This is a great video from Charisma on Command (which is a great Youtube channel which I've highlighted before by the way) on how to increase, and more accurately, properly use 

My latest article for BiggerPockets is up on why and how to screen potential tenants. This is not the most fun topic, nor is it pleasant to turn someone down for a rental. But it's definitely critical to do and master. (And you should consult your local laws and talk to an attorney to make sure you are in compliance with the law.)

As I note,

The article also has the following video that goes over the same information for those who like to learn by hearing. But why not both? Check out the article here too.

Yes, Greg Floyd was murdered. But these riots are way too much. Hundreds of millions of property damage, multiple deaths and I guarantee this will just make race relations much worse.

​Now this:

Fortunately, they put it out. But how much more of this can go on before the country just collapses? (And, by the way, whatever happened to liberal's obsession with social distancing?)

The Coronavirus and subsequent lockdowns decimated the US economy, sending unemployment spiraling to 14.7 percent, the highest its been since The Great Depression. Despite unprecedented government stimulus and bailouts (much of which found its way into the hands of giant corporations), many small businesses failed. Indeed, you can easily order something on Amazon during a lockdown. You can't go down to the locally owned store when it has been deemed "non-essential."

Entrepreneur Dan Price sums up this disaster as well as anyone could:

As The Street noted going into the Coronavirus lockdowns, small businesses were not prepared for this kind of shutdown,

Then there's this from a Chamber of Commerce survey at the beginning of April,

On the other hand, here's how Amazon and Wal-Mart performed over the last three months alone:

An annualized growth rate of 134% and 61% respectively. Not bad at all!

​​Then, on top of that, you have the recent protests-turned-riots over the last few weeks to exacerbate this issue. (And yes, George Floyd was murdered. I'm glad the cop who did it was arrested and he should go to prison for a very long time. But that's not the topic of this post.) ​Many of the stores and businesses that have been looted and burned were small businesses, most of which were probably already struggling from the Covid-19 lockdowns.

Yes, an Autozone was burned down and a Target looted and CNN's headquarters were attacked. Many big companies were hit too, but they'll be fine. Insurance will cover their losses. And insurance will cover the losses of small businesses too... but only to a certain degree.

Insurance policies have deductibles. Autozone can cover their deductible easily. Can Joe and Tracey's Antique Shop cover their's? In most cases, deductibles will be $5000 plus. Furthermore, looted shops will be unable to do business for some time. Insurance policies usually (but not always) cover such operating losses... but only for a certain amount of time. Will it be enough for all of them? And what if the areas these businesses are in lose a substantial amount of foot traffic for a long time afterwards? This is almost bound to happen and will hurt their sales even more.

Small businesses are in really bad shape right now. The Internet and technology made it much easier to manage and operate huge firms and that, along with a wave of mergers, has lead to a general trend toward industry consolidation for quite some time leading up to 2020. The Coronavirus and subsequent lockdowns sent that trend into overdrive and the recent riots will only make things worse.

This is something we need to be very vigilant about. No one should support a handful of super firms dominating the entire marketplace. Vibrant economies and successful countries have a strong small business sector. And we are in danger of losing ours.

My new article for BiggerPockets lists the first ten books I would recommend a new real estate investor read and in which order to read them. This is my recommendation:

1. How to Invest in Real Estate by Joshua Dorkin and Brandon Turner
2. The Millionaire Real Estate Investor by Gary Keller, Dave Jenks and Jay Papasan
   
3. The House Hacking Strategy by Craig Curelop
4. Flip by Rick Villani and Clay Davis
   
5. The Book on Investing in Real Estate with No (and low) Money Down by Brandon Turner
   
6. Raising Private Capital by Matt Faircloth
   
7. The Book on Negotiating Real Estate by J. Scott, Mark Ferguson and Carol Scott
   
8. The Book on Estimating Rehab Costs by J. Scott
   
9. The Landlord's Survival Guide by Jeffrey Taylor
   
10. Best Ever Apartment Syndication Book by Joe Fairless and Theo Hicks

I think that's a pretty good list and give reasons why I recommend each list.

And then I go on to recommend the next 10 in the "honorable mentions" section at the end. Check it out!