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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.

Dear Monty answers your real estate investing questions

3 things investors should look for in converting an old commercial building to a new use

| Dear Monty | Article, Topics
Reader Question: Monty, my partners and I have been in commercial real estate for 15 years. We own a variety of income producing properties. We have been toying with the idea of converting an old, vacant building. It is pretty, under the dust, but in rough shape. One of the ...
Kevin Guz how I went from a corporate executive to a real estate investment business owner

How I went from a corporate executive to a real estate investment business owner

| Kevin Guz | Article, Topics
I have been a residential real estate investor, in some capacity, for quite some time. I was investing in residential real estate for 10 years while I was a corporate executive. I was buying houses on my lunch hour. I was fixing and repairing and leasing houses on the weekends ...
Larry Arth's real estate investor advice

5 triggers that influence tenant decision making for your rental properties

| Larry Arth | Article, Topics
How great would it be if you knew what your tenants or future tenants are thinking about rental properties? It has been my experience that landlords tend to put all their energy into what they as landlords want without getting in tune with what the tenant wants. The nice thing ...
Lou Barnes investors financial weekly column on the economy for real estate investors

The Fed’s “mouse” causes long-term mortgage interest rates to jump

| Danny Johnson | Article, Topics
Long-term mortgage rates have risen sharply, mortgages pressing 4.50% as the credit markets jumped on kitchen chairs at the sight of a Fed mouse. EEEK!! The Fed met last week and made only this material change: reduced its forecast for 2015 GDP growth from 3.0-3.2% to 2.6-3.0%. It has of ...
Teresa Bitler 10 ways a property manager can save you money

10 ways a professional property manager can save you money

| Teresa Bitler | Article, Topics
Landlording — if you choose to do it yourself — is a lot like Donald Rumsfeld’s definition of war: What you do not know can hurt, or even kill your investment plans. New landlords often try to maximize their profits by managing their own properties, but the do-it-yourself approach can ...
Larry Arth's real estate investor advice

3 top search habits renters are using to find properties

| Larry Arth | Article, Topics
Many people changed their buying and spending habits during the recent recession. It is imperative to understand how these habits have changed, in order to run an effective real estate investment business, especially when you are providing housing. First, understand your target market’s rental preferences in order to connect with ...
Lou Barnes investors financial weekly column on the economy for real estate investors

Good news pushes up long-term rates

| Danny Johnson | Article, Topics
In the backwards world of bonds and mortgages, in which good news is bad, good news pushed up long-term rates last week. U.S.  data may encourage the Fed to accelerate the end of ZIRP (zero interest rate policy), at its meeting this week, possibly, maybe, perhaps, tentatively pre-hinting a rate ...
5 Tips On Communicating With Your Contractor On Your Rental Property Renovation

5 Tips On Communicating With Your Contractor On Your Rental Property Renovation

| Engelo Rumora | Article | Funding, Operations
At any given time, I have multiple projects running that place me at the service of someone else. It puts me in both a vulnerable and sometimes frustrating position because I know that I can’t do everything and they know that I really need them. So, for this blog I ...
Is your rental fetching top dollar? All Property Management

Is your rental fetching top dollar?

| Jason Van Steenwyk | Article, Topics
When an obscure upstate New York dairy farmer named Max Yasgur rented out his alfalfa field to some concert promoters in 1968 for $10,000, he unexpectedly welcomed 400,000+ hippies who attended the legendary Woodstock concert (400,001 if you count Joan Baez's unborn child). They all but destroyed his farm. Yasgur ...
5 tips for communicating with your contractor on your rental property renovations

5 important tips on communicating with your contractor on your rental property renovation

| Engelo Rumora | Article, Topics
At any given time, I have multiple projects running that place me at the service of someone else. It puts me in both a vulnerable and sometimes frustrating position because I know that I can’t do everything and they know that I really need them. So, for this blog I ...
Michael Stoll, UCLA, on moving trends in U.S, in summer 2014

New moving trends study may help investors know where jobs and top rental markets will be

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Moving trends studies can help show real estate investors where rental property and jobs may be in more demand, and a new one just released shows Chicago, Washington, D.C., Atlanta  and Dallas were the most popular moving destinations this summer, according to a release from PRNewswire of a study of ...
Larry Arth's real estate investor advice

4 things tenants are looking for in rentals these days

| Larry Arth | Article, Topics
As landlords and property owners we tend to want many things from our tenants. We want them to be great tenants who mind their own business and take great care of our properties. The only time we want to hear from them is the first of the month when we ...
Dear Monty answers your real estate investing questions

8 tips to add sparkle to old apartment buildings

| Dear Monty | Article, Topics
Q: Monty, we inherited two 16-unit apartment buildings from my father. They have been in the family for over 30 years. I never took an interest in real estate until now, but as a kid I did mow the lawns. They are free and clear, and we intend to keep ...
Lou Barnes investors financial weekly column on the economy for real estate investors

What effect will the slowing outside world have on our economy?

| Danny Johnson | Article, Topics
The gap in economic performance between the U.S. and overseas is widening, holding U.S. rates down. However, the data brings as many questions as answers for the economy. By historical comparison, the twin Institute for Supply Management (ISM) surveys rising in August to 59.0 (manufacturing), and 59.6 (services) have reached ...
RJ Palano buying real estate investing houses at auction

Two critical keys to know before you bid on investment property at auction

| R J Palano | Article, Topics
When I preview houses prior to mortgage foreclosure sales or any type of auction there are two critical key things that I do. There is no substitute for experience and I have done this thousands of times. First, I determine if this is the type of house I will buy ...
Americans see owning a home as a safe investment

A majority of Americans see owning a home as a safe investment new poll says

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Despite periods of volatility in the real estate market over the past few years, over seven in ten Americans (72%) see owning a home as a safe investment, according to a new Harris Poll released by PRNewswire. Majorities agree on this point across generations, albeit with considerable shifts from one ...
Kenneth Franasiak Equityhunt.com real estate investing portfolio advice

3 ways to diversify your real estate investing portfolio

| Editorial Staff | Article, Topics
Every discussion involving real estate investing usually centers around the concept of diversification. It is universally accepted as the golden rule of real estate investing, and the best way to protect against fluctuation.  Diversifying your portfolio in the stock market protects investors in case one sector, or type of investment ...
CoreLogic home prices

Home prices nationwide increase 7.4% year over year new report says

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased 7.4 percent in July 2014 compared to July 2013, according to a new report from CoreLogic.This change represents 29 months of consecutive year-over-year increases in home prices nationally. On a month-over-month basis, home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased 1.2 percent in July ...
Kevin Guz says know the neighborhood where you are doing your real estate investing

How well do you know the neighborhood where you are investing?

| Kevin Guz | Article, Topics
I recently had an opportunity to purchase a home in a great neighborhood. It had great resale potential, plus great lease opportunity if you wanted to buy and hold it.  I could have done a spreadsheet on the house and the numbers would have looked great. Had I not gone ...
Larry Arth's real estate investor advice

9 ways I have managed to keep tenants renewing their leases for the long term

| Larry Arth | Article, Topics
I learned early on in the business world that success is all about building relationships. I knew I had to build a strong relationship with my tenants, and those long-term lasting relationships would translate into long-term loyal clients for my real estate investing. On the other hand, the real estate ...
Lou Barnes investors financial weekly column on the economy for real estate investors

3 big things the world economy is wrestling with right now

| Danny Johnson | Article, Topics
Here in the U.S. we enjoy the sturdiest economic situation in the world, no matter how creaky it may feel. But, to look outside... eyes wider and wider all the time. It's especially hard to handicap a new load of information as pre-holiday markets never really opened Friday and there ...
Home price growth continues to slow in all cities

Home price growth continues to slow in all cities

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Home prices across the U.S. continue to slow this year, according to a release from the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index report. The home price index covering the entire nation increased 6.2% in the 12 months ended in June, according to the release. In the past the national index was published ...
RJ Palano buying houses at auction

The No. 1 most important thing about buying a house at auction

| R J Palano | Article, Topics
If you’re watching “Flip this House” or “Property Wars” on television, take my advice: Turn it off. These shows are orchestrated BS showing potential buyers doing inadequate research hoping they find a pot of gold in a house. If this is your approach, you will lose. You would be surprised ...
Lou Barnes investors financial weekly column

Fed may be closer to a rate hike than many assume

| Danny Johnson | Article, Topics
The world is a better-looking place than one week ago, and Fed Chair Yellen whispered "bang"  but did not shoot. Thus the great barometer, the 10-year U.S. Treasury-note, rose a bit in yield, from 2.33% last week to 2.40% today, mortgages following. At the end of each August the KC ...
Home Depot reports strong second-quarter sales and raises 2014 forecast

Home Depot reports strong second-quarter sales and raises 2014 forecast

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
The nation's largest home improvement chain has reported sales of $23.8 billion for the second quarter of fiscal 2014, a 5.7 percent increase from the second quarter of fiscal 2013. Comparable store sales for the second quarter of fiscal 2014 were positive 5.8 percent, and comp sales for U.S. stores ...
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