"Though mortgage rates have been low for months, the housing market is still stuck in its worst recession in decades." - MSNBC

"We're facing the worst housing recession in U.S. history," CNN.com

"Home construction plunged last month to its lowest level in 16 years, as builders cut back and their lenders grew wary amid rising delinquent construction loans." - Wall Street Journal

"Lenders and investors have already written off roughly $100 billion in losses so far. But no one knows how much more debt will go bad." - MSNBC

"The housing slump is very, very much a part of everyone's daily concerns." - Forbes

"A recovery for new-home sales is unlikely before 2009." - Nat'l Assoc of Realtors


WRONG! REAL ESTATE INVESTING IS ALIVE & KICKING

"Now is a time when there are profits to be made. Yesterday, today, tomorrow, 5 years ago, 5 minutes ago, 5 years from now; these are all good times to invest in real estate." - Vernon Vaughan


IS VERNON CRAZY? NUTS? BONKERS?
I don't give a flying f**k what the media says! Maybe I just pissed some people off, but it had to be said. Since when did the mainstream media report things BEFORE they happen? They are always well behind the curve. Isn't that called gossip? The media regurgitates, err, I mean reports "popular thought".

From the way the media talks, you would think the Real Estate market was created in 2000 and that the only people that ever made money in real estate, made it in- between 2000 and 2005. I personally know an investor with hundreds of properties in Baltimore City. This investor purchased the bulk of his properties and made the bulk of his fortune in the 70's and 80's in Baltimore City. He's been through flat markets, declining markets, recessions, wars, riots,18% interest rates on mortgages, and still managed to build a HUGE fortune.



WHEN IS A GOOD TIME TO INVEST?
It means that now is as good a time as any other to get started in real estate investing. I'm not kidding you. I purchased two properties in the last two months. I practice what I preach.


SHOCKING SECRET!
This going to come as a surprise to you:

1) There are no real estate secrets, NONE!
There are no special patented systems for investing. There is nothing new under the sun. People are too lazy to do independent research. If you give priceless information away for free, people will think it is worthless! Example, go to your local FREE public library...nobody is there. Now go to Barnes and Nobles. The place is probably packed with people ready to pay $50 for a book!

2) John Beck, Richard Kiyosaki, and Carleton Sheets all have books that actually give good information (for the most part).
You've probably got a few of their courses on your bookshelf collecting dust or you've got a few of their audio CDs in your car. The information they teach is probably accurate or at least it isn't a total lie. I'm not joking. Today isn't April 1st. I'm dead serious. Remember, there is really not to much new info when it comes to investing in real estate. It's not a new business.

So, if the information in those courses is correct then whose fault is it that you haven't started investing yet?




YOU ARE NOT AN IDIOT!
At least I hope not. It isn't that you can't learn real estate investing. You just can't learn real estate investing in the format that it is usually presented.

Michael Jordan is one of THE greatest basketball player (and sneaker salesperson) of all time.

How do you think Mike learned to play basketball? Did he:

A) Before even touching the basketball,  he sat in a class and listend to someone TALK about EVERYTHING there is to know about basketball.

B) He started off with learning how to dribble the ball by WATCHING others AND DOING it himself.

If you said A, then you actually are an idiot! If you said B, then you are a genius. It's your choice. You can be an idiot or a genius. Which one?

Learning Real Estate Investing is no different. It doesn't benefit you to try to stockpile knowledge.


KNOWLEDGE IS LIKE CRACK (OR POTATO CHIPS)!
You can't have just one! You need more and more and more and more! People spend $80,000+ for an undergrad degree and another $50,000+ for a graduate degree. Guess what? They didn't spend years in school and take on massive amounts of debt for the sake being knowledgeable. Honestly, they could care less about the knowledge. THEY DID IT FOR THE MONEY $$$$$

Do you notice many people walking around with an advanced degree in basket weaving? Ever seen someone with a Masters Degree in Arts n' Crafts? No! That's because the job pay of a basket weaver is sh#*ty (pardon my French). If it paid well, people would be lined up at Georgetown University to enroll in advanced basket weaving. They would be there for the money, not the knowledge.


REPEAT IT WITH ME: PEOPLE WANT MONEY, NOT KNOWLEDGE!
Let me explain! Would you be happy if you sat in a 3 month class and piled on the knowledge, but at the end of the 3 months you hadn't made any money and still a year later you had yet to make a single dollar with your newfound knowledge? I'm guessing the answer is a big fat NO. You'd be done with real estate investing. You would go searching for the next "thing" that could make you money. Maybe even basket weaving? Just kidding!

How would you feel if you spent just a few hours in class and learned a lot less, but what you did learn allowed you cash in on your newly gained knowledge? You would like that, wouldn't you? Once you made that first bit of money, there isn't anything or anyone that could keep you away from Real Estate Investing. Not even CNN, MSNBC, or The Wall Street Journal could keep you away.

I could talk you to death about investing, but if you don't start making money, you won't keep listening to me or anyone else. You will assume that Real Estate Investing just doesn't work.

Honestly, most people already have way more knowledge than they can use.

Knowledge that goes unused is just trivia! Do you know the capital of all 50 States? Can you name all the U.S. Presidents? Are you a former spelling bee champion? Good for you. Now try making money with that knowledge! It's hard, if not impossible.




DO YOU WANT TO LEARN ABOUT RENTAL PROPERTIES? REHABBING UGLY HOUSES? TAX LEINS? CONDO CONVERSIONS?
I HOPE NOT! Because you are in the wrong place! I've done all of the above and I love it, but I'm not going to teach (i.e. confused) you how to do it because as a new investor you don't have any business doing these types of deals.

Stop trying to SLAM DUNK when you have not learned how to DRIBBLE the ball yet.

WHAT'S MY ANSWER TO YOUR KNOWLEDGE SURPLUS & YOUR MONEY DEFICIENCY?