Should you start your own ‘Monopoly Project’? Should you start acquiring rental properties? In this series we examine the ways to start your own “Monopoly Project” (TMP).

In our first post of this series, we explained the first thing you should do is to get into shape – Financial Shape. Then we showed how and why we started our MonopolyProject in ‘Start Your Own Monopoly Project – Step 2: Our Way’. Then we explained a method you should never use: Step 3: OPM – Other People’s Money.  In “Start Your Own Monopoly Project – Step 4: House Hacking – Joey Sleeps in the Sink” we took a side street and looked at “House Hacking”. Then we looked at ‘Step 5: Get A Partner.’ “Start Your Own Monopoly Project – Step 6: Get Back to Reality”  backtracked “Start Your Own Monopoly Project – Step 5a: The Perfect Monopoly House”.

Then in Step 7 we talked about: “Now we will talk about the advantages of buying a new-build home that doesn’t even exist when you buy it.” And we did exactly that. We bought a new build house in Coolidge, AZ earlier this month.

In Step 8 “Start Your Own Monopoly Project – Step 8: As Time Goes By” we explained that we expected the value of our house to increase even before it was built:

Financial1: After qualifying for the loan, you only must put down the earnest deposit. In the meantime, the house that is being built appreciates in value. Typically, the new home builder raises the prices of the houses as the development is built out. So, it is best to be first in line, buy at the beginning of that development.

Here was our guesstimate on possible appreciation options as time goes by:

Well, that prediction did not last long.

The builder has already increased the price of that model by $25,000!

Here’s where we are in June as compared to May when we made the purchase:

Our strategy worked. Our equity is over $39K. We are up $25,000 in one month!

Play it again, Sam: