Customer Reviews

The Real Estate Fast Track: How to Create a $5,000 to $50,000 Per Month Real Estate Cash Flow (Creating Cash Flow Series)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This book functions primarily as a large advertisement for the author's seminars/classes. Most of what the book presents is naive, simplistic or just plain wrong. The financial side techniques presented include "tried and true" goodies that don't work now and didn't work when I first read them in a book my dad bought 40 years ago.

The negotiating tactics don't work. See Spin Selling for some of the best sales and negotiating material out there.

Of course, if you are able to deal only with people who are completely ignorant of the real estate values in their town and who distrust lawyers, i.e., don't have contracts reviewed in lieu of using a real estate broker, you may get some of these gems to work for you.

And what do I know? Not much -- but I have appeared in court as an expert appraisal witness, made a few million in real estate (& yes, I still read books. Who knows when I'll find a good idea?) and been a real estate broker for 30 years.

The author, if he ever made any money in real estate, is now, it would seem, making his money selling his seminars. Run, don't walk, away from the author and his materials.

I really enjoyed and would recommend it to others wholeheartedly. There are of course the many plugs for David's mentoring programs and other products. I think grown-ups can figure out that you are reading a book that is part of a business system and get over being annoyed at the plugs. The other thing I didn't care for much were the ficticious personalities that are tracked as examples. I would have not had this reaction if it would have been clearly stated from the start that these folks were compilations of past students and not actual people.

With this whining out of the way, I can say this was the best R.E. investing book I have read so far, and I have read many. The systems that are laid out in David's earlier books are reviewed and compacted for easy check list style review. The new info on building systems of your own to streamline and idiot proof (no offense)your own investing is extremely valuable. I think that if more people who say they tried the R.E. thing and it didn't work for them (or even worse, tell of other's failures when they haven't tried themsleves) had developed systems like these, there would be many more success stories and fewer naysayers.

The other thing I enjoyed and appreciated was the forethought given to eventually having your investments run independently of your continual input and baby sitting. This is a big challenge and this kind of info is hard to find. There is enough valuable info in just this one area to make this book pay for itself many times over.

Real Estate is a complex and sometines confusing business that can be overwhelming to people trying to make it a fit for thier lives and careers. David not only gives the helpful encouragment that other writers are big on, but he also lays out enough well crafted systems to let even the most easily intimidated reader see themselves succeedng in the biz. This is not just another 'vision casting' speech, but actual step-by-step plans to succeed with quantfiable and sustainable results.

The added online teaching once again eclipses the norm and adds serious value to the book. I am very much enjoying my added education online and even found great local connections through links I accessed though the website given in the book. I found free forms, written specifically for my state, that will probably save me hundreds of dollars through new connections with a local investors club I found via David's site.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for investor wisdom. It is well written and even more well thought out and covers ground that I haven't seen anyone cover yet. Thanks David.

Having built a real estate holding company with $25,000,000 in commercial real estate holdings in less than 5 years myself, (along with my partner), I can tell you firsthand that Dave hits on some quintessential, need to know-very powerful concepts.

pg.42 Discipline, "...if you are willing to work to foster this quality, the world of investing is yours.'

pg. 44 Leveraging your time, money and knowledge

pg. 45 Work smart, not necessarily hard

pg. 47 "Information becomes power only at the point of application"

Jack Welch says he would rather have a leader that can execute than a rocket scientist. Execution is key!

Pg. 49 Constanally ask yourself, "What is the best and highest use of my time?" - The key here being opportunity cost.

On page 167 this book came alive for me; because it is something our company is struggling with right now. Dave describes "getting out of the small time bubble" which describes such a simple concept that is incredibly hard to execute. The idea is to free yourself up to concentrate on what will produce the best return for your time. This concept is also a big one in Jim Clayton's, "First a Dream" which I also reviewed here an on my blog

He talks you through the delicate steps involved in growing a business to the point where you can gradually remove yourself from the day to day procedures. A major function is the implementing of systems.

Another great insight is that Dave reads about 100 books a year. As Charlie Munger says, "Read all the time", "In my whole life, I have known no wise people who didn't read all the time-none, zero. You'd be amazed at how much Warren reads-and at how much I read. My children laugh at me, they think I'm a book with a couple of legs sticking out"

In fear of rambling, one more great concept is converting equity to cash flow. This is something our company (as well as anyone who purchased real estate over the last 5-10 years) is wrestling with or should be at the moment.

By Kevin Kingston, author of: A 20,000% Gain in Real Estate

Blog: bloglines.com/blog/KevinKingston

Investing has been in my blood for a few years now. I've made some money but not as much as I think I should have. The investing has been the easy part for me. David Finkel's other books have helped me a great deal when it comes to investing. It's always been dealing with the business stuff that has put me behind. I just haven't always been able to get my head fully around managing a business. I can say David's new book has been a God-send to me when it comes to the business side of real estate investing. It is just chock full of simple and easy to apply tips that I started applying immediately. I couldn't recommend this book enough.

Truthfully before I picked up this book I never considered real estate as a business opportunity. But after reading it from cover to cover several I have come to realize that real estate is one of the easier and safer businesses to start. Especially the way the author tells you how to go about doing it. I honestly believe I can make more money with real estate than I can with many of the other types of businesses I was considering. Could someone make $5,000 to $50,000 per month like the cover says? I'll be letting you know!

I suppose I'm more of an armchair-investor that a real investor at this point even though I have done a couple small deals. I have purchased several of the courses advertised on TV and the Internet and I can say this relatively inexpensive book has as much useful information in it as do many of the courses I've purchased. Some of which I've spent hundreds of dollars on. One of the things I liked about the book is that it presents points that seem realistic and not made up just to sell more books. It's apparent that David Finkel has walked the walk.

I bought this book for my husband who invests in real estate. And normally it's not the type of book I would read but the cover looked good and I started reading. I came away very impressed. The concepts were easy to understand even for someone that doesn't have a lot of knowledge when it comes to buying and selling houses. And even though I will probably never buy a house on my own I consider the time reading the book well spent and I can at least understand my husband when he goes into his "investing speak".

I read every real estate investing book I can get my hands on. This is one of the best I've read. The author does a nice job of giving you the "nitty-gitty" instead of relying on "big picture" ideas that leave you scratching your head of what to do next. While I'm not a big-time investor yet I believe this book has given me the tools to succeed.

I agree with the author who says that when it is done right, real estate investing can create cash flow that will take care of you and your family forever. But I really appreciate that he warns readers that it will take work because nothing comes easy. I don't think that people have a problem with working hard as long as they have something to look forward to such as financial independence. People hate working at their jobs because not matter how hard they work, they are not appreciated, and the only person that they are making financially independent is their boss. I think that this is unfair.

This book provides a system that can most definitely be used to create wealth, but I would also recommend reading other books on the subject. The only criticism that I have about this book is that the author is constantly advertising his seminars. As a reader, you have to decide on your own if they are for you. I think that you can learn quite a bit just be reading this book.

- Mariusz Skonieczny, author of Why Are We So Clueless about the Stock Market? Learn how to invest your money, how to pick stocks, and how to make money in the stock market

This book essentially puts it out to get rich by looking for preforeclosures or distressed mortgages, getting a house on the cheap and having someone else pay for the mortgage. Overall a general good book to read and a must have for the real estate investor's library.

PROS:
1. Describes tried and true rental strategies.
2. Describes flipping strategies.

CONS:
1. Advertisement about other seminars.

OTHER SUGGESTED READING:
1. Investing Without Losing (ISBN: 0978834607 NOT on amazn, on other stores)
Why? Learn how to buy properties below market value and flip it in a week.