Mark commented that the first two things he would check when buying a house would be
1.) the roof, and;
2.) the foundation.
He doesn’t want to be stuck with these potentially big ticket expenses.
I said that those types of dangers to a real estate investor underscore the importance of having a thorough inspection of the house done prior to purchasing.
Have a Professional Inspection
Not only does a complete inspection by a professional inspector
1.) protect you from surprise expenses, but
2.) the inspector’s written report is a good tool to help negotiation a lower price with the seller, if the inspector identifies other issues the house may have (for example, A/C, plumbing, wiring, etc.)
Television Interview Update
The Morning Blend is a nice, friendly show, with genial hosts Amanda Guralski (who is also an author) and Sally Shamrell.
Before we started filming, they asked why Angy wasn’t with me, since she co-authored the book.
I had to tell them the truth.
I said, “I tried to get her to come, but ultimately she couldn’t be on the show because of her back. It has a big yellow stripe right down the middle.”
Strangely, Angywas never nervous when she and I have taught fixer-upper house seminars together, but she was a little anxious about appearing on television.
Like Riding a Horse
I told Angy it’s like learning to ride a horse. Isaid, “Sure, you may get bucked off a few times and maybe just break an arm or a leg, but before long, you’ll be riding that horse like the Lone Ranger!”
Rather than making a video where you tell people to buy your book, it’s much better to make a video describing how your business operates, and why the type of business in general is a good business to be in. Subtlety always works better than beating people over the head with a sales promotion. Give your viewers something of value and they may return the favor.
For variety, and to broaden my appeal, sometimes I make a video designed simply to inspire people. I tell stories from my life that have inspiring messages, or describe ways that I find inspiration in my own life. In general, the better people know you, the more likely they are to become a customer.
2.) Keep it Short and Entertaining
Logitech Webcam
Many videos on YouTube are long and boring, when they should be quick and fun. I keep my videos short, and I try to include humor in them. I will tell a story that has recently happened to me, or use something that I have recorded in my “humor” notebook, where I record quips or jokes that I have come across.
3.) No Adlibbing
To make sure that I come across as professionally as possible, I write a script before I start recording. The script doesn’t have to be word for word what you plan to say, but just an outline so that you know the key points that you want to make. I always try to include quotes from famous people, and, of course, humor and stories.
Unless you’re Jay Leno, don’t try to adlib your way through a video. It just won’t look as good as you think it does. Think, “nose piercing.”
4.) Break it up into Pieces
Now I do my videos in segments. I will look at my script and decide what I want to say about one key point. I record myself talking about that one point. Then I stop the camera and study the next key point, and so on.
Try to look right into the camera, and speak in a friendly voice as though you were talking to your best friend.
5.) Don’t Overanalyze
Don’t try to overanalyze making videos. As Douglas Adams said,
If you try and take a cat apart to see how it works, the first thing you have on your hands is a non-working cat.
What’s my motivation?
My First Video
For the first video that I made (where I was actually on screen), I was so nervous that I actually wrote out the entire script and read it into the camera. I had my son, Bryan, holding the script next to the camera so that it wouldn’t look like I was reading it.
My son commented, “Surely, people will know that you are just reading.”
I said, “No way. I’ll read it like I talk. And don’t call me Shirley!”
Bryan was right. It did kind of look like I was reading.
Cut!!!
At the end of the video, I was going to stand up and walk away down a peaceful rural path with my dog Blackie (the Wonder Dog), and I got tangled up in the microphone wire. And, the camera pan was jerky as I walked away. The video was unraveling into a Three Stooges experience, but none of that mattered. All that mattered was I somehow got the first video finished and posted.
I did this video before I started using an editing program so, like live TV, we had to get it all on one take.
Here is that first live video, warts and all, entitled “Walk Away From Your Problems and Find Inspiration.”
Two Alternatives to Using a Movie Camera
1. For the Camera Shy
If you really do not wish to appear in a video, you can still produce videos. You can use Easy Screen Capture Video, or ESCV (or any number of similar companies) and just do a voice over of a power point presentation, or use screen shots. It’s amazingly simple to do. You don’t even need a camera.
Here is the first video that I made using the ESCV technology, entitled “Start a Fixer Upper and Rental House Business” (which, looking back seems to run too long).
2. The Economical Way
If you want to do it the cheap and easy way, you can just record your videos using an video camera attached to your computer. I have a Logtech camera that captures sound and video. It clips onto the top of my screen and plugs into a USB port of my computer.
We’re Not Filming “War and Peace”
It’s tempting to think, “I don’t want to show this video to the world until it’s perfect.” Come on, you’re not Quentin Tarantino. We’re not aiming for a masterpiece here. You have to swallow your pride, and just put the video on YouTube, even if it has a few flaws.
People will overlook mistakes, especially if you have good content. My attitude is: my videos are not great, but I’m getting better each time I make another one. The more videos I make the better I get.
In this later video, “The Secret to Success in Less than 2 Minutes.” I employed several of the techniques that I have mentioned. It’s my most popular video with 3,200 views.
Camera and Editing
The camera that I use to record video is the Kodak Zi8. It’s small, easy to use and makes very clear videos. I also recommend that you have a tripod, a remote control, an external microphone, and an 8 GB flash memory card.
For editing, I use Windows Live Movie Maker, which is free if you have Windows. It allows you to cut and paste your video, and add music and titles.
Show People How to Do It!
Most people don’t want to waste time reading how to fix a leaky sink, or repair a car lock, or start a real estate business. They want to see how to do it!
They go to YouTube for answers.
That’s why your videos should be there.
This week’s recommended articles from the blogosphere:
I recently received several emails and even a postcard from a marketing guru.
He is promoting a new book publishing program where, he says, “REAL multi-millionaires show you how to become THE thought leader by sharing your wisdom and content.”
His postcard reads:
“GET PUBLISHED. GET PAID.
Fair WARNING: If your content creation, distribution, and monetization strategy sucks, you’ll be a broke, unknown expert forever. If your content strategy is smart, distinct, ubiquitous, and automated, you could be a famous millionaire who inspires the world. Your call.”
The card directs you to an on-line video sales pitch, where you see that he is offering a 3-day seminar where you will learn all you need to know to publish your book, for a cost of $10,000 dollars.
Lemme get this straight. We can learn all we need to know in just 3 days?
Take a 3 day swallow for $10,000
Where do we sign up?
Alas, this sales pitch is an un-holy marriage of fact and fantasy.
The Facts:
1.) Many people would like to write a book;
2.) There are genuine benefits from writing and publishing a book.
3.) Book promotion should be smart and ubiquitous.
The Fantasy:
1.) It’s fast. You can learn all you need to know to be a “famous” millionaire book author in 3 days;
2.) It’s expensive, but worth it. You need to pay an exorbitant sum of money to “jump start” your dream;
3.) You need “millionaire experts” to correctly publish and promote your book;
Granted, you could probably learn something from this seminar, but …
if so-called “REAL multi-millionaires” are running the seminar, it’s probably going to involve you handing over your wallet to them so that they can do things for you that you could do for yourself. They’ll also be happy to tie your shoe laces for you and cut your meat up into smaller pieces so it’s easier to chew, but is that really necessary?
This runs counter to what life teaches us about “self-reliance”
Muhahahaha!
Emerson said, “the essence of genius, of virtue, and of life is available to us through our intuition.” If we determine that our intuition is guiding us to write a book, nothing can stop us. We will learn as we advance in the direction of our dreams.
The same is true for book promotion. Some of the most powerful ways to promote your book are accessible to anyone, and they are inexpensive. These include:
I say, instead of sending blank checks to needy multi-millionaires to get your book published, rely on your own inner compass and ingenuity to lead the way. You can do it yourself, and maybe even become more self-reliant and famous-ish in the process.
Yesterday, I participated in a telephone seminar on “how to be a good guest on radio shows.” I have been on many radio shows to promote my books, but I’m always looking for new ways to be a better guest, or perhaps more appropriately, a greater guest.
One point that the presenter mentioned really struck me. He said that radio shows prefer guests who have a strong opinion. They want you to be riled up about something.
Not gonna take it.
The presenter asked, “Why are you angry? What are you going to do about it? What makes you angry about your profession?”
He said, “Aren’t you angry about the economy, or the fact that a lot of Canadians are buying up foreclosed houses in Arizona?”
I said, “No way.
Let me entertain you, eh?
Sure, our Canadian friends have infiltrated the entertainment industry with singers, actors, and comedians practically indistinguishable from their American counterparts, but they don’t buy fixer upper houses, which is my gig; and the recession makes houses cheaper for me to buy.
But, I was angry when I had my work hours reduced during the 2001 recession. That forced me to change my way of thinking about what constituted economic security, and got me started on my fixer-upper house business. That’s also motivated me write my first book.
Looking back, I was wrong to be riled up at the recession. What I should have been riled up at was my own blindness and misplaced faith in something as ephemeral as a steady economy. I should have been riled up that I waited for a disaster to strike before I took action.
Maybe my approach should be that I am riled up about other people who don’t learn from their own painful experience, or from mine. Not that everyone should run out and buy fixer-upper houses, but everyone should establish economic security, or carve out their niche, apart from, or in addition to, their 9-5 job.”
He replied, after a thoughtful pause, “maybe that’s it … people who never plan for a safety net.
This is the major problem we are seeing … if people prepared, they wouldn’t be so panicked.”
So that’s it.
Now I have something to be riled up about; to express my rightful indignation over.
Preparing for my next radio interview
Watch out!
When I hit the radio waves to promote my next book I’ll come out swinging! Grrrr!
I believe that every one who operates a fixer upper and rental house business, or anyone who is doing anything that they love, should also consider writing a book (and self-publish it, but that’s another article). Once we have paid our dues, and carved out our niche in our chosen field, we have a moral obligation to share that knowledge with others.
When you write your book, the circle is complete.
Writing blog articles is another way to share, but it doesn’t go far enough. A book is all your experience and wisdom concentrated into one simple package, like frozen orange juice. Someone can read it and be able to follow in your foot steps and do what you do.
Think Like an Artist
Where’s my coffee?
Writing a book requires the same perseverance and gusto that we bring to our chosen profession. However, it also requires something more. We need to be able to think like artists. Don’t worry, you don’t have to walk around with a tortured look on your face, grow a goatee, or sip coffee all day at French Cafés.
Thinking like as artist requires delving into the inspirational and creative natures of our personalities. In short, we have to be struck by inspirational lightning!
Author Julie Cameron, in her book “The Artist’s Way” describes a two-pronged technique designed to plug you into your inner source of creativity.
The two steps are:
1.) Writing morning pages; and,
2.) The artist’s date.
The morning pages allow you to bypass your “logic” brain, which is normally in gear, and shift into the “artist” brain. The artist’s dates are fun things that you do to refill your creative reservoir.
Morning Pages
Up a little too early?
The “morning pages” technique involves getting up an hour earlier than you normally do, and in longhand writing, write three pages using strictly stream of consciousness. Every day, just write three pages of whatever crosses your mind, and don’t stop until the three pages are full.
The purpose of writing morning pages is to get past the things that inhibit us from writing; our fears, our negativity, or our moods. It gets us past them to a place where we can hear that still, small voice. And, when we are in that place past the negativity, we can align with our creative energies.
As Cameron says “It is impossible to write morning pages for any extended period of time without coming into contact with an unexpected inner power.”
The Artist Date
An artist date is a block of time, maybe two hours a week, committed to nurturing your inner artist. It can be things like a walk in the county, a visit to an art gallery, attending a film contest, or visit a great junk store. It’s just you and your inner artist.
Seek out the mysterious.
The artist brain is drawn to sensory stimulation, like sights, sounds, smell, taste, and touch. Do what intrigues you, explore what interests you; follow your sense of the mysterious.
Your inner artist needs to be taken out, indulged, and listened to. Our creativity uses this time to confide in us and to bond with us.
Get Going!
Morning pages and the artist date are a two step process for the aspiring au thor. The Morning Pages draw from your well of inspiration, and the Artist’s Date fill the well again.
“Someday” never comes.
I know, every time you imagine writing that book of yours; you get that glazed, wistful look in your eyes, thinking “yeah, someday I’m going to do that.”
Snap out of it!
You should allow these two techniques to jump start your creative juices, like inspirational lightning, and to begin writing your book!
Julia Cameron on Morning Pages & Artist Date
_____________________
Coming Soon!
How to Turn Your Home into a Rental House, Instead of Selling It
The Arizona Network of Real Estate invited me to give a presentation to their group about my book “Fix em Up Rent em Out.”
I thought the video might be available to the general public but it looks as though that’s not going to happen.
However, so that no one feels left out, I am going to provide a summary of the key points that I hit during the presentation. As someone who was regularly picked last for teams in gym class, I’m sensitive to people feeling left out. Casting modesty to the wind, I am also including exclusive photos of the event.
So here are:
The 5 Rules on How to Lose Money and Get Your Rental Property Trashed by Tenants (based on an article by Andrew Stefanczyk)
1. Choose the Worst Possible Area
Location will determine the kinds of tenants you will attract, and how much rent you can fairly charge.
Do you want these bearded wonders as tenants?
The best approach is to identify target areas in your city where you would like to focus your purchases. I like to focus on “transition zones” (where there is a mixture of housing types) which are good for investors because we can purchase properties at lower prices, and there is high demand to live in these areas.
2. Put in the very best of things when fixing up an investment property
Use new and expensive sinks, doors, refrigerators, light fixtures, etc. Never shop at stores that recycle construction supplies. Spare no expense.
Of course, the problem is that tenants will not take care of our properties as well as we would,
Habitat Store
so we end up with many broken or worn out items. The better alternative is to shop at used building supply stores, and to purchase good, inexpensive, supplies for our rental houses. One such store is the Habitat for Humanity store.
3. Make sure you have absolutely no experience in make basic repairs
Not knowing how to change electrical outlets, unclog drains & toilets, and replace broken windows will cost quite a bit down the road.
Being as uninformed as possible about who you rent to may be the best way to lose money as a landlord. Do not ask for or check references. Do not call previous landlords and ask questions like, did they pay rent on time? How was the condition of the house or apartment when they left? Did they ever disturb neighbors with loud music or shouting matches? How often would you have to make special trips for repairs? Being as uninformed as possible about whom you rent to will make a huge difference and will increase the chances that you will get tenants that will trash your property and refuse to pay rent.
However, the better way is to:
A. Use a checklist for tenants. Decide what kind of tenant that you want ahead of time.
C. Check county records to see what illegal activities they’ve been up to.
D. Know the Fair Housing Act. Never select tenants based strictly on “race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status or handicap (disability).”
E. To find new tenants, use Craiglist, put up arrow signs, and host an “open house.”
5. Make sure you have not learned about your rights as a landlord
Be completely unfamiliar with the eviction process to guarantee long, drawn out disputes with tenants. Don’t keep up to date financial records or copies of correspondence with tenants. Most states provide online information about tenant and landlord rights so avoid reading these.
Although I used my handyman friend to inspect the first fixer upper house that I bought, in later houses I hired a professional property inspector to go through the house and to provide me with a complete inspection report.
The Value of the Inspector’s Report
The inspector’s report can be used to help you negotiate a lower price on the house if they uncover anything in the house that is in need of repair. Hiring a qualified property inspector is a good way to make sure that you are really getting what you pay for in a house.
Due Diligence Allows You to Correct Deficiencies
Once you have made an offer on a house and it had been accepted by the seller, the “due diligence” period begins and you have until the close of escrow (or completion of the sale) to check out the physical and financial condition of the property. If you discover that the property has problems, but you think the deal is still worth pursuing, the seller may be willing to correct any deficiencies, or give you money to complete the necessary work yourself.
Two Key Components of Due Diligence
There are two key components of due diligence process:
Packed with specifics on not only writing a book, but also the possibility and practicality of self-publishing and marketing what you’ve written. “Carve Out Your Niche” will prove to be invaluable for anyone seeking to successfully write, publish, and market their own work. — Midwest Book Review
What happens after you have been successfully operating your fixer-upper house business for several years, and you have become a master of your own minor universe?
At that point, it’s time to move on to the next phase of your career. You need to write a book about your experiences and share your hard-earned wisdom with others.
Following closely on the heels of writing your book, you will need to find ways to reach the people that will benefit from your book, and you must (gasp! choke!) promote your book.
I have already blazed a path for you to follow. Just follow the steps laid out in my book and you too will be able to:
1. Find your niche, or mission in life, if you haven’t already;
2. Lean to write and self-publish your book;
3. Promote your message through an assortment of proven techniques, including videos, radio interviews, and that ravenous monster called “the internet.”
Carve Out Your Niche will soon be available at Amazon.com and other internet book stores.
However, if you can’t wait and would like a preview of my book, you can fill in the form on my Carve Out Your Niche website and receive a free download of the Introductory Chapter.
As I mentioned in part I of this topic, it was Aaron Shepard’s book, “Aiming at Amazon,” thatpushed me over the top. At that point, I decided I was going to finish my book, Fix em Up Rent em Out, and publish it, no matter what it took. Everything else was going to be on hold until I finished the book. I worked almost every night for about 4 weeks, on about 2-3 hours of sleep. I started to resemble a zombie from “The Night of the Living Dead,” but I finished the book.
Formatting the book, and making it look like a professional work, required learning another area of expertise. Books like “Perfect Pages” by Shepard and Microsoft Word Manuals were my Bibles. Then, I had to find an copy editor, and give him 6-8 weeks to do his job. And, I located someone to do a cover.
Finally, submitting the files for printing at Lightning Source proved to be another hurtle for me. It took me several tries to submit it the way they needed it for printing. Like anything, the first time you do it irs hard. The second time will be a piece of cake.
Starting a publishing company was another aspect of the process that took time. Not difficult, but you must follow exact procedures and do a lot of running around. I plowed ahead by getting the legal documents to file with the state, setting up bank accounts and purchasing ISBN numbers.
I say this just to show you what you can expect. I think writing a book about your experiences in real estate is a natural next step for someone who has paid their dues and learned the ropes. Who better to describe the hard lessons you have learned than you?
I found that just the exercise of putting your thoughts and experiences on paper, even if you never sell a book, is a worthwhile experience. Its empowering. It broadens your horizons. It makes you draw on sources of power and inspiration that you may not have known that you had.
Remember, an expert is just a regular person who has written a book!
UPDATE
For more information on self publishing, check out my book Carve Out Your Niche.
How Abraham Lincoln Used Stories to Touch Hearts, Minds & Funny Bones
“Timeless wisdom! The author shows how we can develop these skills and put them to use in our daily lives and businesses..” — Don Blankenship – Top 50 Amazon Reviewer.
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*2013 NATIONAL AWARD WINNER *
Self-Publish Your Book with “Carve Out Your Niche”
"Carve Out Your Niche: How to Live Your Passion, Write Your Book, & Help Others Change Their World"
"As a direct result of reading this book, I finished writing my book and published it as well. All of this took place within the past 30 days. "
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"Sprouse is one of the most practical authors in this genre I have ever read. 'Carve Out Your Niche' is downright inspiring."
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"Invaluable for anyone seeking to successfully write, publish, and market their own work"
The Midwest Book Review
FIX EM UP RENT EM OUT
Purchase FIX EM UP RENT EM OUT (paperback)Award-Winning Finalist in the Real Estate category of the National Best Books Awards, sponsored by USA Book NewsGreat information for anyone starting out in the fixer-upper business. The author has served his apprenticeship in the trenches.
-- Fixer Jay P. DeCima, Investor and AuthorTerry Sprouse has created a profitable rental business in his spare time. What sets him apart is he took action.-- Bob Zachmeier, Investor, Educator, Author With the wit of Will Rogers, this book provides simple guidelines for restoring homes, and sanity to our crazy lives. --M.D. Matlock, Ph.D., P.E., C.S.E.