Donald Trump’s Property Investing Strategy
Aug 21st, 2009 | By Les Sheppard | Category: Property InvestingWelcome back! Have you made sure you never miss a new property? Subscribe to updates with your best email address in the sidebar to the right.You see everything new at least 48 hours before the crowd!
Recently a contact of mine attended a free property investing seminar in New York which was an introduction to Donald Trump’s Real Estate investing programme. Although this was a fairly basic seminar it was said to be well worth attending to find out how one of the most successful investors in the world does it and to be reminded of some concepts which although we may already know we may not necessarily always be using. Here is an interpretation of the strategies for you:
The basic principle is that Donald Trump buys low and sells high. No surprise there, but how does he actually do it? You may wonder why he sells property rather than holding onto it. Well he does both. Donald Trump is a property investor (buy and hold) and also a property developer (whereby he makes money by purchasing, refurbish and then selling property).
None of this should be new to you. Interesting how some of the most successful people just keep it simple and take action!
1) BUY BMV: You need to buy property well below market value so that you make a profit the day you buy. Due to the falling property prices in the UK and the US, it is a buyer’s market now and so a great time to be able to buy property well below the market price. One of the key to this is understanding the true market value.
2) KNOW YOUR AREA: One you have picked the area in which you want to invest, you need to do your research and get to understand the market value and rentals in the area. The best way to do this is to use the internet and work with local knowledgeable experts such as letting agents and Estate agents who will be able to provide actual rental and sales figures.
3) FIND MOTIVATED SELLERS: Estate agents will be able to help you find some motivated sellers but you also need to attract sellers to you through your own marketing efforts using methods such as postcards and leaflets distributed in areas in which you want to buy.
4) ADD VALUE: Donald Trump is great at seeing the hidden value in an asset. He likes to buy run down property and “Trump it up”, whereby he spends money to make it look fantastic. The cost of renovation is always a lot less that the value that is added. Donald Trump maximises the use of local and government grants and subsidies to pay for renovation work whenever possible.
5) KNOW THE OUTCOME: Having done your homework before you buy the property you will know exactly what you are going to do with it. Either refinance and hold onto it if the rental stacks up, or sell it. To sell the property quickly in the current market, one would need to sell the property at a discounted price.
6) REFINANCE: Having added value to the property as long as the rent is sufficient you can refinance it to get your initial cash out of the property and to even get some extra tax free cash out of the deal if you purchased at a big enough discount.
7) USE OPTIONS: To minimise the risk Donald trump will secure a property on an option and then find a buyer or tenant before he actually purchases it
There is no doubt that Donald Trump is really smart and an excellent business man. We should remember that he started his Billion Dollar property empire by using these simple strategies on single houses. Everyone has to start somewhere and there is NO reason why you cannot be as successful as Donald Trump if you decide to be and take action to achieve you goals.
I find it reassuring that my experience is very similar to what Donald Trump has done and continues to do right now in what is the biggest buying opportunity in the last 20 years.
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