The Complete Guide to Your First Rental Property: A Step-by-Step Plan from the Experts Who Do It Every Day [Paperback]

Teri B. Clark (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2008

You are ready to take the plunge and begin investing in your first rental property. Congratulations, but now what do you do? You do not have to go it alone with this new comprehensive book that will guide you step-by-step upon the road to the financial success you desire. Investing in rental properties is one of the safest and smartest investments you can make. Real estate appreciates at a rate far greater than the rate of inflation, builds equity, provides a steady return on investment, provides cash flow, and can offer substantial tax benefits. With the sound guidance in this book you will be able to add to your monthly income, build equity and if you wanted to, retire comfortably and EARLY. Rental property investing is a perfect part-time business because real estate is a business where the assets appreciate and cash flow is generated even when you are absent. The book contains over 25 forms that you will need in your business and an excellent section on the use of the Internet and computerizing your business. The book covers property selection, tenant selection, inspecting premises, marketing and advertising of property, showing the property, tenant application, credit verification, employment and income verification, reference verification, lease agreement, deposits, walkthrough with tenant, collection of rent, late notices and collecting fees, statements, owner's proceeds, tenant complaints and requests, repairs, use of contractors, compliance with state and local regulation, property inspection after tenant leaves, deposit refund, accounting and computer software, income and expense, depreciation, a special section on using computers and the Internet, landlord tenant laws for all 50 states, federal housing regulations and disclosure information, legal issues, real estate terminology, techniques, advice, real estate management tools and software. Includes over 25 forms for use in the business.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Atlantic Publishing Company (FL); illustrated edition edition (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0910627983
• ISBN-13: 978-0910627986
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #727,267 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Loaded with factual error! Avoid this title!, June 18, 2009

By 

K. G. McCann (Maryland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Complete Guide to Your First Rental Property: A Step-by-Step Plan from the Experts Who Do It Every Day (Paperback)

This book is superficial and factually inaccurate throughout. It starts in the first few pages where she says the U.S. dollar is backed by gold (It's not) Then come the obviously phony and exagerated rags to riches case studies, interspersed with advertisements from her fellow realtors, including their phone numbers! Then there's the sloppy writing that, as one of many possible examples, on page 66 values a property using the same $1000. a month rent to figure both the net operating income and the gross rent multiplier, resulting in the wrong calculation of property value!! The mistaken info just keeps coming and coming.

I suspect those positives reviews here are from total real estate neophytes or, more likely, plants by her fellow realtors whose ads appear in this book. Avoid! I sent it back! There are many better titles around.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent way to get started!, July 8, 2008

By 

Jenifer M. Delia (Clearwater, FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Complete Guide to Your First Rental Property: A Step-by-Step Plan from the Experts Who Do It Every Day (Paperback)

Teri B. Clark has accomplished an amazing feat with her Complete Guide--she makes the fine art of renting property seem possible and even enjoyable. With her easy to read prose, Clark calmly tackles everything from tax forms and mortgage details to where to find property listed online and how to find reliable tenants. Her snappy section headings make the entire book a delight to read, and her sense of honest humor gives the reader complete confidence in her advice and tips.

Clark capably covers each step of the somewhat shrouded and rock-filled path to successful ownership with insight and wit. Her advice ranges from the practical (buy a house when you have the money to do so--the market has nothing to do with it) to the specific (how does one decide how much rent to charge?). She includes case studies throughout that showcase how professionals conduct their own rental properties, and there is a sense that not only does Clark know exactly what she is talking about, but each thing she tells readers is supported by a wide array of well-informed and experienced people in the field. This kind of confidence is a comfort to find in a guide book like this; after all, investing in real estate can be a frightening prospect, especially with the housing market crisis occurring today. Clark makes it seem like such a crisis can be weathered by any smart rental property owner who gets into the business with a full understanding and appreciation of what lies ahead--and Clark gives that background in this guide.

The book is also filled with sample leases, blank charts, and other extremely relevant and useful forms and questionnaires that only enhance the reader's experience. Clark even includes websites that offer property searches, websites that explain tax information, and many, many more.

While reading this book, the reader can sense that Clark is providing the most up-to-date and realistic guidance for this venture. If someone is contemplating getting into the real estate rental business, this is definitely the place to begin researching the feasibility of such a dream.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The first (and best) place to prepare for real estate investment, August 13, 2008

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Guide to Your First Rental Property: A Step-by-Step Plan from the Experts Who Do It Every Day (Paperback)

If you're ready to begin investing in your first rental property, or you represent a general lending library catering to new investors and real estate acquirers, then The Complete Guide to Your First Rental Property is an essential pick. The Complete Guide to Your First Rental Property covers the basics of property selection, acquisition, marketing, housing regulations, taxes, and more. The first (and best) place to prepare for real estate investment.