Articles

Ready to get your read on? Dive into the article archive to help you build wealth through real estate investing. We feature top subject matter experts exploring every facet of the industry.

Articles

Ready to get your read on? Dive into the article archive to help you build wealth through real estate investing. We feature top subject matter experts exploring every facet of the industry.

Seattle Tops Hottest Single Family Markets

Seattle Again Tops List of “Hottest” U.S. Single-Family Markets

11 Apr 2016 | Think Realty | Article | Market & Trends, Single Family

By The Editors Seattle, Portland, Nashville, Palm Beach County and Fort Lauderdale took the top spots on Ten-X’s recently released Top Single-Family Housing Markets Report for Spring 2016. These markets have displayed the most consistent combination of rising home prices, home appreciation, favorable affordability and excellent economic and demographic conditions ...

Create Your Own Lifestyle and Succeed On Your Own

26 Mar 2016 | Kevin Guz | Article, Fundamentals

In my experience as a real estate investor – first starting out part-time while pursuing a corporate career, and now as a full-time investor and HomeVestors franchise owner in Dallas – I have observed one underlying trait in those who succeed and stick with real estate investing. And this applies ...

Big Rocks or Small Stones: Where to Focus Your Real Estate Investments

19 Mar 2016 | Kevin Guz | Article | Investment Strategy, Operations

Should you focus your attention on big deals or smaller ones? This is a question that applies not only to part-time real estate investors, but full-time investors as well. Let’s take a look at how you can determine which one is best for your circumstances. To provide some perspective, I’d ...

Real Estate Roller-Coaster Expected to Keep Heading Up in 2016

14 Mar 2016 | Shay Wright | Article | Market & Trends

To say the housing market has seen a few ups and downs over the past decade would be an understatement at best. Even with a couple of good solid years under the belt in 2014 and 2015, many people are still feeling a little uncertain when it comes to the ...

The 20% of Investors Who Succeed Do So by Learning From Those Who Went Before

14 Mar 2016 | Larry Arth | Article | Operations

Did you know that 20 percent of investors succeed while 80 percent do not? So says the Pareto Principle, commonly known as the 80-20 rule, and it applies to everything we do in life. For example, do you know that you wear 20 percent of the clothes in your closet ...

Selecting Your ‘Dream Team’ to Support Your Real Estate Investing Business

9 Mar 2016 | Kevin Guz | Article | Market & Trends

Here it is, mid-March of 2016, and right around the corner is next month’s NFL draft. You have owners, coaches and managers working diligently and strategically to pick their team members for the upcoming fall football season. The level of intensity and effort and diligence that they use is no ...

3 Reasons Why You May Want to Buy Property from a Passive Investor

22 Feb 2016 | Larry Arth | Article | Operations

Over the years I have been involved in hundreds of investment property purchases, which prompts a lot of how-to questions. Perhaps the most highly sought-after answer is to the question of where to find the best properties. Wow, that question has lots of different answers, but there is one that ...

Real Estate Investing is a Business, Not a Hobby

12 Feb 2016 | Kevin Guz | Article | Operations

As you hear so often—and you’ve heard it from me, too—in order to be successful in real estate investing, you have to treat it as a business. But what exactly does that mean? From my experience as a real estate investor and a HomeVestors franchisee in Dallas, I’ll share some ...

U.S. Home Sellers In 2015 Realized Biggest Price Gains Since 2007

29 Jan 2016 | RealtyTrac | Article | Market & Trends

RealtyTrac’s Year-End 2015 U.S. Home Sales Report shows that U.S. home sellers in 2015 realized an average price gain since purchase of 11 percent ($20,378), the biggest average price gain for U.S. home sellers since 2007 — an eight-year high. The 11 percent average price gain in 2015 marked the ...

Using IRAs to Invest in Real Estate

14 Jan 2016 | Think Realty | Article | IRAs, Products & Services

Your Self-Directed Retirement Account Albert Einstein is quoted as saying “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it ... he who doesn't ... pays it.” At Think Realty, we celebrate real estate investment as an asset class that embodies appreciation or compounding value ...

Street Smart: Why Use Professional Property Managers?

13 Jan 2016 | Think Realty | Article | Operations

Thoughts from pros in an age where a disgruntled tenant and a premises liability lawyer could cost you more to prove your case than your property is worth! Kimberly Smith CEO/Founder, AvenueWest Corporate Housing 800-928-1592 Yes, we can all manage our own rentals, but will this make us the most ...

Street Smart: Why is Integrity an Issue in Personal Real Estate Investing?

11 Jan 2016 | Think Realty | Article, Operations

Nate Armstrong Founder, Calhoun Ventures 651-789-5386 The truth is, there is plenty of room in my business for unscrupulous people to make a quick buck. I must emphasize, though, that a quick buck can only be made once. We live in a world where people know what Kim Kardashian ordered at ...

5 Things To Do To Make 2016 Your Best Investment Year Ever

9 Jan 2016 | Think Realty | Article | Investment Strategy

In the fourth quarter of the year, I always hear investors talking about closing the year’s investments strong and wondering what the next year will have in store for them. This reminds me of a consultant friend of mine who said, “Predict the future by creating it.” Wise words indeed ...

7 Traits of Good Flippers

29 Dec 2015 | Lawrence Fassler | Article | Market & Trends

A number of active real estate investors have developed lucrative careers by investing in less-than-perfect residential properties, renovating them and re-selling (or renting) them for a profit. The real estate market has now turned around, and although foreclosures are on the decline, good fix-and-flip deals remain available. From my vantage ...

Remodeling spending expected to increase in 2016, Harvard study says

16 Nov 2015 | Think Realty | Article | Market & Trends, Operations, Products & Services

Spending on remodeling and home improvement show more optimism going into next year and are projected to more than double in 2016, according to a study from the Joint Center for Housing at Harvard. After several quarters of slackening growth, home improvement spending is projected to pick up its pace ...

Foreclosure starts jump 12% in October, largest month-over-month increase since August 2011

12 Nov 2015 | Think Realty | Article | Market & Trends, Operations

Foreclosures were started for the first time on 48,605 properties in October and there were 36,582 properties repossessed by lenders in October, according to a new report from RealtyTrac. The report shows: U.S. foreclosure starts increased 12 percent from the previous month – the largest monthly increase since August 2011 ...

The 7 Best Renovations for Rental Properties

2 Oct 2015 | Teresa Bitler | Article | Fundamentals

Here are a number of renovation suggestions designed to help ensure that a prospective tenant will choose your rental. When dealing with rental-property ownership, two of the biggest variables are dealing with vacancies and the length of time it takes you or your property manager to re-rent the property. Marketing ...

New studys says owning costs more than renting

New study says owning costs more than renting

31 Aug 2015 | Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends

By Erik Franks John Burns Real Estate Consulting In most areas of the country, homeownership costs more than renting. Many economists with calculators claim the opposite, but the calculations and conclusions are often highly misleading. As is often the case, the devil is in the details. We recently reviewed one ...

Median home prices at highest level since 2008

Median home price in July at highest level since September 2008 new study says

27 Aug 2015 | Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends

Sales of properties in-foreclosure and cash sales were down from a year ago to multi-year lows while year-to-date U.S. home sales in 2015 are at an eight-year high, according to a new study from RealtyTrac.com. Data also showed the U.S. median home price in July was at an 82-month high ...

5 ways to find the value of investment property

24 Aug 2015 | Richard Montgomery | Article | Funding, Operations

Reader Question: We want to make our first real estate investment purchase. We have decided on investing in older two- to four-family apartments. It appears there are different ways to decide what a property is worth. How do you evaluate an old three-family property? — Julie and Rob P. Monty’s ...

Create your own full-time benefits from part-time real estate investing

21 Aug 2015 | Kevin Guz | Article | Fundamentals, Operations

In writing this blog post, I am going to draw on my own experience as a part-time real estate investor who was employed full-time in corporate America. Hindsight is 20-20. I will admit I did not see the full-time benefits I was building with my part-time real estate investing at ...

Foreclosures up 7 percent in July as banks flush distressed properties and bubble-era loans

20 Aug 2015 | Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends

Foreclosure filings in July 2015 were up 7 percent from the previous month and up 14 percent from a year ago, according to a new report from RealtyTrac.com. July was the fifth consecutive month with a year-over-year increase in overall foreclosure activity after 53 consecutive months of decreases. “The increase ...

Betting on Chinese homebuyers in the U.S.

Future uncertain for Chinese homebuying in U.S. in new home communities

19 Aug 2015 | Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends

By John Burns Real Estate Consulting Chinese homebuyers comprise roughly 2% of U.S. housing demand—and far more than that in the gateway metro areas with excellent airport access. According to the National Association of Realtors, 16% of international homebuyers come from China and spent $29 billion last year, surpassing Canada, ...

How a beginning investor became an investment company owner in five years

17 Aug 2015 | Larry Arth | Article | Investment Strategy, Operations

“I want to know everything you can teach me about real estate investing,” were the first words spoken by a gentleman who walked into my office. He said he had seen the words “investment property” underneath my office picture and wanted me to help him get underway. He said he ...

Home loan originations up 23 percent year over year new study from RealtyTrac.com shows says Daren Blomquist, VP of RealtyTrac.com

Home loan originations up 23 percent year over year new study says

14 Aug 2015 | Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends

Home loans originated on single-family homes and condos in the second quarter of 2015 were up 23 percent from a year ago, to the highest level since the third quarter of 2013, according to a new study from RealtyTrac.com. Highlights report show the loan types and how much each one ...