Best Real Estate Investing Books – recommended by entrepreneurs and professionals

The funny thing is that the books that had the biggest impact (like my Verne’s favourite) are not necessarily the best books, objectively speaking. They were good enough to present a new worldview that I was not aware of. Timing probably was more important than their intrinsic literary qualities. They “managed” to fall into my lap at the right time. Such a book was Robert Kiyosaki’s “Rich Dad Poor Dad”, a mediocre book by my standards of today, but deeply inspirational by the ones from yesterday.

Vladimir Oane

Founder/UberVU

Recommended by Ola Olusoga (Co-founder/Populum)

Source: Interview with Ola Olusoga: How Books Have Guided His Path To Self-Discovery

I'd recommend reading anything that helps develop your ability to understand and solve a problem. Triaging issues by importance and properly identifying their causes is critical in almost every aspect of business. Without that, you can easily spend a lot of time on the wrong problem, or an ineffective solution, and your time is, more or less, your most valuable commodity. So I'd suggest books like A Certain Ambiguity by Gaurav Suri and Hartosh Singh Bal, or Freakonomics by Stephen Levitt‎ and Stephen Dubner - books which will explore different ways of delving into problems and understanding their impact.

Dave Child

Founder/Readable.io

This book wants you to be rich: in money, in time, and in life. You have come to the right place. Kristy and Bryce take you through the process step by step, with actionable things that you can do no matter what your age, location, background, or education.

J L Collins

Author

"Secrets of the Millionaire Mind" by T Harv Eker has also had a radical impact on me in recent years and on my attitude towards money. I find it almost embarrassing to recommend because the ideas are very radical and "woo woo", but if you stick with it, it can change your perspective totally.

Lewis Smith

Entrepreneur & Developer/BodyTracker

Michael Lewis's ability to boil down the most complicated subjects is like a magic trick. You can't believe your own eyes. He takes on important issues - from the 2008 Wall Street crash in "The Big Short" to parenting in "Home Game" - and breaks them down to the deepest truths. His combination of an extraordinarily analytical mind and a deep understanding of human nature allows him to weave together data and events to offer a fresh and insightful narrative. Whatever the topic, the result is always compelling and even thrilling. I am in awe of him.

Sheryl Sandberg

COO/Facebook

It's easy to get fired up by the financial freedom that real estate investing can provide, but it’s harder to take the leap. The Millionaire Real Estate Investor offers some good insights on deconstructing the myths that hold people back from investing.

For example, many assume they can’t start investing in real estate. In reality, industry disruptions like crowdsourcing open the door to commercial real estate success. A site like RealtyMogul crowdsources deals on properties from hotels to storage units for an investment of just a few thousand dollars. You could also consider buying a triplex to live in and rent out the other two units to pay your mortgage. Then use the profits to fund your business in real estate.

Sujan Patel

Co-Founder/Web Profits

Need a side hustle to make ends meet? Been thinking about owning, renting or moving some real estate to see if you can turn a profit? If so, then this book is what you need to read to get practical advice, real-life examples of successes and failures and simple, down to earth business strategies.

Bruce Nile

Recommended by Dan Lok (Serial Entrepreneur)

Source: Dan’s Book Shelf - What He Reads That You’ll Find Invaluable

Not very far from the truth on the financial services industry though the authors biases come through. Not all correct (in my view), but still worth reading.

Vinod Khosla

Co-Founder/Sun Microsystem

Recommended by Fabrice Grinda (Serial Entrepreneur, Investor)

Source: Serial Entrepreneur & Investor Fabrice Grinda Reads Almost 100 Books Each Year

Sam Zell’s autobiography Am I Being Too Subtle? was awesome. I was sent a copy by an editor at Penguin Group who sends me books, presumably that he thinks I’ll like. While this was in my infinite pile of books, I grabbed it randomly last night and polished it off tonight.

Brad Feld

Co-Founder/Foundry Group

I love history and am very curious how South East Asia economies are dominated by only fifty families whose interests range from banking to real estate, shipping to sugar, gambling to lumber etc. It is so amazing to know how all these groups of entrepreneurs overcome both political and economic challenges by turning it into opportunity, grow their business and becoming who they are today.

Erik Cheong

Co-Founder/Park N Parcel

Recommended by Marvin Liao (Partner/500 Startups)

Source: Book-Talk with Marvin Liao, Partner at 500 Startups, Avid Reader & Tsundoku

If you want to get into stock trading or in case you want to become an investor, then I definitely would recommend to read the book I already mentioned and in addition: A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton Malkiel.

Michael Hebenstreit

Founder/MH Themes

I read a David Bach book that was given to me by my mother when I was a teenager. It was about personal finance and I remember reading it and promising myself I would be responsible with money moving forwards. That promise has been extremely valuable to me on my path in business.

John Hall

CEO & Co-Founder/Influence & Co

Question: What five books would you recommend to young people interested in your career path & why?

Answer: "The Property Apprentice" and "Property Magic" by Simon Zutschi

Jochen Siepmann

Property Investing Mentor & Author

Four Pillars has a good methodology for thinking about how to save and invest personally so definitely useful.

Bill Earner

Founder/Connect Ventures