Real Estate Investing

Evolving Focus from Simply Profit to People

by Michael Zuber | January 17, 2012

Writing for BiggerPockets is a lot of fun. One of the best parts is interacting with all the readers as they share feedback, criticisms, and thoughtful questions. The following topic is an example of such a question. Question: How does your work give back or contribute to the community? I found this question extremely insightful [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Should You Allow Pets in Your Rental Property?

by Sharon Vornholt | January 16, 2012

This has been a subject that has been debated for as long as I can remember; whether or not to allow your tenants to have pets. What I have always found, is that it really doesn’t matter what your policy is. They are probably going to bring them whether or not you actually allow pets. When [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Why The Real Estate Guru’s Don’t Want Me Talking

by Jason Hanson | January 15, 2012

I was recently contacted by a well-known real estate guru whose name you would instantly recognize. I’d never spoken with him before but apparently he got my phone number from a mutual friend. This guru told me he had a big project in development and wanted me to be part of it. But first, he [...]

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Real Estate Investing

A Cliché’ Every New Real Estate Investor Should Know

by Marty Boardman | January 13, 2012

Writer’s block. It happens to all bloggers from time to time. This morning as I sat staring blankly at my computer screen the phone rang. It was Monty, a BiggerPockets reader. He’s about to retire after 30 years of military service and wants to get into real estate investing. Now this is a really tired [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Property Values and Mortgage Notes

by Alan Noblitt | January 13, 2012

“Why the heck do you need to do an appraisal if you’re just buying my mortgage note? You’re not buying the house.” That was a question from a recent client, and it is not the first time that I’ve been asked the question. From the note holder’s perspective, the question is quite reasonable. When considering [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Don’t Get Stuck on Asking Price

by Ken Corsini | January 11, 2012

Last week I wrote an article discussing the dynamic that is created when distressed inventory is low in a particular market and demand is high. In these markets, you’ll often see increased competition for REO and HUD properties. For some investors, the thought of offering anything but a lowball offer is completely unheard of. However, [...]

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Real Estate Investing

5 Absolute Rules For Being a Great Landlord

by Chris Clothier | January 11, 2012

When I started buying real estate in the early 2000’s, I knew absolutely nothing about being a landlord. I had no idea about local laws or local codes and even less about actually being a good and responsible landlord. What I had done, and this is where the danger started, was read half of a [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Retiring At A Far Reduced Income When Retired Is Simply Not Required

by Jeff Brown | January 10, 2012

Since the mid-70s when I made the switch from houses to investment real estate, it’s been one of the longest held mantras.“Remember”, they begin, “When you hit retirement you’ll be in a lower tax bracket.” These are the experts who’ve been advising the very same folks who’re the targets of this nugget of wisdom. I wonder [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Why You Need to Check on Your Rental Properties

by Jason Hanson | January 8, 2012

I just read about a couple in South Carolina who had a rental property up for sale. One day, they received a call from one of their neighbors that it appeared someone was inside the property. Nobody was supposed to be in the house at the time so the couple headed over to their place [...]

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Real Estate Investing

The Formula for Building Wealth and Massive Cash Flow in Real Estate Investing

by Spencer Cullor | January 7, 2012

4 green houses, and then a Red Hotel. That is the formula for winning Monopoly. The formula was drilled into my head as a child for building wealth and winning the game. I had no idea at the time that the formula could also be used in the real world for building wealth and massive [...]

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Real Estate Investing

The Role of Credit Scores in Mortgage Note Investing

by Alan Noblitt | January 6, 2012

Any time that a mortgage note holder calls me about selling their note, one of my initial questions to them is regarding the credit score and current employment of the payer (the new owner of the property who is making payments on the note). More often than not, the caller will have little or no [...]

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Real Estate Investing

The Secret to Real Estate Investing Success

by Marty Boardman | January 5, 2012

I have two offices. One is located in a modest single-level building in downtown Gilbert, Arizona. The other has four wheels and smells like breathe mints (my daughter loves those things). Whether I’m at my desk or behind the wheel of my car you can bet I’m listening to local sports radio. This week, in [...]

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Real Estate Investing

2 Nasty Tax Surprises For Many Real Estate Investors – And They’re Nothing New

by Jeff Brown | January 5, 2012

One of the downsides to real estate prices rising and falling is how it can create anomalous circumstances for investors. When executing a tax deferred exchange, per Section 1031 of the IRC, the rules are fairly clear, and frankly, not all that complex. Many would have you believe how sophisticated and difficult they are. I [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Importance of Rental Property Maintenance

by Richard Warren | January 2, 2012

I remember the auto parts commercial stating that you could prevent a costly engine replacement by simply changing the oil and filter on a regular basis. The tagline was “You can pay me now, or you can pay me later.” That certainly applies to real estate. Performing preventative maintenance on a regular basis can help [...]

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Real Estate Investing

Mistakes and Lessons Learned; The School of Hard Knocks

by Sharon Vornholt | January 2, 2012

I was talking with someone last week that was a brand new real estate investor. By brand new I mean she and her husband had only been investing a few months. After reading a lot of books, joining their local REIA and talking with a few folks in the business, they bought a package of [...]

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