Updated and revised to include ten years of new developments in real estate investment, Real Estate Finance and Investment Manual, Ninth Edition is the definitive guide to financing for all real estate investors. Understand all the financing options, learn how to choose an appropriate strategy, read about insider techniques, and get hands-on experience with case studies and helpful checklists. The classic real estate investment financing resource every investor needs—completely revised and updated! Since 1977, Jack Cummings's Real Estate Finance and Investment Manual has been the definitive source of financing guidance for investors everywhere. If you want to maximize profits, you have to understand all your financing options and choose the appropriate strategy for each property. This comprehensive guide gives you all the information and insight you need to make the right choice every time. Written by leading real estate author and investor Jack Cummings, this new edition has been completely revised for the first time in a decade. It covers all the new real estate investment strategies and insider techniques that will work for you no matter where you live and features brand-new case studies, updated mortgage information, and a unique "constant rate" amortization schedule designed by the author to help you better control cash flow. In addition to new material for today's real estate market, you'll find a mountain of reliable and practical information that has made this book the ultimate financing guide for investors for three decades. Inside, you'll discover trustworthy, expert guidance on: Setting realistic goals to guide your investing choices - Mastering the art of effective negotiation - Using leverage to maximize returns on your investments - How to decide between conventional and creative financing methods - Understanding and using wraparound and blanket mortgages - Uncovering real estate tax loopholes that increase cash flow - Utilizing powerful techniques for closing any deal With checklists and other handy resources you can put to immediate use, Real Estate Finance and Investment Manual , Ninth Edition is the only book you need to manage the financing of all your investment properties. Jack Cummings is President of Cummings Realty, Inc., which consults to real estate investors and developers and also specializes in site selection for hotel, condo, apartment, and mixed-use developments around the world. His other real estate titles published by Wiley include The Real Estate Investor's Guide to Cash Flow and Equity Management , The Tax-Free Exchange Loophole , and Commercial Real Estate Investing . Real Estate Finance and Investment Manual By Jack Cummings John Wiley & Sons Copyright © 2008 Jack Cummings All right reserved. ISBN: 978-0-470-26040-1 Chapter One HOW REAL ESTATE INVESTING GOALS HELP YOU FORMULATE EFFECTIVE FINANCING STRATEGIES GOAL OF THIS CHAPTER The goal of this chapter is to impress on you the importance of establishing worthy and measurable goals to which you can direct your investment efforts. Because real estate is such a versatile method of investing, the most effective method of buying, holding, and later selling differs among investors with different goals, but similar properties. A goal without a method of measurement leaves investors adrift in a sea of doubt as to where they are in respect to the attainment of their goals. A goal is reached by interim steps or interim goals that lead to the desired results. Most real estate investors struggle through their initial investments. Although this is a common situation, it does not have to be a normal one. It is possible to avoid the difficulties of establishing an effective investment strategy, which is an essential step to your ultimate success in the quest to attain your desired goals. The very mention of the need to obtain effective methods should be etched into your mind as one of the critical keys to achieve success in any task. TO BE EFFECTIVE, FOCUS ON RESULTS To be effective, you must know what the results should be in very specific ways so that you can remain focused on those desired results. Effective strategies are not fixed, however, and it is essential that, in real estate investing, likely mistakes are acknowledged, and that corrections in the investment plan be implemented. The typical investor often uses what I call the "shotgun" method of investing: Their time, energy, and financial resources are spread over a wide range of tasks. This is a system of default, that is, one arrived at because of a lack of knowledge about how to design an effective program. These investors waste resources by learning about the wrong kind of investments for their desired results, often concentrating on investment tactics, and are not productive in maximizing those desired results. This improper use of time and effort diverts the progress toward their goals and can postpone or even halt achievem