"Income For Life"

Over the past 5 years or so, I have noodled around with different notions on how to help my clients invest shrewdly yet prudently in real estate. Believe it or not, when the market was so hot, it was difficult to find a "good deal". Apartment buildings were just ridiculous expensive. The prices at which they were selling had no basis in the amount of rents they were getting. That's because condo developers seemed willing to buy them at any price. Yeah, the condo market was blistering. Even so, I don't know how those guys made money. You know - the old "supply and demand" thing. Demand was high, but there was plenty of supply (as we now know). I suspect a lot of them lost their shirts - or maybe just their lenders did, since they probably financed 110% of the project and had themselves personally protected behind their "corporate veils". But that's another story for another day.

I have never wanted to be responsible for putting my clients into an investment that didn't accomplish their goals. The idea, after all, is to not just sell them one property but many. That can only happen if they are successful in achieving their goals. With the down-turn in the economy, the deals are much easier to find. Yes, financing is harder to get - but cash is always king.

(BTW -  as a complete sidebar - a "sure thing" long term investment opportunity now may be investing in companies that make mortgages. Most of the bad loans have already been written off and the mortgages that they are making these days are crazy A+ paper! They really use any excuse they can manufacture not to make the loans. Pity they weren't 1/10 as scrupulous just 18 months ago!)

I have always maintained that if you're going in the opposite direction of the herd, you'll probably do just fine. People are afraid to jump into the market now - when they SHOULD have been afraid 2-3-5 years ago!! NOW they should be buying as much property as they can!! Prices (in Chicago) have rolled back at least to 2004 levels. With the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac bail-out, interest rates may be coming down even lower. As I've already said, it's an inverse formula: a 1% INcrease in interest rates translates into a 10% DEcrease in pricing to offset that increase. Vice versa - if rates come down another 1/2%, a purchaser can easily absorb a 5% price increase. Even if we aren't at yet at the bottom of prices falling, it gives you plenty of buffer. The general consensus is that prices may drop another 1or 2%. Certainly not 5 or 10%!

I'm thinking we have about a 60 day window before interest rates start to climb. That window starts to close on election day.

To help my clients take advantage of current market conditions, I am instituting an "Income For Life" investment program. I will coach my clients all the way through from purchase to sale to assure their success. I am partnering with other financial service providers to create education forums in general financial literacy as well as specific real estate investing education. (We launch our first program on Thurs even, Oct 2. "News at 11".) I've always loved "Rich Dad's" materials.  However, when you put the book down, you don't know where to begin or what to do. I want to remedy that. I want to move my clients from the theoretical to the practical achievement of their goals.

My current client base will serve as my "guinea pigs" as we refine the pieces of the program. And as such they will receive my services free. Once we have the kinks worked out, that will no longer be true. This is a program that can literally transform your life and be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in passive income! If what I'm saying makes sense and you want to participate, I urge you contact me today!

"All Things With Exuberance!"
mary!