Category: Education

I have several ebooks that I send out at no cost to folks who sign up for our “insights” mailing list. But in today’s hyperspeed world, I’m finding that now a lot of people who are constantly on the go just don’t have time to sit and read as much as they’d like. That’s why, with help of my AI sidekick, I’ve started turning the content of those ebooks into podcasts.

Follow this link to listen to the first. And stayed tuned for several more.

https://www.realdata.com/realestateeducation/5_Key_Steps_podcast.mp3

In my previous post, I gave you a list of some of the most common acronyms used in real estate. Not a complete list, of course, but a good start to decode the secret jargon of our industry.

And as I professed then,  mastering this lingo and using these terms correctly not only facilitates communication but also demonstrates expertise and insider knowledge.

Now that we have a representative list, let’s look at the meaning of some of these terms.

In my previous post, I discussed what I believe are some of the most important pros and cons of investing in self-storage real estate.

As with most real estate sectors, self-storage features some terms that are particular to this property type — specifically in how owners describe occupancy: Unit Occupancy, Physical Occupancy, and Economic Occupancy. Let’s review them:

Leverage is a fundamental tool in real estate investing, allowing investors to acquire properties while using their own cash for just a fraction of the total cost. Borrowing money to invest in income-producing properties can amplify your returns, allowing you to scale faster than relying solely on your own capital. However, excessive leverage can prove to be a double-edged sword—when the market is in your favor, it opens the door to greater opportunity. But if the market turns against you, it can lift the lid on Pandora’s box. In this article, I’ll explore the benefits and some of hidden dangers of high leverage, how it can impact long-term investment success, and ways to strike the right balance.

Real estate has probably been the best vehicle for building wealth since, well, forever – and income-producing real estate (aka rental property) may be the type of real estate that offers the greatest opportunities to small and mid-size investors.

But nothing worthwhile comes without a few potential pitfalls. You can and certainly should prosper as an investor, but to do so means being mindful of some mistakes that could derail your success. Let’s consider a few of the most important:

Regression – no, it’s not what your family and friends accuse you of when you want to trade in the mini-van for a two-seater stick-shift convertible (well, maybe it is, but that’s a topic for a different article). If you’re familiar with our RealData software, my online video courses, and my other blog posts here, then you know that I’m usually talking about income-producing property like multi-family, retail, office, or the like — seldom about single-family homes. And when we estimate the value of most income properties, we typically do so by looking at their income stream.

We usually think of Return on Equity (ROE) as a straightforward investment measure. That’s understandable, because the traditional method of calculating ROE is pretty clear cut: Take your cash flow after taxes and divide it by your initial cash investment.