Crushing It in Apartments and Commercial Real Estate summary

Once, an eager young investor shared her plans with the author, Murray. She confided that, after buying her first piece of commercial real estate, she planned to say goodbye to her current job and splurge on some luxuries. She looked forward to an array of purchases: a new car, new office space and a set of elegant business cards.

The author could only look askance at these plans, however, because he knew something that she didn’t: investors entering the real-estate market should do everything in their power to avoid spending money.

There’s a myth surrounding real-estate investment. It goes something like this: once you buy a property, all you have to do is sit back, relax and watch the money pour in.

This myth took shape over hundreds of years. For centuries, the nobility and landed gentry passed land from generation to generation, pocketing the money from tenants and employing people to manage their properties for them. More recently, scamsters promoting get-rich-quick schemes have perpetuated the myth that property is an investment that will generate a passive income.

Tenants are the bedrock of your real-estate business. After all, without the rent they provide, your investment would essentially be worthless.

This raises two important questions: How much rent should you charge and how should you select your tenants?

Money doesn’t equal motivation. So before you buy your first property, take a look in the mirror and ask yourself a few questions. What will drive you to meet the highest standards? How will you stay motivated to outperform the competition? One thing is certain – succeeding in the real-estate market will demand a great deal of effort and time, as well as an unwillingness to quit.

What will keep you going?

The author was once tempted to sell all his properties. All of them were finally profitable, and the thought of cashing out had such appeal that he even discussed selling with an interested buyer.

In the end, however, he decided against it. Why?