I will never quit learning!

Just when you think you have it all figured it out, someone changes the rules. It is a constant process to keep up with the IRS, constantly changing and it appears they can't even keep up with the rules themselves. This is why I attend as many tax type seminars as I can, and I did just that today.

Today's session was more about rental real estate and how to maximize one's rate of return. Most investors have their own way of looking at a property and determining if it is a good investment or not. But quite often, investors are really speculators, not investing at all. They think they have figured out the market, when in fact they are banking on bad information and have no idea how to calculate the true rate of return. This speculation type of investment is really saying that one is waiting for someone else to come along and pay more for the property than they did. This is just stupid.

I have seen many people (and have also done this myself) drive across town to save 2 cents on a gallon of gas, stock up on soda because it is 10 cents per can cheaper than last week, and not buy green beans because they are not on sale. But those same people throw away thousands of dollars because they do not use wise investing principals. It just does not make sense. Why do we worry about the pennies and yet ignore the big dollars that our investments could be costing us? Simple. Most don't understand how to calculate cap rate, return on equity, and even the net operating income. It is critical for an investor to know.

In upcoming blogs, I will discuss how to look at being an investor rather than a speculator. It could make the difference in showing a profit or losing your shirt.

Sea of Red

It was like nothing I have ever experienced. As far as one could see was this huge sea of moving red. Red was everywhere, even the water was dyed red. Tuesday, October 24 was truly a memorable experience.

It all started the Tuesday before when the phone rang at 10:47 p.m. and my good friend said, "want to go to the World Series?" The St. Louis Cardnials had just won the penant and now off to the world series. "Me?" I responded. "World Series?" You have got to be kidding! But it was true, and one of my lifelong dreams was about to come true. I could mark this one off my list.

It was all I expected to be. The hype, emotion, screaming fans, and of course, the sea of red. Red was everywhere. They were even selling small patches of cloth for $2 that one would stick on their chin to have a red gotee. It was mayhem. It was awesome.

Thanks to my great friend, we were off last night to St. Louis and then the bigger surprise came when he informed me that our seats were in row 4, field level behind 3rd base. Incredible.
Took many photos, even did live video which I will be posting on my website soon; www.getpaul.com You have got to check it out, it was the experience of a lifetime.

It was a late night, long drive home, just the road, a good friend, XM radio re-capping the game, and great 5-0 victory. 2:00 am Wednesday morning, tired and yet wide awake from all the coffee, blood shot eyes and back to work in less than 4 hours; wow was it worth it.

Thank again to a great friend Jose' for making this dream come true. GO CARDS!
Paul

My Point of View

This blog was created so that I could individually post to the (417) Dwellings! blog. I have been in real estate and property management for over 20 years and I have found that sharing my experiences in the crazy world of real estate has helped all sorts of people including Landlords, Tenants, Buyers, Sellers and Investors.

In March 2006, myself and my Office Manager, Jessica Hickok, launched the video podcast series called "(417) Dwellings!". Check out my web site at www.getpaul.com for more information.