Real estate investing can be a very lucrative second income, or it might be a fabulous first one. It is imperative to do your homework on the subject and learn the rules of the road that have led others to success. Avoid bad deals in real estate; continue to read for great advice that help you make money.

Speak with a real estate expert to help you with your plan and see whether or not there are holes in your strategy. This will help you to get a good idea of where you stand and what you need to do to accomplish your goals. They may tear the plan apart and give you an alternative plan instead.

When you are considering industrial or retail properties, keep two things in mind. The number one rule is never pay more than the land itself is worth. Do not spend too much money on the business either. Think seriously about the “as is” value of the property and what rental income could be ascertained. Each of these numbers must be good for you to decide to purchase the property.

Get to know others in the real estate market. It’s a good idea to talk to other people and to hear what kinds of advice they can give you if they are more experienced than you. Having a network of knowledgeable investors will be beneficial. You can find others with the same interests on the Internet. Join forums to learn as much as you can.

Hire a professional inspector to come out and see the property you’re thinking of putting your money into. You may think that you can just look over the property on your own to find problems, but if you’re not trained you may miss some things. When problems are found, you should make sure to get some money off of the property or have the owner fix it for you.

If you are looking to buy a rental property from a seller, ask to see his Schedule E tax form. That particular document will honestly tell you what kind of cash flow you can expect from the property in question. Crunching the numbers tells you all you need to know about whether or not to buy.

Don’t think that you always have to pay the list price for a piece of property. A lot of the time an owner will make the price higher than it should be because they expect people to try and negotiate with them. Don’t be scared to give them a lower offer because they may just give you that money off.

Stay away from deals that are too good to be true, especially with investors that you cannot trust or do not have a good reputation. It is important to stick with those who have a good reputation because getting ripped off in this business can cost you a lot of money.

Now that you have read this article, you can see some of the keys to success and pitfalls to avoid. You wish to succeed, and these tips can help. You will get what you want only through hard work, so it is essential that your learning process never stops.