Real estate investors like us should not fear new technology. In fact, we should learn to embrace it and use it to our advantage, whether it’s for marketing, operations, or leisure.  After all, it is meant to make our lives easier. Part of this new technology, although its concept is already old, is automation.

We love anything that is done automatic: Don’t you like that washing machine that automatically cleans clothes with just a twist of the switch? What about automatic cars? No need to shift gears every now and then. Those who are in real estate investing are also looking for more ways to shift processes from manual to automatic.

Read More

Nowadays, no one is safe from having “scandals.” In fact, the more successful you are in life, the more likely people will look for your embarrassing photos or videos. Controversy is perhaps the shadow at the back of success and those who are in the REI world should know this for a fact.

Again, the cyber world is abuzz with a new controversy. A photo of newly crowned Ms. USA Rima Fakih participating in a pole dancing contest surfaced. News said that she went home with her own stripper’s pole and adult toys after winning the 2007 radio show contest in Detroit. Commentators on the photo, however, are divided. Some say that it still is a pole dancing competition while others praised her as she had her clothes on, unlike other contestants who were wearing skimpy outfits. But that aside, point is whether it’s a beauty pageant or in real estate investing, no one is safe from controversy.

Read More

When it comes to real estate investing, the ability to adapt to current market demands is simply a trait of necessity. You need to know when to use what techniques if you want to thrive in a challenging market like today’s.

So if we break down the concept of changing strategies when investing in real estate, we will see two things: knowing the situation and knowing the strategy needed for that situation. Seasoned real estate investors have played by this rule and that’s why they have been thriving in the game until now.

Read More

If this isn’t inspiring for those in real estate investing, I don’t know what else is.

A woman from San Leandro, California, had just earned her college degree – at the age of 94! Hazel Soares accepted her diploma with hundreds of other graduates at Mills College over the weekend. Asked why she graduated only now, she said she has had a busy life. She’s been married twice and already has great-grandchildren but was really determined to get the diploma she has always wanted. This should serve as an inspiration for those in the field of real estate investing, whether that’s wholesaling houses or rehabbing houses.

Read More

Real estate investors who happened to be basketball fans were probably split as the Celtics sent off the Cavaliers in their best of 7 series. Kevin Garnett and the rest of the 2008 NBA champions will head to the Eastern Conference Finals to face Orlando Magic. LeBron James and his teammates will head home for their offseason. After the final buzzer, there was euphoria on the Boston Camp and disappointment on the other. But the sports angle aside, there is something worth taking note of about the two teams’ star players. And no, they are not shifting to real estate investing.

Read More

Ask anybody and they would say that a pretty house would sell much faster than an ugly one. But then again, you’re not anybody; you are a real estate investor. That is why you should say otherwise: Ugly homes, also known as handyman specials, sell faster that fancy houses.

Wholesalers and rehabbers often go for these ugly homes because they know they are faster to dispose of. Of course, not in the garbage disposal sense of the word. These homes are easier to sell because they are what other investors are looking for. Rehabbers often hunt for such properties. But why? Have investors gone crazy for wanting handyman specials?

Read More

REI, or real estate investing, and foreclosures usually depend on the presence of distressed houses. In short, for these investing methods to work, there must be houses that are in the foreclosure process. There must be houses that are up for short sales, houses in foreclosure auctions, and houses that are already owned by banks. The economy has been hit with waves of foreclosures, and those in REI are benefiting from the presence of these cheap properties.

Recent news, however, indicated that mortgage borrowers have paid their dues in the first quarter of the year. Could this be the sign that short-term real estate investing and investing in foreclosures are about to take a nosedive? Could this be the end of many opportunities for real estate investors?

Read More

Those who have been around in the real estate investing business for years already have areas they “farm” or operate in. For instance, an investor usually searches for deals only within the county or metropolitan area he is in. This is his farm. But what happens when you receive a lead – tantamount to an opportunity – outside your farm? Will you take it or simply let it slip away?

Saying “pass” is such a hard thing to do for real estate investors, especially for those who are relatively new in the business. True enough, real estate investing is a numbers game most of the time. However, you shouldn’t go out of your farm at every chance. Doing so is carelessness on your part (acting – thinking = fatal). So, the first thing you should do is to evaluate your “assets.”

Read More

When the government launched the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit, the real estate investing world started to wait and ask questions. Will the tax credit indeed help minimize the effects of the housing bubble burst? Will it encourage people to purchase homes for the first time? Will the measure help real estate investors in any way at all? Well recent news indicated that the program, after all, may be effective in terms of helping raise home sales.

According to the report, demand for home loans surged by more than 10% in the last week of April. The reason cited for the increase was the “home rush” by buyers who are scrambling to avail of the tax credit program. Home buyers reportedly wanted to beat the buzzer as the measure that entitles buyers up to $8,000 worth of tax credits expired on April 30.

Read More

Most people agree that the US real estate market is steadily recovering from the worst housing crash in decades but there is no denying the fact that some areas are still struggling to get out of the rut. In its quarterly report on the US housing market, mortgage insurance provider PMI listed the top areas that investors and home buyers should stay away from.

PMI noted that although the overall risk in 93% of housing markets decreased in the fourth quarter of last year, purchasing properties in the ten areas below pose high risks to buyers. Not surprisingly, more than half of the top ten riskiest real estate markets are located in Florida, which is among the hardest-hit states by the housing market crisis.

Read More