Here is a great article by Rik Foote about how to get started as a Real Estate Investor by becoming a 'scout'. This is the best way to get started, particularly if you are young. There is little to no risk, you learn a great deal, expand your network, all great things. The key is to learn as much as you can and then see if you can leverage your learning with the network you now have to get yourself into a deal with little to no money down. Then build your real estate empire from there.

Here is the article… Read more

Here is an article by a friend about the home buying process. Not only can the novice real estate investor benefit from this article, but for a more experienced investor it allows the opportunity to take a step back and look at this process from the other end of the table to gain some perspective… Read more

Buying or selling a house is a thrilling experience. But connected to this is a stressing and overwhelming job. This calls for a good real estate agent. But what do we need to know about hiring an effective real estate agent?

Verifying the real estate agent’s license is very helpful. It pays to be very cautious because this involves the property! This includes his state license in selling a property. Added to this is doing a short background check on the agent. Ask for the previous estates he sold or acquired for a client. Knowing the training and seminars he has attended will also give you a grasp on the abilities of the agent you could be hiring.

Develop a good chemistry with your agent. With the agent knowing what the buyer or seller wants he knows where to start and what to consider. The agent should be able to tell his client the true worth of his property because it is really what it is worth and not because he just wanted to lure the client in doing business with him. Meet up with the agent once in a while to stay updated about the property.

In selling a house, the agent acts as the adviser. He gives the owner advice like the asking price of the property and acts as mediator between the buyer and the owner. And in buying a house, the agent acts as the researcher. He also does the legwork and sorts through which properties best suits the need of his client.

The agent should also show an excellent knowledge about the market. This works well for the client because the agent would be able to give the buyer considerable rates especially if he has sold many estates within the area. And in the case of a seller, the agent could offer them a great deal of asking price for the property.

It is also important for the agent to have plans. Find out the agent’s plans on how to sell the property or in a buyer’s case, see how he plans to help the client in acquiring a new property. Ask him what he plans on doing like will he put up ads for the property (if the client is selling) or would devise house visits on prospective estates (if the client is buying).

Hiring a good agent is easy if you know what to look for. Take these easy steps, ask for his credentials, establish a rapport and work with him in doing marketing plans for the property. Surely, buying or selling an estate would come out as a satisfying experience!

A perfect business card for real estate investors

This is a great post over at the Michigan Real Estate Investment Blog. It shows examples of great business card designs for real estate investors and how to use them effectively. Simplicity coupled with all the details people need as well as what you are looking for as an investor makes the perfect real estate investor business card.

Want to buy cards for cheap? Check out Overnightprints.com they are fast, high quality, cheap, and you can design a card right on the site if you want.

I saw a post entitled Home Prices Up 15%. Is there a Bubble? over at The Real Estate Bloggers. It seems that even the most optimistic fans of the market are beginning to realize that the market is cooling. While there is great debate of how massive the fallout will be, few are denying that there will be one in the very near future. What many people are not taking into consideration is the aggressive financing techniques that were used over the past few years. These will have a cascading negative effect as prices cool and houses stay on the market longer.

Many real estate investors have been waiting for this 'bubble' to burst. While the current real estate market may not experience a drastic crash, there is about to be some significant declines and opportunities. I knew over a year ago that this was coming when a mortgage banker told me that for the first time in the history of their bank (over 70+ years) they had an almost 0% foreclosure rate on their mortgage portfolio. If people fell on hard times they could just put their house on the market and sell it within 30 days and make a profit, this has been an unheard of market.

We are finally beginning to see the first signs of the coming disturbance in the market. I will report back with specific statistic soon, essentially, houses are beginning to stay on the market significantly longer than forecasted. This causes the prices to drop. This begins to erode the high prices in the market and eventually causes foreclosures (particularly since the emergent popularity of interest only mortgages). Couple these factors with the high likelihood of an overall rise in interest rates (which will cause some ARM mortgages to default) and we see the possibility for a correction in the market. This will only lead to numerous opportunities for the smart RE investor.

This is a brand new blog dedicated to providing information for real estate investors. There is going to be a lot of content coming….Check back soon!