Ok I am new to the site so a bit about me first..then I'll get into the good stuff!
My name is Dustin, I am 24 year old ex dancer from central NC (Greensboro area) and I got out of dancing after I got hit by an SUV which did kinda mess my back up a bit (enough to be too sore to try dancing as a career again, at least) so now I just wait tables and continue to buy rental properties - I've been investing since about 18, I've always been pretty good at it but more lately have taken a more serious role with things, I've some experience in stocks, but never recommend them to people.
Due to the nature of the economic system we currently are in, the recent actions of governments, politicians, and the federal reserve - It's safe to expect a lot of inflation in the future (worse than normal) and that said - it's best to 'hedge' against inflation, not 'save' money.
If you have cash sitting in a bank account - inflation is eating away at your money, making it less valuable each day.
So - if your a 'saver' buy gold and silver bullion coins - (not the 'numismatic' collectible stuff) buy the actual spot price coins (they may be 1-2 % over spot price, but thats it!) I recommend gainesvillecoins.com for these, but many such sites exist, shop around. Gold and Silver are inflation proof.
If your an investor wanting to turn your high income dancing or webcam job into long-term passive income flow that keeps paying you everyday for the rest of your life, I recommend beyond anything else Rental Properties - and here are some reasons why:
Properties are a store of value - like gold and silver, they will always be worth something (Yes, property places have dropped recently due to the housing bubble and market manipulation - and may do so again, but rental owners dont care about selling the properties, we want the passive income!) Sure, you can buy a house for 20grand, hope to sell it for 40 one day, and lose half of that gain to taxes...
Or you can buy it for 20 grand, and make 300,000+ on it over the course of your lifetime (and then your children inherit it) Which do you think is better? By the way, passive income is pretty easy to avoid paying such high taxes on!
Currently housing prices are down, making it an easy time to buy, and because banks don't like to loan on them and people are in such bad places right now financially - most people can't buy a house. What does this mean for you? A double whammy of profit - You can buy em cheap, rent em high!
Furthermore - you don't really NEED to deal with people, say you don't wanna have to deal with tenants, repairs, etc. Just use a property manager, move to the beach, and pat yourself on the back and smile smugly because you will never have to work again.
6 houses (paid off) will allow you to retire an live an average life, as a rule of thumb. - You probably want more because you may have expensive or above average tastes or ambitions - but lets say you just never wanna work again and 'average' income is good for you.
For each, lets say, 10,000 you put as a down payment, you can safely assume you can find a basic house in a rentable area (and finance or owner finance the remaining amount over 10, 20, 30 years) How long does it take you to make 10,000? Hell, probably 1-2 months tops.
So every 1-2 months you can buy another rental property at least. Thats 12 in your first year - then they will be paying themselves off and you can buy more (or you can pay them down even faster and get them paid off over the next 1-2 years) then your done!
Some GREAT sources of information for investment oriented folks are below:
Youtube videos - search for 'the new rules of money' by robert kiyosaki - this basic 7 video series (about 30minutes total) will introduce you to some sound and simple economic principals.
Inflation.us is also a great website (dont buy their stocks, stocks are worthless in this economy, and you don't need to take risk, you can have it as a sure thing) go to the videos section and check out Meltup and if you think school is a good investment, check out 'college conspiracy' as well (if you cant find it, google it and check out the documentary websites and you'll find a working copy)
Between these videos, you have a working knowledge of investment strategies and are ready to retire early...for more advanced learning, I recommend Zeitgeistmovie.com and check out the video Zeitgeist: addendum - which discusses inflation and how it affects you during the first segment of this video
If however you decide you don't wanna deal with the stress of trying to find a good deal, Drop me a line at Xanatos (at) triad.rr.com and ask any questions you'd like, or feel free to apply here.
It not only works, but I am doing it myself off waiting tables - I just wish I could make 500 a night! But I am always looking for investment partners who have the capital (cash) to go with my brains and investment skills, I have no problem advising people on how to do it without getting anything in return, but if you decide you want to forgo the hassle of learning these things yourself, finding your own deals, etc. Feel free to chat with me on partnering up! I am great at finding deals (have a few waiting on me actually already) and I can do the manual/leg work!
I hope everyone enjoys this thread, please leave feedback and any questions, comments, or requests!
I am well versed in many forms of investments, and welcome any questions on anything even if its not related to rental properties!
Happy early retirement and fabulous life!
Dustin



Reply With Quote

Bookmarks