Chakib Jaber - The Happy Couples Guide to Investing in Real Estate

Copyright 2013 Chakib and Jinan Jaber

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form

without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013930535

Printed in the United States of America

First Edition

10987654321

Distributed by

Publishers Group West

1700 Fourth Street, Berkeley CA 94710

Phone 510.809.3700

www.pgw.com

Roundtree Press

6 Petaluma Blvd. North, Suite B-6

Petaluma, California 94952

Phone 800.779.5582

www.roundtreepress.com

ISBN: 978-1937359294
eBook ISBN: 978-1-937359-54-6

DEDICATION

Dedicated to our daughter, Natalie,

without whose patience, support, and love

our tasks would have been much less enjoyable.

BY ANDREW MELLEN
PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZER AND
AUTHOR OFUNSTUFF YOUR LIFE!

As a professional organizer, I spend a great deal of my time encouraging people to carefully consider the stuff that surrounds them and to be judicious about what they bring home, literally and figuratively.

What I find so refreshing and useful about Jinan and Chakib Jabers excellent book, The Happy Couples Guide to Real Estate Investment, is that this book does, too. In one of the only types of accumulation I agree with, the Jabers have consistently chosen to invest their money in real estate rather than spend it buying luxury items in the hopes that luxury will provide the comfort and security that only comes from investing wisely. Dont believe me? Try eating a Rolex or paying your rent with a BMW when you get laid off.

Along with being able to distinguish urgent from important, knowing the difference between an investment and a purchase is vital to staying organized. Its also essential for successfully navigating your financial future. Fortunately, its something that Jinan and Chakib have figured out and are eager to share with us all. Granted, this book isnt for everyone. The authors cant do the work for you. If you are looking for a magic bullet, this book will disappoint you. My only hope is that you dont fall prey to late-night TV get-rich-quick schemes involving foreclosures, auctions, or other forms of bottom-feeding. Because the only magic bullets on TV that really work are reserved for vampires and werewolves. For the rest of us, and for anyone who is even the least bit curious about how to methodically and progressively build a nest egg that you have control over and is far less susceptible to fuctuations than the stock market, youve got a gem in your hands. The Jabers have mapped out a simple, direct path toward financial independence through the purchase of investment properties, and they have managed to enjoy themselves and deepen their relationship doing itno small feat. To be clear: you dont need to be part of a couple to use their methods. But if you are, and your partner shares your desire, imagine how fun and lucrative this pursuit could be! From answering the question, Why invest in real estate as a source of passive income? to tips on how to deal with tenants, contractors, and property managers, youll find clear, concise, and practical information between these covers. So many do-it-yourself books seem to describe the authors process of losing weight or getting organized or investing wisely, but fail to tell the reader how they too can slim down, unclutter, or gain wealth.

Not so with The Happy Couples Guide.

Inside, youll find step-by-step instructions on how to go from knowing nothing to successfully buying and renting your first investment property. And once youve followed their comprehensive plan, it becomes easier to do it again and again. Just like riding a bike. A big, fat, income-producing bike.

Like so many things of lasting value, this process is simple but not always easy. You may encounter challenges at any point during the process. But with this book as your guide, youll have a variety of solutions available to you so youre always prepared for the unexpected.

The authors walk you through negotiating, financing, and even dealing with taxes. And like all good teachers, they have detailed a system that is reliable yet flexible enough to work for people other than themselves. So if you have ever considered investing in real estate, if you are willing to do the footwork to build a stable source of passive income for yourself, and if you can follow simple suggestions, buying this book will be the smartest and easiest way to start. Heres to your financial futuremay it be strong and sound and clutter-free!

Andrew Mellen

Professional organizer and author of Unstuff Your Life!

OUR FIRST BABY: HOW IT ALL STARTED

Its always fun to share the story of how we first got started in real estate investment. My husband CJ and I are a typical middle-class, hardworking couple living in the Washington, D.C., metro area. We had been happily married for eight years when we bought our first baby in 2006. First let me tell you how and why we got started. We were both working and making good money. However, we always felt that by the end of the month, we had nothing in the bank to show for our hard work. We had been living in a townhouse we owned for only two years, and sold it for around $100,000 profit, which we used as a down payment for the single-family house where we now live in Falls Church, Virginia. Even though it was the height of the real estate market, we saw the potential to build wealth through real estate, and the sale of our townhouse opened our eyes to the possibilities of investing in that market.

CJ worked at Freddie Mac for several years, and he worked for Reuters investment division before that, which gave him an inside view into the trading and mortgage industries. Before getting into sales, I also worked as a financial advisor with American Express Financial Advisors (now Ameriprise) while pursuing my MBA degree at George Mason University. With that background, we knew quite a bit about investment vehicles, from stocks and investment funds to retirement and savings vehicles.

As an avid investor, CJ started by dabbling in penny stock trading, and then he experimented with different investment trading strategies that were used at large firms and applied complex analyses to stock trading. Through the market volatility and the uncertainty in the economy, we thankfully didnt lose money, but we didnt get the return on investment that we would have hoped for. CJ would always say, There has to be a better way to make money.

We started looking at different long-term investment strategies for our future, and real estate seemed like the right answer for us. We wanted to own solid assets, the kind that are likely to grow in value over the years and which dont completely lose their value should the market fuctuate. Thats when we first refinanced our house and took out around $200,000 in cash. That was in 2004, when real estate value had reached its peak. We used $134,000 of that money to eliminate our debt on a twenty-acre piece of land in West Virginia, which we had bought thinking that we would eventually build a log cabin there as a vacation home. Instead of keeping the rest of the money in the bank to collect meager interest, we decided to look for our first rental property.