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As you work on building your wealth and investing your money, one area that may intrigue you is real estate.
Owning property to either rent out or flip has grown in popularity over the years and more people are interested in getting started.
However, oftentimes the idea of investing in properties and what it takes can be very intimidating.
This can be a much larger investment with money and time, plus you could potentially lose a lot of money if you are not prepared.
Luckily, there are tons of real estate investing books that can serve you well and help alleviate any fears.
Table of Contents
- Why Real Estate?
- Best Real Estate Investing Books
- What is the Best Book for Real Estate Investing?
Why Real Estate?
Before I share some of the best real estate investing books, I wanted to quickly cover why real estate is such a solid investment choice.
While you might be familiar already, many others may be reading this post completely fresh to the information.
So why is real estate a good investment?
Here are a few benefits:
- Steady income from rental cash flow
- Tax benefits and exemptions
- Real estate appreciation
- You’ll have more leverage
- You’re building equity
- Real Estate gives you more control
In 2007, around two-thirds of investors were primarily focused on the stock market. That number has fallen to 50%, with many Millennials choosing to invest in real estate instead. (RealWealth)
Note: As you begin learning, you can invest in real estate with crowdfunding to get some exposure and diversification without as much upfront money or time. I recommend Fundrise or DiversyFund, both offer a minimum of $500 investment to invest in commercial real estate.
How do I get started in real estate investing?
Here’s how you can get started in real estate investing in a few steps:
- Understand and layout your financial goals
- Figure out your real estate investing strategy
- Start getting educated about real estate (read books!)
- Calculate your risk tolerance
- Start saving money for real estate
- Learn how to analyze deals
- Build your team and real estate network
- Start making offers and closing deals
- Understand potential rehab costs
Of course, I simplified each step above. And while you may have no idea about how to do the above, the real estate investing books in this post will get you there in no time.
Best Real Estate Investing Books
If you start searching for “real estate investing books for beginners,” you’ll be inundated with options. How do you know which ones are right for you?
That’s why I created this post, to simplify your book choices to the best ones. Let’s dive in!
1. The Millionaire Real Estate Investor
One of the first books about real estate I read was this monster called The Millionaire Real Estate Investor, by Gary Keller.
His name might be familiar as he is also the founder of Keller Williams, which is the largest real estate company in the world.
This real estate book takes you on a journey from zero knowledge to being a pro by the end.
You’ll learn how to develop an investor mindset, identifying real estate investment opportunities, achieving the best deals, building a network to streamline your real estate, how to acquire properties and more.
2. Rich Dad Poor Dad
This is one book I’ve talked about before as it helped me personally think about money differently. I’m not a fan of everything author Robert Kiyosaki talks about with investing, but Rich Dad Poor Dad is a must read.
While not a traditional real estate investing book, it talks about finances, making money while you sleep, and becoming an investor.
I think this is a key book to start with before anyone jumps into investing money.
This book covers how you don’t need a high income to become rich, challenging the idea that your home is an asset, explains the difference between assets and liabilities, and how to teach your kids or future children about money.
3. Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat: The BRRRR Rental Property Investment Strategy Made Simple
While this might be the longest title out of all the real estate investing books in this list, it’s a solid choice to consider.
If you have done any reading about real estate investing, you’ve probably come across the “BRRRR” method.
This stands for Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat — and it’s become a popular strategy by investors.
I won’t get into too many details here, but author David M. Greene covers building a solid plan for getting started with limited capital, how to identify target properties, negotiating strategies, recover 100% or more of your money in a deal, how to increase property value, finding emerging markets, and more.
4. Retire Early with Real Estate
Retire early you say? I’m sure that will catch your eye and certainly does for those looking to FIRE in the next few years.
But Retire Early with Real Estate is presented by BiggerPockets, one of the best online communities for real estate investing knowledge.
Author Chad Carson provides the best methods you need to quickly (and safely) build wealth using real estate rentals.
Learn from over twenty real estate investors and early retirees, as they discuss retiring early and how it is possible with a real estate strategy.
Other learnings include how to produce consistent rental income, the simple process to create your real estate early retirement plan, case studies investors who used real estate to retire early, and more.
5. What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow
Who doesn’t want to experience strong cash flow, am I right?
Real estate expert, Frank Gallinelli dives into detailed real estate investment case studies, while covering many of the essentials to build your own cash flow empire.
The book also covers important areas of real estate investing like discounted cash flow, net operating income, profitability index, return on equity, and more.
While some of those terms sound confusing or complex, don’t worry! This book is meant for beginners and pros alike, so you’ll be just fine.
6. The Book on Tax Strategies for the Savvy Real Estate Investor
While there are tax advantages with real estate investing, it can still be overwhelming as to what to do.
For example, you want to make sure you are optimizing for the most deductions and have everything prepared correctly.
The Book on Tax Strategies by CPAs Amanda Han and Matthew MacFarland focuses on what you need to do for your taxes this year and an ongoing strategy that will make your next tax season even better.
This real estate investing book covers methods to help maximize your tax deductions, strategies to write off your travel, easy tips and tricks to cut down on bookkeeping time, and simple steps to protect you from an IRS audit.
7. Real Estate Investing Gone Bad: 21 True Stories of What NOT to Do When Investing in Real Estate and Flipping Houses
Look, real estate investing is not all money and glamor. There are a lot of stories where things go flat wrong and people make tons of mistakes.
The good thing is, you can learn from others mistakes and ensure you best avoid them during your own property investments.
In Phil Pustejovsky’s book, Real Estate Investing Gone Bad, he covers true stories of mistakes and bad deals that totaled millions of dollars in losses and stress.
If you are thinking about investing in real estate or currently are, this book will help prepare you for what NOT to do in real estate.
8. Build a Rental Property Empire
One of the best ways to learn about something is to follow the advice of those who have proven success.
Author Mark Ferguson has years of real estate investing experience as a rental property owner, fix and flipper and real estate broker.
Not only is he writing about how to get results, but has the track record to back it up.
In his book, Build A Rental Property Empire, Ferguson gives you the exact details on how to finance, find, analyze, manage, and even sell rental properties.
You’ll find his book easy to understand and gets right to the point, no fluff!
9. Crushing It in Apartments and Commercial Real Estate: How a Small Investor Can Make It Big
Many of the books in this list focus on single-family homes or duplexes, but not many touch on commercial real estate.
Large buildings or office properties can be even more intimidating and is a much bigger investment. But the rewards can be great!
This is where Brian H. Murray’s book, Crushing It In Apartments and Commercial Real Estate can be extremely beneficial.
If you are interested in commercial real estate, this beginner’s guide will cover what you need to know as well as Murray’s experience going from newbie investor to award-winning CEO of Washington Street Properties.
You’ll learn how to find and finance commercial property, grow your portfolio without any help from other investors and without taking on debt, and learn easy ways to increase profits while keeping costs low.
Want to learn more about commercial property leases? Check out “What is NNN Lease + How To Calculate It Easy.”
10. The Book on Rental Property Investing
Building a rental property portfolio is not easy.
But in Brandon Turner’s, The Book on Rental Property Investing, you’ll find yourself steps ahead of other investors.
You may recognize Turner’s work with BiggerPockets, where he co-hosts their popular podcast about real estate.
He’s also written a few books, this one being a top choice. If financial freedom through rental properties sounds good to you, then this is a great book to read.
Here’s what you can expect to learn in this book, why many real estate investors fail, creative tips to find good deals in competitive markets, ideas for financing rentals, strategies on deferring and even eliminating taxes, and more.
11. The Book on Investing in Real Estate With No (and Low) Money Down
Brandon Turner is back again, but he writes a lot of real estate investing books which are all filled with golden info!
However this one is on the list as many people (including myself) wonder how to get started with little to no money.
In The Book on Investing in Real Estate With No (And Low) Money Down, Turner dives into creative real estate financing techniques to get more deals going.
He discusses how to use other people’s money to finance your deals as well and how to structure and approach that tactic.
You’ll learn about Investing with little to no money down, getting started investing in real estate, finding your first deal, creative investing ideas, how to attract private money, lenders, and partners, the downsides to all the strategies, strategies for wholesaling, flipping, and rentals.
What is the Best Book for Real Estate Investing?
Personally the best book for real estate investing is Gary Keller’s, The Millionaire Real Estate Investor. There is a lot to learn with buying properties, but this book covers it all. You can be a complete beginner or expert, and still learn quite a bit.
Now, that doesn’t mean the rest of the real estate investing books above aren’t solid. If you are serious about rentals or flipping properties, any or all of the books will be great reads.
Are you looking to invest in real estate? Have you read any of the above books? Are there are real estate investing books that should be added to this list? Let me know in the comments below!
