by: Milt Tanzer
Mistake # 1. Spending thousands of dollars buying books, tapes and attending seminars and then putting all of that information on a bookshelf and never looking at (or using) it.
Comment: I’m continually amazed at the number of “would be” investors who have spent a bundle of money attending seminars, getting an education and then never using it to start
their investment program. Not only is it a waste of thousand of dollars but it could be the
biggest financial mistake you can make.
Mistake # 2. Failure to learn the basics of real estate investing.
Comment: The other extreme to Number 1 above, are potential investors who realize real estate is the best way to accumulate wealth and venture into the purchase of properties without knowing the basics of real estate investing. Those investors are almost certain to get into financial trouble.
Mistake # 3. Fear of making a huge financial mistake
Comment: We all fear making mistakes, especially a large financial one. If you follow the advice in Number 2 above, you won’t have to worry about making a financial mistake.
Mistake # 4. Not looking at enough properties
Comment: Don’t fall in love with the first property you look at. Too many investors buy properties because they “look nice” or they are just to lazy to see what else is currently on the market that may be better. Part of sound real estate investing is in giving yourself a choice so you can select the best one, financially.
Mistake # 5. “A better deal may be just around the corner” syndrome
Comment: This is the opposite mistake of Number 4. This investor never starts his or her real estate investment program because they always hope a better deal may be out there somewhere
if they just wait...and wait...and wait.
Mistake # 6. Thinking that real estate investing is strictly a complicated game that only the wealthy can play.
Comment: First of all real estate is NOT complicated if you learn how to do it first.
Did you know that even professional investors use a simple nine step process to analyze the financial feasibility of an investment property?
Here's a brief idea of the nine simple steps they use in analyzing any type or size investment property.
A Basic Financial Property Analysis
1. Scheduled Gross Income (Income if 100% leased) = $ 26,000
2. Less: Allowance for vacancies (5% of Gross Income) -1,300
3. Operating Income before expense & Mtg. Pmts. $ 24,700
4. Less Operating Expenses (Taxes, insurance, utilities,
repairs and maintenance etc.) 40% - 9,846
5. Equals: Operating Income (Income before Mtg. Pmts.) $ 14,854
6. Minus: Mortgage Payments: -12,863
7. Equals Cash Flow 1,991 = 6%
8. Plus: Mortgage Principle Payment +1,697
9. Total Return: $ 3,688 = 10%
There's a lot more to it than that, but you just read the basic nine step procedure most professional investors use when analyzing any income producing investment property.
Mistake # 7. Falling in love with a property
Comment: Once you get your feet wet and become a real estate investor, you’ll wonder why you waited so long to begin. Now you’ll face another problem. Many investors fall in love with their property. They have seen how well it is doing, cash flow has been going up each year, and they have fallen in love with their tenants (not literally). Two big mistakes are made here.
First, never fool yourself into thinking your property is doing too well to sell or trade up because your cash flow is considerably higher than when you purchased the property.
The second part of mistake number 7 is getting so friendly with your tenants that you fail to maintain rental standards based on what the market will bear. This greatly hinders your growth potential. .
Mistake # 8. Failure to plan your financial goals
Comment: Before you purchase that first property, which, of course, you financially analyzed, determine what you expect from your investments…your financial goals.
It's known as "The 'time vs. money’" concept. The more you have of one the less you need of the other in order to reach your financial goals.
Mistake # 9. Trying to purchase properties that the seller is not motivated to sell
Comment: I’ve seen potential buyers continually try to purchase investment properties that
are not really on the market. This includes property owners with the attitude that “Sure, it’s for sale… for a price”. Unfortunately the ‘for a price’ part usually means it will make no financial sense for a buyer.
Mistake # 10. Believing you can get rich quick overnight with no money invested of your own.
Comment:. Getting rich overnight will not happen . . . (regardless of what some of the so
called "experts" tell you). It takes some time, effort and knowledge of real estate investing to do
it with minimum financial risk.
The important thing to remember is that YOU can do it, too. You can join the millions of investors who create sizable incomes by investing in real estate.
Mistake # 11. No money down investing usually isn’t.
Comment: Somewhere, somehow there will be some money required to put a transaction together and make it profitable.
It may be closing costs, repairs or upgrading, whatever. But somewhere, some money will be needed. There are ways around this problem without getting into a high risk situation. You may be able to finance every dollar you need, but it can come back to haunt you in the form
of mortgage payments you cannot afford to make. Again, learn what you are doing first.
Mistake # 12. Not financially analyzing a potential investment property.
Comment: This is the most serious mistake an investor, or potential investor, can make. I've seen a few pros in the business rely on a "worthless and inaccurate" rule of thumb to make a huge financial decision to purchase, with total disregard for how well the property will perform.
Oh, yes, there is one more major mistake many investor make:
Mistake # 13. Thinking it's important to pay off your mortgage as soon as you can
because mortgages are a 'necessary evil'.
Comment: First of all as a real estate investor, mortgages are good and not a necessary evil. You must learn why this is true. You must learn how, in the right situation, a second or third mortgage can be a good thing.
Second: mortgages are one of the keys to creating wealth in real estate. You must learn how to use financing as one of the keys to creating your own financial estate, without concern for it being "risky".
About The Author
Milt Tanzer has been a Commercial/Investment real estate broker and investor for over 25 years. Author of 7 books on real estate investing. Gave seminars to both the general public plus Realtor Association meetings for several years. Published by Prentice Hall division of Penguin Putnam.
Websites:
http://www.investmentre.com
http://www.realestate-supermarket.com
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Thursday, February 15, 2007
A Simple Real Estate Investment Plan To Make A Million Dollars or More!
by: David Schneider
This is a very simple Real Estate Investment Plan that anyone can do. In fact, because it’s so simple most people won’t do it. There are only three simple steps.
>> STEP 1. Go out and borrow one million dollars.
>> STEP 2. Use the million dollars and buy one million dollars worth of well-selected real estate.
>> STEP 3. Get other people to agree to pay off the million dollar loan for you.
Sounds easy. Right? Well it is. Think about this.
In the next year, I want you to go into your real estate marketplace and see if you can find two single-family houses, townhouses or condos in a starter price range. The price range will vary depending on the area of the county that you are in. For my example, I'm going to use a range of $150,000 to $200,000 per property.
I want you to buy these two properties and you should be able to borrow most of the money needed (in some cases all the money needed) from banks, mortgage companies, sellers and other investors.
I want you to repeat the same process for a minimum of five years. At the end of the five year period you would know own ten properties worth one million or more dollars and you will owe one million or more dollars on those properties.
Now the only thing left is to find people willing to pay off your loans on those properties. Those people are all over the place and they are called RENTERS!
At the end of ten to twenty years, what will you have?
You Will Have More Than A Million Dollars Worth Of Real Estate That Somebody Else Bought You!
And not only will you have a million dollars worth of real estate you will have an income of $100,000 + from renting them out because they are all paid for.. and your income will increase as your rents increase.
If you’re saying to yourself that a million dollars isn’t enough and 100, 000 + of annual income isn’t enough, the solution is simple…. BUY MORE!
Learn how to get the money
The first step to get started is that you should learn the rules of the lenders and their programs that they have available for rental properties. To do this you should spend a few hours or more on the phone calling different lenders and asking them these questions:
What type of loan programs do they have available for rental properties? What are the down payment requirements? What is the least amount of down payment required? What does the person have to do to qualify? Do they have any creative financing options to help you buy? Do they have a maximum amount of loans that they will do with one investor? If their program doesn’t fit what your trying to do, do they know of any other lenders who have loan money on rental properties. What are their fees, interest rates, loan terms, closing costs and any other costs of the loan? Once you talk to several lenders you will develop other questions that you should ask and will get a good feel of what you need to do to get qualified to borrow the money. Don’t get frustrated! Many lenders will tell you that you can’t do it or you won’t qualify. Just keep calling more lenders and remember that lender are in the business to lend you money. If they don’t lend money they are out of business.
The other source and I believe the best source is Seller’s financing (In the form of a Contact for Deed, Installment Contract, Seller’s Mortgage). Why is this the best? Because you don’t have all the costs of a traditional lender. There are generally no loan origination fees, appraisal fees, etc. and the best part of seller financing is that everything is negotiable between you and the seller.
How do you get seller financing?… You ask the seller if they are open to it?… You ask the seller if they would like to earn more on their money than if they put it in the bank?
Learn to find the properties
Now that we have an idea about financing we have to start looking for the right properties and analyze the numbers. You want to start by trying to find smaller starter home that a young family or couple would like to live in. Here are some ideas where to look and how to find properties.
Newspaper ads Real Estate MLS system Driving through neighborhoods Advertise yourself Tell people that you are looking to buy houses.. get the word out Get business cards that tell people that you are interest in buying real estate Ask real estate agents to look for you (if you are an agent, ask other real estate agent to let you know if they know of any properties) This is a short list, but you only need to find a couple of properties a year to make this plan work and this short list will do the job. If you want to find more than a few properties a year you should expand your marketing efforts.
Ok, You have now found a property. You have ran the numbers. (Use an Investment Property Worksheet or Real Estate Analyzer Software) and it all make sense. Now is the time to make an offer to buy.
Once the offer is accepted you now want to start the third step… Find a renter who will rent out the property.
Learn to get good renters
Get permission from the seller to allow you to show the property to prospective renters before the day of closing. You should start by advertising in you local paper and contact real estate offices to let them know you have a property available for rent.
Select the best renter based on the criteria that you set up and learn to manage the property.
Repeat the process to buy more and more houses until you reach your goal.
The fastest way to learn is by doing it. This report is short and to the point and doesn’t have every single detail in it. The details you will learn as you go…The key to this is to GO and get started.
About The Author
Dave Schneider has been investing in real estate for over 25 years and is devoting to helping landlords make more money!. For free audio seminars, tools and information on real estate investing and being a landlord, visit this site now: http://landlordtools.com.
This is a very simple Real Estate Investment Plan that anyone can do. In fact, because it’s so simple most people won’t do it. There are only three simple steps.
>> STEP 1. Go out and borrow one million dollars.
>> STEP 2. Use the million dollars and buy one million dollars worth of well-selected real estate.
>> STEP 3. Get other people to agree to pay off the million dollar loan for you.
Sounds easy. Right? Well it is. Think about this.
In the next year, I want you to go into your real estate marketplace and see if you can find two single-family houses, townhouses or condos in a starter price range. The price range will vary depending on the area of the county that you are in. For my example, I'm going to use a range of $150,000 to $200,000 per property.
I want you to buy these two properties and you should be able to borrow most of the money needed (in some cases all the money needed) from banks, mortgage companies, sellers and other investors.
I want you to repeat the same process for a minimum of five years. At the end of the five year period you would know own ten properties worth one million or more dollars and you will owe one million or more dollars on those properties.
Now the only thing left is to find people willing to pay off your loans on those properties. Those people are all over the place and they are called RENTERS!
At the end of ten to twenty years, what will you have?
You Will Have More Than A Million Dollars Worth Of Real Estate That Somebody Else Bought You!
And not only will you have a million dollars worth of real estate you will have an income of $100,000 + from renting them out because they are all paid for.. and your income will increase as your rents increase.
If you’re saying to yourself that a million dollars isn’t enough and 100, 000 + of annual income isn’t enough, the solution is simple…. BUY MORE!
Learn how to get the money
The first step to get started is that you should learn the rules of the lenders and their programs that they have available for rental properties. To do this you should spend a few hours or more on the phone calling different lenders and asking them these questions:
What type of loan programs do they have available for rental properties? What are the down payment requirements? What is the least amount of down payment required? What does the person have to do to qualify? Do they have any creative financing options to help you buy? Do they have a maximum amount of loans that they will do with one investor? If their program doesn’t fit what your trying to do, do they know of any other lenders who have loan money on rental properties. What are their fees, interest rates, loan terms, closing costs and any other costs of the loan? Once you talk to several lenders you will develop other questions that you should ask and will get a good feel of what you need to do to get qualified to borrow the money. Don’t get frustrated! Many lenders will tell you that you can’t do it or you won’t qualify. Just keep calling more lenders and remember that lender are in the business to lend you money. If they don’t lend money they are out of business.
The other source and I believe the best source is Seller’s financing (In the form of a Contact for Deed, Installment Contract, Seller’s Mortgage). Why is this the best? Because you don’t have all the costs of a traditional lender. There are generally no loan origination fees, appraisal fees, etc. and the best part of seller financing is that everything is negotiable between you and the seller.
How do you get seller financing?… You ask the seller if they are open to it?… You ask the seller if they would like to earn more on their money than if they put it in the bank?
Learn to find the properties
Now that we have an idea about financing we have to start looking for the right properties and analyze the numbers. You want to start by trying to find smaller starter home that a young family or couple would like to live in. Here are some ideas where to look and how to find properties.
Newspaper ads Real Estate MLS system Driving through neighborhoods Advertise yourself Tell people that you are looking to buy houses.. get the word out Get business cards that tell people that you are interest in buying real estate Ask real estate agents to look for you (if you are an agent, ask other real estate agent to let you know if they know of any properties) This is a short list, but you only need to find a couple of properties a year to make this plan work and this short list will do the job. If you want to find more than a few properties a year you should expand your marketing efforts.
Ok, You have now found a property. You have ran the numbers. (Use an Investment Property Worksheet or Real Estate Analyzer Software) and it all make sense. Now is the time to make an offer to buy.
Once the offer is accepted you now want to start the third step… Find a renter who will rent out the property.
Learn to get good renters
Get permission from the seller to allow you to show the property to prospective renters before the day of closing. You should start by advertising in you local paper and contact real estate offices to let them know you have a property available for rent.
Select the best renter based on the criteria that you set up and learn to manage the property.
Repeat the process to buy more and more houses until you reach your goal.
The fastest way to learn is by doing it. This report is short and to the point and doesn’t have every single detail in it. The details you will learn as you go…The key to this is to GO and get started.
About The Author
Dave Schneider has been investing in real estate for over 25 years and is devoting to helping landlords make more money!. For free audio seminars, tools and information on real estate investing and being a landlord, visit this site now: http://landlordtools.com.
Friday, February 2, 2007
The Worst Real Estate Investment Strategy Ever!
by: David Schneider
It’s true, You can make a lot of money by investing in real estate. Yet, many investors are not. And when you look at their real estate investment strategy, it’s no surprise.
The problem is that they have been brainwashed by the so called real estate investment gurus. You know the ones that I am talking about. The ones that tell you that for a few of your hard earned dollars they will teach you all their ultimate short-cut secrets to successfully making millions.
They will tell you that you don’t need a job, money or credit. All you need to do is pay them and they will show you the exact way to invest in real estate. Do what they say, follow their real estate investment strategy and your life will changed forever.
Well I have some bad news for you. In most cases, it’s the worst real estate investment strategy you could ever follow.
Don’t get me wrong, Its’ OK to go to seminars, buy books and audio products if you are using this information to learn certain techniques, financing options, tax laws and other ways to invest. In fact, you should do this, because it will make you more creative and you will become a smarter real estate investor, however it’s not the most important thing that you should do.
>>> The Most Important Step When Investing In Real Estate
Before you start to invest in real estate, you should sit down and create a very specific plan of what you want the outcome of your real estate investment plan to be!
I know that this is not very exciting, however, if you don’t know why your investing and the overall outcome that you want, then how do you know if you making a good or bad decision?
>>> Two Important Questions
The only reason to invest in real estate is to make money. There are two important questions you need to ask yourself.
1.) When do you want the money and how much?
2.) What are you willing to pay to get that result?
The answer to these questions will help you determine your real estate investment strategy.
Let me give you several examples.
>>> Buy and Sell Strategy
If you want the maximum amount of money in the short run, you should be buying real estate with the intent of a quick sale and profit. This may be buying fixer-uppers or looking for below market properties that you can sell for a profit quickly (know as flipping).
To do this, the price you will have to pay is your time to find, analyze, fix, finance and sell the properties. Once you sell any of your properties and realize your profit, you must go out and repeat the process again and again to continue to make a profit.
One problem with this strategy is that when you stop buying and selling your profits stop. So it’s important to make sure you take some of your profits and invest in something that will produce the income you will need and want later on in your life.
>>> Buy and Hold Strategy
This strategy is to buy properties, rent them out and have the tenants pay for the properties. Once the properties are paid for, you will continue to have rental income for the rest of your life.
The price you pay in this strategy is not only the time to find, finance and analyze, it’s the problems that may occur when ever you have tenants. So you will need some type of a system to manage or you can hire a management company to do this.
Personally, I like the Buy and Hold strategy because you are building up assets and income that will come to you for the rest of your life. To deal with the management part you need to create a system of policies and procedures.
Whether your strategy is to Buy and Sell, Buy and Hold or maybe a mix of the two, the key is to plan for what you want your ultimate outcome to be.
If your outcome is to have an income of $100,000 per year without any work, you may choose to buy and hold enough rental real estate that will provide that.
In summary, the worst real estate investment strategy ever is when you don’t take the time up front to to decide exactly why your are investing in real estate and what do you want when you are all done
About The Author
Dave Schneider has been investing in real estate for over 25 years and is devoting to helping landlords make more money!. For free audio seminars, tools and information on real estate investing and being a landlord, visit this site now: http://landlordtools.com.
It’s true, You can make a lot of money by investing in real estate. Yet, many investors are not. And when you look at their real estate investment strategy, it’s no surprise.
The problem is that they have been brainwashed by the so called real estate investment gurus. You know the ones that I am talking about. The ones that tell you that for a few of your hard earned dollars they will teach you all their ultimate short-cut secrets to successfully making millions.
They will tell you that you don’t need a job, money or credit. All you need to do is pay them and they will show you the exact way to invest in real estate. Do what they say, follow their real estate investment strategy and your life will changed forever.
Well I have some bad news for you. In most cases, it’s the worst real estate investment strategy you could ever follow.
Don’t get me wrong, Its’ OK to go to seminars, buy books and audio products if you are using this information to learn certain techniques, financing options, tax laws and other ways to invest. In fact, you should do this, because it will make you more creative and you will become a smarter real estate investor, however it’s not the most important thing that you should do.
>>> The Most Important Step When Investing In Real Estate
Before you start to invest in real estate, you should sit down and create a very specific plan of what you want the outcome of your real estate investment plan to be!
I know that this is not very exciting, however, if you don’t know why your investing and the overall outcome that you want, then how do you know if you making a good or bad decision?
>>> Two Important Questions
The only reason to invest in real estate is to make money. There are two important questions you need to ask yourself.
1.) When do you want the money and how much?
2.) What are you willing to pay to get that result?
The answer to these questions will help you determine your real estate investment strategy.
Let me give you several examples.
>>> Buy and Sell Strategy
If you want the maximum amount of money in the short run, you should be buying real estate with the intent of a quick sale and profit. This may be buying fixer-uppers or looking for below market properties that you can sell for a profit quickly (know as flipping).
To do this, the price you will have to pay is your time to find, analyze, fix, finance and sell the properties. Once you sell any of your properties and realize your profit, you must go out and repeat the process again and again to continue to make a profit.
One problem with this strategy is that when you stop buying and selling your profits stop. So it’s important to make sure you take some of your profits and invest in something that will produce the income you will need and want later on in your life.
>>> Buy and Hold Strategy
This strategy is to buy properties, rent them out and have the tenants pay for the properties. Once the properties are paid for, you will continue to have rental income for the rest of your life.
The price you pay in this strategy is not only the time to find, finance and analyze, it’s the problems that may occur when ever you have tenants. So you will need some type of a system to manage or you can hire a management company to do this.
Personally, I like the Buy and Hold strategy because you are building up assets and income that will come to you for the rest of your life. To deal with the management part you need to create a system of policies and procedures.
Whether your strategy is to Buy and Sell, Buy and Hold or maybe a mix of the two, the key is to plan for what you want your ultimate outcome to be.
If your outcome is to have an income of $100,000 per year without any work, you may choose to buy and hold enough rental real estate that will provide that.
In summary, the worst real estate investment strategy ever is when you don’t take the time up front to to decide exactly why your are investing in real estate and what do you want when you are all done
About The Author
Dave Schneider has been investing in real estate for over 25 years and is devoting to helping landlords make more money!. For free audio seminars, tools and information on real estate investing and being a landlord, visit this site now: http://landlordtools.com.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Real Estate - Investments That Increase Your Net Worth
by: Jay Bauder
Consider these parameters for a real estate deal:
Property Value: $250,000
Purchase Price: $160,000
Repairs: $2,500
If you analyze the numbers, you see that the equity available in this deal is $87,500 (Property Value minus Purchase Price minus Repairs).
So here's a hypothetical question for you: Assuming that the information above is accurate, and the property is located in an area that you view as acceptable and/or favorable, then:
If I offered to give you this deal in exchange for $10,000 in cash, would you do it?
Remember - this is hypothetical. The real question here is this:
Would you exchange $10,000 in cash for $87,500 in equity?
For most savvy investors, the answer is: Absolutely YES!
This is called "Wholesale Real Estate Investing" - the process of buying a lot of equity at a very significant discount from another real estate investor who has already done the hard work of finding a deal and getting it under contract.
Just think about that - consider how easy real estate investing would be for you if you had a network of real estate investors in your area (and maybe even all over the country) who, several times each month, offered you the opportunity to purchase significant amounts of equity for a severe discount...
...It would be quite easy to become wealthy, fairly quickly, wouldn't it?
The answer again, is: Absolutely Yes, it will.
It is through smart "wholesale real estate investing" that you can increase your net worth by $20,000 to $100,000 on every real estate deal that you do.
...Now the burning question becomes, "Where exactly do I find these wholesale real estate investing deals?"
I know of at least 3 solid sources...
You've got to admit - it will be a pretty wonderful thing when you know how to find great real estates deals in which you can trade a small amount of cash for a large amount of equity without even having to find the deals yourself...
...And that's exactly what "wholesale real estate investing" is all about.
So let's get right to it. Here are 3 places to find wholesale real estate deals:
1.) Visit the local real estate investing club in your area. Almost all of these clubs have networking opportunities to work with other investors who wholesale deals regularly, and this is an easy way to find great opportunities.
2.) Watch for ads in the newspaper, television, and in other media that advertise slogans like, "We Buy Houses", or "Sell Your House in 9 Days" or anything similar to that. Most of the time, these people are real estate investors, and they are happy to wholesale deals to people like you.
3.) Watch your email-box. Why? Because if and when you choose enrollment in various free e-courses online, such as that via tm-RealEstateInvesting.com, you'll be provided with automatic notification about great local and national deals as they become available. But be forewarned - you've got to act quickly whenever these deals are announced, because obviously the response is always significant.
About The Author
Jay Bauder is the web owner of http://www.homes-in-california.com California Homes: Buying or Selling, a website that provides information on California real estate buying, negotiating, financing, and more. You can visit his website at: California Real Estate
Consider these parameters for a real estate deal:
Property Value: $250,000
Purchase Price: $160,000
Repairs: $2,500
If you analyze the numbers, you see that the equity available in this deal is $87,500 (Property Value minus Purchase Price minus Repairs).
So here's a hypothetical question for you: Assuming that the information above is accurate, and the property is located in an area that you view as acceptable and/or favorable, then:
If I offered to give you this deal in exchange for $10,000 in cash, would you do it?
Remember - this is hypothetical. The real question here is this:
Would you exchange $10,000 in cash for $87,500 in equity?
For most savvy investors, the answer is: Absolutely YES!
This is called "Wholesale Real Estate Investing" - the process of buying a lot of equity at a very significant discount from another real estate investor who has already done the hard work of finding a deal and getting it under contract.
Just think about that - consider how easy real estate investing would be for you if you had a network of real estate investors in your area (and maybe even all over the country) who, several times each month, offered you the opportunity to purchase significant amounts of equity for a severe discount...
...It would be quite easy to become wealthy, fairly quickly, wouldn't it?
The answer again, is: Absolutely Yes, it will.
It is through smart "wholesale real estate investing" that you can increase your net worth by $20,000 to $100,000 on every real estate deal that you do.
...Now the burning question becomes, "Where exactly do I find these wholesale real estate investing deals?"
I know of at least 3 solid sources...
You've got to admit - it will be a pretty wonderful thing when you know how to find great real estates deals in which you can trade a small amount of cash for a large amount of equity without even having to find the deals yourself...
...And that's exactly what "wholesale real estate investing" is all about.
So let's get right to it. Here are 3 places to find wholesale real estate deals:
1.) Visit the local real estate investing club in your area. Almost all of these clubs have networking opportunities to work with other investors who wholesale deals regularly, and this is an easy way to find great opportunities.
2.) Watch for ads in the newspaper, television, and in other media that advertise slogans like, "We Buy Houses", or "Sell Your House in 9 Days" or anything similar to that. Most of the time, these people are real estate investors, and they are happy to wholesale deals to people like you.
3.) Watch your email-box. Why? Because if and when you choose enrollment in various free e-courses online, such as that via tm-RealEstateInvesting.com, you'll be provided with automatic notification about great local and national deals as they become available. But be forewarned - you've got to act quickly whenever these deals are announced, because obviously the response is always significant.
About The Author
Jay Bauder is the web owner of http://www.homes-in-california.com California Homes: Buying or Selling, a website that provides information on California real estate buying, negotiating, financing, and more. You can visit his website at: California Real Estate
Friday, January 12, 2007
Where Are The Really Good Real Estate Investment Deals?
by: Bruce W. Ford
In writing my last article about the neighborhoods where I find the most profitable rehab real estate investment deals, something occurred to me.
In that article I described investing from what I've found is typical in doing this business. I wrote about where I TYPICALLY find the deals. Well, what IS typical in this business?
No two deals are the same, that's for sure! Every rehab itself is different with different problems to solve. So, in describing a typical deal, I'm referring to the spread involved. The spread is the different between what I can buy the house for, and what it's value will be when it's brought back up to standards.
The next big question is, "What will the rehab going to cost."
For instance, if a property in my market has a $25,000 spread between what I can buy it for and what I can sell it for (the as-repaired appraised value), it's a "maybe" in my book depending on how much rehab it needs. If it needs much, I would probably pass unless some external factor makes it a good buy, like the neighborhood. In other words, if it needs much rehab, I'd have to be convinced enough to put some of my own money into it.
I typically look for houses with a $30,000 spread or better. You have to decide for yourself, based on values in your area and what is the minimum you want to make, what spread you'll be happy with.
So, what is a rehab real estate investor's "homerun? "
Homeruns occur at the outer edge of what is typical. My homerun deals have occurred one of several ways.
- The spread is stellar. Let's say the spread is $45,000 and the rehab is a manageable $5-10,000.
- The spread is good, but the rehab is very light. Wham-bam, I'm looking for tenants within days of closing.
- The cost is exceptionally low for a given area. Sometimes the spread on paper will not be anything to get excited about, but the property has a huge lot, extra bedrooms, or is located an area that is in serious demand.
- There is NO rehab, and the spread is sufficient that I can buy it with none of my own money.
True story - I've only had one NO rehab deal. Wow. This house had been recently rehabbed, clean and didn't need a thing! This was a homerun just due to the ease at which I added this property to my inventory! The spread wasn't great, in fact, I had a local hard money lender make up a story about being out of money because he thought the spread was too narrow and didn't want to lend on it. He wrongly assumed there was a significant rehab. (Being straight up with me was too hard, I guess.) I consider this a homerun because I bought this property, changed the locks, put out a sign and had it rented within two weeks. Mind you this is a beautiful well-built brick/block home in a great neighborhood. Cost to me…nothing. This house has one of my best cash flows month-to-month.
The point here is to give you an idea of what kinds of homeruns rehab real estate investors look for. But, here is a key point…
It's truly NOT worth my time, or yours, to wait around for the homeruns. I firmly believe that these kinds of homerun deals come about by being an active investor. Rehabbers that keep 1-2 projects going at all times, get calls from wholesaler with great deals. Personally, I make the best buying decisions decisions with what I have among the properties brought to me when I am in my "buy mode." Some of these turn out to be homeruns, some don't.
If I waited around for only the homeruns:
- I would waste precious learning time. Since there is no substitute for experience, I want all I can get!
- I would lose money over the long run as a buy-and-hold investor. If I'm buying and rehabbing with little or none of my own money anyway, it doesn't make sense to wait around for homeruns if I can add properties to my inventory that fits my investment criteria. If you're in the buy and hold business, the important thing is how much property can be controlled with as little money as possible.
Question: Is it better to have $1,000,000 worth of property appreciating or $200,000?
Hitting a homerun in rehab real estate, and anything else, requires these two ingredients:
- You've GOT to be "in the game." By this I mean you have to have prepared in advance for your turn at bat. In the rehab business, this means you have enough knowledge to get started, you have a decided investment criteria, you have your money source lined up, and you are looking for property.
- You are "swinging." In the rehab business, this mean you are buying property, rehabbing, learning and turning. It's not enough to merely stay on the sidelines.
Let me say that again…
IT'S NOT ENOUGH TO MERELY STAY ON THE SIDELINES.
About The Author
Bruce W. Ford is the editor of Rehab-Real-Estate.com. Get his important Special Report entitled "12 Things Real Estate Investment Gurus Won't Tell You" at http://www.Rehab-Real-Estate.com.
In writing my last article about the neighborhoods where I find the most profitable rehab real estate investment deals, something occurred to me.
In that article I described investing from what I've found is typical in doing this business. I wrote about where I TYPICALLY find the deals. Well, what IS typical in this business?
No two deals are the same, that's for sure! Every rehab itself is different with different problems to solve. So, in describing a typical deal, I'm referring to the spread involved. The spread is the different between what I can buy the house for, and what it's value will be when it's brought back up to standards.
The next big question is, "What will the rehab going to cost."
For instance, if a property in my market has a $25,000 spread between what I can buy it for and what I can sell it for (the as-repaired appraised value), it's a "maybe" in my book depending on how much rehab it needs. If it needs much, I would probably pass unless some external factor makes it a good buy, like the neighborhood. In other words, if it needs much rehab, I'd have to be convinced enough to put some of my own money into it.
I typically look for houses with a $30,000 spread or better. You have to decide for yourself, based on values in your area and what is the minimum you want to make, what spread you'll be happy with.
So, what is a rehab real estate investor's "homerun? "
Homeruns occur at the outer edge of what is typical. My homerun deals have occurred one of several ways.
- The spread is stellar. Let's say the spread is $45,000 and the rehab is a manageable $5-10,000.
- The spread is good, but the rehab is very light. Wham-bam, I'm looking for tenants within days of closing.
- The cost is exceptionally low for a given area. Sometimes the spread on paper will not be anything to get excited about, but the property has a huge lot, extra bedrooms, or is located an area that is in serious demand.
- There is NO rehab, and the spread is sufficient that I can buy it with none of my own money.
True story - I've only had one NO rehab deal. Wow. This house had been recently rehabbed, clean and didn't need a thing! This was a homerun just due to the ease at which I added this property to my inventory! The spread wasn't great, in fact, I had a local hard money lender make up a story about being out of money because he thought the spread was too narrow and didn't want to lend on it. He wrongly assumed there was a significant rehab. (Being straight up with me was too hard, I guess.) I consider this a homerun because I bought this property, changed the locks, put out a sign and had it rented within two weeks. Mind you this is a beautiful well-built brick/block home in a great neighborhood. Cost to me…nothing. This house has one of my best cash flows month-to-month.
The point here is to give you an idea of what kinds of homeruns rehab real estate investors look for. But, here is a key point…
It's truly NOT worth my time, or yours, to wait around for the homeruns. I firmly believe that these kinds of homerun deals come about by being an active investor. Rehabbers that keep 1-2 projects going at all times, get calls from wholesaler with great deals. Personally, I make the best buying decisions decisions with what I have among the properties brought to me when I am in my "buy mode." Some of these turn out to be homeruns, some don't.
If I waited around for only the homeruns:
- I would waste precious learning time. Since there is no substitute for experience, I want all I can get!
- I would lose money over the long run as a buy-and-hold investor. If I'm buying and rehabbing with little or none of my own money anyway, it doesn't make sense to wait around for homeruns if I can add properties to my inventory that fits my investment criteria. If you're in the buy and hold business, the important thing is how much property can be controlled with as little money as possible.
Question: Is it better to have $1,000,000 worth of property appreciating or $200,000?
Hitting a homerun in rehab real estate, and anything else, requires these two ingredients:
- You've GOT to be "in the game." By this I mean you have to have prepared in advance for your turn at bat. In the rehab business, this means you have enough knowledge to get started, you have a decided investment criteria, you have your money source lined up, and you are looking for property.
- You are "swinging." In the rehab business, this mean you are buying property, rehabbing, learning and turning. It's not enough to merely stay on the sidelines.
Let me say that again…
IT'S NOT ENOUGH TO MERELY STAY ON THE SIDELINES.
About The Author
Bruce W. Ford is the editor of Rehab-Real-Estate.com. Get his important Special Report entitled "12 Things Real Estate Investment Gurus Won't Tell You" at http://www.Rehab-Real-Estate.com.
Friday, January 5, 2007
Refinancing Real Estate Investments
by: Steve Gillman
Why should you consider refinancing real estate investments instead of selling them? Maybe you've owned a rental property for years, you've paid down the mortgage, the value is up, and you want to cash in on that equity. You will do better to refinance. Here's why.
There are two problems with selling. First, selling means paying a large capital gains tax. You can avoid this if you reinvest through a 1031 exchange, but then the point is that you want your money, right? Second, you'll be giving up your inflation-indexed retirement plan. A good rental property generates more income as rents go up.
Refinancing Real Estate Investments Is Better
If you refinance, you can get much of your gain out of the property, without paying a penny in taxes. You see, borrowing money is not a taxable event. Take your loan proceeds and spend them however you want, and still keep your rentals. Doesn't that sound better than losing a big chunk of your equity to taxes?
Now, let's look at an example. We'll suppose you have owned a small apartment building for several years. Let's say you bought it for $340,000, with a down payment of $80,000. Interest rates at the time were at 9.5%, giving you a payment of $2,106 monthly on the balance of $260,00 (30 year amortization).
The property is now worth $560,000, and you owe $220,000. Your cash flow is around $2000/month. Now, how do you get at some of that equity? If you sell, you will give up the income, AND pay a big part of the profit in taxes. What happens if you refinance?
If a bank will loan you 70% of the value, that would be $392,000. Pay off the first mortgage, and you are left with $172,000. You can spend it any way you want, and no taxes are due.
It gets even better, especially when interest rates are low. If the new interest rate is 6.5%, your new payment will be $2295. In other words, you get $172,000 to spend any way you want, and you still have over $1,800 cash flow each month, from an inflation-indexed retirement plan.
Here is an even better scenario: Spend $50,000 of the loan for high-return upgrades to the property, such as carports and a laundry room, and raise the rents. You could have $122,000 left over to spend any way you want, AND have higher cash flow than before! Isn't that sound better than selling your retirement plan? When you want that cash, consider refinancing real estate investments.
About The Author
Steve Gillman has invested in real estate for years. To learn more, get a free real estate investing course, and see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com.
Why should you consider refinancing real estate investments instead of selling them? Maybe you've owned a rental property for years, you've paid down the mortgage, the value is up, and you want to cash in on that equity. You will do better to refinance. Here's why.
There are two problems with selling. First, selling means paying a large capital gains tax. You can avoid this if you reinvest through a 1031 exchange, but then the point is that you want your money, right? Second, you'll be giving up your inflation-indexed retirement plan. A good rental property generates more income as rents go up.
Refinancing Real Estate Investments Is Better
If you refinance, you can get much of your gain out of the property, without paying a penny in taxes. You see, borrowing money is not a taxable event. Take your loan proceeds and spend them however you want, and still keep your rentals. Doesn't that sound better than losing a big chunk of your equity to taxes?
Now, let's look at an example. We'll suppose you have owned a small apartment building for several years. Let's say you bought it for $340,000, with a down payment of $80,000. Interest rates at the time were at 9.5%, giving you a payment of $2,106 monthly on the balance of $260,00 (30 year amortization).
The property is now worth $560,000, and you owe $220,000. Your cash flow is around $2000/month. Now, how do you get at some of that equity? If you sell, you will give up the income, AND pay a big part of the profit in taxes. What happens if you refinance?
If a bank will loan you 70% of the value, that would be $392,000. Pay off the first mortgage, and you are left with $172,000. You can spend it any way you want, and no taxes are due.
It gets even better, especially when interest rates are low. If the new interest rate is 6.5%, your new payment will be $2295. In other words, you get $172,000 to spend any way you want, and you still have over $1,800 cash flow each month, from an inflation-indexed retirement plan.
Here is an even better scenario: Spend $50,000 of the loan for high-return upgrades to the property, such as carports and a laundry room, and raise the rents. You could have $122,000 left over to spend any way you want, AND have higher cash flow than before! Isn't that sound better than selling your retirement plan? When you want that cash, consider refinancing real estate investments.
About The Author
Steve Gillman has invested in real estate for years. To learn more, get a free real estate investing course, and see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com.
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