandise, or other expensive items to begin – just a computer and some ingenuity. To find out more about starting or building and internet business go to My Biz Dream Team.

4.) Start a Traditional Business

Although a lot of the shopping in the world is moving online, brick and mortar businesses are still the cornerstone of our economic system.  For example, you could move to an area where the economy is thriving (North Dakota) and start a business to serve the oil and gas workers in that area.  Building wealth through a traditional business is built by selling either services or products to consumers or other businesses.

5.) Grow Wealth: Save Your Money

Finally, there is the good old fashion way to get rich: slowly. Save your money, each and every month, and you’ll grow wealthy just by principle. For example, if you make the average American salary, around $50,000 per year, and can live frugally to save half of your income – you could bury your cash under your mattress for 40 years and retire with a cool million bucks.

Or, if you took that money and invested in real estate, earning an average return of 12% per year, you could have $26,389,054.18 after 40 years.  This is why I choose investing in real estate rather saving my way to riches.

Conclusion:

 These are the top five ways that you can use to build wealth in today’s economy.  

To learn how we are helping our clients achieve success by investing in real estate and in businesses, please join us at The Book On Investing. Also, if you are interested in investing in real estate, join us at RADAR Investments

 

Do You Want to Be Wealthy When You Grow Up?

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” is a question that you become accustomed to hearing as a child from adults.  Many of us were annoyed by that question, but we admit that we have asked many children that question ourselves.

 Today, let’s focus on you! Now that you are grown up, “What do you want to be?”

Do you want to be wealthy? Or are you worried about not being broke? If your focus is on not being broke, you will never be wealthy!  By focusing on “not being broke” you attract “brokenness” into your life and all the negativity associated with it. 

 Research shows that you have over 60,000 thoughts a day and that 95% of them are the same thoughts that you had yesterday.  80% of those thoughts are negative—wealth robbing, happiness robbing thoughts.  You must release those negative “brokenness” thoughts and replace them with positive “wealth building” thoughts.   Then you can be what you want to be!

As you begin the New Year, think about the wealthy, abundant, and happy life that you want to live.

 Conclusion
In The Savvy Investor Program™, we teach you how to create the life of your dreams. We can teach you wealth building tips that you can begin to use immediately! We help you get off the treadmill. Remember that with real estate investing as one part of your financial plan, you can create the life of your dreams by following a few time-proven wealth building strategies and techniques. Today, buy your copy of The Book on Investing.

Share this post and link with your friends so that they can begin to understand how to create a wealthy and abundant life. Let us know about other topics that you would like for us to discuss.

 

 

 

Real Estate Entrepreneurship is the Shape of Things to Come- Why Everyone Will Have to Become an Entrepreneur

People frequently ask me why we started our real estate investing company, Radar Investments, It’s Always On! My reply is always the same. We saw a problem in the real estate industry and we believed that we could provide a solution. Our coaches always told us that the most reward comes to those who solve the biggest problems. Radar Investments was created with the goal of helping people with their distressed property issues.

A recent article by Anna Vital and Alexandr Unak entitled, “Everyone Will Have to Become an Entrepreneur”, http://fundersandfounders.com/everyone-will-have-to-become-an-entrepreneur/, suggest that the businesses and companies are replacing workers with entrepreneurs. Why are these businesses and companies hiring entrepreneurs over the traditional workers? Because entrepreneurs bring certain skill sets to companies that other workers do not. Entrepreneurs understand how to solve problems and create value.

Entrepreneurs learn how to see a problem in a business model or system and they begin to think about solutions to solve a problem. In the real estate business, we saw a problem with the number with the houses that were on the market that people wanted to sell  but could not for one reason or the other. We saw the opportunity to create value for these property owners by helping sell their properties to other buyers outside of the traditional real estate sales model. In this scenario, the seller disposes the unwanted property, the buyer gets a great home to live in or fix up and resell and we get paid for bringing the two parties together.

Using this formula, entrepreneurs like myself, are partly responsible for the housing recovery that is currently taking place all across America. This is a very good thing indeed. If the American economy is to fully recover, entrepreneurs with the ability to solve problems and create value will lead the way.

At our website, www.thebookoninvesting.com, and in our book , The Book on Investing we share with you ideas on how you can use real estate entrepreneurship as a means to survive the new economy. Your plan should consist of investing in real estate, and developing or buying businesses.

Conclusion
In The Savvy Investor Program™, we teach you how to create your own economy. We help you get off the treadmill. Remember that with real estate investing as one part of your financial plan, you can create the life of your dreams by following a few time-proven strategies and techniques. Today, buy your copy of The Book on Investing.

Share this post and link with your friends so that they can buy a copy of the book also. Let us know about other topics that you would like for us to discuss.

 

 

How the Wealthy Use Real Estate Investments to Buy Luxuries: Boys (and Girls) With Their “Toys”!

One of my wealthy business coaches taught me a four part formula for creating generational wealth. He said first, you need to build a business. Second, reinvest in your business. Third, invest in real estate.  Fourth, buy luxuries.

The fourth part in the formula is what I am writing about today… using your real estate investments to buy your luxuries. Luxuries or “toys,” include cars, boats, trips or any non-asset that costs a considerable amount of money. I emphasize non-asset because if it’s not making you money, it is a non-asset.

Did you know that the average term of a new car note stretches out more than five years to 65 months? This is the longest average term ever reported. Seventeen percent of all new car loans in the fourth quarter of 2012 were actually between 73 and 84 months, and some notes stretched as long as 97 months. Just four years ago, only 11 percent of loans were in the 73-to-84 month category. Experts warned that long term car loans seriously present a heightened risk for consumers because it takes so long for consumers to reach a point where they owe less on the car than it is worth. Although “underwater” cars are pretty common and generally do not come with the emotional issues that underwater houses do, they still are extremely hard to trade or sell when you can no longer afford the payments.

Today, most mid-size sedans cost in the range of $20,000 to $30,000. The higher end luxury cars cost $40,000 and up to $80,000 or more. Now I know that there is nothing like driving a brand new car.  The automobile is embedded into the American culture. Like most men my age, I like high end luxury sports automobiles.  However, using the formula taught to me by my coach, I have learned to use my assets to purchase the “toys” that I want.

Instead of paying cash or financing a car like most people, just imagine taking your money and buying a house or commercial property either with cash or using the money as a down payment. You can then rent the house or lease the property and use the positive cash flow from the rent to finance your dream car. This way, you use the asset to pay for your “toy” while preserving your capital in the property. In addition, you get all the benefits of depreciation, appreciation, and tax savings on your real estate investment.

This is how wealthy people create and maintain wealth while living a life filled with luxurious “toys.”  You too can let your business or your asset pay for your “toys”.

Conclusion
In The Savvy Investor Program™, we teach you how to create your own economy. We help you get off the treadmill. Remember that with real estate investing as one part of your financial plan, you can create the life of your dreams by following a few time-proven strategies and techniques. Today, buy your copy of The Book on Investing.

Share this post and link with your friends so that they can buy a copy of the book also. Let us know about other topics that you would like for us to discuss.

 

 

From Coffee Cans and Mattresses to 401Ks: Where Do You Stash your Cash?

Where do you stash your cash? Are you one of the millions of Americans who is giving your hard earned money over to money managers charging exorbitant fees to invest in the stock market? Or, are you blindly pouring money into your 401K plan hoping that it keeps going up? Do you know what you are getting as a return on investment on your cash? Well, a recent article in CNN Money (http://economy.money.cnn.com/2013/03/22/american-householdwealth/) suggests that people are getting poorer while the investment companies and money managers who direct your 401K accounts are getting richer investing your money.

According to the article, which was based on recently released Census Bureau statistics, the median net worth of American households was $68,828 in 2011, down from $81,821 in 2000 (adjusting for inflation). Overall, median household net worth fell by $12,993, or 16 percent, between 2000 and 2011. Median household net worth showed no statistically significant change between 2010 and 2011.That means no growth for you.

The Census Bureau report also indicated that Americans are pouring money into retirement investment vehicles such as 401Ks in record amounts. In 2000, 30 percent of all wealth was held in the form of home equity. By 2011, this percentage had declined to 25 percent. At the same time, the share of wealth held in retirement accounts increased from 18 percent to 30 percent over the same period.

What does all of this mean? It means that the lack of financial education is costing you dearly. Are you like so many other Americans throwing all of their money into retirement accounts hoping that when you retire there will be enough there to cover your expenses? Meanwhile, the profits of the companies that you invest in are relativity flat. This sounds more like gambling than investing. It also means that we are way too dependent on the advice of others when it comes to our money. We need to take charge and learn how to manage our own financial destiny by investing in ourselves with good education and trusted investment coaches and mentors. We need to diversify our investments and know more about using self-directed IRA’s to invest in real estate, cash flowing entities, and financial instruments such as notes and liens.
 
Conclusion
In The Savvy Investor Program™, we teach you how to create your own economy. We help you get off the treadmill. Remember that with real estate investing as one part of your financial plan, you can create the life of your dreams by following a few time-proven strategies and techniques. Today, buy your copy of The Book on Investing.

Share this post and link with your friends so that they can buy a copy of the book also. Let us know about other topics that you would like for us to discuss.

Personal Finances: Are You Taking One Step Forward and Two Steps Backward?

Do you feel like you are losing ground financially? Do you feel like you just can’t get ahead? You work hard and try to be wise with your spending and savings, but your standard of living seems to keep going down. You just can’t seem to put your finger (or in this case foot) on the problem. Well, if you are in the middle class there are economic forces working against your interest that are keeping you from living the kind of life that you have worked so hard to build. And the bad news is that it may be getting worse.

You see, the price of everything is going up. We have all seen the increases in the prices of gas, housing, food, health care and the other basics that you need to survive. The prices are increasing faster than wages are growing. A recent story in the news indicates that “America’s median household income has dropped by more than $4,000 since 2000, after adjusting for inflation. The typical trappings of middle-class life are slipping out of financial reach for many families”.

On the other hand (again foot), what’s really interesting in all of this, is that the top 1% earners are getting wealthier. It’s estimated that between 1993 and 2011, the top 1% of America’s earners saw their income soar by 58%, while everyone else only got a 6% bump. This means that the top 1% earners are doing something that middle income earners need to follow just to keep up.

The wealthy follow a simple formula that keeps them in the higher income categories. They understand the value of building businesses, investing in real estate, and in educating themselves through coaching and mentoring.

Conclusion

You have a choice to make. Do you stay on the treadmill of life hoping for wages to increase or by finding another job? Or, do you decide to take the steps to make life better for you and your family to never look back?

In The Savvy Investor Program™, we teach you how to create your own economy. We help you get off the treadmill. Remember that with real estate investing as one part of your financial plan, you can create the life of your dreams by following a few time-proven strategies and techniques. Today, buy your copy of The Book On Investing.

Share this post and link with your friends so that they can buy a copy of the book also.

Let us know about other topics that you would like for us to discuss.

It’s Because You’re Not Branded! Duh?

The Three Paths Through Your Financial Life

Pam and Dexter_Award_ultimate_author_bootcamp_london_dsc_0140
Connie Ragen Green, James Lafferty, the authors, Raymond Aaron, Dr. Mark McKerkow

Have you wondered why you are not as successful as you wanted to be? Have you wondered what was missing in your effort to take your business to the next level? Have you ever thought about branding?

Our business coach, Raymond Aaron, the New York Times best-selling author of “Double Your Income Doing What You Love,” www.aaron.com teaches that there are three paths through life: )1 The Path to Broke, 2) The Path to Middle Income and; 3) The Path to Rich. Which path are you on? He often says that people fail financially and in business because they do not have the right brand or they are not branded at all.

In his latest book, “Branding Small Business for Dummies,” Raymond describes branding as “the science and art of making something that isn’t unique, unique”. According to him, “Branding in the marketplace is the same as branding on a ranch. On a ranch, branding is used to differentiate the cattle from every other rancher’s cattle. In the marketplace, it’s what makes a product or service stand out in the crowd of similar products. The right branding gets you noticed, remembered, and sold. Or should I say bought, because today it is all about buying not selling. Branding is the promises you MAKE and the promises you KEEP. If you’re always late, that’s your brand”

The Path to Broke
Did you know that most of the people in the world fall into this category? Recent statistics revealed that 61% of the population follow this path in life. They work on a standard job or in a business that pays just enough to keep up with inflation. On The Path to Broke, these people” pay everybody else first, (i.e. mortgage/rent, loans, utilities etc.), before that pay themselves. The only plan or financial goal they have to improve their condition is to get another JOB . They have no brand and they swim in the “sea of sameness” just like everyone else. How do I know this? I know because I followed this path for a number of years. I felt like I was on a treadmill. I wasn’t going anywhere fast! Are you following The Path to Broke?

The Path to Middle Income
The second path through life that people choose is called The Path to Middle Income. Thirty-six percent (36%) of the population choose this path in their financial lives. They seek education or they get a skill, license, or profession. They earn more than the folks in The Path to Broke, but they are not branded. A good example of this concept would be your local dentist, lawyer, or other professional. They may make good money but unless they are branded or invest wisely, they will always be within the financial boundaries of” middle income”. Again I am very familiar with this path because before I became educated about branding, this was my destiny. I thought that striving for anything else was reserved for the rich. The Path to Middle Income is a good category. However, I realized that I was still owned by my job. I could never be independently wealthy. Do you feel tied to your job or business? Are you unable to take a vacation because the job or business would stop if you were not there?

The Path to Rich
Then there is the third path, The Path to Rich. This is where only 3% of the population resides. The people in this category understand the importance of investing, developing and buying businesses, and most of all the importance of branding. They realize that protecting their brand is the most important thing for them financially.

What is Your Brand?
When you think of a good brand, what do you think of? Apple, Coke, Exxon, McDonalds? All these are multi-billion dollar brands. These companies spend millions of dollars each year promoting these brands so that you, the consumer, continue to buy their products and services. Also, these companies will do just about anything to protect the brand.
As a matter of fact, at a recent seminar that I attended, I had a chance to listen and learn from Mr. James Lafferty, the former CEO of Coca Cola in the Middle East and Africa. He stated that one of his main responsibilities while at Coca Cola was to promote and protect the Coke Brand. He also stated that managing your brand is the key to have a successful business that will last for years.
So, what are you doing to build and develop your brand? What do you stand for? How is your work product or service different from all of the other ones that are out there? Understanding this basic concept can move you from The Path to Broke to The Path to Rich.

If you want to be sure that you receive the next article on this subject: How Can I Develop a Brand to Grow My Business, don’t forget to sign up to follow this blog.

For more information about this topic and other wealth creating ideas go to www.thebookoninvesting.com to download your copy of The Book On Investing.

Building Better Business Relationships

JT Foxx_Dexter_Steadman Graham_MegaPartnering
Dexter with JT Foxx and Stedman Graham

Do you have the types of relationships that are beneficial to your career or business? Are you networking with the right people? As you know, Your Network equals your Net Worth!

Here are seven reasons why your success depends far more on those all-important relationships than you realize:

(1) Any entrepreneur will tell you that their greatest asset is their network or circle of influence. It’s where opportunities come from. And when it comes to networking, doing it old school is a major distinguishing factor versus social networking. When you have a personal relationship with someone that creates a level of trust that sets you apart from the virtual hordes on the Internet. People do business with people they trust and know.

(2) Strong relationships make it easier to get information. Information is power. It could be about a major project, a potential customer, a big deal or ways to save money. When it comes to important stuff, you have to give to get, and you’re not going to get anything valuable from somebody who doesn’t have a relationship with you.

(3) Relationships get people through tough times. We’ve learned that, all things being equal, a good personal relationship will help you keep your job, win the business, or gain whatever it is you need. It can make the difference when times are hard. It also means you have someone to lean on. Try leaning on someone you hardly know.

(4) The bigger your business becomes the higher the stakes, the bigger the deals, the more important everything becomes. And that means people have to look you in the eye and feel confident that they know who they are dealing with and that you’ll do what you say you’re going to do.

(5) Companies today are leaner, and that means they have fewer, but stronger relationships. No kidding. It’s the same reason why manufacturers minimize their number of vendors, suppliers and components. Because it’s more cost effective that way. Also, there’s a cost associated with bad business because you didn’t know the person as well as you should have and he failed to meet a commitment. In addition, they understand that building stronger relationships with customers, the create clients for life.

(6) It may be easier than ever to work and communicate virtually, but all that does is level the playing field, meaning there’s nothing that distinguishes your relationship with an individual. There’s no real connection, no real bond, and when push comes to shove, you can’t expect that person to do anything special or to go the extra mile for you.

(7) Building good relationships is important in just about every other country on earth than they are in the U.S. Why that is, I don’t know. It seems as though every culture devotes more time and energy to personal relationships than Americans do. And the more global our markets become, the more important it is to get with the program.

Free Networking Events
If you want to find out how you can build better business relationships then join us at one of our networking events.

Send us an email to get information about these free networking events at:

dexter@thebookoninvesting.com
or
pamela@thebookoninvesting.com.

Visit us at www.thebookoninvesting.com

Sometimes It’s Not Just About The Money!

Dex and Pam
Dexter and Pam

We’ve been talking to you about the importance of having the financial freedom to do what you love, but it is important not to confuse being rich with being happy. A dream life is not just about the money. Most extremely wealthy people will tell you that having lots of money doesn’t automatically guarantee happiness and satisfaction. Those come when money is not the goal but a tool you use to obtain what you really want out of life.

For example, Pamela’s initial goals were best obtained by looking for opportunities to be an active, healthier, more productive member of society. Of course, that involved spending money and doing things for herself, but it also meant doing things for others — which is the very important other end of the spectrum.

Philanthropy has been a huge part of our lives and we’re very involved with our church and local charities. This past Christmas, for example, we rang bells for the Salvation Army and met many kind-hearted individuals while standing in front of Wal-Mart. We have learned that it is important for us to give both money and time to charitable endeavors.

We’ve talked to you about having a dream, setting goals, and wanting more out of life than going to work every day, just trading hours for dollars. Of course there is nothing wrong with that but, if you are like us, you want and can achieve so much more out of life.

We’ve also talked to you about being able to help people, which is the other end of the happiness equation. Investing has given us the opportunity to create the kind of life we want to live.

Now, we want to help others do the same, to realize that relying on a traditional job for financial security (for them and their families) is just not the answer. We all need to work, but it doesn’t have to be the proverbial 9-5. We’re not saying that you need to quit your job today.

What we are saying to you is that while you’re working and have that income, try to create some other kind of business or investment opportunity. Finding financial freedom isn’t going to happen if you are just having a portion of your paycheck going into a savings account or mutual fund. That’s not going to be enough in today’s economy.

The answer is to find a way to make money from your passion. What is it that you want? What are your dreams? What is your WHY?

We have several coaches who help us fulfill our dreams. One of those coaches is Connie Ragen Green. Connie is such an inspirational person! She decided after many years of teaching and working a second job as a real estate broker to start an on-line marketing business. In a few short years she was making a 6 figure income from her efforts.

I have personally met and talked to Connie and participated in her training programs. If you want to enhance your career, jump start your new business, or take your current business to the next level follow the link at the end of this post for the FREE Super Summer Giveaway (it’s available year round) to get some outstanding free information!
Super Summer Giveaway

That’s right the information is FREE! Connie will help you start to see the possibilities!!