Andrew Vaughey Info

Author: Joe Samson

Wow, it was another exciting month in Calgary’s Real estate Market. Real estate prices are continuing to rise like there is no tomorrow with a bit of assistance from the volatile stock market. Earlier this week when I had tuned into the business news all I could hear is how the stock market has done it again. The biggest drop in one day since 9/11, leaving people staring like deer in a headlight and asking the question of now what? The stock sell off had started in the Asian markets, continuing to Europe and finally it finished in the North American market. Millions of people worldwide were going to bed not knowing what they’re going to face the following day. Should I sell my investments now to minimize my losses or wait and maybe it will recover in the long run?

Over the last couple of years in Calgary, more and more people had decided to inject some of their savings into the real estate market. Especially after the dot.com bust in the early part of the millennium. Including myself and many others were getting tired of the continuous fluctuations of the stock market. It was extremely stressful to wake up everyday and hoping that nothing bad is going to happen in the stock market and not being able to control my investments differently than buy or sell. As history has already provided many examples to us about how a company could disappear overnight and completely wipe out your investments, yet I have never seen a house disappear from the face of the earth so suddenly. If it did by some unfortunate event, usually an insurance provider has reimbursed the owner.

comes from directly applying the power of leverage. It doesn’t matter what kind of business we are talking about. If you want to be successful, you will need to find a way of multiplying your knowledge, power and time. If you choose to invest in stocks, you will get your returns one on one. Meaning that if you invest $1,000 and that particular stock goes up in value by 10% your ROI will be $100. When you put your dollars into a piece of real estate, the banks will usually require 25% of your own money and they will put up the remaining 75% of the purchase price for you. The beautiful part of this arrangement is that if the purchased real estate increases by 36% like it did in 2006 than your ROI will be 4 x 36%. Now that‘s the true power of leverage.

Real estate values most definitely won’t be increasing by 36% forever. However even if we make a very conservative assumption of prices to only increase by 6% annually than you are still anticipating a 24% ROI. In many of my client’s opinion it sure beats any of the G.I.C. investments available today.

Right, but I am not cut out to be a Landlord. What if the tenant doesn’t pay or damages the property? What if…? Excuses can be created in every situation in our lives just to rationalize why not to do something. Sometimes to move ahead in life, we need to get a little more comfortable with being uncomfortable when we decide to get involved with new ideas. However, if you prefer not to deal with tenants you can completely circumvent that challenge. Once again, if we examine some of the other evidences that successful people have left behind we can easily find the solution to this problem. You not only need to leverage

Piece of mind – is the first thought that comes into my mind when I think about real estate as an investment vehicle. Security, predictable future and leveraged growth are the number one reasons why many choose to invest in real estate. According to Andrew Carnegie “Over 90% of all millionaires become so through owning real estate”. Now that’s a powerful statement. Let it sink in for a minute. Even if you are somewhat skeptical about the future of Calgary’s real estate market we cannot pass by such an important statement and not to acknowledge it as part of a major footprint of success.

Real estate values go up for many reasons. The number one cause of increasing real estate prices is the scarcity of supply or where the demand of the influx of people to a geographical area will outperform the supply. The good news for us in Alberta is that our provincial government has done such a great job of creating an economical atmosphere for business that there will be new business opening up and moving to this province for many more years to come. Not to mention the billions of dollars of projects already in the books that requires a constant feed of new employees from outside of Alberta.

Why real estate vs. the stock market? Unfortunately, many media outlets don’t understand the concept of the power of leverage when it comes to calculating actual ROI (return on investment). Every time I look at a news clip or read an article in the paper where they are comparing the performance of real estate prices to the stock market, I am ready to kick something to calm my frustration. The secret of many successful investors. your money, you will also need to leverage your time and knowledge by hiring the right professional to be on your team of success. Can you imagine Donald Trump taking phone calls at 2:00a.m. about a leaky toilet? Or personally collecting his rental cheques every month from his tenants? I didn’t think so. So, why do you think that you need to do it all alone? Why not do exactly what some of the major players in this investment business have already done? If it worked for them why wouldn’t it work for you?

Author: Ron Victor

Introduction:

A real estate broker or an agent is a person who act on behalf of the buyer and the seller i.e. customer and the supplier. Real estate agent is otherwise called as “sales person”. More or less a sales person and the real estate agent are one and the same. They find the buyer and the seller who wish to buy and sell.

They provide you information regarding the property and guidance to assist you while you’re willing to buy and sell the property. We find real estate agent any where around the world to guide us. In America, the relationship of agent or broker has been formed as per English common law to have a cordial relationship with their clients. The term estate agent is used to refer the agent.

What is equity?

The term equity refers to the cash value or a monetary interest given for your house minus the loan you obtained for your house. Even the additional cost incurred for selling a house will also be included. While buying a home you don’t have money for down payment, you can enter an agreement with the seller that you pay in a proper sum. It allows you performing needed repairs and maintenances such as painting, electric work etc

In a real estate agent we have two types of agent: seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent.
Buyer agent: buyer agent is a person who acts on behalf of the buyer who wishes to buy. The agent will find the properties which are listed in the market for sale. The broker will act as per the desire of buyer. The real estate agent will provide information regarding each property in the market and they also guide you in every aspect. They recommend on behalf of the buyer about the terms & prices offered for sale. A real estate agent will help you while negotiating the transaction and guide you in the final process.

Seller’s agent: he is a person who acts as per the desire of the seller. If the seller wants to sell his property, he calls upon the agent to list in the market. The real estate broker will give you details regarding the worth of your property, financing, terms and condition prevailing in the market for your property. Even the brokers list your property to other agents and also to general public. They help you in all aspect to complete your sale.

Do you identify your agent, how?

•Analyze properly in the market who is the ideal broker.

•Make sure that his listing are brought and sold correctly in the market.

•Ask him, how he will list your property in the market.

•Ask him to describe, how he identified the true value of your house.

You can ask yourself a variety of queries to identify a proper agent. When you identified, you don’t have to worry how to buy or sell a house.

Brokerage: for completion of his work successfully, a broker or agent get commission or brokerage for the services rendered. The commission percentage will be decided upon the value of the property, he/she arranged for the seller or the buyer. Usually states like America they have a fixed percentage around 5 to 10% Commission for a real estate. Both the seller and the buyer have to pay the commission. They can even transfer among them self. Commission will differ for each country according to their popularity. The expenses incurred by the broker will also be paid by the buyer and the seller.

Author: Mike Trudeau

Over the last several years, real estate has been as hot as any other investment. It wasn’t until recently that real estate cooled a bit. During this time, we’ve all heard the stories of the easy money made investing in real estate. When money was easy, and there was no end in sight to the real estate boom, people were flipping houses like crazy. For many of these individuals, the 1031 exchange money could not be any easier. However, the times have changed. The downturn has taught even the most bullish real estate speculators that real estate can also go down in value. More than ever, investing in real estate, takes professional know-how, time, and resources to successfully invest in real estate. So, how does the average person invest in real estate, this day and age?

Well, there is a way, and it’s been around for quite some time. It’s called a Real Estate Investment Trust, or REIT. A Real Estate Investment Trust is a way for the small investor to invest in big real estate. A Real Estate Investment Trust is an organization that is set up to manage and invest in real estate professionally. You can purchase a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) via the stock exchange in the form of a stock, or privately. Private Real Estate Investment Trusts typically require that certain suitability criteria be met. Also, private REITs are typically longer-term investments, with liquidity considerations. Public Real Estate Investment Trusts can be bought and sold on the stock exchange and are considerably more liquid than their private counterparts.

Investing in a Real Estate Investment Trust can come in many forms. You can purchase a Real Estate Investment Trust that focuses on large-scale commercial real estate, for example. This would allow you to take part in major real estate deals involving 100 plus story buildings, that would otherwise be available to the ultra rich. Some Real Estate Investment Trusts may have their focus in apartment buildings or even new housing construction. The point here is that you can choose your Real Estate Investment Trust sector through one of these REITs. If you want a more professionally managed approach there are a large number of REITs actively managed through the purchase of mutual funds. This can provide for diversification, and individual real estate sectors.

Properly set up Real Estate Investment Trusts are tax-advantaged. This means that they are not taxed at the corporate level. However, they must be set up properly. It is required that REITs invest 75% of their funds in real estate. These requirements are met by income derived from mortgage or rent interest. Essentially, you’re relying on other parties for their expertise in the real estate arena. Going at it alone is tougher than ever these days. You have the typical headaches, like qualifying for a 1031 exchange, property taxes, escrow, title insurance, and so on. But, that’s really the easy part. When the real estate market only went up, the biggest worry for speculators was how to take advantage of a 1031 exchange and save on capital gains. Now, there’s much more to worry about, as real estate not only goes up, but it can certainly come down.

It’s important to keep in mind that Real Estate Investment Trusts also come with inherent risks. If real estate values plummet, and you have a large percentage of your assets exposed to Real Estate Investment Trusts you may experience declines, as well. This is where diversification is very important. The standard Real Estate Investment Trust me diversify you within different types of real estate, but you should always practice further diversification. Investing in different asset classes, sectors, and the life will provide you with further diversification.

Author: Joel Teo

Whether mortgage refinancing is a good thing or bad thing, to borrow rich dad poor dad’s terminology depends on whether you know how to utilise debt. Debt when utilised properly with proper cash reserves built up to withstand months when you cannot find tenants for your property will enable you to own more property than you can do so on your own steam. Real estate magnates like Donald Trump used leverage and so should you.

This article assumes that you have paid up your first property that you are staying in and have paid up your second property partially and you are looking to refinance your real estate investment so as to take some cash out to purchase a third property and highlights three good reasons why you should do that.

Reason #1- Monthly Cash flow
I know of some people who are very contented with just one fully paid up property, but there is a problem, they are asset rich but cash poor. This means that they have no cash flow but they have lots of money locked up in their real estate holdings. By taking some money by refinancing your loan out of your second property, you can invest your money into a third property and increase your monthly cash flow.

Reason #2- Lower interest rates
Spend some time looking at interbank interest rates and the Federal Reserve Interest Rate over the years to determine what way it is going and then aim to refinance in years where interest is lower. This would result in you having to spend less money all in all and save you a lot of money. Now with the lower interest rates, take the extra cash flow and save it and then as above, use it to invest into another real estate.

Reason #3- Combine properties
To bring your real estate investments into the next gear, then refinance both your properties and take the money and purchase a third property. Note that you should have a built in savings in your calculations as mentioned above to hedge against a market downturn in rentals or an inability to get tenants. After your properties increase many fold, you might want to follow the gurus advice and then start combining the total value of all your properties and then purchase a larger commercial building.

Author: Stephen Campbell

The companies who are related to real estate are in reality brokers and they represent the interests of buyers as well as sellers. It is these companies who are responsible for creating ideal opportunities for people who invest in real estate. During the whole process of a real estate transaction like selling, purchasing, exchanging and financing of the investment in real-estate these companies play an important role.

Companies dealing with real-estate investment are ideal for single people who want to invest in real-estate and take advantage of the booming real-estate market but do not have much time to spend on the prospective property. Most of the companies give due importance and pay personal importance as the clients are the most crucial part of business.

The companies dealing with real estate have to take a lot of people like various investors, active brokers, vendors, government agencies and consultants into consideration dealing investing in real estate. There may be a lot of problems that may be associated with investing in real-estate. These dangers can be avoided by associating with a real-estate company. Most of the companies employ experienced and trained personals who can handle difficult situations that may crop up while investing in real estate.

One should have a good knowledge of the real-estate market and take decisions that are based on the evidence provided by the companies. This would help in gaining a lot of profit for the investor. In such a case it is possible for the investor to achieve freedom and financial security and in the process helps investors in perusing other involvements.

There are several important services that are provided by the companies that deal in real-estate. They help in solving problems related to acquisition, managing the property, redeveloping the property, leasing the property, analysis of debt, procurement, any leftover due, documentation of tax, detailed report of the property each month and analysis of disposition. Those that deal with real estate are also called as real estate investment trusts.

There are several special tax treatments that are required by the federal government for investment companies and they must comply with those rules. However there is a slight difference between real-estate investment trust and companies that deal with real-estate investment. In case a company wants to be a trust, it must share 90 percent of the income that is taxable to the shareholders at least once.

It is important to look for registered companies under specified acts before selecting a particular company. A lot of information should be gathered about the company before dealing with them. The best way to deal with a company is to search for the company in the internet. The second way is to ask people like friends and family members about the authenticity of the company.

It is very important to verify the authenticity of the company because it means investing a lot of money. If the company is genuine proper information will be given by the company. Moreover an investment transaction has a lot of paperwork and so it is important to know about all the paperwork.

Author: Joel Teo

Real estate investment is one of the best long term forms of investment anyone can do and is readily understood by most of us. Some of us may be interested in buying properties that we can fix and flip, others might be interested in buying rental properties and make money from them. This article is for both kinds of investors and highlights three simple things you can do to make more money from your real estate investment whether it be in terms of rental or capital appreciation.

Tip #1 - Paint it up
Spend some money to paint up the fence and the rest of the property. You will be surprised at the difference this makes to the buyer of the property. Which would you rather see when you visit a property, a drab old looking building or a nice newly painted building? In addition, you might consider buying a nice front door to match the newly painted building.

On paint choices, depending on who you intend to sell the property to. For residential properties, try to get neutral colours and choose colours that make the place look welcoming. Colours that make someone upon seeing it say to themselves, “yes this is home”. This would increase your chances of getting a tenant for your property and thus the price of your real estate investment will rise accordingly.

Tip #2- Fix the windows
Another simple trick, when residential viewers come into the house they love to look out of their house into the vista that surrounds your property. Thus you would want to work on the windows a bit so that they look nice and new and complement your new coat of paint.

Another thing that you can do is to install grilles in high crime areas and highlight it as a feature to your prospective buyers and tenants and tell them that you have considered their security when installing the grilles. But always check if they want the improvements unless it comes with the property when you first bought it.

Tip #3- Mow the lawn
This trick comes along with the neighbourhood. Let me explain what I mean by this. If you are investing into a residential property in a neighbourhood, take a look at the surroundings. If the properties in the area are in a state of disrepair, avoid even purchasing the property since you might be buying into a neighbourhood where the property prices will not increase by much.

If you have found a good neighbourhood with well maintained lawns and the real estate investment that you found is not well maintained, spend some time looking to see if the soil and the foundations of the building are good. If you think all is well, call in the professionals to re turf and mow the lawn and do some basic landscaping. You will be surprised at how much more a property with a well kept garden will fetch over a normal unkempt property within the same vicinity.

Author: KenWilson

While all of us think about buying investment properties, not many know how much work and extensive knowledge it takes. Investment properties represent serious business and one needs the help of true experts in the field in order to succeed. Fortunately, the Internet is a great way to find a company specialized in the field of investment property and real estate investment. The important thing is that you pay attention and choose a program that is most advantageous.

For all those out there interested in investment properties, the Internet has been a great deal of help. They were able to discover vital information about investment property and available programs, resorting to the services of people who have been in business for a long time. Today, one can learn all about developer incentives and the advantages of pricing below appraised value. There are plenty of opportunities when it comes to low money down investments but they are all based on an extensive knowledge of the market, not to mention specialized support.

In order to become an investor, you have to possess two things: ambition and a certain sum of money. Specialized companies have welcomed those who are looking into investment properties, offering attractive cash incentives, including their share for the closing costs. The opportunity is indeed incredible, especially since more and more investors are interested in positive cash flow. On the real estate market, the competition is stringent and finding the right company to help you out might seem complicated. Still, if you take your time and search the web, you will be impressed to discover that you can find attractive investment property opportunities, in areas that have a great potential and at amazing prices also.

The United States of America presents a lot of opportunities when it comes to investment properties but there are certain areas that seem to offer more enticing options. Charlotte, North Carolina, is just one of the many examples that could be given for investment property. Recent statistics have shown a veritable construction boom in the area, the city being named among the fastest growing metropolises in entire America. The potential for real estate investing is huge, that being reflected by the economy, population and income growth. Many people have become enthusiastic about investment properties, particularly since the obvious economic development of Charlotte and the fast growing segment of investment property. They have all asked for the help of specialists in the field and they were offered various plans, plus exit strategies.

What exactly is an exit strategy? It is by far one of the most important notions that have been linked with investment properties and many other types of ventures. Having an exit strategy actually means finding a method to get out of the investment that one has made, granting a high return and being powerfully influenced by the market conditions. Experts are ready to present you with investment property solutions at any given moment but also with exit strategies, including selling. When you decide to sell, you will have to consider many factors including the amount of equity gained, construction costs or any other additional fees. A lot of the investors do not know that resorting to a specialized, professional company means that additional costs are retained by that company, without affecting the seller at all, which is in fact a great advantage.

Exit strategies are used for a variety of reasons but they all share a common purpose: exiting an investment at a proper moment. One can choose leasing as an exit strategy as the rental demand is quite high nowadays, especially in areas well-developed and facing continuous population growth like Charlotte, NC. Leasing a property will bring you a nice profit and allow you to explore other investment properties as well. As for another interesting opportunity, the lease with option is being more explored today. This popular exit strategy is not known enough yet, representing an advantageous choice. A sale price is settled and the tenant has to provide a deposit; the benefits of that option are obvious.
No matter which way you choose to enter the world of investment properties, you will need the assistance and support of a company that has worked with investors. You can find investment property that pays off and feel satisfied with having chosen that specific field to invest in!

Author: Justin Kassube

Getting a start in real estate investment can be extremely difficult. Without cash or experience, chances of success are next to none. It is possible for new real estate investors to lose their entire life savings on a bad investment due to lack of experience

So here’s the question: How do I get started in real estate investing without experience or startup capital?

The answer: bird dogging.

WHAT IS A BIRD DOGGING?

Bird dogging is a technique allowing new real estate investors to dive in and get their feet wet — without risking any of their own money. The best part: it pays!

What a bird dog does is find properties whose owners are eager to sell. These properties may be abandoned or rundown. They may also be properties in foreclosure, or properties whose owners want to sell quickly for any reason, such as divorce, death, or having to relocate quickly.

Once a bird dog has found an attractive property, they bring it to an investor. If the investor closes the deal, they pay a cut to the bird dog for finding the property.

HOW TO BECOME A BIRD DOG

First off, find a company who buys problem houses. Usually you will see flyers around town advertising “WE BUY PROBLEM HOUSES” or “SELL YOUR HOME FAST”.

Contact this company as ask them where in your town they are looking to buy. Cruise the neighborhoods in these areas and look for ‘For Sale by Owner’ signs, rentals, or abandoned properties (boarded up windows, unkempt lawn, etc.)

You will eventually get a feel for what types of properties individual investors look for. With experience, you will discover what deals are good and what are not. The best thing about this approach is that it costs you nothing but time, but you still get the experience.

HOW MUCH WILL WILL I GET PAID?

Depending on the investor and the quality of the deal, a bird dog can make between $500 and $5000. This is mostly dependent on the profit the investor stands to make.

Like previously mentioned, there is no cost to start bird dogging. It is quite possible to even make a decent living as a bird dog. But the best benefit to being a bird dog is the experience gained to spot a good deal and invest in it yourself when the time is right.

Author: James Orr

As an active real estate investor and someone who teaches real estate investors, I am often asked by other real estate agents and real estate brokers what is a deal for real estate investor clients.

So, in my opinion, there are really four things that make a potential property a deal for real estate investors. You do not need to have ALL four things, but having more than one makes it potentially a better deal for the investor.

First, you should try to find property that is being sold for below current fair market value. In order to know if a deal is below current fair market value, you need to know or pull comparable sales. What some investors and many agents don’t realize is that houses listed for full price does not necessarily mean that they will sell for full price, but finding deals where they are listed below current fair market value makes them more attractive to start with.

Second, deals should have great positive cash flow. In many markets this is near impossible to find with straight rentals and high loan to purchase price ratios. However, in some markets it is a huge factor and you should know that rent minus mortgage payment is NOT a cash flow calculation. There are more expenses than just mortgage payment like taxes, insurance, maintenance and management that need to be included in a cash flow calculation. In other words, it is not enough to say a house that has $1,000 per month rent and a $900 per month mortgage payment has positive cash flow; it does not.

Third, deals should be sold by motivated sellers. Motivated sellers are more likely to accept offers that are discounted and/or offers that are creatively structured.

Fourth and finally, deals should have owner financing. Especially in our current credit situation, deals that include owner financing are much more attractive to investors than cash (or traditional financing) deals. The challenge is that most deals listed in the MLS will never mention owner financing. You don’t get it unless you ask in an offer.

In conclusion, finding deals for your investor clients should have one–and in many cases, more than one–of the above. The more the better and showing your investors deals that do not have one or more of the above will lead, ultimately, to unhappy investor clients and little or no repeat business.

Author: Heather Sei Tz

It may be hard to know which properties to invest in when you are first starting out in real estate. You know the money is there to be earned, but sometimes it is hard to determine if the money is worth the risk. The answer is yes. You can make a great income if you are choosing the right real estate investment. There are simple ways to determine if the investment is a good one.

The first thing you must consider when looking at a distressed property is what the market value of the property is. This is not the appraisal value. The appraisal can be wrong. Just because the paperwork says the property is worth $175,000 does not mean you will get that price on the open market. The market value is what you can actually sell the property for. This could be thousands of dollars less than what the appraisal actually says. To determine the market value, speak with a good real estate agent, who is familiar with the area you are looking to purchase your property in. Find out what comparable properties have been selling for, not what they have been listed for. You need to know what the selling price of the other properties have been in the past six months, the asking price is not important. There was a time when it about a year ago when asking price was important, but times are changing. You need to know the market for the past six months. This will give you a good idea of what you may be able to sell the property for.

The next thing you need to know is how much equity you could get from the purchase. For instance, a home appraised at $175,000 but with a market value of $150,000 would not be worth buying unless you can get it for $130,000 or less. The reason for this is because there could be a fluctuation in the market making it difficult to sell the property. You will want to make sure there is enough equity in the home so you could still generate a positive cash flow out of the property if you have to sit on it for a few months. Although this is something which every investor dreads doing, it has happened more often than most will admit.

Another thing to consider when choosing the right real estate investment is how long properties in the area are on the market. You do not want to purchase a property which will be on the market longer than three or four months. Never buy in an area where sales are taking six months or longer. This usually is a good indication of a declining market, where the property values are falling. You want to find a prosperous neighborhood. This can be done by simply researching the job market and new construction in the area. A high rate of employment and new homes or buildings going up indicates a growth. Finding a distressed property in these areas is a real treasure.

Choosing the right real estate investment also means knowing what is in demand. You can do this by simply running an ad in the local paper offering homes for sale. People who call can be asked what types of homes they are looking for. You can tell the potential buyer you have something you would like to show them, or you can take their name and number for later contact. This does two things. It tells you what people in the area are looking for and it gives you a list of potential buyers. You can then find properties these buyers may want to purchase. This can insure a quick sale on just about any property you look at if you have gathered enough names. In other words, finding a property the buyers on your list want means you are choosing the right real estate investment.