Ken’s Picks – May 2022
Hey everybody, I’m happy to kick off a new recurring column in which I share with you the things I’ve been reading, products I’ve been buying, news stories I’ve been following- essentially, my picks for everything I like. Enjoy! What I’m reading The Capitalist Manifesto: How Entrepreneurs Can Save Capitalism by Robert Kiyosaki Robert is…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Four Things You Need To Do To Turn Your Home Into a Rental Property
If you’re a homeowner who’s considering turning your home into an Airbnb or renting it out to long term tenants, there are a few things to know first. This changeover is a little more involved than moving your things out and handing the keys over to your new renter. Taking these four steps will make…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Buying Real Estate With Cryptocurrency
Last year, mortgage giant Fannie Mae signaled a major turning point in the mainstreaming of cryptocurrency when they started allowing cryptocurrency to be used for the down payment of a home. While cryptocurrency had been embraced by the tech community almost immediately after the first decentralized cryptocurrency was created in 2009, it has been slow…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Sustainability Can Mean Profitability
In the past, renters have been influenced to choose a particular property due to considerations such as price, location, aesthetics, and noise levels. While that criteria is still important, over the past several years, renters have added another requirement to their list: they are now seeking housing with a lower carbon footprint. In a recent…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
How You Can Become a Cash Buyer
If you’ve been trying to buy a home, you already know how competitive it is. And you’re probably especially aware of how challenging it is to compete with all-cash buyers. A quarter of all homes sold in February of this year were purchased with cash, up from 22% a year ago, according to the National […]
Dallas: Market of the Month
Dallas, Texas and its surrounding metropolitan area are attracting new residents in droves. The influx is being propelled by job opportunities, climate, and the area’s relative affordability. According to the US Census Bureau, the Dallas-Ft. Worth-Arlington metropolitan area was the eighth fastest growing in the country between 2015 and 2020. That inbound migration continued during…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Top 8 Tax Deductions For Rental Property Owners
One of the most advantageous things about investing in rental properties is the deductions you can take at tax time. That’s why meticulous record-keeping is so important throughout the year. If you’re going to claim a deduction, make sure you can provide documentation that this is a real expense. I always tell investors to treat […]
Why Multifamily Is Leading Commercial Real Estate Investing
Multifamily real estate has emerged as the hottest asset class in the commercial real estate sector. The value of multifamily properties has increased so rapidly over the last 18 months that it’s surprising even long-term multifamily investors. In 2020, there was a brief drop in multifamily investment, but those losses were quickly regained and the […]
7 Questions to Ask the HOA Before Buying
When you’re considering purchasing a property in a building or neighborhood that has a homeowners’ association, there are some important things to find out. While a well-organized HOA can enhance the quality of the community, if an HOA is poorly run or short on funds, they can incur expenses that will be passed on to…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The 4 Must-Haves of Every Partnership Agreement
Real estate investing is inherently collaborative. Every investor, no matter how seasoned or successful, needs a team of professionals in order to buy, rehab, and rent out a property. For a lot of investors, it makes sense to team up in order to increase their buying power and tap into each other’s skill sets and…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Why Self-Storage Has Become Hot Property
When we talk about rental properties, we’re typically referring to single family homes or multifamily properties. But there’s another type of rental property that has increased dramatically over the pat few years, and those are self-storage units. In 2019 alone, there was $5 billion in new construction on self-storage units. Let’s take a look at…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Top 4 Ways the Pandemic Shook Up Real Estate
The shifts over the past two years can’t be overstated. The real estate market has been drastically impacted in ways that would have been unimaginable two years ago. Mortgage rates below 3 percent? Buyers waiving appraisals? Boise, Idaho becoming unaffordable? These are things that were inconceivable two years ago, but now they’re reality. Let’s dive…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
What You Need To Know About Virtual Real Estate
Would you pay a million dollars for a house you couldn’t move into? For buyers of virtual real estate, the answer is yes. Seemingly overnight, virtual real estate has become a booming industry. While it has been around for several years, virtual real estate has grown white hot since October, when Facebook announced that it…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The 5 Most Landlord-Friendly States
As an investment, rental properties are an excellent way to hedge against inflation. While your debt remains fixed, the amount you can charge for rent will likely increase every year and you’ll be able to reap passive income for as long as you own the property. At least, that’s the ideal scenario. There are a…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
5 Questions to Ask When Buying a Rental Property
When you’re shopping for an investment property, it’s important to ask the right questions. There are some issues that you may not necessarily discover during routine due diligence. Asking these questions (and avoiding these mistakes) will go a long way toward ensuring your investment’s profitability. Will My New Place Be Noisy? That property you fell…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
2021: The Record-Shattering Year in Real Estate.
There’s no doubt about it: 2021 was a wild ride. According to a new report by Redfin, numerous real estate records were broken this past year. Record low mortgage rates combined with millions of people still working from home fueled a surge in demand while inventory remained scarce. As a result, 2021 was an epically…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The DO’s and DON’Ts of Social Media in Real Estate
We know the power of social media is something unheard of, especially when trying to find investors. But what can you actually do? Join Mauricio Rauld, a KenMcElroy.com advisor, in a video about the limitations of social media advertising when trying to use the 506B exemption. Check out Mauricio’s page here: https://kenmcelroy.com/advisors Mauricio Rauld:Hey everybody,…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Five Biggest Mistakes Rental Property Owners Make
When you’re a rental property owner, it’s easy to make a mistake here or there. After all, you’re human. And you’re juggling a lot of responsibilities: making sure your tenants are happy, maintaining and upgrading the property, and looking for ways to improve the bottom line. Fortunately, a lot of mistakes can be easily rectified…....
This content is for Premium Members only.
Protecting Your Rental Property From Disaster
One of the most important purchases you can make for your rental property is insurance. The process can feel a bit overwhelming and many property owners don’t find out what their policy actually covers until they need it. You never want to be in a situation in which you find out that something important isn’t…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Hottest Markets You’ve Never Considered
While big real estate markets like Phoenix, Austin, and Atlanta have been grabbing headlines for their rapid appreciation and bidding wars, there’s an entire tier of smaller cities seeing their housing markets heat up. Realtor.com has released its list of the hottest real estate markets in the US, and it’s clear that the popularity of…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Easiest Way to Invest With Other People’s Money
There’s a great way to get your foot in the door with real estate, and it doesn’t require an expensive buy-in. In fact, you won’t need to spend a penny of your own money. It’s called real estate wholesaling, and it’s a short-term business strategy that’s ideal for newcomers to real estate investing. All you…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
How Real Estate Can Beat Inflation
Former president Ronald Reagan once remarked, “Inflation is as violent as a mugger, as frightening as an armed robber and as deadly as a hit man.” While there’s a fair amount of hyperbole in that statement, the comparison of inflation to a robber is an apt one. As a market force, inflation can and will devalue…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Are College Towns Good For Real Estate Investing?
College towns offer excellent investment opportunities, but a lot of investors are apprehensive about the thought of college students as tenants. While it’s true that college students aren’t necessarily the tidiest demographic, the fear of out of control college students isn’t a reason to overlook an opportunity for a cash flowing investment. Just because you…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Have Millennials Solved Affordable Housing?
With home ownership being out of reach for so many, a lot of people are turning to a new resource: each other. Amongst millennials especially, there is a new trend of friends pooling their resources to co-own property. Even before the pandemic, a lot of people were deciding that they’d rather enter into this arrangement […]
Understanding Housing Cycles
The housing market may seem erratic and unpredictable, but the fact is, it always conforms to the same pattern of housing cycles we’ve been seeing for almost 200 years. Every housing cycle is comprised of four phases: recovery, expansion, hyper-supply, and recession. Researchers have estimated that the average housing cycle lasts 18 years, but that […]
Five Things to Look For in a Bookkeeper
As anyone who’s owned investment property knows, it’s a bit of an overstatement to call it “passive” income. Regardless of where you are in the investment process, there will always be work to do, even if you’ve delegated all of the heavy lifting to others. One area that will still require your attention to some…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Why Data Centers Are the Hidden Real Estate Boom
Right now, as you read this, you’re contributing to the demand for one of the most essential types of real estate in the world – data centers. Data centers are home to the technological infrastructure that allows any and all online activity to take place. They literally act as shelter for the internet. Data centers…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
How to Invest in Real Estate Without Buying Anything
The skyrocketing housing costs of the past year have created a huge jump in unmet demand. There are hundreds of thousands of would-be buyers who have saved up for a down payment only to realize that it’s still not enough, or that they can’t compete with all-cash offers. So there they are, with a good…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Market of the Month: Austin
The housing market in Austin, Texas could not be hotter right now. Spurred by a booming economy and new residents arriving in droves, the area’s real estate market is seeing unprecedented appreciation that makes the Texas capital a great place for investment opportunity, especially for multifamily housing investors. With an overall rank of No. 2…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
How Do Freelancers Qualify For a Mortgage
Trying to qualify for a mortgage can feel like a giant document drop that includes everything but your high school report card, all to prove to the lender that you’re a good credit risk. For people with a consistent employer, showing your employment history is one of the simpler elements. But for freelancers, gig workers,…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Do’s and Don’ts of Rehabbing Your Rental Property
Whether you’ve only just purchased a rental property, or you feel like your property has untapped potential, it could be time for rehab. Not all rehabs are created equal, so it’s important to focus on improvements that will enhance your bottom line. When you’re deciding which upgrades to make, just keep in mind that you…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Tiny Houses
With home prices rising month after month, would-be buyers have turned to a small solution: tiny houses. Tiny houses typically range in size from 100 to 400 square feet. Yes, that is extremely small, especially when the average size of a studio apartment is 600 square feet, according to apartments.com. But what owners lack in…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Things to Know Before You Refinance Your Home
If you’re already a homeowner, you’ve probably seen your equity increase dramatically this past year. According to data reported by CoreLogic, between the third quarter of 2019 and the third quarter of 2020, U.S. homeowners with mortgages saw their equity increase by a total of one trillion dollars, an increase of 10.8 percent. Simultaneously, interest…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Market of the Month: Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee has a lot to offer. It’s one of the most famous music destinations in the world, so much so that it has earned the nickname “Music City.” There is an endless array of entertainment options in Nashville, with no shortage of bars, clubs, and concert venues. In addition to its music scene and…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Is Waiving the Appraisal a Good Strategy?
In the current hyper-competitive housing market, buyers are doing what they can to set themselves apart, especially when they’re competing against multiple offers, in some cases all-cash offers. A growing number of home buyers are meeting this challenge with a risky strategy: waiving the appraisal contingency. It’s a move that buyers believe will get their…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
How to Price Your Short-Term Rental
If you own a rental property nowadays, you have the option of renting it out to tenants who will stay there year-round, or you could capitalize on a higher nightly rate and rent it out for short-term stays on Airbnb, Vrbo, or one of the many other short-term rental sites that have sprung up in…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The New Real Estate Disruptors
There’s a new disruptor that has entered the real estate market, the iBuyer. An iBuyer is a real estate company that will buy your home, make some cosmetic repairs, and then sell it. Opendoor, Offerpad, and Zillow offers are just a few of the iBuyers who are changing the way home buying and selling works…....
This content is for Premium Members only.
Market of the Month: Phoenix
In Phoenix, Arizona, the only thing hotter than the desert weather is the current housing market. A steady stream of new residents lured by the mild winters, lower cost of living, outdoor recreation, and a rebounding job market have turned up the heat on the Arizona capital’s demand for housing. Phoenix is America’s fifth most…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Future of Apartments: Smart Home Technology
Smart technology has become a common feature in residential spaces over the past decade. During that time, a growing number of homeowners have been controlling their homes remotely, or enjoying voice-activated features at home. Currently, 69% of U.S. homes have at least one smart home device. Multifamily housing was a little slower to jump on…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Which LLC Is Right For Me?
One of the most important things you can do at the outset of your career as a real estate investor is to form a limited liability corporation, or LLC. When you put your properties under the ownership of an LLC, it will help you tremendously and spare you some major headaches. There are several advantages…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Once in a Lifetime Lumber Shortage
The Once in a Lifetime Lumber Shortage If you’ve looked into making any home improvements lately, you’re already well aware of the skyrocketing costs and delays involved in buying lumber. At the outset of the pandemic, the lumber and construction industries braced themselves for a slowdown, even closing some lumber mills. But the slowdown never…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
What You Need to Know About Short-Term Rentals
If you’re living in a busy city that attracts a lot of visitors, or someplace that has a high season for tourists, you’ve probably considered renting your property out for short-term vacation rentals. Airbnb has been the most successful site, but in the past few years a flurry of competitors such as Vrbo, Tripping.com, and…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Tips for Investing Remotely
If you’re a real estate investor, you’re always looking for opportunities in an area with appreciating real estate, a high quality of life, a thriving job market, and a strong base of renters. But what if you’re eager to invest, but your market may not have a big enough renter population? Or what if your city…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Market of the Month: Boise, Idaho
If you’re looking for a booming real estate market that also offers breathtaking Rocky Mountain scenery, big city amenities, and a small-town feel, Boise, Idaho, is hard to beat. Dubbed “The City of Trees,” metropolitan Boise is home to approximately 750,000 residents, with Boise itself being home to about 226,000. Newcomers will discover a city…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Good Debt vs. Bad Debt
I’m a big believer in using debt to my advantage. Debt is not intrinsically bad, but that all depends on what type of debt we’re talking about. Bad Debt So let’s start with the bad debt. Bad debt can generally be boiled down to one culprit: credit cards. For credit card companies to succeed, their…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Six Tips for Investors to Find the Right Real Estate Agent
Not all real estate agents are created equal. Anyone who has spent their day with a real estate agent going from one underwhelming property to the next already knows this. While an agent might be perfect for finding the right forever home for a family, that’s a totally different skill set than being able to…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Market of the Month – Houston
Houston, Texas: Market of the Month Houston, Texas, is one of the hottest real estate markets in the country right now, luring droves of newcomers from California, the northeast, and other pricier real estate markets. From 2017 to 2018, the Houston area saw an average of 250 people moving to the region every day, a…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Appraisals vs Inspections
Whether you’re buying a rental property or your forever home, it’s important to determine whether the property is worth what the homeowners are asking. Home buyers can ensure that they’re getting their money’s worth at two points in the buying process: the inspection and the appraisal. While they sound like they could be interchangeable, both…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
The Pros and Cons of New Construction
If you were a contractor in 2020, your phone was probably ringing off the hook. With an unprecedented increase in the number of people working from home, there was a shift in the public’s appetite from houses in urban centers to more spacious houses in the suburbs. Of course, the supply wasn’t always there, which…...
This content is for Premium Members only.
Finding Affordability in Unaffordable States
People often ask me questions about “the housing market.” It’s always something like this: What will the housing market do this year? Is it safe to invest in the housing market? Like so many things related to money and investing, the answer is, “it depends.” It’s a difficult question to answer, because the term “the…...