House Hacking Book - Launching in a month

[JustAskBenWhy]

Why not? Moved from Ohio to Arizona about 11 months ago. Bought a house with a very interesting foot-print. Put the attached Casita on AirBnB and VRBO - this thing is paying for our stay big time!

Locational Freedom - an ability to say I'm done here, going to go there now - House Hacking pays for such freedom. I stumbled into it on accident, but having realized the power and how many people this could be helpful for - I Wrote a Book!


Here's an article I wrote a few days back;

And here's the Case-Study page on JustAskBenWhy;

I am living for 50% of what it cost to live in Ohio. Nuts...and cool as all get-up!

Check it out, guys. Perhaps some of you will find some value in this. Launching the funnels in a week or so. Publishing on Amazon within the month.

Ben

 

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[JustAskBenWhy]

Well - finished recording the voice files for Audible. The book is about 45,000 words with about 3,000 more in additional sections. It really helped that I'd used audacity previously to record the voice files for CFFU. Knocked this book out in about a week!

I think it came out well - people will enjoy the audible as much, if not more, than the book. It was, however, tricky to get through some of the numbers...

OK - I think I am all done with the content and marketing materials. In case it helps someone here...

1. I've had much better experience with UpWork than Fiverr - period!
2. Editing by a pro runs about $0.02 per word. I spent a bit over $1,200 to edit all of the text.
3. Conversion to Create Space cost me $250 on UpWork.
4. Kindle conversion $25
5. Video editing (iPhone videos) $50
6. Book covers for Kindle and Create Space $100
7. Cover for Audible $25
8. Created the book in google.drive and shared that with everyone who needed it to complete the job.
9. Created audible files in Audacity (google free download) with a Yeti mic. Quality is quite good enough!
10. I can't help myself -- when someone does what they are supposed to I pay a little more that agreed upon...

Thus far, I am into this project about $1,800. I can see a marketing budget of about $600 - $1,000 for FB and other.

We shall see what transpires...hope this helps someone

If anyone has needs, I'd be happy to refer my contractors on UpWork. Text conversion, video, and cover design.

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

Love this. You can eliminate expenses through soul sucking deprivation and miserly penny pinching, or you can set it up so that your house works for you. I'm looking to jump on a duplex soon, rent out the empty half and pay the mortgage in full every month. Without a mortgage or rent to pay, how much money could all of us put into our businesses instead? Looking forward to the book. Will there be an AmazonKindle version? That's how I read 99% of my books now.

That's exactly the point. Rich Dad says a house is a liability - he's right. Cardone says don't buy - rent, because you need locational freedom in this economy...he is also right.

The way I am doing it negates both arguments, and does so with flair while 10X-ing my quality of life. I think it's such a good opportunity in today's RE cycle. And, it's duplicatable, especially in high desirability markets. In fact, the sexier the market, the better my model works. Thus, instead of doing House hack because you have no money to live in a house otherwise, you are doing a House Hack to literally buy more locational freedom and 10X experience of life.

It will be available on Kindle, Paper, and Audible (recording audible files now as we speak).

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

Getting closer. The initial response to some of my pre-launch funnels has been strong. People are definitely engaged with my vision of House Hacking.

In the meantime I decided to upgrade the cover. I think it's good now - the right flavor of "it's not a hotel or apartment" kind of thing...

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

OK. I am going for Bestseller on Amazon...I think I can get there, but I need your help.

My 'House Hacking' book is on Amazon (kindle and paper...audible coming in about a week) -- Click Here to see but do NOT buy yet!

Please Buy the Book on Thursday 27th!

On Thursday 27th I’ll be running a $0.99 special for the Kindle version of the book. I am sure you understand that at $0.99 I am not aiming to make much money here. Instead, I am aiming to generate a lot of transactional activity within a short time-frame so as to get Amazon to notice, which is the real key.

So - can you please buy ‘house hacking’ on the 27th for $0.99 and leave a review? Also, could you tell 3 friends (more if you really like me

Very important - the purchases have to come through on Thursday 27th, so the $0.99 price is only for that day.

Finally, once there you’ll see that you can either buy Kindle (which will be discounted) or the paper book. Those of you who prefer the paper book, go for it by all means! Personally this would be my preference whenever I buy a book. Paper + audible. Audible is coming in a few days!

There are a bunch of things happening before the 27th and after. But, Thursday 27th is huge...I appreciate your help and support!

PS: This book is some of my best work. People should read it, and I am trying to do all I can to get the word out.

PPS: Naturally, I'll post a reminder on Thursday

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

Good morning ladies and gents,

Culmination of 3 months of work - House Hacking is LIVE on Amazon!

The Kindle version is Discounted to $0.99 for TODAY ONLY. The paperback is regular price. The audible is still under review so I'll push that out later.

I will talk more about the process later. Today - sell, sell, sell! Help push me to #1 bestseller. Pick up a copy today!

Talk soon, guys!

 

[MJ DeMarco]

@JustAskBenWhy -- had no idea you lived in Chandler.

Question...

Do you have a pool? And if so, do you allow your guests to use it? And if so, what are the liability risks involved?

 

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[jon.a]

Done

I also down voted the guy that shit on you in the reviews and up voted the others.

 

[Scot]

Just purchased it. To be honest, not something I'll plan on doing myself, but for $0.99 to help a forum member out, definitely!

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

Why not? Moved from Ohio to Arizona about 11 months ago. Bought a house with a very interesting foot-print. Put the attached Casita on AirBnB and VRBO - this thing is paying for our stay big time!

Locational Freedom - an ability to say I'm done here, going to go there now - House Hacking pays for such freedom. I stumbled into it on accident, but having realized the power and how many people this could be helpful for - I Wrote a Book!

View attachment 15311
Here's an article I wrote a few days back;

And here's the Case-Study page on JustAskBenWhy;

I am living for 50% of what it cost to live in Ohio. Nuts...and cool as all get-up!

Check it out, guys. Perhaps some of you will find some value in this. Launching the funnels in a week or so. Publishing on Amazon within the month.

Ben

Here's a very interesting 60 minute discussion with Jake & Gino on the subject. Those of you who get your kicks from real estate will dig this:

House Hacking Podcast with Jake & Gino - Just Ask Ben Why

 

[mike24601]

Here it goes:
If I live in NYC, can I get a property in another state (let's say Arizona), and rent it out to other people but not live there?

Is that the gist of it or do I have to be there physically because I am the owner? Thanks!

I'm sure Ben will have a better explaination than mine, but basically you can rent a property out anywhere. With a good property manager you eliminate most of the burdens of dealing with tenants for a monthly fee. Example: your property out in West Tatooine gets a busted pipe. The PM coordinates getting it fixed and you pay them. If you're low on capital for a down payment, keep in mind that certain loans, like FHA /homepath type have owner occupancy requirements for a certain period of time, but other financing options don't.

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

This is inspirational stuff to be honest with you. Your marketing is solid!

I'm considering getting the book because I'm interested in the info and what I can do with it. I might convert, don't know yet.

I have a very embarrassing question tho, so please don't flame me.

Here it goes:

If I live in NYC, can I get a property in another state (let's say Arizona), and rent it out to other people but not live there?

Is that the gist of it or do I have to be there physically because I am the owner? Thanks!

Yes, of course you can. However, management is an issue. But, more than that, you;d be missing the whole point of this particular book.

You say my "marketing is solid". What I think is going on here is that the book simply creates real answers for real people. It fulfills a need, so marketing for this book is easy. Now - what are the real needs (problems) that this book solves?

1. Off-setting cost of living. High burn, as I call it. Making home-ownership affordable.
2. Locaional freedom - an ability to say I'm done here, I'm going to go there now.
3. Real estate investing strategy that is easier and more full-proof for newbies.

In your case, for instance, you would do the following:

1. Buy and read the book.
2. Call, text, or email me - I will hook you up with a really great Keller Williams agent (good friend of mine who knows...)
3. Find the right property across the river in Northern NJ
4. Do some version of what I teach in the book.

I promise - you will get much farther doing it my way rather than trying to manage a house here and a house there. Guaranteed!

 

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[jon.a]

I'll play but you have to remind me.

OK. I am going for Bestseller on Amazon...I think I can get there, but I need your help.

My 'House Hacking' book is on Amazon (kindle and paper...audible coming in about a week) -- Click Here to see but do NOT buy yet!

Please Buy the Book on Thursday 27th!

On Thursday 27th I’ll be running a $0.99 special for the Kindle version of the book. I am sure you understand that at $0.99 I am not aiming to make much money here. Instead, I am aiming to generate a lot of transactional activity within a short time-frame so as to get Amazon to notice, which is the real key.

So - can you please buy ‘house hacking’ on the 27th for $0.99 and leave a review? Also, could you tell 3 friends (more if you really like me

Very important - the purchases have to come through on Thursday 27th, so the $0.99 price is only for that day.

Finally, once there you’ll see that you can either buy Kindle (which will be discounted) or the paper book. Those of you who prefer the paper book, go for it by all means! Personally this would be my preference whenever I buy a book. Paper + audible. Audible is coming in a few days!

There are a bunch of things happening before the 27th and after. But, Thursday 27th is huge...I appreciate your help and support!

PS: This book is some of my best work. People should read it, and I am trying to do all I can to get the word out.

PPS: Naturally, I'll post a reminder on Thursday

 

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[G-Man]

Just bought. I was going to buy it anyway, but for .99 I've bought all kinds of stupid shit on Kindle, so this this a great deal.

Probably won't get around to reading for a week or so. I'm sure your book is great, but no way I'm stopping a Thomas Sowell masterpiece right in the middle.

 

[G-Man]

It's so mother effing annoying how you can't copy text from Kindle browser reader into One Note anymore. Anybody got a fix?

BTW, @JustAskBenWhy I need to know because I went ahead and started your book. My Sowell book will now sit on the shelf with a bookmark halfway through it for the next 6 months, dammit.

 

[#nowhere]

Hi Ben,


first, congratulations on your start of selling!
I'm interested. Do you have knowledge on the differences between USA and Europe?

Is your house hacking blueprint applicable to Europe (exactly: Germany)?

I will buy the book anyway. Just wanted to know if any differences exist which you may know?

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

Hi Ben,


first, congratulations on your start of selling!
I'm interested. Do you have knowledge on the differences between USA and Europe?

Is your house hacking blueprint applicable to Europe (exactly: Germany)?

I will buy the book anyway. Just wanted to know if any differences exist which you may know?

Hi!

This is a good question. To answer - on one hand the AirBnB concept is actually much more developed in Europe, and since my method works best with AirBnB I'd say yes. Actually Europe lends itself even better to my approach.

On the other hand, laws and regs around mortgages are obviously different, I cannot comment much on this. Should be doable, though.

Interestingly, I think that just now America is beginning to catch up to Europe with this Bed and Breakfast concept. Rural Europe has been there forever. I've stayed many a time in B&Bs in the Netherlands, for instance. I think this has to do with the fact that it is more difficult to get a mortgage and people have had to be creative in Europe. Here, in America, the emergence is a function of the growing delta between income and property values.

At the end of the day, this is entrepreneurial people saying - property is too expensive, but we are willing to be entrepreneurs and bring product to market in order to facilitate the burn. Makes sense?

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

I order it. Thank you very much, Ben!

It's my pleasure!

People have been telling me to write a book for years. But I hate regurgitating stuff. My real estate course (CFFU) covers things pretty extensively, and I didn't want to write a book until (unless) I had something new, ,meaningful, and timely to add to the conversation.

I believe in real estate. I am not as big as many of my friends, but it is the most stable and reliable income I've got. However, in the current cycle in 2017 it's very difficult to play the RE game. Possible, but hard, and requires a lot of expertise. And with this backdrop, a properly executed house hack is far and away the most viable option for vast majority of people. It's a way to immediately increase your quality of life with real estate in ways that are not possible by simply buying a duplex...

This is why I wrote 'House Hacking'. I believe in the message and in the tools I provide. This will help a lot of people, I feel, both with perspective and technique.

Thanks for noticing!

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

Well all you need is a new title, then:

"How to burn through $3,000 and fail: a new author's lessons in self publishing"

Hah, all seriousness though, why do you call it a flop? If you believe in the material and know in your heart that it's good, you just need to keep working it and getting it into more people's hands. Get creative. It could take a year of trying clever and innovative marketing strategies before it begins to take off... but if the content is correct, it will

Hahah - you're funny!!!

Actually, the book's performance as a loss leader has been very good. But, even though loss leader was one of the intended uses for this book, a successful launch and money-maker was another. I would like to get to the bottom of what the hell I did wrong and how to help it.

Not unimportant is the fact that I delayed the release of the audible version and as such I do have another crack at positioning and marketing. I'll be back with some concrete questions once the dust has settled in a few days...

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

Hey Ben,

Read the sample on Amazon and looks great so far! I like the writing style.

Does your advice apply to most countries? Or is a lot of it American based? I've read a bunch of US Real Estate books but often some of the teachings don't apply elsewhere. I live up north in Canada fyi

What I am doing applies directly. Even more so in Europe than the States!
The reason is in the basic concept - B&B is generally much more accepted in Europe. Not to mention that Europe is much more of a destination. Some friends of mine just did a deal in France.
Additionally, the infrastructure I rely on for this are sites like AirBnB and VRBO - centralized and rather fully autonomous in most ways.
So, I would say - go for it. I think you'll have to "translate" some things to your marketplace, but the idea is totally actionable.

 

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[mike24601]

Love this. You can eliminate expenses through soul sucking deprivation and miserly penny pinching, or you can set it up so that your house works for you. I'm looking to jump on a duplex soon, rent out the empty half and pay the mortgage in full every month. Without a mortgage or rent to pay, how much money could all of us put into our businesses instead? Looking forward to the book. Will there be an AmazonKindle version? That's how I read 99% of my books now.

 

[biophase]

Nice work Ben! Downloaded the PDF, great read!

I've been tossing around the airbnb possibility also. Your casita rental has given me another avenue.

 

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[JustAskBenWhy]

@JustAskBenWhy -- had no idea you lived in Chandler.

Question...

Do you have a pool? And if so, do you allow your guests to use it? And if so, what are the liability risks involved?

Yep - I remember crossing the street from a coffee shop on the way to pick up the kids from school when my wife turned to me and said - we're moving; figure it out. hahah And that was that. We traveled for about 9 months to different places, @MJ DeMarco, trying to figure out where. But, for a number of reasons settled on AZ.

Yes, we do have a pool in the house. Yes, there are disclosures and disclaimer of limit of liability within the service agreement. Although, not a single person has ever used the pool yet, which I think is a function of whom we attract (which is by design and that's in part what the book is about.

Real estate, as you know, is all about the story which distills into numbers. This is no different

 

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[Justin Gesso]

My answer to your survey...Hell No!

This is such a great concept and probably one of the most interesting concepts for this RE cycle. Finding a way to live in a great house in a vacation destination (without sacrificing the lifestyle I've built) is a goal of mine. This certainly seems to be the solution.

As a brief disclaimer...@JustAskBenWhy and I have collaborated on various things over the last few years. We're both in real estate and generating money on our own in creative ways.

Thanks for giving me a pre-read of the book and allowing me to do an editorial review. You have my thumbs up so much that I decided to fly out to your place and check out your operations first hand. Will be good to finally meet you in person.

 

[JustAskBenWhy]

I'm moving soon. Very interested.

Releasing in just a few days!

 

[Justin Gesso]

So I just got back from staying a few days in @JustAskBenWhy's househack casita. Outstanding. This is such a win for business people like us and for consumers. The casita was way nicer than a hotel and it was less expensive. It was an eye-opening opportunity and my next house will be a hack like this. No question.

Unrelated, but if you stay at this one to check it out, be careful...Ben can sell you on a Tesla like nobody. If you don't want to buy, avoid eye contact. I ended up ordering my own Model S before I left. So maybe this wasn't such a cheap stay after all. ;-)

 

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[JustAskBenWhy]

Will def buy. Loved the free download.

The only challenge I see in my situation is that DFW is not a tourist/vacation area.

True - there is not as much vacation activity in DFW. But, there are a lot of sport and arts. Not to mention growing population and employment activity. If you buy the right asset in the right location this will work well!

 

[AgainstAllOdds]

Looking forward to the book. Replying here so that I can get updated when you release.

Good luck Ben!

 

[mike24601]

Now that I'm done with Unscripted, I am eagerly awaiting launch so I can dig into your book.

 

[Argue]

This is inspirational stuff to be honest with you. Your marketing is solid!

I'm considering getting the book because I'm interested in the info and what I can do with it. I might convert, don't know yet.

I have a very embarrassing question tho, so please don't flame me.

Here it goes:

If I live in NYC, can I get a property in another state (let's say Arizona), and rent it out to other people but not live there?

Is that the gist of it or do I have to be there physically because I am the owner? Thanks!

 

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