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  • A look into Robert Kiyosaki's CASHFLOW 101 E-Game - Fun! Fun! Fun!

    Earlier this past week I was asked to evaluate the Electronic version of Rich Dad's Cashflow 101 game. So, what I decided to do was play it a few dozen times, take some screen captures and post them here in this blog to get some other opinions on this terrific game.

    For those of you who are not familiar with Robert Kiyosaki and his famous book "Rich Dad Poor Dad", "Cashlow Quadrant" and a handful of others...he has developed a board game called CASHFLOW. There is a Kids version of this game, as well as a pc version called Cashflow 101, and the more advanced pc version called Cashflow 202.

    Today I thought I would tell you a little bit about the game in general and then show you some screenshots. Essentially, the object of this game is to collect more passive income than you have as expenses. Those who achieve this are raised to a state known as the "fast track".

    So what is this game all about and how can it help me? The game starts off by assigning you a character and corresponding profession. You get to pick which Dream you would like to shoot for. Dreams can be something like being able to heli ski the swiss alps, have dinner with the President, join the peace corps and conduct humanitarian missions, etc. But you need to earn enough to buy those dreams.

    Now, the fundamentals of the game are limited at best however they do do a good job in helping you decide what impact your cashflow will be if you buy a small deal or a big deal. Small deals are generally small homes, condos, stock market deals, etc. while big deals could be large 24 unit apartment complexes, 8 plex, 4 plex, duplex, car wash, beauty salon, trucking business, etc.

    The fun part about playing this game especially the electronic version, is that you can have the computer generate 4 pc characters you can play against. Each character may be a firefighter, policeman, lawyer, web designer, doctor, etc. When the game begins it assigns a character to you and if they make you a lawyer...you will have to pay back school loans, credit card debt, retail debt, car loans, mortgages, etc.

    Again the whole idea is to get you out of the rat race and into living a comfortable life existing on enough passive income to do all of those things you have always wanted to do.

    This game does have it's limitations, which I won't bother addressing here however, it is truly a delight to play. I have only reviewed CASHFLOW 101 at this time but do expect to evaluate CASHFLOW 202 as well as the Kids version of the game.

    In closing, if you are interested in increasing your financial understanding...this may very well be a fun and exciting way to learn.

    The CASHFLOW 101 E-GAME, 202, and the kids version can be purchased at http://www.richdad.com/Store/Catalog.aspx?ProdType=ProductMultiTileCatID&ProdValue=3

    This is the Main Menu when you start up the game.

    Next you select which profession you would like for your character to play as.

    This is the playfield. Here I am playing with 4 other computer generated players. I just started the game so my passive income is $0.

    Ok, in this game I just made it out of the Rat Race by accumulating enough passive income. The next step is the Fast Track!

    In this game I accumulated just under $4 million dollars of cash on hand! Ok, where's my award???

    Oh Yeah! I kicked butt and had a lot of fun in the process!!!

    -Keith

    Keith M. Elliott Jr.
    PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY REAL ESTATE EXPERT
    Realtor®, e-PRO®, ABR®, SRES®, Commercial Specialist®

    RE/MAX Olympic Realty
    15100 Washington Street
    Haymarket, VA 20169
    Office: (703) 530-2955, Ext. 6316
    Cell: (540) 272-9012
    Fax: (571) 261-5048
    Email: kelliott@comcast.net
    Website: http://www.myrealtorkeith.com/
    Blog: http://www.activerain.com/kelliott5264

    Copyright© 2004-2008 by MyRealtorKeith.com, All Rights Reserved.

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    Posted Saturday, April 19, 2008 11:29 PM by Keith Elliott Jr | 0 Comments

  • Real Estate Investing - One House at a Time

    Do you remember the first home you ever bought? Remember how wonderful you felt when they gave you the keys at the settlement table? You were on top of the world and proud of this achievement! Those are some of the same feelings other individuals, couples, and families have each day across our nation. Buying a home is not a right it is a privilege. So, what is it that the Investors think about that makes them feel the same level of excitement by owning another property? The answer to that question is the Income that property can generate for them over the course of time. They are excited by knowing that they can rent the property out (after a few minor cosmetic changes) and have the rental payment almost cover or completely cover their new mortgage payment. This of course might require special financing or the ability to put down a reasonable amount of money initially out-of-pocket.

    Most real estate investors believe in having as many passive income generating properties that they themselves feel they can handle comfortably. For the larger investors - they tend to turn over their portfolio of properties to management companies who are better equipped to handle the "day-to-day" activities that must be addressed as soon as possible. Why do they go that route? Well, they primarily do it for two reasons; 1) by turning over their portfolio to a property management company that frees up THEIR time to look for other deals, 2) all of the headache scenarios of "tenants and toilets" are assigned to this management company thus allowing the landlords to sleep undisturbed each night. Who wants to take a call at 4:05am from a tenant who is screaming at you because the toilet is backed up? Certainly not me!

    So, how did some of these big players in the industry reach their level of fame and success? Obviously, they had all of the characteristics I continually mention in my blog posts which primarily consists of having a healthy lifestyle, a positive outlook, self-discipline, courage, and the ability to conquer any perceptions of fear that tends to incapcitate most people from reaching their dreams. These folks are not afraid of failure, they believe they can succeed and will do what ever it takes to make it (well beyond where most folks just give up and concede).

    Some of these real estate investors bought their first home and turned right around and rented out a room or two. Maybe a few years went by and their house appreciated in value to the point where they could tap the equity in the home and instead of buying "disposable assets" that just end up in the landfill, they purchased a second home and did the same thing all over again. Rented it out. These brave folks understood that the majority of the money they made would make would be on the day they buy the property and not when they sell it. They buy for the long term! The realize the importance of paying down the mortgage while building equity over a span of time...not overnight.

    Now, over the last few years a number of Speculators have jumped onto the real estate market buying up many homes thinking that they can simply repaint and recarpet them and flip them quickly for big bucks. Some were lucky and did become quite wealthy virtually overnight. But, many were disorganized, over-extended their credit, blew their project budget (that's assuming they had the foresight to even create a budget in the first place). And, instead of finding comparable appliances, cabinets, and interior goods that match the other homes in the area...they picked out items that they themselves would appreciate instead of looking at the practicality of such items. These same Speculators had no real knowledge of the business, the hours required to complete the project, or the stress invoked on them by working with difficult contractors.

    Then, we get to the issue of a 1031 tax-deferred exchange (or, Starker Exchange). This process would allow the deferrment of the taxes you would have to pay on the gain you received from the sale of the home, provided you "exchanged" that property for a similiar type of investment property. These 1031 exchanges make it possible to roll into another property very easily provided you have a knowledgeable attorney on this matter and are able to find another suitable property that matches what you are looking for. Most often times these same investors would take the proceeds that they made on the sale of house #1 and put that into a more expensive house #2. And this cycle would repeat itself until the investor now had a multi-million dollar property (apartments, retail centers, office complexes, indstrial property and so forth.

    Investing for the long-term is the way-to-go, just buy and hold...it is a much smarter option than that of Speculating on market conditions. Speculation is high-risk and is no different really from playing stock options on the stock market...you really have to do your homework and research if you plan on benefitting financially from this type of endeavor.


    Just my thoughts...


    -Keith

    Keith M. Elliott Jr.
    Realtor®, e-PRO®, SRES
    Commercial Specialist®
    Candidate Member of CCIM Institute

    RE/MAX Olympic
    15100 Washington Street
    Haymarket, VA 20169
    Office: (703) 754-4341
    Cell: 540-272-9012
    Fax: (571) 261-5048
    Email: kelliott@comcast.net
    Blog: http://www.activerain.com/kelliott5264
    Website: http://wwwMyRealtorKeith.com

    Posted Wednesday, November 07, 2007 5:34 PM by Keith Elliott Jr | 0 Comments

  • Capital Appreciation - A Risky Investment

    Homebuyers or, new investors that buy real estate solely on the basis that they are hoping it will appreciate in value are speculating and not really investing. They are simply gambling that the property value will increase over time.

    True investors are more concerned about Cash Flow than they are about Capital Appreciation. Capital Appreciation will increase over time since it is tied to inflation however, it will not carry you through the down markets. Those investors that purchase properties that can generate a high Cash-on-Cash yield will do very well in both up and down markets.

    Cash-on-Cash yield is the percentage of return you would get if you paid cash for a property. Your initial cash investment comes back to you through the rental income your properties generate over a given period of time.

    Before buying any property as an investment it is critical to work the numbers and see if the property matches your investment guidelines and criteria.

    Find a knowledgeable Realtor® that can work with you who knows about calculating cash flows, cash-on-cash yield, vacancy rates, the rental market, and the best areas for you to invest in based upon demographic data. Their service can become invaluable to your real estate investment portfolio.


    -Keith


    Keith M. Elliott Jr.
    Realtor®, ABR®, e-PRO®, SRES®
    Commercial Specialist®
    Candidate Member of CCIM Institute

    RE/MAX Olympic
    15100 Washington Street
    Haymarket, VA 20169
    Office: (703) 754-4341
    Cell: 540-272-9012
    Fax: (571) 261-5048
    Email: kelliott@comcast.net  
    Blog: http://www.activerain.com/kelliott5264
    Website: http://www.MyRealtorKeith.com

    Posted Wednesday, November 07, 2007 5:31 PM by Keith Elliott Jr | 0 Comments

  • Investment Property - Cash Flow Example

    For this example, I wanted to show the benefit of investing in real estate...even in Today's Market. We are not concerned about Capital Appreciation here only Cash Flow and the Velocity of Money. To simplify the mathematics I will not be including any repair costs, holding costs, etc. 

    Price of property $185,000
    HOA fees $150*12 =$1800
    Property Taxes $2067 per year

    3 Bedroom /2.5 Bath

    Comparable rents in the same subdivision are $1200 per month


    185000 Sales price
    -37000 Downpayment
    ------
    148000
    + 1800 condo fees
    + 2067 taxes
    ------
    151867 Balance to finance
    *   7%  Average going rate for 30 year Fixed
    ------
    10630.69 Mortgage per year
    /    12
    -------
    $885 per month mortgage payment

    If the home is rented out at $1200 per month that will accumulate to $3780 per year based on $315 positive cash flow per month. It will then take 10 years to payback the investment down payment. This example however, does not take into consideration rent raises based on inflation, capital appreciation, cash out refinancing, etc.

    Most Investors that I work with prefer to have a 12-month Reserves Account set up for each particular property that they own. In this case, that would total $10,620.

    $ 3780  Yearly Cash Flow
    /37000  Initial Downpayment
    ----------
    10.21% Cash on Cash Return/Yield ; As you can see, MUCH better than traditional CDs, Stocks, Bonds, etc.

    Keith M. Elliott Jr.
    Realtor®, ABR®, e-PRO®, SRES®
    Commercial Specialist®
    Candidate Member of CCIM Institute

    RE/MAX Olympic
    15100 Washington Street
    Haymarket, VA 20169
    Office: (703) 754-4341
    Cell: 540-272-9012
    Fax: (571) 261-5048
    Email: kelliott@comcast.net
    Blog: http://www.activerain.com/kelliott5264
    Website: http://www.MyRealtorKeith.com

    Posted Wednesday, November 07, 2007 5:29 PM by Keith Elliott Jr | 0 Comments

  • Private Lender Needed

    Hi my name is Keith. I am interested in locating private lenders who are willing to lend me up to $10 million dollars to acquire a portfolio of income producing properties.

    The properties I am going after are located in nice neighborhoods where there is a low concentration of investor owned properties, a shortage of rental units available, and in close proximity to major thoroughfares, entertainment, restaurants, employment, and shopping centers.

    I will be able to acquire these properties at a discounted market value since I will be writing all cash purchase offers with no contingencies and offer a quick 5 day or less settlement to the Sellers. I am not interested in acquiring properties based on emotion or, captial appreciation speculation.

    Here is how you can profit from what I do:

    I will give you a high rate of return on your money. I will put you in a first position mortgage on the property in a very low LTV position so that you are very safe. If I don't tell you or do what I tell you I'm going to do and I don't get you that money back again this low LTV means that you are going to get a property with significantly more value that what I'm borrowing from you.

    So that you are absolutely comfortable with the deal, I will have the Title company provide you or your Attorney with a copy of the Promissory Note and Deed of Trust for you to review prior to settlement. If you are comfortable, we move forward and close the deal.

    If you like what you hear, simply let me know how much you’re looking to invest and how long you can have your funds tied up. I’ll put you on my list and look for an investment opportunity that meets your needs. When I find one, I will call you. At that time you can pass or play. There’s no obligation.

    About me:

    I have been a licensed real estate agent and Realtor for almost four years now. I personally own rental investment property. I am a Candidate Member of CCIM Institute, Member of DC/Virginia Real Estate Investors Group, Member of Senior Advantage Real Estate Council (SAREC), Member of Real Estate Buyer's Agent Council (REBAC), Member of the Greater Piedmont Area Association of REALTORS (GPAAR), Member of the Virginia Association of REALTORS (VAR), Member of the National Association of REALTORS (NAR), Student of Trump University School of Real Estate, Bachelor Degree in Business Administration, and a Associate Degree in Electronics Engineering.

    In closing, this type of program may not be suitable for everyone. If you have any questions at all on how we might possible form an alliance in these endeavors please contact me on my cell at (540) 272-9012 or via email at kelliott@comcast.net I also have a website you may visit at http://www.MyRealtorKeith.com

    Thank you for your time.

    Sincerely,

    -Keith

    Keith M. Elliott Jr.
    Prince William County Real Estate Specialist
    Realtor®, e-PRO®, ABR®, SRES®
    Commercial Specialist®

    RE/MAX Olympic
    15100 Washington Street
    Haymarket, VA 20169
    Office: (703) 754-4341
    Cell: 540-272-9012
    Fax: (571) 261-5048
    Email: kelliott@comcast.net
    Website: http://www.MyRealtorKeith.com
    Blog: http://www.activerain.com/kelliott5264

    Posted Sunday, October 28, 2007 6:03 PM by Keith Elliott Jr | 0 Comments

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