Archive for July, 2007

Avoiding PMI through piggy backing

Friday, July 27th, 2007

Investors want the highest possible return on their investment; this is the goal and mark of a successful endeavor. After all, low monthly payments equate to a higher cash flow. And the higher cash flow, the higher the return on your investment. But then delightful little fees and payments begin to sneak into the equation, […]

Lowering your interest rate

Thursday, July 26th, 2007

Banks have got to protect themselves, and I understand that–our market depends on it. But wouldn’t it be nice, just daydreaming a bit, if there were no such things as transaction fees, closing fees, or interest rates. Especially interest rates.
“Here you go Mr. Jones. You can just have this loan without any of those unnecessary […]

Down payments and healthy competition

Friday, July 20th, 2007

Healthy competition has a way of pushing us to excel. For example, I always run faster if I’m with a friend versus running along. Well, healthy competition in the market has the same sort of effect. One place this is clearly visible is in the real estate market. Consider a bidding war and what this […]

Investing in the current market

Monday, July 16th, 2007

Life can be a lot like the real estate market; one minute everything’s going right, and the next, things seem to stall and sputter.
Many who invested in real estate properties during the nationwide boom (2001-2005, give or take a year for varying markets) were successful–for a time. We all heard the success stories or got […]

Research and real estate investing

Thursday, July 12th, 2007

In the third grade I was assigned my first research paper. After a few minutes of thorough thought, I picked my topic–kangaroos; they could jump, they were exotic, and they had a pocket. My mom took me to the downtown library and pretty soon there were four books about the delightful animal in my bag. […]

Mortgage brokers: the do behind the dream

Thursday, July 5th, 2007

I was having lunch with a friend the other day (eating some delicious bow-tie pasta) when he asked me, “Do you consider yourself a dreamer or doer?” Interesting question, right? I responded with some sort of non-committal answer, the kind that avoids having to choose between two options.
“Well, I’m a doer who likes to dream.” […]

Revealing the role of real estate agent

Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007

Real estate agents are a valuable resource to any real estate investor wishing to build a team of professionals. Just like a property manager provides you with sound understanding of the rental market, a real estate agent provides info on the local sales market from both the seller and buyer’s perspective. They tell you which […]

Lake lessons and real estate

Monday, July 2nd, 2007

I cannot water ski. I’ve tried it countless times–one day an entire afternoon was spent attempting this impossibility. I can, however, tube. Probably because this requires no skill other than hanging on for dear life, the kind of hanging that leaves your hands throbbing for a bit afterwards.
But I don’t tube alone. I fall off […]