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How?s the Economy? Check Your Underwear
2009-09-21 13:00:00
There are a multitude of economic indicators to use as a barometer of the economy. Many are extremely complex, while others are fairly simple. One of the more unusual ones actually seems to make a lot of sense. Look at your underwear drawer! I was recently reading an article in the Washington Post (article) and assumed that it must have been a slow news day. The reporter was talking about how consumer confidence can be gauged by the underwear you keep. It seems that there is even a Men?s Underwear Index (MUI), and former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan sees it as a credible means of tracking consumer sentiment. Replenishment Item The theory behind the index is that men will replace their underwear as it wears out. However, when times are tough they will wait longer than usual before purchasing a replacement. So when money is tight the sales of boxers and briefs are in the toilet. When people feel better about the economy again you will see the sales rise.This Article is C...
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Will Appraisers Stunt the Housing Recovery?
2009-09-20 18:07:00
After the financial meltdown last year lawmakers and regulators were determined to discover who was responsible for the debacle. Yes, the very people who drafted the laws governing mortgages and yes were also responsible for oversight of them went out to determine who was responsible for the melt down. The first culprit, of course, was the lenders. I think we all know how that played out. The next group on the chopping block was the appraisers. If they wouldn?t have appraised the homes then the lenders would not have lent on them, so goes the finger pointing. From that came sordid tales of realtors and mortgage professionals pressuring and even bribing appraisers to up the value of a property. Home Valuation Code of Conduct - HVCC After the scapegoats were identified the legislation followed. One prime piece of legislation aimed at appraisers was the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (PDF). The intent of the HVCC was to achieve more appraiser independence to reduce the amount ...
More About: Recovery , Housing , Stunt

One Marketing Question That Can Give You Bigger Pockets Every Time!
2009-09-19 22:25:00
When I first got started in real estate, out of all things that could be important, there was one thing that stood out the most . . . Having a website! Now, I'm not saying you have to have a website in order to be successful in real estate, however I'm sure you see how powerful a website can be, if used correctly. Just look at this website! Anyway, in spite of all the buttons, features, images and whatever else that makes a website look pretty, there is one portion of a website that you should be most concerned with. If you don't have it, then you need to get one fast! I only care about one portion of my website (on the backend) and that is my Lead Question naire Form. Basically this form asks questions that allow me to qualify/disqualify leads based on the type of investing strategy I use, as well as their motivation and their ability to do a deal.This Article is Copyright © 2004-2009 BiggerPockets, Inc. All Rights Reserved. One Marketing Question That Can Give You Bigger...
More About: Time , Real Estate Marketing

Real Estate Marketing Campaigns: Aim Before You Shoot
2009-09-19 16:24:00
I received the Google Analytics newsletter the other day in the mail and it got me thinking about long tail keywords.  But Peter Kolat has already written some great posts about that subject, so I shifted my thinking more generally to targeting your prospects.  Because that?s what using long tail keywords is really about, after all ? honing in on the prospects that are searching specifically for what you offer. What?s in it for me? Let?s do a thought experiment: Imagine you?re looking for someone to clean up and fix the houses you buy before you flip them.  You happen, just as you?re thinking about it, to get three postcards in the mail.This Article is Copyright © 2004-2009 BiggerPockets, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Real Estate Marketing Campaigns: Aim Before You Shoot
More About: Real Estate , Real Estate Marketing

Commercial Real Estate: The Iceberg is Melting Faster!
2009-09-18 17:24:00
This isn't a global warming post in any sense of the phrase. Unless, of course, it is your bank account that is melting away faster than you care for it to melt away. This post is a kinda-sorta extension of last week's post in which I said a new wave of foreclosures is in the immediate future. My statement was based on the commercial real estate market and lo and behold the very next Monday, Corus Bancshares Inc. was seized by the Feds. As it turns out, CBI financed a 377 unit condo called The Montage in downtown Reno. Several years ago the latest craze to hit this city was to take shuttered casinos - yes, casinos go belly up - and convert them into condo complexes. This particular complex had units priced from $150,000 to more than $1 million. This was during the high flying years. Today these same units won't fetch $10,000 no matter where they are located in the complex. My youngest son was in the market at about that time for a dwelling. He liked the idea this complex wa...
More About: Commercial , Estate , Real Estate , Real Estate Market , Real

How to use Postlets to Improve Your Craigslist Posts
2009-09-18 03:15:00
There are quite a few features that Postlets offers, some fee-based and some free.  In this post I?m going to focus on the free features and show you how you can take your CraigsLists posts from this: To This: Postlets Tutorial for Craigslist In this tutorial postlets.com does most of the work for you.  However, in relation to my previous post, I?ll also show you how you can create the illusion of an embeded YouTube property video.  The procedure is as follows: Step 1:This Article is Copyright © 2004-2009 BiggerPockets, Inc. All Rights Reserved. How to use Postlets to Improve Your Craigslist Posts
More About: Housing

Meet the Investor: Interview with Real Estate Investor, Will Barnard
2009-09-17 23:14:00
Its that time again . . . where we get to meet another successful real estate investor. For those of you who are unfamiliar, we will from time to time, interview investors on BiggerPockets for our Meet the Investor series. With that in mind, we've got a great interview for you with real estate investor Will Barnard. Will has been one of the most active members of BiggerPockets over the course of the last year or so, and has given back much to others in the community. He is a great resource and a nice guy. With that in mind . . . Meet Real Estate Investor Will Barnard How long have you been investing in real estate full time? I started investing in 2004 and went "full time" in 2006. What attracted you to becoming a real estate investor? I have almost always been self-employed and I am a true entrepreneur at heart. I have always been interested in real estate investing; in fact, I was out looking at homes to buy, rehab and flip back in 2000, but never pulled the trigge...
More About: Real Estate , Interview

Apartment Buildings Beat Inflation With Rising Rents
2008-06-09 20:57:00
It is no secret that inflation has reared its ugly head in the US and around the world. And it is easy to see its effects whenever you go to the gas station to fill up your car or to the grocery store to buy a loaf of bread. You can read the statistics: gas prices are above $4.00 while corn and wheat prices are touching record high in the futures markets. However, for the individual investor it can be difficult to gauge the devastating impact of inflation on his or her investment portfolio. Most investors have the bulk of their money invested in paper assets such as stocks, bonds and mutual funds. Paper assets as opposed to hard assets like gold or real estate usually fair the worst during inflationary periods. The reason for this is because while goods and services are rising in price there is a simultaneous drop in the value of the US Dollar and the price of securities or common stocks. Public companies tend to trim operations during inflationary and recessionary economies b...
More About: Economy , Inflation , Buildings , Beat

Through The Looking Glass: A Future Look at the Real Estate Marketplace.
2008-06-09 15:15:00
One of the questions I hear over and over is “when will the real estate market return to normal?” There were so many newcomers investing in real estate that have no historical perspective of the market. So many things occurred that had never been seen before. People lacking in experience did not realize that this wasn?t normal. They sit on the sidelines waiting for conditions to return to the way that they were before the bubble burst. News Flash: It Ain?t Happening! It seems that during the high-flying days of the real estate boom novice investors were a lot like Alice In Wonderland. They went through the looking glass into a bizarre world of an altered reality where the normal rules of economics didn?t apply. These neophytes jumped in with both feet and paid a heavy price when reality returned to bite them. The Fallacy of Easy Money A frequent question is “when will lenders start making $0 down payment loans again?” The answer: hopefull...
More About: Commentary , Estate , Real Estate , Real Estate Market , Future

Commercial Real Estate Investing - The Refinance Nightmare
2008-06-08 19:28:00
Howdy from the metropolis of Cedar Crest, New Mexico. I just got back from my father-son retreat with my boys Colt (9) and Dakota (7). It was fun to hang out with other fathers but it was a lot more fun to be with my boys when they wanted to hang out with me. I was competing with their friends for time. What is up with that? When did I become ?not cool?? I am thirty seven years old! I am too young to be ?not cool? ?right? Anyway?. I am currently refinancing my shopping center in Southwest Texas. I am on my second attempt to refinance and I have been trying to do so for six months now. The shopping center is a solid performer with regards to cash flow, tenant strength and occupancy (100%). It is also in a great city with regards to the local economy. So?what is the problem? Where do I start? There are a plethora of items that I did not see coming…NO ONE did. But from what I understand?.my mortgage broker(s) are telling me about a ?perfect storm?: Interest rates are ...
More About: Commercial , Estate , Real Estate , Real Estate Investing , Nightmare

Do Valuations Continue to Slide for Years? What?s The Answer? - PART 2
2008-06-06 19:11:00
I?m not one to beat a dead horse but I don?t mind kicking it a little. Last week I posed the question, What?s The Answer ? I surrounded the question with information and thoughts about valuation. Today I?d like to surround the question with a theory. It?s called the ?We Are Desensitized Theory? and I put it on the table for your thoughts. If memory serves correctly, Yogi Berra is credited with this jewel: “A nickel just isn?t worth a dime anymore.” He has so many Berraisms it is hard to keep track of all of them. My son and I co-own an insurance agency and we bump against this wisdom at least once a week. One would think in an industry as straight forward as insurance, a nickel would be worth a dime. After all, a premium is a premium is a premium. The only difference is the company charging it. Premiums are set by the insurance company and approved by the Insurance Commissioner. No law says they have to be uniform for a particular coverage type. I?ll use auto insurance as...
More About: Commentary , Slide , Part , Years

Lender Guideline Changes That Effect All Investors
2008-06-05 19:53:00
There are two major player in the lending industry right now, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, both of these companies are very important because they more or less dictate the rules and guidelines for lender and banks across the USA. Freddie Mac recently released a guideline change - ?We are revising our requirements for Investment Property Mortgages to reduce the number of financed properties in which a Borrower who owns more than one financed Investment Property may have an individual or joint ownership interest (including the subject property) from 10 to 4. Also, effective for Mortgages with Freddie Mac Settlement dates on or after August 1, 2008, the borrower on a cash-out refinance mortgage must have owned the subject property for at least six months prior to the note date of the new refinanced mortgage.? Investors that hold properties titled in an LLC?s, will have to wait 6 months after they quit claim into their personal name to refinance. Who is Freddie Mac and why are they s...
More About: Effect , Guideline

Learn To Network The ?Right? Way, Or Your Business Card Will End Up In The
2008-06-04 22:20:00
When you first start out in this business (real estate investing) most of your deals and leads will come from your marketing activities such as bandit signs, direct mail, the Internet and door knocking. After a while, if you are networking properly, many of your deals will begin coming from referrals from other investors. The key word in the last sentence is networking properly! The Unskilled Real Estate Network er I attend all of the REIA meetings in my area and I see people who walk around in the beginning of the meeting and just pass out their business cards to everyone. They don?t even talk to you, they just make their way around the room passing out the cards. This is the most bone headed thing to do! Networking is about relationship building, not about how many people have your business card at the end of the meeting (and anyone who just walks around and gives their card to me without talking to me; well, I immediately trash their card.) Effective Real Estate Networking When ...
More About: Business , Card , Business Card , Learn

Real Estate Optimism or Foolishness? A Move Toward ?Buyer Education?
2008-06-04 16:41:00
The real estate caused global credit crunch shows signs of spreading like a fierce cancer to areas of the economy no one would have expected or predicted only a few months ago. News this week that some major banks are no longer giving student loans to those enrolled in two year community colleges because of concerns those students may be a bad credit risk–which in nonsense, but an excuse being used nonetheless. The chief executive of Wachovia was forced to walk the plank while Standard & Poors sliced the credit ratings for three investment banks, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley. In Great Britain, one mortgage lender has issued a very dark and somber report on the near future of the housing market in the U.K. Optimism or Foolishness? At a time such as this, it is okay to try and remain optimistic so long as you don’t slip into the realm of foolishness and unrealistic expectations. Understandably, some in the real estate business are sticking to the ...
More About: Education , Commentary , Estate , Real Estate , Buyer

Apartment Building Management Tips
2008-06-02 22:07:00
The success and profitability of an apartment building investment can often be determined by the quality of the management in place. Usually apartment buildings with more than 20 units are managed by professional property management companies and those buildings with fewer than 20 units are usually managed by the owner and a live in property manager. Regardless of who is managing the apartment building it is important to follow some general principles and tips to make sure that operations run smoothly. The management of an apartment building should be efficiently run like any other business. The manager should look to improve the client-tenant living experience while minimizing costs and increasing profit opportunities whenever possible. One important legal issue that should never be ignored are the Fair Housing Rules which prohibit discrimination based on race, gender, age, disability, marital status, and sexual orientation. Everyone involved in property management must follow...
More About: Building , Management , Tips

Ripples In A Pond
2008-06-02 13:12:00
Just like the pebble tossed in a pond, a seemingly small event can have catastrophic consequences. The small ripple created when the pebble hits the water can be a wave by the time it reaches the opposite shore. Our current economic state of affairs can be traced back to a few small ripples as well. In the beginning a handful of investors were turning some nice profits in real estate. Other people took notice and before long you had a lot of amateurs entering the market because it looked so easy. At first they were making money and the ripples grew larger. More and more wanna-be investors jumped on the bandwagon. The market was off and running. The lenders took notice and sought out opportunities to lend money and drive their profits higher. The easy money resulted in a slew of creative mortgage products. In addition to the typical adjustable rate loans (ARMs), there were interest-only loans and Pay-Option ARM loans. The latter allowed for negative amortization, which resulte...
More About: Economy , Blogs , Pond

BiggerPockets Featured in The Orlando Sentinel
2008-06-01 18:14:00
 Sunday, June 1, 2008: Martha Phifer of The Orlando Sentinel features BiggerPockets.com in her Home Base column in the Real Estate Section of the paper. Every week Martha shares in her column “products, Web sites, tips, books and other things related to home decoration or home buying or anything home related.” In her own words, “Any time I found a cool Web site that I think readers might find useful, I include it in the column.” We’re proud to have been selected to be featured in the column, and of course, we look forward to more press in the future. Advertisement: Payday Loans Online from the leader in online cash advances since 2003. This Post is from the BiggerPockets Real Estate Blog. Copyright © 2008 BiggerPockets, Inc. All Rights Reserved. BiggerPockets Featured in The Orlando Sentinel

Do Valuations Continue to Slide for Years? What?s The Answer?
2008-05-30 13:33:00
I?m like everyone else. All I can do is take what I?ve been taught couple it with my experiences and what I?ve learned to make what to me appears to be an informed decision. Therein lies the rub at least as far as this real estate debacle is concerned. I look at the foreclosure filings in my county and see they are up. I read articles that tell me other areas, with few exceptions, are also experiencing an uptick in foreclosure filings. I combine the two pieces of information and come to the conclusion the foreclosure mess will be with us for the remainder of 2008 and likely throughout 2009. I also deduce, maybe incorrectly, that the turn around won?t happen until 2010, if then. On the other hand, I also read articles that tell me this mess will bottom out in 2009. One of the reasons stated is that people are staying away from the real estate market today because they don’t want to buy an asset that might lose value right away. Wouldn?t it stand to reason that if the mess isn...
More About: Commentary , Answer , Housing Bubble , Slide , Years

Mortgages That Attract Homebuyers
2008-05-29 16:29:00
Do great rates and great service fail to impress you? Well you are not alone. We are in a time where you need to find out who can create value with their services and ideas. And what I mean by value is, attracting customers. A good number of investors plan to sell their property at some point and awareness of loan programs can help your potential sell. Here are a few loans of value over the last few years: 100% purchase, non-owner, stated income, interest only 1% pay option ARM 100% cash out refinance 100% Jumbo Loans There is great debate on whether these loans are good loans, but few can argue these loan did attract customers for Realtors, Builders, and Mortgage Companies. What are the next generation of loans to attract customers? 3-2-1 buy-down PITI Abatement FHA/VA My Community Credit Repair One might say that 2008 is the year of government backed mortgages. All the loans high lighted above are directly tied to the government through Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA...
More About: Interest Rates , Mortgages

Good News, Bad News: Home Prices Fall Off A Cliff; Big AntiTrust Case May H
2008-05-28 13:18:00
Good news, bad news time for real estate and the general economy this week. The bad is, I am afraid, very bad, indeed. Prices for single-family homes took a nose dive in the first quarter of 2008…down an enormous 14.1 percent from the year before. Standard & Poor’s/Case Shiller report, according to Reuters, says this is at “a pace five times faster than the last housing recession.” The chairman of S&P’s index committee tells the wire service, “There are very few silver linings that one can see in the data.” You think? And now, says the New York Times, the housing mortgage mess has spilled over into the auto industry in a very big way. Mostly because many people can’t borrow against their mortgage now. Want proof? Shares of General Motors Tuesday slid to a 27 year low! Okay, now some good news…for consumers but maybe not so good for bricks-and-mortar brokers. The U.S. Justice Department has just reached a deal with the Nat...
More About: News , Economy , Home , Good News , Bad News

Breaking Down the HUD-1 Settlement Statement
2008-05-27 23:24:00
The Settlement Statement , often referred to as the ?HUD-1?, is a document that contains a detailed breakdown of the closing costs apportioned between the buyer and seller of property. Typically, the closing agent (often a representative from the title company), gathers the pertinent information, completes the Settlement Statement and disperses the required funds once the buyer and seller have certified the accuracy of the statement by signing it. The first page of the Settlement Sheet is broken down into a summary of the borrower?s (buyer) transaction on the left side and a summary of the seller?s transaction on the right. The second page is divided into those costs that are ?paid from borrower?s funds at settlement? and those costs that are ?paid from seller?s funds at settlement?. If buyer, seller and title agent agree that the statement is true and accurate, all parties sign and date the sheet toward the bottom of page two. The following key sections of the HUD-1 should be t...
More About: Real Estate , Breaking

Financing the Investment Project: Leaving Nothing To Chance
2008-05-27 16:48:00
The importance of financing is so great it pays to leave nothing to chance and assumption. Knowing the local lenders and what they like to invest in is critical to finding the right lender for your investment project. Also, presenting a compelling case to the lender is important. These two aspects lay the foundation for creating a successful project. This goes back to preparation and research. You might also want to research private financing, which entails knowing wealthy people, or knowing someone who knows wealthy people. Having a good idea of what’s the favored investment in a local area will no doubt play a part in the choice of the investment project. But if you have followed advice and have become knowledgeable of your area, you should have a good idea about trends and the financing possibilities. You have also, no doubt, become knowledgeable enough to exude confidence when you present a project to be financed. It also pays to have gathered support from influential peop...
More About: Real Estate Investing , Investment , Financing , Project , Chance

Is Las Vegas Real Estate Showing Signs Of Life?
2008-05-26 13:00:00
The real estate agent seems to be the eternal optimist. In the middle of the credit crunch, foreclosure crisis and general market malaise, he or she will be smiling broadly and proclaiming that this is a great time to buy. You could almost picture the agent showing a property that had been devastated by an earthquake, flooded by a hurricane and whisked away by a tornado and saying “It?s a steal, a little paint and new carpet and it?ll be good as new!” Lately I?ve been hearing real estate professionals here in Las Vegas saying that they are busier than they?ve been in a long time, just more puffing? Houses being snapped up in a matter of days, multiple offers, bidding more than the listing price, - sounds like the real estate market circa 2005. However, that?s what I?m being told is happening today. This is the world of bank-owned homes, or REOs, in Las Vegas at the moment. This isn?t some pundit spouting numbers, or an economist manipulating data to support a pre-formed ...
More About: Life , Estate , Las Vegas Real Estate , Real Estate

From Pre-Foreclosure to Pre-Trial Hearings
2008-05-25 23:57:00
BEWARE! BEWARE! BEWARE! I am quite sure that many of you are staying abreast of the new laws regarding dealing with sellers and properties on their way into foreclosure status. On my side of the country it is especially critical to follow all guidelines of the pre-foreclosure business. Those who are choosing to take their chance are finding themselves in JAIL. These not so new but recently enforced laws have real estate investors chasing the same agents they kicked to the curb years ago. In Maryland, we can not make contact with any home seller who is 60 days or later past due on mortgage payments. Only a real estate agent has the authority to make such contact. Now all of the sudden real estate investors in deep negotiations with sellers who are in similar situations must immediately cease fire. I would jump out and say that 65% or more active investors have some dealings with pre-foreclosure homeowners. On top of that, 100% of real estate investing courses promise to keep...
More About: Foreclosures , Real Estate Investing , Foreclosure , Trial

Cities Working Against Themselves in the Battle Against Foreclosures
2008-05-24 18:48:00
Minneapolis on the Decline: A Case Study I have been following a fraud case that the city of Minneapolis has played a major role in. To be more exact, the Minneapolis City Council has been a driving force behind it. North Minneapolis has long been considered a high crime area and that part of Minneapolis is why the city has been nick-named ?Murderapolis.? The foreclosure rate in the city has been setting new foreclosure records on a monthly basis and the abandoned houses that are left behind has caused a serious epidemic for the city to contend with. Minneapolis is losing residents?Fast. The city has been very vocal with their efforts to get owner-occupied people to buy houses there to help solidify the city and rebuild the communities there. Most of the abandoned houses there have had the windows and doors boarded up to keep squatters from claiming a temporary place to stay. Even the city has acknowledged that the ?squatters? are mostly ?crack users? and with them comes the crime...
More About: Commentary , Foreclosures , Cities , Battle , Working

Just Imagine the Mortgage Paid by Lakshmi Mittal on the World?s Most Expens
2008-05-23 20:21:00
The World ’s Most Expensive House London’s paper, The Sun, today shares with us the rumored sale of the Most Expensive House in the World. The home is located on “Billionaires Row” in London and is set to sell for a WHOPPING £117million or approximately $232 million to Lakshmi Mittal , the steel Tycoon, and one of the world’s richest men, says the Sun. He is believed to be close to exchanging contracts with owner Noam Gottesman, 47, a US-born financier. The home in Kensington Palace Gardens, West London, Princess Diana?s former street, is being sold furnished and with an art collection. It works out at an astonishing £8,000 per square foot. For a picture of the property, visit the link to the article above. According to the Daily Telegraph: The detached residence is next door to the Israeli embassy on Palace Green, an extension of Kensington Palace Gardens. The four-floor house with at least five luxurious suite bedrooms plus extensive servants quarter...
More About: Commentary , Mortgage , Paid

Foreclosure And Its Effect On Non-Foreclosure Homes
2008-05-23 16:56:00
Just Surfing for Foreclosure Information As I was surfing the Net looking for foreclosure information, I stumbled across a study titled: HOUSING POLICY DEBATE VOLUME 17 ISSUE 1 NOTE: The study is copyrighted by the Fannie Mae Foundation. One of the co-authors, Geoff Smith, is a vice president at the Woodstock Institute, a policy group in Chicago. This study was conducted in Chicago between 1998 and 1999. Foreclosure Study Findings The study found that each foreclosure within an eighth of a mile of a single-family home results in a 0.9% decline in the home’s value. Smith is of the opinion that “If you were to replicate that study now, you’d probably find a bigger impact because there are more foreclosures and they’re bringing down the housing market overall.” Since I am only familiar with the real estate market in a small geographic area, my first inclination is to agree with him. After all, foreclosed homes often fall victim to neglect and vandalis...
More About: Real Estate Market , Foreclosures , Homes , Effect

My Advice? Buy a FourPlex
2008-05-22 16:17:00
Community First Financial talks to many of investors every day and there are some thoughts I would like to share with you on our experiences with investors, particularly first time investors. One of the top questions I hear from investors is, What would you do? If I could start my investing life all over again I would buy a FOUR PLEX as my first home. And when I say first home I mean first home. Most people buy their single family house, live in it as their primary house, then look to buy their first investment property. For those that are flexible and motivated I suggest you buy a 4 plex as your first primary home and investment property. Here is why owner occupied 4 plex makes sense: Qualifying for a first time home buyers loan on a primary residence easier. You need less money down. Rental income helps qualify. You now have a primary home and an investment in one transaction. Potential cash-flow or you could pay for your primary unit with the other three units cash-flow. Wh...
More About: Advice , Real Estate Investing

Turning the Real Estate Ship Around: Why It Hasn?t And How It Can
2008-05-21 17:32:00
Okay…so what’s wrong with this picture? In communities all across America the value of homes has dropped faster than the New Year’s Eve ball in Times Square. Lower prices should mean bargin prices. Bargin prices should mean people jumping back into the housing market. People jumping back into the housing market should help inflate the value of homes….. But things aren’t working out that way and it is all because of the credit markets. Most “experts”–and I do use that word with great caution when talking about the real estate mess–seem to agree that lenders are sitting on the fence because they still are not sure just when this mortgage crisis will hit rock bottom. The banks and other financial institutions worry, and not without good cause, that if they do start freeing up credit and people buy up those cheaper homes, the homes will still continue to loose value leaving the lenders holding the bag. What will turn this around? Fo...
More About: Economy , Estate , Credit , Real Estate , Real Estate Market

Utilizing a network of real estate agents to invest in a down market
2008-05-20 23:46:00
I have approximately ten serious buyers who have a home to sell in another state before they can buy. I talked to the relocation person at Gulfstream here in Savannah and she said many of her new hires have homes to sell before they can buy. If you take my situation and consider all the agents in Savannah who are working with buyers who have homes to sell, the numbers add up. To me this presents an investment opportunity — a risky investment opportunity — one that would require building a trusted network of agents and property managers. It would also require understanding other markets and being able to trust that information. We all know by now that certain areas are being hit by the national slowdown in home sales. A willing investor could mine this situation for good investments and help break off a little piece of the log jam. I’ve talked with a local investor and we’ve identified several good investments that will help him, the buyer/seller, me and the l...
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Market , Agents , Network