As a real estate investor, the last thing you want is a property that is sitting vacant. The loss of rent from just a few months of vacancies in a year can easily turn a profitable investment into a losing one for the year when looked at on a cash flow basis. Plus vacancies can create other problems. Insurance companies do not like vacant properties and they make a good target for vandalism.
There are only three ways to minimize the length of vacancies. More…
If you are fortunate enough to live in a city with a real estate club, you should seriously consider joining. I don’t know of any that are free but for the $100-$200 typical annual fee, it is a worthwhile investment as part of your real estate investing education.
The most powerful aspect of real estate clubs is the networking. But like all networking opportunities, caution and understanding is advised. Many experienced real estate investors will not be interested in networking with a beginner because they are busy with their already successful network group. They may be interested if you can show them a reason they should network with you. But just going up and saying “Hey I’m new. Can I bend your ear for a while?” is probably not a good approach to take with them. Getting the experienced folks to be part of your network is a challenge but really your best investment of time as it is they who can offer the most in terms of your education. More…
In recent years, getting financing for almost any house deal was a piece of cake. There were innovative program to fit any situation (and lets be honest programs that were plain stupid giveaways.)
While the years of easy money made lots of people - including savvy real estate investors who unloaded their speculative holdings at the right time - that world has been changed remarkably.
First there were tightening credit standards - requiring things like proof of income and proper debt to income ratios. They there were the bank and finance company bailouts. Now there is the $700 billion bailout plan.
After that who knows? More…
With all the bad financial news in the marketplace over the past year - stocks crashing, foreclusures hitting new record highs every month, financial hardships in every sector, it is sometimes easy to lose sight of the local picture because of all the noise about the national/international situation.
Real estate is still local however. While the pundits are preaching the huge declines in real estate in the U.S., they are talking an average across the whole country. That means that many areas have had even bigger declines in value than the average. And it also means that many areas have had smaller declines or even appreciation.
You wouldn’t know it from listening to the national news. But if you follow your local market (as you should) you know what is happening there. For instance, as of August, 2008, real estate prices in my zip code increased by 5% according to the local real estate association that tracks such things. More…
We are all familiar with the use of auctions to sell just about anything. Open any newspaper and you will see a variety of auctions:
But one that I have never seen is a rental auction. More…
Business cards can be a very powerful traditional marketing tool - provided you think outside the box when designing the message on your business card.
A typical business card is boring. It has a graphic - usually the company logo - and the name, title and contact details for the person listed on the card on one side. And the other side is blank. A small number of cards might have a company slogan on the front of the card also.
Boring… More…
Unless you are looking at purchasing a FSBO, the chances are very good that there will be four entities in the transaction; you, the seller, the seller’s real estate agent and your real estate agent.
When you are looking at buying a FSBO, you have a large amount of interaction with the seller. The seller will typically show you the house and will negotiate the contract directly with you. That gives you many opportunities to point out defects in the house that can be used in the negotiations to help you obtain either a better price or better terms. More…
One big decision facing landlords is whether or not to allow the renter to have pets. Many landlords flat out refuse because of the damage that pets - even good well trained ones - are likely to cause over the term of a year’s lease. Others charge an additional pet deposit to cover expected damages from the pet over the life of the lease.
For the most part, this decision is entirely up to the landlord. More…
Continuing education is paramount to continued success in the real estate investing marketplace. But it can be expensive constantly buying all the latest books at retail.
There is a great source where you can get almost any recent real estate investing book at 50% or more off the retail price.
That place is amazon.com. More…
Tenancy by the entirety is a very powerful home protection technique.
It is not available in every state and it is only available for married couples. It is not right for every situation but if you are in a tenancy by the entirety state and married, you should consider using this form of ownership on your deed when you purchase your private residence.
So what is tenancy by the entirety? More…
