A few yeas ago, I was so poor that I decided which bills to pay every month by throwing them all up in the air and paying only those that landed on the coffee table.  I thought this process gave all my creditors an equal shot at my meager bank balance.  It was not a happy time in my life.

Now, when the first of the month rolls around, I smile as I think about all the people who are writing checks to me.  I made one decision that turned my financial life around:  I decided to take active control of my finances.  My first goal was to begin to provide for my retirement.

It took me a while to settle on rental property as the best investment for me, and I had much to learn along the way.  I learned that I have no aptitude for property management, actually tenant management.  I fired my first two property managers.  I learned to hire my own termite and dry rot inspectors.  The list goes on.

My education in rental owning has been enormously profitable.  I was able to retire early, my rentals now produce half my income, and my real estate portfolio is worth about $2 million.  The biggest surprise for me was to learn that I love owning and working with rental property.  Now I want to share my enthusiasm with you and convince you that rental housing is a terrific investment.

From my first duplex, purchased in 1986, I progressed to owning 34 individual rental units distributed in buildings as diverse as a 100-year-old farm house and a new 12-unit complex.  In the process I've invested less than $50,000.  That sounds like a lot of money, but it was invested over a ten-year period, and my tax savings on my teaching salary covered most of it.

How do you make this happen for you?  How do you get 34 people to send you a big check every month - well, actually send your property manager a big check every month - and the IRS to reduce your income tax by 30 percent or so?

When you own rental property, both of these unlikely scenarios happen.  People happily pay your mortgage payments, and the IRS reduces your income taxes by a considerable amount.  On top of all that, the value of your investment increases monthly.  Your have the pride of owning properties, and you get the opportunity to contribute to your community in many ways.

What This Book Is  This book is the result of my desire to share what I've learned, in the hope that you, too, will come to experience financial independence.  It is a hands-on manual for day-to-day use in your first real estate adventure.  In Part One I'll try to dispel some of the horror stories you may have heard about rentals, and show you why owning rental property is your best investment bet.

In Part Two you will learn how to set your investment goals, develop plans, and find professional advice.  You will also learn how to find rentals that fit your plans.

Part Three will help you calculate the amount of cash you'll need and give you some ideas about where to look for cash.

Part Four will help you figure out how to get more cash out of your rentals, first without selling.  Then, if you decide to sell, I offer ideas about why, when, and how to sell to your best advantage.

Part Five offers some tips and strategies to help make your ownership of of rental properties successful, satisfying, and reflective of your values.  Chapter 15 speaks directly to women in hopes of reducing the disproportionate number of women represented in the elderly poor.

Buying rental properties, managing them, and reselling involves stacks of paperwork.  You will be more confident in your first few transactions if you have the chance to look over the paperwork before your lender or escrow agent hands it to you.  To give you a chance to preview the standard documents involved in real estate transaction, I have included Internet site addresses where you can find sample documents at the end of the appropriate chapters.

Other forms, particularly those you should begin working on before you're ready to buy a rental, such as a financial statement, I've included in the appendix.  These sample forms are representative of those you will come across as you begin your investment career and do not include much of the "small print" found on standard forms.  They will, however, alert you to the kinds of information that you need to supply.

I hope this book will become your own personal guide to prosperity, a gift from me to you.

What This Book Is Not  This is not a get-rich-quick scheme.  Investing in rental properties requires patience, thought, and a fair amount of your time in the beginning.  Successful investing in real estate requires ongoing commitment to learning about investing, studying your local markets, and minding your investments.

It is not a formula book.  Formulas work best for the people who write books about real estate investing by formulas.  This book is about investing in small rentals, the process I know a bit about.  Even with small rentals, every market is different, and every property within a market is different.  No formula fits all circumstances.

This is not a textbook on theories of real estate investing.  I don't know much about those theories, and I'm not sure I believe the little I do know.  Investment theories are developed by economists, and I subscribe to the theory that "If all the economists in the world were laid out end to end, they wouldn't reach a conclusion."

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Reviews:

"If you've been reluctant to invest in rental property, this book is for you.  I recommend it to all my students and clients."

- Bob Nelson, CCIM, Real Estate Investment Boroker,
Real Estate Teacher

"I give this book to all my new investment clients.  Having them read this simple, step-wise guide to investing in rentals saves us all the time and lets them start making more money sooner."

- Linda O'Bryant, CRS, ABR, CSP, GRI, SRES, Broker

"Armstrong is so clear and so convincing that I went out and bought my first duplex before I had ever finished reading the book."

- Candy Davis, Author, Editor, Screenwriter

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