At the ripe old age of 18, I started real estate investing the same way a lot people do: I read a bunch of books by real estate gurus and become convinced I would be able to make millions in just a few short years.
It took my adolescent brain a few years, but I finally wised up to something:
Real estate gurus are full of it.
A real estate guru gets paid when you buy whatever they’re pitching. It doesn’t matter if they’re selling books, tapes, programs, or games: at the end of the day, they get a paycheck when they convince you to buy from them. Their incentive isn’t to give you sound real estate investing advice. Their goal is to make investing lucrative and easy. The more excited they can get you, the more they sell, and the more money they make.
They couldn’t care less if you actually succeed.
Let’s take a glance at some topics gurus love to talk about and see if their logic makes sense.
No Money Down
Real Estate Guru Logic – “Don’t have any money? No worries! You can buy a home with no money down!”
Reality
A general guideline thrown around on Bigger Pockets is the 2% rule: if