Newbie to investing, recommended books still good

[Qinau]

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum and equally as new to investing in property. While I've been reading up on the great info in here I plan to get my hands some books as I don't yet know if I'm out of my league.

These are recommended by the FAQ

1. More Wealth from Residential Property by Jan Somers
2. The Seven Steps to Wealth by John Fitzgerald
3. Real Estate Riches by Dolf De Roos

Given that it was written back in 2003, am I correct in assuming they are still the books of choice for a newbie in 2008?

Cheers

 

[steveadl]

I highly recommend 'More Wealth' by Jan Somers, which you mentioned.

Also check out 'How to Grow a Multi-Million Dollar Property Portfolio - in your spare time' by Michael Yardney.

With the older books such as Jan's, some of the figures may be a bit dated, but they still work as good illustrations, and the underlying theories and facts are solid and timeless.

 

[Qinau]

I highly recommend 'More Wealth' by Jan Somers, which you mentioned.

Thankyou Steve, I'll be sure to get my hands on that one.

Also check out 'How to Grow a Multi-Million Dollar Property Portfolio - in your spare time' by Michael Yardney.

Well I'm not sure I'm aiming for multi million just yet, I'd settle for one property and not losing my savings

With the older books such as Jan's, some of the figures may be a bit dated, but they still work as good illustrations, and the underlying theories and facts are solid and timeless.

Great, good to know.

Cheers

 

[steveadl]

Aim for $20M worth of property, you may fail and get $10M worth! You can do whatever you put your mind to, aim high!

Happy reading!

 

[sparky23]

Hi Quinau

I would also like to recommend Michael Yardneys book.

Don't be frightened away by the title it is an excellent book and explains everything in plain English and not in gobbledygook which is a problem in some of the books out there, once you read it you will find that you can achieve a lot more than you think you can right now. Just as steveadl says always aim high!

Good Luck!

 

[alexlee]

Well I'm not sure I'm aiming for multi million just yet, I'd settle for one property and not losing my savings

Yes, thinking big is very important. Don't be overconfident, but plan for a big, big portfolio.
Alex

 

[Bradsdad]

Thankyou Steve, I'll be sure to get my hands on that one.


Well I'm not sure I'm aiming for multi million just yet, I'd settle for one property and not losing my savings


Great, good to know.

Cheers

Take a look at www.jenman.com.au as this may assist you with some peace of mind.
NB I'm in no way connected with them but offer it as a useful sight to my 1st time buyer clients. I hope you find it useful

 

[crazylikeafox]

I'd recommend a book called 'Streets Ahead' by M Wakelin (the title is correct, not sure about the author). Anything by Paul Clitheroe is worth a look, but Anita Bell's books are a waste of time.

Here are the most recent threads on books:
Thread
Thread 2
Thread 3

 

[Qinau]

Thank you everyone for the comments and further list of books & links, I certainly have a bit of reading ahead of me now. Rest assured I'll be continuing to read here and will have more questions before I decide to take the plunge.

I do want to aim big, but I guess reservation comes with the territory with your first property.

Cheers

 

[Welcome]

I'd recommend a book called 'Streets Ahead' by M Wakelin but Anita Bell's books are a waste of time.

Agreed, just finished 'Streets ahead' and that was a reasonable read. Although seemed to put a lot of emphasis on the style of the house.

Half way through one of Anita Bell's books and not a huge fan. Seems to go against the majority of investors and just wants to pay off IP's as quick as possible.

 

[Michael Yardney]

Thankyou Steve, I'll be sure to get my hands on that one.


Well I'm not sure I'm aiming for multi million just yet, I'd settle for one property and not losing my savings


Great, good to know.

Cheers

As others have already suggested - Your thinking becomes your reality

If you aim at one property - that's what you'll get.

If you aim at a multi million dollar property portfolio that's what you'll get.

Either way - you are right

So don't ask ourself the question "will I have or do I want a multi million dollar property portfolio?"

Instead ask....

"How do I get a multi million dollar property portfolio?"

A much better question.

Good luck with your investing

 

[crazylikeafox]

um, noooo...

 

[ems]

I've just finished reading Jan Somers more wealth from Residential property and believe it's the most understandable easy to read book I've read so far! I'm half way through Noel Whittaker's Golden rules to Wealth and this is a great read too. My little investment book collection is growing Is great fun! Haven't read any of Michael Yardleys yet but will be my next purchase after the Richest man in Babylon which I've heard numerous people recommend.

Cheers
Ems

 

[oasis1frog]

I would definitely recommend books by Jan Somers & Michael Yardley. Not a big fan of Steve McKnight though - he makes property investing confusing, and simple things sound complicate, eg. instead of saying only buy properties returning 10% yield, he calls it 11 second rule (or 2 eleven rule?) !!!

 

[Rickardo]

Qinau,

Books 1 & 3 are definitely worth a read, they may have been written a while ago but their content is still worthwhile. I would also recommend Michael Yardney's book which is a simple and good read. I haven't read anything by John Fitzgerald so can't comment there.

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum and equally as new to investing in property. While I've been reading up on the great info in here I plan to get my hands some books as I don't yet know if I'm out of my league.

These are recommended by the FAQ

1. More Wealth from Residential Property by Jan Somers
2. The Seven Steps to Wealth by John Fitzgerald
3. Real Estate Riches by Dolf De Roos

Given that it was written back in 2003, am I correct in assuming they are still the books of choice for a newbie in 2008?

Cheers

 

[alexlee]

Do remember, though, the books give you the basic theory. You have to match that with current market conditions. So in addition to the books, read the business sections of the newspapers, including the different states' ones. These are usually available for free on the internet. Also, go out and look at properties. Get an idea of what's out there. Go to rental properties as well and see what's available and how much they rent for. Talk to brokers about what sort of loans they recommend and why (IO? P&I? Offset? LOC?)
Alex

 

[karina]

A few of my favourites are

rich dad , poor dad , robert kiyosaki
seven steps to wealth , John Fitzgerald
ordinary millionares - jim mcnight
building wealth story by story - jan somers

I am reading "why we want you to be rich" at the moment by robert kiyosaki and donald trump, really enjoying it , just highlighted to me how much I DON'T know about the global economy and how much more I need to learn.

 

[alexlee]

If you're interested in the global economy, Karina, I wouldn't put too much stock in Trump and Kiyosaki. Both are too focused on themselves to be objective.

Instead, read the mainstream business magazines (Economist, Businessweek, Forbes, Fortune, Newsweek, Time) and newspapers (Financial Times, International Herald Tribune, Daily Telegraph UK, New York Times, Washington Post, etc). All the ones listed above have free websites. I scroll through these sites (and others) daily and download articles I think are interesting, print them out and read them on the train.

PM me if you want links.
Alex

 

[Qinau]

So don't ask ourself the question "will I have or do I want a multi million dollar property portfolio?"

Instead ask....

"How do I get a multi million dollar property portfolio?"

A much better question.

Good luck with your investing

Thanks for your comments, I have added your book to my list.

I think "how can I improve my financial situation through property investment" is a better question for me at this point. I expect my situation is quite different to most here and it doesn't really interest me to be a property tycoon, but otoh I'll happily come back in 10 years admitting I am

 

[Qinau]

Half way through one of Anita Bell's books and not a huge fan. Seems to go against the majority of investors and just wants to pay off IP's as quick as possible.

Not that I've read either yet, but that is the type of information I'm struggling with. I've read a lot of stuff on the net and just finished an e-book I had access to called "40 Days to Success in Real Estate Investing by Robert Shemin". While very US orientated it's seen as unwise to use your own money for investing and like above paying off the IP. What I've read so far isn't very explanatory on the why, just the don't do it.

I don't understand this yet, but I'm sure to get to it with further reading. I was looking at putting somewhere around 50% or more of my own funds into my first IP, perhaps this is not the way to go.

Cheers