3/7/10: Using Real Estate to Fund College – Making Good Choices in Today’s Market
How to pay for college can be as important and difficult a decision as selecting which school to attend. With all the changes in the market, can real estate still help?
To school us on this important topic, plus provide a timely warning about an old law that has taken on new relevance in one of the largest real estate markets, we dialed up (for those old enough to remember a dial) one of the smartest attorneys we know!
In the classroom for College Funding with Real Estate 102:
• The Professor of Profit and Your Host, Robert Helms
• Teacher’s Aid and Co-Host, Russell Gray
• Professor Emeritus and the Godfather of Real Estate, Bob Helms
• The Dean of Decision Making, Attorney Jeff Lerman
After a quick stop at the campus coffee shop for some pre-class caffeination, we slid into our school desks behind the golden microphones and Professor Robert Helms calls the class to order.
Like many topics in school, the first thing we discuss is why this topic is relevant. Not everyone has children or wants to send them to college – or maybe all of that is in your rearview mirror. But we soon discover that this type of real estate investing is just a niche like any other – and there’s money to be made!
College is expensive and getting more so every day. And in a soft economy, finding creative ways to pay for some or all of it is more important than ever! As entrepreneurs, we get excited when there’s a problem like this in the market that we can solve – and this one is no different.
Since Jeff Lerman is an “A” student, while the rest of us are…well, not as smart as Jeff…we have him lead our study group. And like a typical “A” student, he starts talking about math and homework. Yes, there’s homework involved! But asking the right questions and doing the math is one of the secrets to success. Jeff takes us through his own real life analysis and the questions and answers he’s finding as he goes through this process himself.
Jeff explains how he uses the cost of on-campus housing as his baseline for doing the investment analysis. How can he get more value for the same cash flow? Great question!
This leads to a discussion about which advisors he calls on to help him. Yes, even advisors have advisors. We discuss who you need and how to work with them.
The very important topic of single family homes versus condominiums comes up, which opens up the door for a lively classroom discussion. Jeff reveals how his initial idea was contradicted when he got into the math. See? It’s true! Do the math and the math will tell you what to do! Of course, you have to do the right math – which includes accounting for all the variables. So we talk through all of this. Good stuff!
As we wind up the discussion of funding college with real estate, Jeff throws in some extra credit work – and tells us what every investor must know about the California Home Equity Sales Contract Act.
Never heard of it? Neither had we. But it poses some real risks to active real estate investors looking to cash in on today’s distressed property bonanza. And even if you’re not actively investing in California, you’d be wise to be aware of this legislation – because often times other states follow California’s lead on consumer protection. This is especially true in the currently distressed property market.
Before we knew it class was over. But as always, we learned a lot and had some fun. Many thanks to Jeff for another enlightening appearance on the show!
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Don’t miss a show! Subscribe to the Free Podcast
Want More? Sign Up for The Real Estate Guys Free Newsletter!
1/3/10: Happy New Year with Gary Eldred – What Does 2010 Hold?
The easiest thing in the world to do is predict the past. But what about the future? As we enter a brand new decade, what does the future of real estate look like? To find that out, The Real Estate Guys climbed the proverbial technology mountain to connect with a real estate sage – all the way from Dubai!
Sitting on the mountain top for this broadcast:
- Your real estate guru, Robert Helms
- Pillow fluffer and co-guru, Russell Gray
- Trump University faculty member, best selling author, seasoned real estate and renowned consultant, Dr. Gary Eldred, PhD.
Digging through technological challenges, The Real Estate Guys mined some golden nuggets of wisdom from special guest, Gary Eldred who called in all the way from Dubai! As someone who has studied, taught, invested, and consulted on real estate for decades, Dr. Eldred has earned the right to have an opinion. We talk stocks, bonds, gold and real estate. Gary tells us which asset class he believes will outperform all others in the new decade – and why.
Gary also reveals his strategy for hedging against economic uncertainty. He tells us which type of mortgage he prefers right now and why. As one of the most well traveled investors we know, we also were intrigued by Gary’s comments China, India and Africa – and how what’s happening there affects real estate in the US and other parts of the world. Of course, since he was calling from Dubai (where he is currently working) and Dubai’s been top of the financial news recently, we made sure to talk about that too!
Don’t miss a show! Subscribe to the Free Podcast
Want More? Sign Up for The Real Estate Guys Free Newsletter!
12/27/09: A Glimpse into the New Year with Ken McElroy and Kim Kiyosaki
In our continuing quest for real estate wisdom, The Real Estate Guys catch up with two of the most active real estate investors around. As 2009 closes and we look forward to the new decade, what do the experts think?
Gazing into their crystal balls for this episode:
- Your senior seer, host Robert Helms
- Chief ball polisher, co-host Russell Gray
- Rich Dad’s Real Estate Advisor, best selling author and real estate entrepreneur, Ken McElroy
- Best selling author, prolific real estate investor and entrepreneur, Kim Kiyosaki
We like to talk to people who know what they’re talking about. Not just because they’re smart, but because they have wisdom that only comes from experience. We kick off with an honorary member of The Real Estate Guys, Ken McElroy. This is a show worth listening to with a note pad because he gives us some great pearls of real estate wisdom!
Ken starts out telling us what he’s excited about as we enter the new year. While many people are licking their wounds, Ken says 2009 was his best year ever! Then he goes on to explain why the unraveling of the mortgage industry has provided extraordinary opportunity. He also discusses his strategies for market selection, tells us what NOT to do, and then reveals some of the markets and product types he’s most interested in right now. Plus, he gives us the one key item he looks for to find markets that are more likely to provide lower marketing and turnover costs, and a bigger pool of quality tenants.
Ken wraps up his appearance by sharing what he sees coming in 2010 in terms of interest rates, foreclosures, rents, inflation, the dollar and more! Really good stuff!
The second half of the show features a conversation with Kim Kiyosaki, Rich Woman author and big time real estate investor. She gives us her take on the prospects for 2010, which includes both bad news and good news. Then Kim shares some details on a huge real estate deal she just closed which exemplifies her forecast. She reminded us that she started in 1989 in the middle of the last real estate “meltdown” with no money and no credit. Unable to obtain conventional loans for the first 8 years, she explains how she had to be creative to get her deals done. When you hear the size of her latest deal, you’ll realize how much can change in 20 years! As we said in Equity Happens, 20 years from now it’s going to be 20 years from now. The difference will be what you choose to do between now and then.
We’re going to continue checking in with the biggest brains in real estate to see what they’re going to be doing in the new decade. Stay tuned to The Real Estate Guys - and tell a friend!
Don’t miss a show! Subscribe to the Free Podcast
Want More? Sign Up for The Real Estate Guys Free Newsletter!
12/13/09: Ask The Guys – What’s On Your Mind?
What is the meaning of life? Why did God create flies? How many little styrofoam balls in a bean bag chair? These are just some of the many questions that The Real Estate Guys will never answer. Fortunately, our listeners have sent in much better questions! To provide irrefutable answers to our listeners’ real estate questions, we decided to the gather together the world’s most brilliant minds. But since they weren’t available, we decided to take a stab at it ourselves.
The professional pontificators in studio for today’s show:
- Your illustrious host, Robert Helms
- Financial philosopher, Russell Gray
- The Godfather of Real Estate, Bob Helms
Answering your questions is one of our favorite things to do. But because we want to keep our broadcasts topical and focused, we typically don’t take calls. Instead, we gather up questions during the week(s) and look for common themes. Then, we dedicate a show to sharing our ideas and opinions on a few select questions. For this broadcast we addressed the following topics:
- Is it dangerous and dumb to buy an out of area property without seeing it first? Is there a way to do it safely?
- What should I so with my negative equity / negative cash flow rental property?
- What do you think about the investment opportunities in Southern California real estate?
- I’ve been studying real estate for two years, but haven’t bought anything because I’m afraid of making a mistake. What should I do?
Have a question you want The Real Estate Guys to answer? Send it to us at Ask The Guys!
Don’t miss a show! Subscribe to the Free Podcast
Want More? Sign Up for The Real Estate Guys Free Newsletter!
11/22/09: Where to Invest – Market Analysis in the New Economy
It’s almost unfair to call this a “new” economy, since the rules to real estate investing abruptly changed over 3 years ago. But since the mortgage meltdown in the United States trickled down and around (making a large, sticky mess), its ramifications are still manifesting. Just like when a football team gets a new coach (analogy for Russ) or a band gets a new guitarist (analogy for Robert), it takes some time to “gel”. If you’re not “gellin’” with the new rules of real estate, then this show is for you!
Robert arrived in the studio for today’s broadcast after 3 weeks, 30 flights and over 30,000 miles of flight time! From his international travels, he brought back a few souvenirs, lots of pictures and several valuable perspectives on market analysis in the new economy.
In the cockpit for today’s show:
- Your Pilot, Robert Helms
- Co-Pilot and Financial Strategist Russell Gray
- Navigator and Godfather of Real Estate, Bob Helms
We kicked off the show discussing the importance of market selection in the wake of the mortgage meltdown. With so many areas having suffered steep declines in values, its tempting to go in an scoop up “deals”. But if all the the gas isn’t out of that particular market yet, as good as the deal might look, you just might be catching a falling knife! Robert shared the 5 Key Indicators he looks at when evaluating the potential of a market.
While the 5 Key Indicators aren’t necessarily something new, the ability of the average investor to leverage technology to access information certainly is. Robert shared specific instances from his recent travels where he watched investors do in mere minutes what once took many days to accomplish. And even though there are lots of deals out there because the economy is soft, the best deals will always go to the investor who is able to act quickly.
Another interesting discussion topic revolved around the idea of allowing the loan tail to wag the deal dog. In the days of easy money, it wasn’t like this. In today’s more conservative lending environment, especially in anything besides residential 1-4 units in the US, understanding how financing affects both your entrance and exit is crucial.
Of course, with Bob along for the ride, the young bucks were reminded that this “new” economy, while certainly with some 21st century twists, is still something for which the lessons learned over six decades of investing still apply. One thing that never changes is the importance of actually visiting the markets you hope to invest in.
Listen to this Broadcast Now
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Want More? Sign Up for The Real Estate Guys Free Newsletter!
The REAL Book of Real Estate by Robert Kiyosaki and Friends
The REAL Book of Real Estate
by Robert Kiyosaki and 22 Contributing Co-Authors
He’s back.
Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, one of the best selling books in history, is back talking about real 
estate! Why now? He says the rules have changed and the numbers make sense again.
In The REAL Book of Real Estate, Kiyosaki compiles real estate investing wisdom from 22 veteran experts. The Real Estate Guys had a chance to talk personally with Mr. K. about this book and the unusual timing of its release. You would think that a book on real estate investing would be a hard sell in this post meltdown world. And it is.
But the book was released now to help investors who’ve only known boom times. It shares the knowledge and perspectives of veterans who’ve survived and thrived through previous real estate market cycles (which is lesson #1: real estate cycles, it doesn’t disappear). If real estate isn’t “over”, then the question remains: where are the opportunities and how can I find or create them? That’s what this book addresses. It might be a bad time to sell a book on real estate investing, but that might make it a great time to pick up bargain properties. This book will teach you many of the things you need to know.
What we like best about it is that it’s immensely readable. It isn’t a book about theory. It’s very real world practical. And you can start anywhere, as each author’s work is a stand alone discussion about their particular area of expertise. It’s as much a reference manual as an educational work.
We like it. We’ve been around real estate for awhile and we learned a lot. We think you will too.
Order your copy today – and be sure to visit the archives to listen to The Real Estate Guys’ exclusive interviews with Robert Kiyosaki and many of his contributing co-authors. Let us know what you think!
