Posted by Eric C on September 01, 2003 at 19:47:10:
Hi Todd-
If you do a quick check of the archives on this board, I think you’ll be surprised at what you’ll find.
Just typing the word “books” into the search window turned up over 235 messages on the subject.
You might also want to check out “The Real Estate Game” by Poorvu and of course, anything by Zuckerman.
Poorvu’s book is pretty basic (his college level materials are much better), but he does capture the flavor and subject matter in a way that is of interest to most beginners.
I’d stay away from the Volucci book (don’t worry, you’ll find out about it when you check those archives) – too much reliance on the well-chosen example.
There’s an excellent book on the importance of choosing the proper location – “Location, Location, Location” (for more info check Amazon.com or Barnes&Nobles).
Providing you take the time to choose your market carefully and make sure that you build the proper product, I think you have a good chance of success. I have a client (in the cleaning business) who did exactly that (small office centers with himself as the landlord/tenant) and has done very well for himself as a result (often better with the real estate than with his “primary” business).
That said, you still have to take your market research seriously as well as make sure you understand the consequences (well, at least some of them, anyway).
Feel free to be more specific with your questions – the better your questions are, the better my (and others) answers will be.
Take care,
Eric C
PS- what type vet? Large or small? (I’m assuming small since there probably ain’t much of a market for offices surrounding cattle/equine practices)School? Where are you located?