Carl Berg is a real estate investor with a net worth of $26 million dollars today. Sometime around 2013, he was worth $1.3 billion. Although he lost his billionaire status, his origin story was just like any average American.

He started with little to nothing and had to finance his tertiary education through repairing vending machines and working as a clerk in a hotel. He met a home builder during his clerk occupation who offered him an office job.

When he graduated, he was running the mortgage company that the home builder owned. Years later, he left and used the real estate skills he learned to buy and rent out Silicon Valley office buildings. I like to think that Berg used a combination of strategies below to succeed in his real estate business and I believe that you too can be successful by following them.

1. Hard money lenders

If you have property or valuable possessions, you can use them as collateral for hard money lenders. These types of lenders aren’t particular in getting their money back because they can just sell your collateral for a higher price. They also usually have fewer requirements for lending which makes your loan process fast.

2. Private money lenders

This strategy works best for people with good connections and is similar to hard money lenders but with a usually lower interest rate. The other two differences are that hard money lenders are operated by companies with more money to lend. Whereas private money lenders can be your affluent friend or another person with only a little money for you to borrow.

3. Make your primary residence a rental

House hacking is what you call it. It’s the real estate investment strategy of renting out some parts of your home. For example, you can rent out your garage to a mechanic for their automobile repair and maintenance business. If you’re only renting and your space is too big for you, you can talk to your landlord about subletting the property.

4. Leverage your property to a bank

Banks will appraise your property’s value and determine your credit score in order to start the leveraging process. If you’re buying a $500K property with a good credit score plus a $400K appraisal of your present property, the bank can agree to loan you 90%. This means you’re given a loan of $450K and you’ll have to come up with the remaining $50K to buy the $500K property.

5. Real estate crowdfunding

Do you have a good reputation in a community, the knowledge, and the diligence to hustle? If yes, then you can entice other individuals to pool in and fund your real estate investment plans. Just make sure to pick the right investment strategy for a property and study its local housing market well for guaranteed profits. Don’t forget to build your portfolio as well.

6. Swapping

You can trade any possession you have or services you can provide when buying a home for investment. For example, you can trade a limited edition sports car or a piece of valuable art as a downpayment or full payment for a property. Even trading houses is good as long as both you and the other homeowner get an advantage out of the swap. You can then apply your real estate investment plans to the house you just got from the trade.

7. Take over mortgage payments

Sometimes, you’ll find your dream home but can’t pay the downpayment for it. You can offer the house seller that you’ll pay for the mortgage in exchange for the deed. Read the existing loan first because some mortgages have terms that prevent these kinds of transactions.

8. Invest in real estate mutual funds

There is one way to earn money in real estate without handling multiple properties yourself. It’s through real estate mutual funds. They are similar to stocks but instead of you investing in a single company, you’re investing in multiple properties held by the mutual fund.

Having the skills, knowledge, determination, and resourcefulness is more than enough to succeed in a real estate business. The lack of money is just an excuse.

Gain more real estate knowledge by reading the articles below:

• 9 Habits of Highly Effective Real Estate Investors
• 8 Real Estate Trends to Watch Out for In 2021
• 7 Books to Read Before Getting Started In Real Estate
• Avoid These 6 Pitfalls When Investing In Real Estate
• The Different Types of Real Estate Investments You Can Make