Customer Reviews

Trump Strategies for Real Estate: Billionaire Lessons for the Small Investor

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

No one knows Donald Trump better than George Ross, his right hand man for over 20 years. I wasn't sure what I was going to get from this book-- I picked it up because of Donald Trump's track record, and none of his other books really goes into real estate investing specifics. This book was a pleasant suprise with a lot of good investing tips. The best part of the book (and worth the $17 bucks) was the chapter on negotiation-- George Ross tells us how to make a good deal, great by using negotiation as a key tool. I can't wait to put this book to use.

Donald Trump, multi-billionaire real estate investor is unashamedly big on self promotion. His name is predominate on the book jacket. But that is not inappropriate as he is the focus of the book. His major deals and properties are the center of attention and make the book worth reading.

George H. Ross, successful New York City real estate attorney, long-time associate of Trump and apparantly player in the Trump reality show, The Apprentice, is the major contributer to the book. His name is next. Mr. Ross has been in the business a very long time and also lectures on the skill of negotiation.

At the bottom of the page we find the author, Andrew James McLean, who has written several books on real estate investing.

This book is interesting, if simple. The anecdotes about Donald Trump make it worth reading. The details of the Trump Tower, Mar-A-Lago, and the GM Building, for example are very interesting. There is also quite a bit of chest thumping and self-congratulations in this short book, but who can argue with success?

The advice given in this book is very good, but neither new nor Earth-shaking. Anyone who is making it in the real estate world probably already knows this, but it never hurts to have it reenforced. The point that hit me the most was to avoid the tendancy to focus on the property more than the customers. There are tips on negotiation, how to find and treat customers, how to handle difficult people and how to stay out of trouble. This is not a how-to book, but has some excellent pointers.

Phenomenal investment insight from one of the worlds leading Real Estate gurus. I have been in the business for 10+ years and I could have saved myself a lot of time and aggravation of "cutting my teeth" in the business if I had this book as a resource early on in my career. This is with out a doubt the real world MBA of Real Estate Investment. Mr. Ross does an unbelievable job of relating he and Trumps world class Real Estate Investment empire in a way that is understandable and applicable to any size investor. I can assure yo the tricks and methods he describes in this book are the way it "really" works out there. No classroom can prepare you in the way that this book lays it all on the line. The subtleties existing in the business world and Real Estate dealings in particular make the diffence to your success. Mr. Ross almost divulges too much information by un-locking the Billion dollar secrets that only hard core experience and proven success over many years and Real Estate cycles could foster. If you want to know how to do Real Estate Investment RIGHT...read this book!

"Trump Strategies For Real Estate" is written by Donald Trump's right hand man, George Ross. If you have watched "The Apprentice", then you know exactly who George Ross is. Being a real estate investor, I was interested to see what George had to say around real estate investing. Give that the title includes the phrase, "Billionaire Lessons for the Small Investor", I thought I would see what a billionaire had to say to the small investor.

While this book doesn't offer a lot of advice for the small investor, I still enjoyed this book. George talks about several of Trump's big real estate deals and overviews some of the problems Trump ran into, and the creativity behind the solutions he came up with. I found this to be extremely interesting and educational.

George mostly focuses on real estate deals that would result in capital gains, and only touches on cashflow properties (essentially his strategy is hold the properties that product good income). This isn't a bad thing, but just one to be aware of when purchasing this book.

George also focuses a lot on the big deals, but then says how the advice can relate to the small deals. I did get the feeling that George is slightly out of touch with what a "small deal" is anymore.

Regardless, the advice is solid. The negotiation principles, learning how to pay attention to detail, and learning how Trump deals with contractors are all worth the price of admission. I especially liked how George included a list of questions to ask advisors that you should hire.

In summary, this book is worth reading. It's easy to read, it has plenty of examples (although they are all big deals), and it gives you insight into what a billionaire real estate investor is all about. 4 out of 5 stars.

As a relatively recent entry into the real estate world, I sought a book that provided excellent real estate advice. I didn't care who the author was or the picture on the cover, as long as the author had relevant experience. In fact, with Donald Trump on the cover, I was considering not getting the book. As big of a fan I am of the Apprentice in its first seasons, before I read the book my impression of Donald Trump was a lot of flash with relatively less substance. George Ross's book proved me wrong.

Ross goes into good detail about how he and Trump achieved their major successes. Based on the book, Trump's accomplishments were based on creative thinking, hard work, and brilliant understanding of challenging issues (and people). I particularly enjoyed learning about the Grand Hyatt New York project as I work in hotel real estate; however, even the sections on residential real estate provided solid general R.E. advice. The book is a fast read but loaded with strategies. I am now reading the book a second time just to ensure I caught everything...even though each chapter provides a summary of key topics.

After reading the book, I have newfound respect for The Donald, but particularly for George Ross. His knowledge flows well on the pages, with a somewhat casual tone in the writing but never appears too advanced or too simplistic. He presents topics well. The structure of the book and each chapter are organized. Each chapter is highly relevant. Undeniably, the book succeeds in its goal in providing real estate strategies that could work for all investors (from duplexes to a five-star resort).

Certainly knowing basic real estate concepts (such as air rights and leasehold interest) will help in understanding some of the case studies, but Ross and co-writer Andrew James McLean never overly complicate each example. Granted the case studies aren't as in depth as anything a business school student deals with from HBS--but the main points of each case are presented well.

I highly recommend this book. I can't find any significant faults...the book is simply well done.

This is a rather readable book which you can finish within an hour or so. In style it is terse and it is well rounded: the very hallmark of a good advocate. Basically, this book stresses the use of one's imagination in every way to make your investment a success. It essentially touches and concerns the big deals. There are for sure a number of good and practical investing tips: very good as a quick reference. The most brilliant part of the book, however, is the chapter on negotiation which is well covered and could practically be used in almost all kinds of negotiations.

George Ross generously dispense wisdom from his hard earned experience. Reading the book will save you thousands of dollars by steering you clear from some common and not so common mistakes. Read it today -- you'll make more money and save time.

As an real estate investment broker and an investors myself, I can speak from my heart that the advise and examples showed in this book are practical; and the style of writing is concise and to the point. It is made easy for readers to appreciate the complexicity and creativity in various transactions.

I highly recommend this book to all inspired entreprenuers!

The book is extremely important for those who are interested to understand how real estate business works and for those who would like to know more about how Donald Trump made some of his fortune. George Ross tries in many chapters throughout the book to relate the concepts to the small investor in order to help the reader link between large scale strategies and their application in small real estate deals.

You will need as a small real estate investor to have the ability to isolate the concept of the strategy from the magnitude of the Trump deals. Otherwise, you will feel that this book is teasing you more than teaching you. A good example, which is mentioned in the book, is when George Ross talks about the importance of choosing a property with a great view. Then he relates that to small investors by saying that if you can't afford one, maybe you need to put some nice tall trees in front of the building to compensate, if you were targeting a mid level neighborhood.

I gave it 4 out 5 because as a reader if you take that extra step to scale down Trump philosophy in a way that will be suitable to your property target audience, then the benefits are 100% invaluable.

Overall, it's a great book.

Take investment advice from people who've actually made money
in real estate. The basic model requires that we inspire,
build relationships, prepare and apply tenacity. Think big with
a premium on location. Create a vision. The author asks that we
focus our negotiations with decision-makers or people with the
authority to spend money. At all times, an aura of exclusivity
should be engendered. Quick deals should be avoided where the
detailed analysis cannot be performed on a timely basis.
Add sizzle to a property and provide a perceived value for
buyers/renters. Lastly, it is critical to know what customers
will pay for extras. The work is a premium for any real estate
investor-small or large.