All Forum Posts by: Ben Fernandez

I call this turbulence. The first stages of change are resistance, hesitation, confusion and uncertainty.

SPY has bounced 7 times in the last 90 days. However, bearish is nowhere in sight. We'd need to drop to 485ish for that to be validated.

Despite the consistent upward momentum, all news, even when positive, has caused dips in the market. This shows desperate activity for those who are bearish.

A huge upset, was the announcement of only 1-2 rates drops in 2025. Although, all last year we were prepared to expect about 6. Therefore, recent consumer sentiment has been terrible.

I rarely listen to news anyway because most of it is noise. Especially, since the current interest rate climate has been historically low for the last few decades. Higher rates for longer makes absolute sense if we expect to maintain strength as a nation. So, an expectation of best possible rates, over the next 10 years, being about 5%, and the worst possible high being about 7%, is reasonable. We will likely never see anything below 4% for at least 20 years. (That's if if don't an event where a something unexpected breaks - like a COVID outbreak for example).

Overall, real estate is not crashing. In fact I recall this clickbait word a little while back and...

Well, I'd say you should invest where you've performed best and not venture into new territory all because you're letting news trigger fear. No inventory, and high demand, still puts real estate owners in the power position. That won't change until new inventory arrives at a level that establishes a heathy balance between supply and demand. I will admit, many real estate markets have gotten stale since the election. But I attribute this to the failure of the expected rates drops. 

Keep a close eye on the 10 yr. That'll be the trigger to bring buyers out again.

P.S. I bought ethereum in like 2000 (i think) and I do like XRP! So I'm into crypto. Just not dropping real estate for crypto! Lol

Overall Texas has the highest growth over the last 20 years.

Mainly attributed to job growth and that respective growth throughout the south. Which includes; Arizona, Nevada, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida.

Texas and its high volume of major metros and central location (for the south), has made it an ideal central headquarter location for many employers. North Carolina and Georgia have seen similar characteristics.

However, they are catering moreso the east coast where about a third of the USA's GDP based commerce occurs. East coast also ranks the highest contributor to commerce.

To summarize, perhaps the drivers for major corporations could be cost of land, consumer based logistical lead times, current population to support talent fulfillment and forward growth projection potential.

These factors contribute to the drivers that make up emerging markets and then appreciation.

@Melvin Martinez Good. You're aware of historic performances and the metrics best used for evaluation purposes. That is great feedback.

You could certainly risk little-to-no cash flow for what would be unrealized gains in the form of potential appreciation (if you choose). 
You could also use data sets in the same manor to purchase elsewhere where you either gain moderate cash flow and moderate appreciation or high cash flow and little-to-no appreciation.

- Emerging markets could grant you both.

Thats the decision that'll be based upon your comfort zone. I wish you well in your quest.

Data is your friend. You'll want to identify what locations interest you most (likely by zip code).

Things like population trends, price to rent ratios, median income trends, school rankings, employment trends and crime trends can all the evaluated by zip code.

All the locations mentioned have emerging markets. So, your next evaluation factors could also be resources. Property management options, cost of your visitations when/if needed, and access to reliable real estate professionals that can assist you as needed.

Feel free to DM me for reference to great tools and articles that can help.

You all would establish the term that the seller would finance. Some will finance the entire time until the property is fully paid off and some will finance for shorter time periods.

If it's a shorter time period, the remaining amount owed, would be due by the end of that period, or called a balloon payment. The balloon is when you'd refinance.

All terms and agreements should be reviewed by your attorney if the seller is providing the contracts. If you are expected to produce the contracts, or you prefer to, you'd have your attorney to complete this for you. At that point he/she could explain all the important factors within the agreement you should be aware of.

There are various contracts that could align to match the commitments and preferences of the parties.

You are on track! Great job!

Using zip code analysis is a good way to identify the micro market once you know the metro you want to invest in. 

I'm a licensed PA realtor and investor and would be happy to assist in finding deals or helping you critique potential markets. (717)945-7040

It depends on the performance of the investment compared to the performance of the personal residence.

If the investment property doesn't add to your monthly earnings, and doesn't appreciate equally to what your personal residence would, it's not worth the investment. Being that you mentioned that the personal residence would appreciate well, the favor lies with buying the personal residence.

Generally, it's better to buy the investment property first, if you buy what will perform. This way, you're adding to your income and when you buy the personal residence, you're more stable than before (if considering an equivalent purchase price as before and not increasing your affordability due to the extra income).

You are exactly right in pursuing other markets for your investment property. Feel free to connect for more insight on asset class and choosing the right type of investment suitable for your targeted performance. I'm a licensed PA realtor and have plenty of opportunities that could be of Interest to you in your price margin/targeted performance.

Depends on your contingencies expressed in the contract and their expiration dates.

If you inspection contingency expired first, then the appraisal-financing contingency, and you defaulted, the seller is correct.

If the appraisal- financing contingency expired first, before your inspection contingency, and you made the seller aware before expiration, and an addendum wasn't completed to extend the financing contingency period due to the challenging of the appraisal, you are correct.

If they both expired at the same time, the seller is correct - in reference to you defaulting.

You all probably should have done a formal termination of the AOS once the financing contingency failed. But you'll need an attorney to clarify.

All boils down to the terms specified in the AOS and you alls performance.

All the talk about returning a portion doesn't sound typical. But if you're the party that defaulted, you're lucky that they'd consider returning anything. You really need to determine your position based upon the terms of the AOS and who did and who did not perform within compliance.

@Karla Garcia You're welcome!

Each persons ability to take advantage of opportunities and/or incentives will be unique.

Overall you want the find the highest and best use of your cash that delivers the fastest return.

If applicable to an owner occupant purchase, the best use of funds would be to accomplish getting down payment assistance, utilize a 203k or HomeStyle loan (to force the equity), and to house hack. Coupling all of these (if capable) will grant the most favorable return.

I know some buyers will not be comfortable buying a multi unit and some aren't comfortable with buying a home that requires renovation, and some won't qualify for down payment assistance. However, no matter how you slice it, the growth is always where it's uncomfortable. That's how we also learn and develop.

Make your next move your best move. Time waits for no one.