real estate investment: Tips For Buying Residential Lots - 06/10/14 02:57 AM
In today’s market, many home buyers are buying residential lots instead and building custom homes.  Improved market conditions in many areas are also allowing investors to return to the business of buying land and building custom “spec” homes or small subdivisions.  If you’re thinking about buying unimproved residential land and building – whether for a home or investment – here are a few tips for finding the right property and closing the sale.
1. Site Selection Criteria
Buying an existing home or buying land starts with similar criteria – the right location, total cost and ability to use the property as … (0 comments)

real estate investment: Real Estate Jargon: “All Values Being Equal” - 03/26/14 12:56 AM
Welcome back to Real Estate Jargon, aka, simple explanations of real estate terms.  Today we’re looking at the term “all values being equal” as it applies to real estate sales in general and real estate investment in particular.  This term, similar to the popular “all things being equal,” has a slightly different meaning when used in real estate jargon.  Let’s see how “all values being equal” applies to real estate.
Real estate analysts often state that when macro economic and financial conditions cause values to rise in a particular market, the value of all properties in that market rise together.  If values fall, they fall together.  For example, … (0 comments)

real estate investment: Price Is Not The Most Critical Factor When Buying Income Property - 07/29/12 07:41 AM
Sure, price is important if your resources demand that you invest in properties within a certain price range - that's elementary.  But when it comes to analyzing the investment potential of a property, price plays second fiddle to the most critical factor - return on investment (ROI).  It's not that price isn't important.  In fact, price is a component of ROI - price is the "I" in the equation.  But let's look at the top three features of a property that contribute to ROI.  These are demand, acquisition cost, and management.
1)  Demand.  Demand for a property is based on location and features.  Features … (4 comments)

real estate investment: Where To Buy Rental Investment Properties? - 06/18/12 07:58 AM
A property’s location remains the most important factor when making a purchase of any type, especially an investment in rental properties.  Whether single family homes or apartments, where are the best locations in terms of high rents, low vacancy rates, and good long term appreciation?  In just about any city, we can usually find profitable rentals by applying just those general criteria to our location analysis.
So, where do we start?  One of the easiest ways is to look for “magnet facilities” that create a demand for local housing.  Here are just a few examples found in most cities where the … (0 comments)

real estate investment: Real Estate Jargon: Buyer Beware - "Personal Property" - 06/29/11 05:05 AM
Buyers, sellers, investors, welcome back to another installment of Real Estate Jargon, aka, simple explanations of real estate terms not normally found in nature.
Items found on a piece of land are most commonly referred to as either "real property" or "personal property."  Real property is the land itself and the improvements built on it, such as a house, garage, barn, swimming pool, or anything that is considered "attached."  Personal property is, therefore, anything "not attached."  Or is it?  More than one buyer has been burned by a bad assumption regarding what is real or personal property and what is or … (0 comments)

real estate investment: Real Estate Jargon: "Mello-Roos" - 05/09/11 05:35 AM
Buyers, sellers, investors, welcome back to another installment of Real Estate Jargon, aka, simple explanations of real estate terms not normally found in nature.
In 1982, the California legislature passed the Community Facilities District Act, nick-named "Mello-Roos" after its co-authors, Henry Mello and Mike Roos.  The Act authorizes creation of "Community Facilities Districts" that can sell bonds to finance development and maintenance of public infrastructure in specified areas (the "districts").  The Act was the government's response to the taxpayer revolt in 1978 that resulted in the passage of Proposition 13, which limited the ability of local governments to raise property taxes … (0 comments)

real estate investment: Agent Advertising Tips From A Successful Investor - 05/18/10 03:16 PM
The phone rings.
It's Schwartzenburgermainz (names aren't important...).
"My mailbox is full of real estate agent junk mail, again.  You wanna come over for a few (bottles) of wine and read some of it?  I think most of these guys have the same writers as Leno!"
I drive by the mail drop, ATM, wine shop (never go to Schwartzenburgermainz's house empty handed and never, ever bring the cheap stuff).
I pound on the door.  Mrs. Schwartzenburgermainz nods toward the family room, smiles, and warns, "he's on a roll."
I enter, half-raising a bottle of St. Clement cab for his inspection while … (2 comments)