There are many financial benefits to homeownership, but probably none more important than its ability to create family wealth. How Housing Matters is a joint project of the Urban Land Institute and the MacArthur Foundation. It is an online resource for research and information on how homeownership contributes to individual and community success. Their article, The First Rung on the Ladder to...
Home Ownership
Here are four reasons to consider buying today instead of waiting. 1. Prices Will Continue to Rise CoreLogic’s latest U.S. Home Price Insights reports that home prices have appreciated by 3.7% over the last 12 months. The same report predicts that prices will continue to increase at a rate of 4.8% over the next year. Home values will continue to appreciate. Waiting may no longer makes...
Some Highlights: June is National Homeownership Month! Now is a great time to reflect on the many benefits of homeownership that go way beyond the financial. What reasons do you have to own your own...
There have been many headlines decrying an “affordability crisis” in the residential real estate market. While it is true that buying a home is less affordable than it had been over the last ten years, we need to understand why and what that means. On a monthly basis, the National Association of Realtors (NAR), produces a Housing Affordability Index. According to NAR, the...
As loved ones start to get older, we start to wonder: how long will they be able to live alone? Will they need someone there to help them with daily life? There’s a reason to ask those questions now more than ever, as the average life expectancy in the U.S. is 78 years old! As a result, 41% of Americans in the market are searching for a home that can accommodate a multigenerational...
Foreclosures can be home run investments, but, if you don’t do your due diligence, they can just as easily be the investment you regret. First, consider the source. Today there are tons of online resources for foreclosure lists, but they are not all made equal. You want to make sure that the list you’re using (especially if you’re paying for it) isn’t an old list. All foreclosures are public...
When it comes to real estate, how can you differentiate the deals from the REAL deals – you know, the one’s that graduate you from dabbler, to legitimate investor? Here’s the thing, successful investors have one thing in common; they don’t buy everything that comes across their desk. They shop for the deal that makes sense to them. See, the secret is there’s no single definition of a...
Obviously everything we do as investors is geared towards closing deals. It’s obvious because if a deal doesn’t close, the money isn’t made. So we’ve got to close deals right? Right. But here’s one insight that, if you pay attention, will save you much grief. When it comes to closing a deal there’s no magic bullet, there’s no perfect script. No deal is ever the same because, in...
There’s the traditional route of selling your house with a realtor, and there’s the fast route. Which do you want to take? If you really want to sell your house, avoid realtor commissions, get a fair all-cash offer, and have a variety of creative selling ideas, working with a real estate investor is the path of least resistance. A realtor’s fee is in essence a marketing fee. You’re paying them...
Most sellers are used to dealing with realtors but have never had an exchange with a real estate investor. We’re going to take some of the mystery out of that for you today. When an investor in interested in your property, they’ll want come see it. It’s best if you’re there to meet with them. Here are 5 things you can expect when they meet you at the property. They’ll ask for a tour...