Real Estate Investing Rules of Thumb

1% Rule, 2% Rule, 3% Rule, 4% Rule, Rule of 72, Rule of 144, and many more… if you’re interested in learning more about all the different real estate investing rules of thumb, then you’ve found the right place. Below is a list of each rule of thumb along with a very brief description of what the rule is and how it is used. 1% Rule The 1% Rule suggests that a rental property should have monthly rent that exceeds 1% of the purchase price. 1% of Purchase Price = Monthly Rent For example, if you’re buying a duplex for … Read more

Financial Mindset and Overcoming Fear Investing in Real Estate

Mastering the Financial Mindset for Real Estate Success Investing in real estate and buying rental properties can be a formidable path to financial freedom and wealth building. However, it’s not just about having the capital or the knowledge; it’s equally about fostering the right financial mindset and overcoming the fear that inevitably comes with such significant decisions. Let’s dive into how you can navigate these challenges and set yourself up for success. Understanding the Financial Mindset The journey to becoming a successful real estate investor begins in the mind. Here’s how to cultivate a mindset that breeds success: Embrace Learning: … Read more

Bookkeeping and Accounting for Real Estate Investors – 2019 Edition

Real Estate Bookkeeping Spreadsheet - Year Summary

Bookkeeping Spreadsheet Download In May, 2020 Brian made some small tweaks to the spreadsheet. This is the most recent version of the bookkeeping and accounting spreadsheet: Download Bookkeeping Spreadsheet Essential Bookkeeping and Accounting for Real Estate Investors As a real estate investor with rental properties, managing your finances effectively is crucial to maximizing your investments and ensuring long-term success. Here’s a comprehensive guide on bookkeeping and accounting essentials tailored for you. Understanding the Basics Bookkeeping and accounting are the backbone of any successful real estate investment strategy. While bookkeeping involves recording daily financial transactions, accounting is the process of summarizing, … Read more

How to Get the Best Property Manager to Work for You

Investing in real estate is a significant step towards building wealth, but it comes with the responsibility of managing your properties effectively. That’s where a property manager steps in, taking the load off your shoulders and ensuring your investment thrives. However, not all managers are created equal. Let’s explore how you can secure the services of the best property manager to work for you, ensuring your peace of mind and the prosperity of your real estate investments. Understand Your Needs Before embarking on your quest for the perfect property manager, it’s crucial to understand your own needs. Different properties and … Read more

Inflation Rate

Inflation Rate

The Scenario Chart for the Inflation Rate shows you what the inflation rate is for the Scenario. For many of the basic real estate financial planning models and podcast episodes that we do, we use a static Inflation Rate for the entire  Scenario. However, I don’t believe this is the best way to do it. Whenever possible, I strongly suggest using Alternate Universe Modeling™ (aka  Monte Carlo) with variable Inflation Rates to see how the entire investing strategy performs in a variety of inflationary environments (low and high). These are considered our advanced modeling. For example, when we apply the … Read more

The Ultimate Guide to Property Management

Property Management is one of the most important factors in determining the success of your investments in real estate. That is why we’ve put together The Ultimate Guide to Property Management. To give you an overview of what goes into property management we have created the following flowchart. Follow along as we touch on each of these topics. We will continue to update this over time with improvements and additional resources. Please let us know what you loved and what we need to add in the comments section. Our aim is to make this the end-all be-all of Property Management! … Read more

The Penultimate Guide to Safe Withdrawal Rates

The following is The Penultimate Guide to Safe Withdrawal Rates. Why not the “ultimate” guide? Because Karsten Jeske with Early Retirement Now made the ultimate guide already (which you all should read and I link to below). Our guide is intended to be an addendum to the amazing work he’s already done and the second-to-last guide you’ll need in addition to Karsten’s. I will continue to update this over time as I discover more resources or have more to say about it from modeling done with the Real Estate Financial Planner™ software. In this guide, I will primarily do two … Read more

Appreciation Rate

Appreciation Rate is the rate the  Property is going up or down in value. Historical Appreciation Rates We will cover how the Real Estate Financial Planner™ software calculates and uses Appreciation Rate here. However, before we get there, let’s look at what some historical appreciation rates have been for a sampling of the 552 largest cities in the US have been according to the US census data between 2010 and 2018. I’ve shown summaries of historical appreciation rates (grouped by states) below. You could use the historical Appreciation Rate for each city when analyzing properties using the The World’s Greatest … Read more

Free Support

Using the Real Estate Financial Planner™ can be complicated — with massive, flexible power comes complexity! Still Having Trouble? If you think something is broken or not working, leave a comment describing the problem on that page of the website and/or email [email protected]. We are constantly adding new features to the software and making updates. Sometimes to add new features, we need to abandon old features that are no longer compatible. This is a living, breathing project, and we are bound to break something as we try to make it the best it can be. Thank you for your continued … Read more

Funding College Through Real Estate: A Strategic Guide for Parents

As the cost of college tuition skyrockets, many parents are left wondering how they can afford to send their children to university without plunging themselves into deep financial turmoil. Interestingly, an often overlooked but highly effective strategy is investing in rental properties. This approach not only offers a lucrative avenue for generating income but also provides a flexible financial tool for managing college expenses. Let’s dive into how leveraging real estate investments can pave the way for your child’s educational future. Start Early: The Power of Long-term Investment Imagine buying a rental property when your child is still in their … Read more