Knowledgebase
All of Think Realty's extensive content archive is at your fingertips. Filter by media type and keyword to hone in on exactly what you need.
Knowledgebase
All of Think Realty's extensive content archive is at your fingertips. Filter by media type and keyword to hone in on exactly what you need.
How one real estate investor’s indecision cost him close to $80,000
I was reading an article the other day about the one characteristic that all millionaires have in common: Decisiveness. Wow; one characteristic. They all made prompt decisions and remained confident and went on to build around that decision. My interpretation is: the focus on being decisive made all the difference ...
Calm down: Just because we see confusion and panic out there does not mean we have to sign up
Calm down. Think it over, figure it out. Just because we see confusion and panic out there doesn’t mean we have to sign up. The media focus is on the stock market. If for no other reason than that, don’t pay much attention to the stock market. If it goes ...
5 ways to find the value of investment property
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
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 ...
Create your own full-time benefits from part-time real estate investing
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
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 ...
Future uncertain for Chinese homebuying in U.S. in new home communities
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
“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 ...
How a beginning investor became an investment company owner in five years
“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 ...
Is buying a foreclosure smart for a first-time real estate investor or home buyer?
The real estate investing question of the week: Is buying a foreclosure smart for a first-time real estate investor or home buyer? Bruce Feldman’s Answer: Yes, but not necessarily for the reasons you might think. The truth is that it really doesn't matter. The fact that a home has been ...
How my exit plan turned into a home run deal
Recently I wrote about a property we acquired at 761 Sacketts Court in Lawrenceville, Georgia, and in that article, I discussed the various exit plans for the property. Since it was acquired for $50,000 under current market value, it would have been really easy to flip to an investor “as-is” for ...
Home loan originations up 23 percent year over year new study says
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 ...
I need money for my real estate investment property financing – but what kind?
As I discussed in my most recent article, there are plenty of reasons why real estate investors may use “leverage” – other people’s money – to earn a higher return on their own investment. There are a lot of different potential routes to take, though, when one is trying to ...
If we are lucky the Fed will acknowledge “normal” is a lot lower than it used to be
Oh, boy. Here we were, minding our own business, finger-thrumming at desks while waiting for the Fed to begin “normalizing” next month. Then, China. Cut to the chase and then try to explain it. Stick with Clinton’s Law: “It’s the economy, stupid.” Currencies and central bank actions are effects of ...
Real estate investors and real estate agents: a Win-Win for both
By Doug Clark Zillow for Pros Blog There are two groups of real estate professionals out there who might not realize how mutually beneficial their relationship can be: Agents, who are skilled at helping clients navigate all aspects of the buying and selling process, and investors, who are skilled at ...
Apartment investing with NO heavy lifting?
Not every investor wants to blaze a trail… Let me clarify. You frequently hear me talk about taking massive action. But this doesn’t need to mean getting down and dirty. Multifamily investing is fundamentals-based investing. My real estate investment business, URS Capital Partners, is modeled after what other successful real ...
What serious real estate investors do that average investors do not
Most everyone I talk to about real estate investing has a desire to build a nice investment portfolio. The interesting part is few people actually talk about the journey or the desired destination. Most simply talk about the immediate deal they are looking to invest in with little thought into ...
Is owning a rental property worth the headache?
Q: Real estate investing: Is owning a rental property worth the headache? Especially if you aren’t a do-it-yourselfer? A: From Linda Day Harrison: Everything we do to build wealth should be analyzed using a cost/benefit analysis from an opportunity cost perspective, not by asking yourself whether the effort will be ...
How do you use your part-time real estate investing to create full-time freedom?
It is critical for you as a part-time real estate investor, or weekend investor, to have goals or begin with the end in mind. Investing in real estate is not a sprint, it’s a marathon. It requires patience, diligence, planning and persistence. I know this is all very contradictory to ...
The question for housing: Why are long-term rates falling?
The Fed is coming. Another reasonable payroll report Friday gives the Fed all the cover (if not justification) necessary. Expectations are so high that it would be odd if the Fed did not lift from zero next month. Even odder, in response to heightened Fed probability, long-term rates fell Friday. Again ...
The number of home flips is declining as available foreclosures decline, but profits are increasing, along with the time it takes to complete a flip, a new study from RealtyTrac.com shows. “Despite the rise in flipping returns in the second quarter, home flippers should proceed with caution in the next six ...
By John Burns Real Estate Consulting Builders and developers will now start building more detached homes for rent. For years, home builders have ignored 10 percent of housing demand, allowing resale homes to fill the demand. As shown below, 12.7 million of today’s 120 million households rent a detached home ...
The 7 truths of buying with no money down
"What do you have available for no-money-down deals"? This is a sensitive topic that comes up when talking with investors. I tense up when I hear the question and reply with a question of my own, “How long have you been investing?” The reply about 99 percent of the time ...
Long-term rates are going to stay down – which should be a warning to the Fed
Whither long-term interest rates? Everyone building a new home, or thinking of buying anything wants to know. What is the up-side risk, Fed on the warpath? Long-term rates rose in anticipation of the Fed meeting concluding on Wednesday. Markets got the hawkish post-meeting statement they expected, but since mid-morning Thursday ...
4 Reasons Investors use Debt to Finance Real Estate
“Neither a borrower nor a lender be…” How could Shakespeare be wrong? Why should anyone take out debt, or other financing, on their real estate investments? Well, the quote from Hamlet is that of a father warning his son about the dangers of lending to friends, since hitching debt onto personal ...
