Ever since Donald Trump did his mega seminar in my city, everyone keeps talking about their incredible real estate investment plans. Don't get me wrong, I really like the fact that a lot of these people are finally dreaming at securing their financial future through investments rather than savings, but somehow I get the impression that something is missing.

Problem is, only ten thousand of my friends attended one of the big trump seminars. Meaning, EVERYONE is pumped about whatever Mr. Trump was telling them, yet somehow I haven't seen any results. . They talk as if they know first hand how easy it is to just walk in to a house and flip it but is it really that easy?

A couple months ago I talked to a real estate agent about this very thing. She had been in the business for a couple of years already and she really liked what she was doing. "But" she says "it most definitely is not as easy as it looks."

She admitted the pay was pretty good, but that at the cost of her personal free time. "When the economy is booming" she says "you push papers all day long. Someone shows some interest in a house, you prepare all the paper work and legal documents, assuming they will take it, just so that you beat other Realtors from selling that particular house to another buyer. Finally making a sale is rewarding, but with that you can honestly say 'I worked for it.'"

That is just selling it. Never mind first renovating it or giving it a makeover. Most old houses (that is where the big money is) need approximately $20,000 worth of work before you can flip them for a decent return. Make sure you do your research and get proper estimates before you commit to anything.

Having said that, I in no way meant to discourage you from investing in real estate or from flipping houses. If an incredible opportunity arises for you, research it and then seize it. The potential can be huge, but you will have to work hard for it. You want to see extraordinary success, prepare to put in extraordinary effort.