Single Family

By far the most popular REI method, single-family residential investments include fix-and-flip, buy-and-hold, short- and long-term rentals, wholesaling, and BRRRR, among many other strategies.

Back To: All Topics  |  Investment Strategy

Single Family

By far the most popular REI method, single-family residential investments include fix-and-flip, buy-and-hold, short- and long-term rentals, wholesaling, and BRRRR, among many other strategies.

Back To: All Topics  |  Investment Strategy

auction

Buying at Auction, Behind the Scenes

Buying property at auction can be exciting and profitable, but it’s important to understand how the process works. Whether you are bidding online or in person, understanding how to research and prepare for auction and how to bid effectively during an auction will enable you to achieve your real estate ...
Top Ten Markets for Long-Term Investing

Top Ten Markets for Long-Term Investing

| Ingo Winzer | Article | Single Family
Changes in home prices give us the best idea of what's going on in a local real estate market. But you can’t just take price increases at face value and think that bigger is better. Home prices can be increasing at a good clip for three main reasons, two of ...
privacy

Is Your Seller Violating Privacy Laws?

According to reports from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), an increasing number of home sellers are using their home surveillance systems to monitor showings while they are out. While the desire to see how a showing went firsthand is natural, it could be hurting their chances at selling for ...
texas

Why Texas is Best State for Tax Investors

Dallas, Texas – “Texas is a redeemable tax deed state, and that is the best structure of any state. I’m not just saying that because I’m here in Texas!” began Arnie Abramson, founder of Texas Tax Sales Resource Group in his educational session on Saturday, February 24, 2018, at the ...
property value

7 Ways to Determine Your Property’s Value

Real estate values estimation has several uses ranging from sale listings of real estate and analysis of investments to property taxes and insurances. However, it’s particularly necessary when it comes to real estate sales and passive investing. After all, the property value is not just based on the initial payment made or ...
Real Estate Investment

Keys to Successful Real Estate Investment

While reading a book, journal or magazine article about real estate investment may instill a sense of motivation for an individual to jump into the market, important research must be done to ensure your venture is worth your while. Buying a home, renovating it to meet aesthetic and safety standards, ...
real estate investment

13 Steps to Real Estate Investment Success

In real estate, once the market begins to bounce back, investing in real property likewise turns into an all the more engaging thought – either as a profession or an awesome side job. Like any other undertaking, however, there’s a correct way and a wrong approach. Successful real estate investors aren’t made ...
buying

Out-Of-State Buying Guide

Seven years ago, I moved from Eugene, Oregon to Kansas City, Missouri and have seen both sides of investing out-of-state. I’ve seen people in high-priced markets make very solid returns they could never have hoped to find in their home market. And I’ve seen people completely lose their shirt. On ...
rising

Rising Rents, Stagnant Wages, & the Burden of Unstable Housing

| Zillow | Article | Single Family
While homelessness may not be viewed as a looming issue on the horizon for those who are financially stable, or otherwise have secure and stable housing—it’s not as distant as some might think. With rents rising faster than wages, the burden of affording rent is looming larger and larger for ...
program

Down Payment Program: Employers to Help Employees

A new program from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will allow borrowers to crowdfund their down payments from multiple sources, including their employers. HomeFundMe was created by mortgage banking firm CMG Financial, and allows employers to contribute directly to employees’ accounts for the express purpose of helping that employee purchase ...
Whole Home Cast Iron Repipe Video with Q&A: Blake Johnson

Whole Home Cast Iron Repipe Video with Q&A: Blake Johnson

Sitting at the Think Realty editorial desk, we were able to walk through a repiping project with Blake Johnson, owner of Fort Worth-based Finishing Touches Remodeling, by watching a video he shared with us. Awestruck at the amount of work, time, and money that goes into a repipe project as extensive ...
kitchen design

8 Kitchen Design Trends for 2018

| Zillow | Article | Single Family
Looking for the newest trends in kitchen design? Look no further! Those Shaker-style cabinets should be the first thing to go, and you’ll probably want to give the dramatic paint trend a try. Here are some trends professional designers say we’ll be seeing a lot of. 1| Clean Lines “We ...
housing

How Housing Agencies are Affected by Government Shutdown

Last week, spending authority for most government agencies expired on midnight, January 29, 2018, as a result of ongoing conflict in the U.S. House of Representatives that prevented a national budget bill from being passed.  At time of publication, the Senate had voted to pass a temporary spending bill to ...
property losses

Most Preventable Property Losses for 2018

At Affinity Loss Prevention Services we see multiple property claim submissions each day. Some of the losses described in submissions aren’t avoidable, like hail damage. However, many losses we see are preventable, and to our dismay, those types of losses, if with a few subtle variations, happen over and over again. So, ...
market

2018 Hot Market Picks for Real Estate Investors

Every year, real estate analysts, experts, and economists release assorted “top hot markets” lists related to housing. These lists should always be taken with a healthy dose of context. As Svenja Gudell, chief economist at Zillow and January's Think Realty cover story feature says, “Economists, like meteorologists, should be taken ...
foreclosure activity

12-Year Low in Foreclosure Activity for 2017

ATTOM Data Solutions, today released its Year-End 2017 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 676,535 U.S. properties in 2017, down 27 percent from 2016 and down 76 percent from a peak of nearly 2.9 million in ...
real estate

The Case for Real Estate as an Investment

Yes, as you may have heard, Bitcoin has gone through the proverbial roof of late and cryptocurrencies are all the rage. There are also plenty of sexy startups out there and I’m sure your friend has a great stock tip or two. And you probably know at least one gold ...
home definitions

17 Clarifying Home Definitions

| Zillow | Article | Single Family
What is a mansion compared to a McMansion, or a manufactured home versus a prefab home? These home definitions clear up any confusion. There are so many types of homes and houses, and some can be easily confused. Let’s take a look at definitions of homes that are often mixed ...
property

Is Your Property Dressed Appropriately for Winter?

I went to college with a kid born and raised in Alaska. He still wore shorts and t-shirts when the fall weather ushered in highs in the 40s. All of us Midwesterners thought he was nuts. That was sweater weather! While he may have adapted to the colder temperatures just ...
economy

Global Economic Rankings Will Affect U.S. Real Estate

When the Center for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) announced in early January that China’s economy would surpass that of the United States “by 2032,” the reaction from the U.S. media was not surprising. The U.S. has been a dominant economic force in the world for a very long time ...
6 Tips on Selling During the Holidays

6 Tips on Selling During the Holidays

Not so long ago, selling a property during the holidays was to be avoided at all costs. Who wants to look at houses when everyone is busy with parties and family? Buyers and sellers were advised to wait until spring. With the advent of online listings, home sales have become ...
Market

Colorado Tops ATTOM’s Q3 Pre-Mover Housing Index

ATTOM Data released its Q3 2017 Pre-Mover Housing Index, which shows that the markets with the highest pre-mover indices during the third quarter — predictive of strong sales activity in the fourth quarter — were Colorado Springs, Colorado; Manchester-Nashua, New Hampshire; Chicago, Illinois; Washington, D.C.; and Nashville, Tennessee. Using data ...
5 Fastest Growing Cities

5 Fastest-Growing Cities in America

Two Texas cities dominated WalletHub’s most recent list of “fastest-growing cities in America,” and cities in Florida, Idaho, and Washington state made the list as well. Before you pack up your bags, your bandit signs, and your investment capital and head south or west, take a moment to read the ...
3 Reasons to Invest in Residential Assisted Living

3 Reasons to Invest in Residential Assisted Living

“The silver tsunami is unstoppable,” Gene Guarino, CEO of the Residential Assisted Living Academy, is fond of saying. He follows that with some pretty incredible numbers, including that there are 1.4 million people turning 85 every single year and 10,000 people turning 65 every single day. “They’re going to need ...
Thinking Big from the Very Start

Thinking Big from the Very Start

Real estate investors buy their first property for many reasons. For most, it boils down to independence, self-reliance, and control of their future. While most investors start out relatively small with single-family wholesale deals, residential fix and flips, or buy-and-hold rentals that they manage themselves, some opt to go big ...