It is not uncommon for someone to want to invest in real estate. Rental properties provide a great way to generate regular income while building your net worth. In addition, many people are able to acquire enough properties to make it their full-time job.
However, before you begin investing in properties, it will be important to understand how to analyze real estate investments to see if they are a good opportunity.
Analyzing real estate investment deals takes more than just looking at the house or property price and determining if that will fit within your budget. You must address many things before you begin the process of purchasing a home or property for investment.
The best thing you can do before investing in real estate is to learn everything you can about analyzing rental properties.
I have found that the following books offer the absolute best information about preparing yourself for real estate investing.
Books To Help You Analyze Real Estate Deals Effectively
These books teach you everything from analyzing real estate investment deals to knowing how to deal with common issues in this investment process.
1. The ABC’s of Real Estate Investing: The Secrets of Finding Hidden Profits Most Investors Miss by Ken McElroy
Ken McElroy has created a comprehensive guide to investing in rental properties. The book addresses many of the things that you should look for in a rental property that you may not have even considered.
Mr. McElroy also provides extensive information on managing the property once you have made the purchase.
Finding a great rental property is one thing; turning a profit is another. In this book, you will find many ways that you can increase your profits when you purchase a good rental property.
2. The Entrepreneur Mind by Kevin D. Johnson
While this book does not address real estate investing in general, it does help you create the right mindset for making the investments. Many people are capable of becoming rental property owners.
However, they do not have the right mindset to manage these properties for profit.
This book helps you focus on what it takes to be an entrepreneur and how to use these tricks to acquire the things you need to be successful.
Once you have read this book, it will be so much easier to focus on finding the right properties for investments that you will have wished you read it years ago.
3. The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs: The Investor’s Guide to Defining Your Renovation Plan, Building Your Budget, and Knowing Exactly How Much It All Costs by J. Scott
One part of analyzing real estate is determining what the costs are to fix the property. While this book is geared a little more towards investors that flip homes, the basis is spot-on for those who are investing in rental properties.
You must know what the costs are to have the property ready to rent. You may find a cheap property in a foreclosure sale or in an older neighborhood that seems too good to be true.
However, when you look at the costs to bring it up to building code standards, it may not be a deal at all.
A significant part of real estate investing is familiar with repair costs and ongoing maintenance costs. This is a must-read for any serious investor.
4. Build a Rental Property Empire By Mark Ferguson and Lynda Pelissier
Mark Ferguson has an extensive background in real estate and has brought all of his knowledge and experiences to this book. He has been a real estate broker and investor and presents high-quality information about entering the rental real estate market.
The book presents real case studies to evaluate so that you can see where issues may lay when you are analyzing a property to determine if it is a good investment.
Mr. Ferguson also talks extensively about how to finance these properties and how to use a management property to actually increase your profits.
This is a very comprehensive book on investing in real estate for profit. You will gain a lot of useful knowledge by the time you are through.
5. The Book On Rental Property Investing By: Brandon Turner
Brandon Turner is co-host of the popular Bigger Pockets podcast. His book is a must-have for anyone who is seriously considering rental properties as part of their investment strategies.
If you want to rent properties, you need to read this book.
Mr. Turner provides detailed instructions on how to create a real estate investment strategy. The book addresses everything from selecting properties to creating long-term plans so that you can own multiple properties in a short period of time.
It is an inspiring book that provides great real-world detail of becoming a successful real estate investor.
6. One Rental At A Time: The Journey to Financial Independence through Real Estate by Michael Zuber
Micheal Zuber has written a detailed book about the long-term benefits of investing in rental properties. While he does look at the big picture of having enough rental properties to generate full-time income, he encourages people to purchase these properties one rental at a time until they become comfortable with the process.
Owning rental properties is a skill just like any other job requires. As you become more practices at this skill, the more aggressive you can be with purchasing and renting properties.
There are a lot of great tips and tricks in this book, and it is worth taking the time to read.
7. What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow By Frank Gallineli
This book has been around for a while but has recently been updated to include recent case studies and monetary trends and topics. For any investor that does not have an economics degree, this is a must-read.
The information about cash flow and financing is put in easy to understand terms. So, even if you are not familiar with a lot of accounting information, you will have a working knowledge of financing by the time you are through with the book.
Nearly every real estate investor will tell you that they keep a copy of this book handy so that they are always in control of the cash flow for their rental properties.
8. The Millionaire Real Estate Investor By Gary Keller, Dave Jenks, and Jay Papasan
The author Gary Keller decided that he would interview 100 millionaire real estate investors to see if there was a pattern to their strategies. What he discovered is that there was a very distinct pattern in what these investors looked for in properties, in the financing, and in their rental strategies.
Mr. Keller then took all of this information and made it an easy-to-read guide for anyone interested in becoming the next millionaire real estate investor.
This book addresses everything from analyzing properties to developing a team to help you find and manage those properties. It is a fabulous book to read and is very inspiring.
You can learn to work the real estate industry like the millionaires do so that you can become one yourself.
My Final Thoughts on the Best Books for Analyzing Real Estate Investment Deals
Investing in rental properties is a great way to build wealth and a passive income. When you are more familiar with the process, the easier it will become to make great choices in the properties you wish to purchase.
If you are ready to start investing in rental properties, you are encouraged to take the time to look through one or all of these books so that you can make informed decisions about all of your future real estate purchases.
