So is their anything to the Real estate guru's???

[TexasChopper]

here is how you make a bunch of money doing that stuff....
Start your own infomercial and sell the same program we are talking about!!! those are the guys getting rich!!
If you can make so much money why would take the time to develope a commercial and pay air-time to get it on TV? Because they are just a bunch a nice guys that help? Not. just another way of getting peoples money that are down on there luck and looking for a savor

[FullUp]

here is how you make a bunch of money doing that stuff....
Start your own infomercial and sell the same program we are talking about!!! those are the guys getting rich!!
If you can make so much money why would take the time to develope a commercial and pay air-time to get it on TV? Because they are just a bunch a nice guys that help? Not. just another way of getting peoples money that are down on there luck and looking for a savor
Truer words were never spoken. Don't get suckered into the hype. There are great deals out there if you can afford them.

[TheCarDudes]

Na I am woundering from purely an investment standpoint.
One of my friends fathers when I was growing up had quite a few homes, a part time agent also, I think just so he could cut cost. Anyway, basically what he did was go around to his rentals and fix them up and such, and purchase more. He made great money, but I never understood how you could keep buying homes and not sell them, what about all the debt and income ratio crap.
Pretty easy deal. You just have to have the time to invest, more than the money. Sure, a down payment is important, but believe it or not, down payments are not usually necessary.
Here is the example: Say you buy a house/condo for 200k. The usual down payment is 20% which is 40k. One would do this to avoid paying PMI. (Principal Mortgage Insurance). The lenders are actually doing what is called an 80/15/5. That means you have an 80% first mortgage, a 15% second mortgage usually in the form of a heloc (home equity line of credit) and the 5% balance is your downpayment. That is only 10k. Yoy can throw this on a credit card if you wanted to and pay it back out of the home's equity once you own it. You can also ask for the seller to rebate you some money back through escrow to help cover your costs and further reduce your cash outlay.
This sounds like a lot of leverage to be throwing around. It is. Nut it is how people are buying RE with no money down. You are just moving money from place to place or house to house. Just be careful. The biggest example of this is Donald Trump. He leverages everything. His wealth comes from the profit he sees from leverageing everything and making sure the income on the properties exceeds the outgoing payments, at an amazing level.
The key is to find a property that the rental income will come close to the mortgage payment(s) and taxes. This is what will erase your debt ratio because you can show that you have rental agreements on these properties paying for them and that will prove that the debt should not affect your abilty to purchase something else.
Now the way that most people are making the big money: Real estate is a long term investment opportunity. If you have a property mortgaged for 15 years and have it rented out, essentially the renters are paying off your properties. In 15 or 20 years from now, you should be able to have several properties paid off free and clear. Now you can sell them and put all that cash in the bank or continue to rent them with no mortgage payment going out so now the rental income is ALL PROFIT.
Sometimes you get lucky and make a few purchases at the beginnng of a boom in the market. 6 to 8 years ago was the best time in this cycle to buy properties. Anybody who did probably about doubled their money if they sold in the last 24 months. This cycle came to an end a year ago and is going through a market correction. It is not as serious as what happened in the late 1980's but it is not over yet.
Be careful where you buy. Do the research on the rental income in the areas you are wanting to buy in. If it were as easy as everyone is saying on TV, everyone and their mother, brother, and sister would be in on it. Just like anything else, it takes a time and commitment. Overall, it is a great way to build your future retirement. Just find a RE agent and a mortgage broker or direct lender you can trust and is willing to work for you.
Good Luck