An Australian investor who has a $140 million property portfolio is spilling his secrets on how to build a fortune that matters.
Steve McKnight, 50, whose tenants range from ordinary Australians to the likes of former US President Barack Obama, has published a new book called money magnet. In it, he guides readers on how they can attract wealth themselves.
Steve, a fund manager and global real estate expert, escaped the rat race by replacing his salary with income from his investment Property.
“I was working as an accountant and I was suffering from stress-related problems that manifested in ulcers in places where you don’t want ulcers,” Steve tells news.com.au.
“The doctor told me I needed to change or I was headed for an early grave. I looked for ways to replace my accounting salary and stumbled upon the idea of a positive cash flow property.”
The idea would lead to a complete change for the Melbourne man. In 1999, he and his friend David Bradley bought a three-bedroom house in Ballarat, Victoria, for $44,000.
“I bought my first property in May 1999 and I was hooked. [David] and I went on to buy 130 properties in three and a half years. This allowed me to retire from the need to have to work at 32 years old, ”says the now 50-year-old.
“I keep working, but on causes and concepts that interest me, and that give meaning and purpose to my life.”
That includes philanthropic work. Steve has donated 100 percent of the royalties from his six books (over a million dollars) to social environmental causes.
His latest project involves planting native forests on previously cleared land under a program called TreeChange.
Make yourself attractive to wealth in order to attract wealth.
“The secret to attracting more wealth is to first become more attractive,” says Steve. “Interestingly, people wait to be successful before they acquire the necessary skills to do so. That is like saying that I will work to be better with money once I have more money to be better.
“This approach will put you on a path of financial disempowerment for life. Becoming more financially attractive requires only two things: doing less of the things that repel wealth and doing more of the things that attract wealth.”
Steve says that being a better money manager is a lot like becoming a better driver; a few lessons from an expert instructor will be much better than many lessons from a well-intentioned parent.
He recommends three areas to work on becoming a money magnet:
• Spend less than you earn
• invest your savings wisely
• start as soon as possible
“People are programmed to be poor because they have inherited some, or in some cases many, bad financial habits and financial beliefs from their parents,” says Steve.
“It is unlikely that this was deliberate; your parents passed on what they were told, and so on through time.
“So, if you want to retire sooner or want a better financial future than your parents did, then you need to improve your financial IQ (how you act) and financial EQ (how you feel) by learning from them. people who have achieved the results you expect.”
Steve’s top four tips for financial freedom:
• “The old-age pension is not a right or refund of past taxes. It is an emergency support payment for people who cannot support themselves. Today, three-quarters of Australian workers work their entire lives only to end up needing an old-age pension to survive. Something is not right. The system that people use to make and manage their money is not working. If you want a different result, you have to follow a different plan than the masses. The sooner you do it, the better you’ll be.
• “You may be programmed to be poor without knowing it because some of your financial thoughts and beliefs that you inherited from your parents may be holding you back. It wouldn’t have been deliberate, it’s just that your parents passed on to you what they passed on to them, and so on through time. Without new ideas and strategies, the highest level of financial success you are likely to achieve is what your parents achieved. If you want to aim for more than that, you’ll need to update your programming.
• “You won’t get rich by saving, but you’ll never be rich if you can’t save. Savings are a store of wealth, not a source of wealth. It is important to multiply your money by investing it, not hoarding it. That said, savings are important because they show that you can live within your means, and if you can’t, then you could attract a fortune, but it won’t stick, resulting in the appearance of wealth (materialism), but not the substance of it. wealth (happiness).
• “The more money you put into touching, moving and inspiring others, the more your money matters and the more you invest in making and leaving a lasting legacy. You will also attract more opportunities and level up the people in your circle of influence. Make sure you live how you want to be remembered.”
paying it forward
What inspired Steve to donate 100 percent of his book royalties to social and environmental causes?
“I didn’t write my books to make money,” he says. “I wrote them to help people who aspired to more than work four or five decades and then retire in financial trouble, to introduce concepts not commonly known or understood, and to share amazing strategies that have helped me attract and keep a fortune that counts. .
“Using my money to fund causes I care about adds importance to my wealth and gives my money meaning beyond dollars and cents,” says Steve.
“Take TreeChange.com for example. This is a movement I founded for people who want to help mother nature by replanting native forests on land that is not viable for agriculture. “Our pilot project is a 700-hectare site in north-east Victoria that was cleared in the early 20th century. To date, we have planted more than 300,000 trees to help establish a new permanent biodiverse native forest. We are helping save the world one tree at a time.”
He encourages others to follow in his footsteps, within their means.
“The first step is to give a little of what you have, not much of what you don’t have. If that’s money, great. If that’s the time, great! The important thing is to get involved as much as possible.
“Many hands doing a little work is much more useful than a few hands doing a lot. Think of a cause or issue that you are passionate about. Then find an organization that is already working in that space.
“Finally, get in touch with them and ask, ‘How can I help you?’ Sowing the seeds of generosity today will result in a harvest of generosity tomorrow.”
