For any kiwi readers willing to search through second hand bookstores it could be worth your while trying to find yourself a copy of Jones on Property by Bob Jones (out of print). This book influenced my decision to get right out of residential property and into the much more stimulating genre of commercial. Bob Jones is sarcastic, witty and thoroughly inspirational. He somehow managed to finance and build a six story high rise in the Hutt area (north of Wellington) when he was in his early twenties, circa 1962.
Property Investment by Martin Hawes (Shoal Bay Press) is another good read, a “How To” book filled with plenty of good common sense ideas, and some not so common.

The one minute millionaire
Robert Allen and Mark Victor Hanson

Recommended by Minimogul, an enjoyable read especially the parable, I believe the best way to start the day is with a jog or walk too, charges your brain and sets you up for the day . A book that gets the grey matter working
9/10

Think and grow rich
Napoleon hill and W Clement Stone – I think

Haven’t read it for a while, it’s in the box- This book is a classic always being reprinted and it Definitely gets you thinking about the power of your mind
10/10

How to be mortgage free in 4 easy steps
Harj Gill

Also has a website http://www.mortgagefreeaustralia.com this book discusses various loans and techniques of structuring them to save $
7/10

Rental property and taxation
Tony Compton

As the name implies, variations, depreciations and tax related matters
7/10

Ordinary Millionare$
Jim mcnight (don’t know if he’s Steves relly)

This book was an enjoyable read by a Uni Professor, it’s about property millionaires and the techniques they used to achieve their individual success stories- I recommend buying it, it’s motivational too, but that’s just me, I get fired up by others doing well, makes me want to do better.
10/10

Borrowing to Invest
Noel whittaker and Paul Resnick

Again as the book implies a wealth of knowledge on loans and strategies and usefull to boot
9/10

Making Money made simple
AND
More Money
Noel whittaker

First bought his book at least 10 years ago, they’re that good I’ve even bought updated versions. Gave my Dad and my father in law his Living well in Retirement book for last XMAS. A great read on All aspects of investing, a great financial adviser who pointed me out to The richest man in Babylon another book I’ve given many copies away to friends as it’s plain old common sense and very easy to read
10/10 for all of them

0-130 properties
Steve Mcnight

Enjoyed the book, read it in 3 days and it’s lead me here where I’m learning more, very motivational, makes you want to get out there and do it ! actually it makes me want to get Steve to get out there and do it for ME!! He’s much better at it!!
10/10

Australia’s Money Secrets of the Rich.
John R. Burley
My Rating 9
I agree with muppet. one of the best books on ‘wealth creation’ to quote an icky jargony term

Real Estate Riches
Dolf de Roos 8
as well as educational, it reads quite well too

From 0-135 in 3.5 years
steve mcKnight
my rating – 9
very readable bits interspersed with hard-core diagrams and calculations sections. it may be daunting to people who don’t like numbers, but then again if you can’t do the numbers, you shouldn’t be investing.
and besides, there are these new-fangled gadgets called calculators these days….

The NZ InvestorÕs Guide to Making Money in Residential
Real Estate
Dolf de Roos and Jan somers
9.5

although a slim book, it was the first one i read, after watching an interview with some all-black who’d suddenly got pots of money after being low-socio economic all his life. it was a money programme and the guy was talking about how he’d just started learning about investing and the best book he’d read which explained how it works simply was the above book. i raced out and bought it the next day and I loved how it gave a case study of an average family with some equity in their own home who leveraged it into a million dollars in 8 years (i.e. after eight years they owned property worth 1.8 million bu only owed 800k.) it was the first time I started to really get how property investors use the banks’ money to make money.

Rich Dad Poor Dad
robert kiyosaki
rating 10
i could go on and on about this book – but the main thing i feel is that reading this book ‘re-programmed’ me for financial success, considering that I was pretty much the opposite at the time of reading the book. As soon as i finished the book the world seemed different, and full of opportunities which i started to see everywhere, and which i had never seen before. What i got out of the book was a state of mind I call ‘entrepreneur consciousness’ . Life-changing? well, life is more than $$$. but it was life-changing to me in the $$$ department.

The one-minute millionaire
Robert Allen and Mark Victor Hansen
rating 10

So much more than a $$$ book. On one of the first pages, they say ‘the object of this book is to create one million enlightened millionaires (who give 10 percent to the community.) we believe this has the potential to change the economic future of the entire world.’

After reading about the number of jobs the average millionaire creates (6) and thinking about the increased energy to the economy, I can totally see that being possible. they further explain this ‘butterfly effect’ as it’s called.

the book also aligns the ideas of wanting to be wealthy with living in integrity with the world and doing only good, which was a biggie for me.

Also, it’s just plain old empowering. the rubber band trick alone (put a band on your wrist and snap it every time you have a negative self-image thought, wearing it every day for 30 days without taking it off) was worth the purchase price.

Residential real estate investing : a beginner’s guide
Thornton, Clifton
My rating: 8
Recommended. Quick, inspirational read

Bugger the real estate agents! : we’ll sell it ourselves and save thousands of dollars
Semple, R. J. (R. J. (Bob))
My rating: 7
Good tips for selling home, but not 100% relevant to investing

Streets ahead : how to make money from residential property
Wakelin, Monique
My rating: 7
Makes too many assumptions about the reader, including retiring at around 60-65.

Investing in property
Clitheroe, Paul.
My rating: 7
some very useful tips. easy to read, but on the other hand not very detailed.

Real estate riches : how to become rich using your banker’s money
DeRoos, Dolf.
My rating: 9
Excellent book! Very recommended. Covers residential and commercial property.

Don’t sign anything! : how to protect yourself from the tricks and traps of real estate
Jenman, Neil, 1955-
My rating: 9
MUST READ! Incredible eye-opener into real estate agents & institutions. The author has a very cynical view of the real estate industry. Would have rated higher, but I don’t agree with the author’s investment philosophy.

How to create an income for life
Lomas, Margaret.
My rating: 8
Not a bad book, but I felt a bit let down by the fact that the author only has $1.2 mil worth of real estate after so long.

Your real estate jargon explained : tricks, traps and insider hints
Bell, Anita, 1967-
My rating: 7
quite useful little pocket book, sometimes humorously written

Secrets of property investment : secrets 1-5 : successful strategies for creating wealth through property investment
Doidge, Geoff.
My rating: 6
quite vague, but a few useful tips

Property power
Barnes, Leonard.
My rating: 8
Emphasis on timing market cycles for a buy-and-sell strategy.

How to sell your home for more : (and buy your next for less)
Wood, Ray, 1960-
My rating: 7

Real money real estate : winning the real estate game
Sugars, Bradley J.
My rating: 9
Great book! Featuring NLP, motivation, etc… More than just a real estate book.

More wealth from residential property
Somers, Jan (Jan B.)
My rating: 7
very detailed set of analyises for property investment

Making your home your gold mine
Crabb, Tony.
My rating: 6
somewhat lame

Buyer beware
Ryder, Terry.
My rating: 7
similar to “don’t sign anything” by neil jenman

How to maximise your property portfolio
Lomas, Margaret.
My rating: 7
i believe her thoughts on depreciation are erronous. a few good ideas in here though.

Property investing for lifestyle
Hewat, Tim, 1928-
My rating: 7
More of a history lesson than any thing else. Has a unique chapter devoted to (property on) golf courses.

The property investor’s handbook
Airey, Graham J.,
My rating: 8
good book, very detailed where other books are not; eg GST

The wealth power of property : you can be a property multi-millionaire
Johnson, Fred,.
My rating: 7

Property on the net
Airey, Graham J., 1966-
My rating: 6
more of a reference book. quite out-dated also. *didn’t finish this one*

The Penguin Australian home buyer’s guide
Humphrey, Nicholas, 1971-
My rating: 7
clear, step-by-step explanations

Buying and selling off-the-plan in Queensland
Blue, Christopher
My rating: 5
too boring to even finish reading. aimed at developers.

It’s easy to be a property multi-millionaire
Turnbull, Craig.
My rating: 8
inspirational book

Building wealth : story by story
Somers, Jan.
My rating: 7
full of short investment stories from 101 people. good and bad stories.

The Australian landlord’s handbook : managing residential rental property
Bilosh, Suzi.
My rating: 7
good book on diy landlording

How investing in commercial property really works
Roth, Martin.
My rating: 7
mostly about comercial, with a few other things too.

From 0 to 130 properties in 3.5 years
McKnight, Steve.
My rating: 8
book about positive cash flow real estate

-Ian