Investing In Real Estate In Up And Down Markets

Some people who doubt that there is a right time to get started in real estate investing worry that there are too many people buying houses to find a deal. Competition is everywhere. If you can’t understand – that in business, competition is normal – then real estate investing is not for you. Just take a look at the marketplace in companies such as Coke and Pepsi, Nike and Reebok, McDonalds and Burger King, and a million other services and products out in the marketplace. So if you see a lot of investors competing against you then know that it’s a rewarding business to be in because you are not the only one that sees the potential for profit. Plus, there are more than enough deals to make everyone rich, in due time. At any given time there are hundreds of properties for sale in your own local market niches, enough for each investor looking for them.

Some investors know that events such as the September 11th tragedy, the huge number of job layoffs and the decline in the stock market will kill the economy, and anything they buy will go down in value. But, once again, this need not be the time to fold-up your tent and quit before you get started. In order to be successful in investing, learn how to make money in “up” and “down” markets. Have strategies to utilize in both “up” and “down” markets to survive when the economy is bad or thrive when the economy is booming. And if everyone else is forecasting “doom & gloom” it only clears out the competition as you have more market share to profit from, as this is a good thing!

Ask yourself: “When do I want to make money?” And the answer is usually right now!

Thus, go out and get your investing business going, right now! And not base your actions on what others are saying because the majority of the population is not rich, only those few who dare to take the right risks and take the necessary steps to be successful.

Stay in ‘the Game,’ and stay ‘the Course’ (persist)

One of the major disappointments of the conventional, ‘rental real estate’ approach is there’s just no money in it NOW, only after a long period of ownership. There’s not enough spread between the income realized from rent – versus – the expenses of mortgage payments and repairs for the investor to make any money today. You barely get by in the early years of your property’s ownership. You’ve got to have other income to support your lifestyle. You can’t just count on the rentals to support you.

Most likely, in the beginning you’ll be supporting your properties with your other income if you bought via the traditional way. That’s not too attractive. A lot of investors don’t have the stomach to endure the rough and tough financial stresses of the rental business. Even more so – people just don’t have the desire to hang in there to make it work, in due time. Thus, if you persist you will outpace your competition because they will no longer be in the business, and you will have “no competition”. This business is a long-term commitment and over 80% of real estate investors – who have been in the business for that long, go on to become millionaires. What I’m saying to you is this: Stay the course, and you will beat most all of your competitors because you can ride the ups and downs of the market in the Real Estate Game, in due time.

Opportunity is everywhere

This is ‘NOT’ a common statement I hear from new investors. True, it may work differently in some markets than in others, but there are investors making money in every city (large or small, metro-area or the rural-areas), every day of the week. You have to learn your market: the rents, the trends, the local customs, the lenders, the title companies, etc.

Then, learn the techniques and adapt them to your market. One thing is for sure, everyone needs a roof to live under, either renting or owning. People need to live somewhere. So study your market carefully, because there are tons of opportunities in every marketplace. You just have to learn your market and be able to service your market accordingly. If you don’t believe this, simply read the ‘Success Stories’ of all my students achieving financial independence and earning big profits using my field-tested and perfected real estate investing system.

Typically, the main argument of real estate “Nay-Sayers” is by associating real estate with toilets, bad tenants, property damages, tenant evictions, etc. – all the bad tasting things that may happen to an investor getting ready to jump into the real estate game.

For somebody who believes the only thing to real estate is getting a loan and buying a run-down duplex, in a bad part of town, entering the real estate game most certainly could turn into a major nightmare very quickly. However, an individual open to possibilities and who is willing to learn various techniques and strategies – will very quickly discover that’s this methodology is not the most profitable way to be transacting real estate deals.

A True Wealth Builder

Well, if you shudder at the very thought of spending your nights and weekends unstopping troubled toilets, painting scarred up walls, and pacifying angry/upset tenants, you are in good company. I have no interest in dealing with ill-affecting and time consuming renter-problems or their negative attitudes. When you follow a systematic approach to investing, you won’t have to deal with negative outcomes!! There are other creative ways to manage properties that involve no hassles and no headaches whatsoever, such programs exist in our “Automated Management System” which take away those ownership nightmares.

Much more profitable strategies exist if you are open to ‘non-traditional’ ways of investing in real estate. For example, in our System approach, there are “Rent Credits” used to maximize your time, while minimizing your overall risks, while creating positive cash flow versus, living with negative cash flow and tenant-troubles. There is a better way!! Your properties will be beautifully managed and maintained. Your Tenant-Buyers will be happy, you will pocket plenty of positive cash flow and you’ll be able to spend your free time locating additional real estate investments, doing the things you love and have passion for doing, which is the very point of becoming a professional real estate investor in the first place!!

If you really are serious about real estate investing and do extensive research into the real estate business, constantly learning and improving your knowledge level you will realize that your risks are minimal when compared to other business models.

If you talk to any knowledgeable real estate investor and compare the cost of starting a real estate investing company versus some other type of business, you’ll see that a real estate business has far less risks. I like to be upfront with you that you will need some marketing dollars at the least to launch your real estate business. You also need to have a long term vision of this venture and at least give it at least a good 6-12 months to make it work. Otherwise, your money (marketing budget) and time will be a waste.

I know this but most people don’t know that it takes at least some money initially to make money as a real estate investor. I don’t mean to scare anyone away but let’s compare a real estate investing business to a restaurant/carryout business. I know these types of businesses very well because relatives of mine own restaurants/carryouts, so even though I never owned a restaurant, my relatives have taught me the inner workings of that business and what it takes to sustain it to be profitable.

First, for a regular restaurant it takes $30K in gross sales just to break even each month. And this does not include the 15 hour days, and six days per week, and the initial investment of $120K down payment with great credit for a bank to even lend you the money needed to open it. You also have to have years of knowledge and experience before you invest your life savings to start a restaurant business. Then, it usually takes about 1-3 years until the profits really come in, thus, this is only if you can survive to stay in business that long. My father-in-law is currently running a carryout and he has had over seventeen years experience and he tells me how fed up he is with the restaurant business. That is why he’s also getting started as a real estate investor and he’s asked me to invest some of his money into our rehab properties. He sees the huge rewards and minimal risk involved in real estate compared to his restaurant business or other businesses he has been in. And he is seriously considering selling his business to do real estate investing full-time.

When you compare risks in real estate investing versus investing in other business avenues and/or endeavors, as you can come to your own conclusion: real estate investing is the ‘Best Game’ in town, when it comes to generating great wealth, while achieving your American Dream for financial independence.

Real estate investing has cycles just like any other business

The stock market has it’s cycles. We experienced that after the September 11th Tragedy. Only less than two years prior, we saw a peak in the stock market with high tech stocks soaring and making stock market investors ‘paper rich.’ The stock market has it’s ‘ups’ and it’s ‘downs.’

Modern real estate thrives on doing things smarter, wiser, strategically – not harder, more time consuming, with profit-eating outcomes. At the end of the day, the key to success is to focus on being a ‘great entrepreneur.’ I asked an experience investor (he owned about a quarter of Blacksburg, Virginia) what his specialty was in real estate investing and his response was not that he was good at Lease Options, Wholesaling, Short Sales, REOs, Rehabs, Notes, Residential, Land Developments, or Commercial real estate. But he said he was an ‘expert at making money.’ We both laughed at that but I will never forget that conversation. You need to know about the marketplace and technical factors involved in a deal, but your main duty whenever you are investing is always to make money. Thus, at the end of the day, your job is to make money in ‘up’ as well as ‘down’ markets. And if you focus on being a ‘great entrepreneur,’ you’ll be able to make money with many techniques, strategies, and skill sets to be successful in any market.

Minh is formally trained as a financial planning strategist for small businesses and individuals within the Virginia, Maryland, and Washington DC areas; Minh is also recognized as a real estate investment lecturer on the topics of creative real estate investing. He is the author of a Best-Selling Course, “Turnkey Profits Using Lease Purchase and Other Creative Investing Techniques.” Minh is also a co-author of a national best seller: “Mission Possible” along side Stephen Covey (author of ‘Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”) and Brian Tracey (international top ranked motivational speaker). He is also an active member of three real estate investing

Top Five Reasons to Invest in Real Estate Today

When it comes to real estate, the topic of the day is the downturn in the market, the number of people losing their homes, and how much this is going to hurt the economy. In the seventeen years I have been in the real estate business, I have witnessed every fluctuation the market has to offer. While it is true that many property owners are enduring trying times, rarely does the same happen to knowledgeable real estate investors.

There are those individuals who remain emotionally unattached and invest wisely in real estate. As a result, they live a very comfortable, if not lavish, lifestyle. Investing in real estate, especially during a downturn, can widen an investor’s opportunities and bring about lucrative returns. This is a truth. If you are thinking about becoming a real estate investor or have already made the decision to start, the following information is priceless.

Wanting to secure a comfortable financial future, most of us go to work every day hoping to build a nest egg. Since, it is common knowledge that real estate investors have the capacity to not only build a nest egg but also create a fortune, why aren’t more people joining the ranks of real estate multimillionaires? Why aren’t there more people fighting for a seat on the real estate bandwagon?

Well, the truth behind real estate investing is that it is a business and therefore, must be treated like one for it to prosper. Just like any other promising venture, investing in real estate requires a well-defined vision, a strategic plan, and an entrepreneurial mindset. Even with the overwhelming evidence revealing success, only a microscopic segment of the population is willing to take the risk, do the work and follow through. The rest simply watch and call those of us doing the work “Lucky”.

When I began my career in real estate, I didn’t have a plan. I didn’t invest. I didn’t even see past my next commission check. What kept me hanging on was a desire to live like the people I worked for, most of whom were real estate investors. Years later, I committed to create serious wealth through real estate. As soon as I mindfully committed to my goal, I began to make deals and more money than ever before.

By choice, I am not one of those investors who vacations six months out of the year. I work all the time meeting with clients, looking at properties and refining my strategy. Add to that a growing number of mentoring/coaching clients and my schedule is officially full. Nevertheless, I am continuously increasing my net worth as I am doing something that never feels like work.

Besides creating amazing wealth, being your own boss and having a place or two to call home, owning a real estate investing business has many other advantages. The following five play a special role for the novice investor.

1. Safe Investment

When we use a timeline to compare the real estate market to other investments, such as the stock market, it is easy to see that real estate continues to increase in value over time without any serious instability. Although, there is currently a housing crisis in various parts across the country, every indicator points out that what we are actually experiencing is a readjustment of highly inflated real estate prices. Just as prices may be dropping, in time they will undoubtedly increase. In contrast, the stock market has put investors through a dizzying rollercoaster ride made up of swift highs and abrupt lows throughout history. Regardless of what type of market we are in, it is clear that an investment in real estate guarantees a profit over time.

2. No Cash Necessary

For beginning real estate investors, sometimes the only investment they can make is their time. For every real estate investor, finding a lucrative deal is as good as striking oil. There are plenty of seasoned investors with money in their pockets itching to buy a piece of discounted property. Wholesalers often utilize this method. Therefore, if you are new to the game, consider finding a deal, tying it up and connecting with an investor who can take it off your hands…for a price, of course.

3. Almost Anyone Can Do It

Real estate is such a lucrative field that it opens doors to countless amateur investors everyday. There are how-to books and seminars at every turn teaching would-be investors a myriad of ways to make huge profits in the real estate market. While it is true that overnight success is practically unheard of, anybody with the heart, mind and determination can make it big in real estate. The keys are to continue learning and to monitor market conditions.

4. Leveraging Power

While novice investors can turn a quick profit by wholesaling their deals, Buy-and-Hold investors can yield a profit by borrowing against (leveraging) their properties. Typically, lenders will allow holders of owner-occupied property to borrow up to ninety-five percent of their property’s value and up to eighty-percent of non-owner occupied units. This means that you can either purchase property with a minimal out-of-pocket investment or acquire financing that will allow you to pull cash out of your property’s equity to use for future ventures.

5. Tax Breaks

The popular 1031 exchange and depreciation are just two of them. The United States government has set up multiple tax breaks favoring real estate investors. Owning real estate with the goal of making a profit allows you to deduct interest payments, repairs, and vacancies among other expenses when preparing your tax return. It is important to note that purchasing real estate makes economic sense; it should not be purchased solely for the tax benefits.

Ultimately, owning a real estate business is the way to achieve financial freedom regardless

5 Steps to an Extremely Profitable Real Estate Website

Real estate websites are popping up all over the internet so when will you get on the boat? I hope before it’s too late. CNN and CNBC talk about the Real Estate market in a recession every day and how it probably won’t come out for another year or so. There is no better day than today to get off your butt and create a profitable real estate site for your business. Whether you are an agent, realtor, broker or landlord, you need to have a site for your business in order to compete and succeed. Below you will find five steps to a profitable real estate website.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask by following the link to my website in the author resource box at the bottom of this article.

1. Real Estate Website Design: The design of your real estate website should be simple, straight forward and logical. You will basically want to spoon feed information to your visitors. You will have less than 10 seconds to capture your visitor’s attention and keep them from clicking that nasty back button. If you don’t do this, your visitors will quickly realize that your site isn’t worth their time and they will click off of it just as quickly as they clicked on to it. So, how do you do this? I suggest starting with a blank slate. Either hire a professional website designer & developer to do the project for you (PLEASE DO NOT OUTSOURCE YOUR PROJECT OUT OF THE COUNTRY) or take on the project yourself. It might be a cost efficient way to produce your website, but you are hurting American jobs in the long run – one of the reasons why real estate in America is in a recession. Real estate web design is not a complicated task because it is basic and straight forward. I recommend using a site design that is professional, modern, clean, organized and classy. These are qualities that the average house buyer would probably like to see in their new home, so why not have them in your website? A good website design will consist of intuitive navigation, organized content/copy and use of professional images of happy people smiling.

2. Real Estate Domain Names: Choosing a domain name may be one of the easiest tasks and it may be one of your most difficult tasks at the same time. Consider hiring a professional website design company such as MJM Design in Cleveland, Ohio (Google MJM Design Cleveland) to pick out a quality domain name for your real estate website. Choosing a catchy domain name will help draw in visitors and we all know it, it’s a fundamental truth, the more visitors the more business you will bring in. It’s like fishing, if there’s no fish why put your hook in the water in the first place? Real estate domain names are sometimes hard to get because they are registered already. If you realize that the domain name that you absolutely must have is already registered, you can try contacting the owner of the domain name. How you ask? Well you would use a service called WhoIs which tells you the name, address, phone number and sometimes even the email address of the website owner. Otherwise, you might try GoDaddy’s Back Order service where GoDaddy will wait until the domain name is about to expire then try to register it immediately. This is most likely only effective if the domain name is about to expire which WhoIs will also tell you the date to.

3. Real Estate Website Hosting: Every site needs hosting, regardless if its eBay, Amazon or your website. Real estate web hosting is not a type of website hosting only created for real estate oriented websites. Website hosting accounts can be purchased from my company for as little as $240.00 per year which includes storage, unlimited email access, unlimited email accounts and unlimited databases. Real estate hosting allows you to link your Domain Name to your website. This means that when someone types into their web browser, http://www.yourrealestatewebsite.com it will take them directly to your site on your website hosting account.

4. Dynamic or Static Website Content?: This is a question of usability and interaction of your website with its visitors. Will your real estate design require a database to showcase available properties or apartments for rent? If so, then your website will be a dynamic website which pulls information from a database stored on your site hosting account. I recommend a PHP real estate script to run your website. These real estate scripts range in complexity from basic integration of a basic layout and table structure to a complex solution consisting of landlord contact forms, tell-a-friend forms, custom amenities list, Google Maps integration and more. Using a dynamic system also allows for easier updating as these systems usually consist of an administration panel which is protected by a secure username and password. The administration panel is where you will be able to login, navigate the categories of the website to change, modify and administrate different settings on your real estate website.

5. Converting Visitors into Customers: This fifth and final step covers converting your real estate visitors into actual customers or leads. When someone visits your website, they are basically nothing to you – completely useless unless you can capture their information to contact them. You can track your traffic through statistics programs that your real estate hosting company will provide you with. If your hosting company doesn’t provide you with the appropriate advanced traffic tracking software, then its time to move on. The most common way of capturing your customer’s contact information is through the use of a Contact Us page. This page usually consists of an HTML form where the visitor can fill in their name, phone number, email address and a message and click Submit to email you right from the website. Most visitors don’t prefer this style of generic contact form and would much rather use a custom “Request a Free Consultation” or “Have Us Call You Back” form. This makes them feel special and let them think they are getting something for free. Implementing one of these custom forms will help you get leads from your new real estate website.

I hope that the information contained in this article helped you understand the 5 basic steps to establishing a profitable real estate website and bringing a real return on your investment.

If you have any questions, problems or concerns with your real estate website project, please feel free to ask by following the link below. Enjoy!

This Article was Authored by Matt McWilliam. Copyright 2008 Matt McWilliam & MJM Design Cleveland, Ohio.

Matt McWilliam is the successful entrepreneur and owner of MJM Design Cleveland’s Webs

2008 Internet Real Estate Agent

Happy New Year! Here’s to 2008 being the year for taking your business and personal life to their highest level. The need for people to connect and exchange goods and services has been one of civilization’s ongoing themes. Now, the need for people to get on the internet and search for real estate information is going to increase exponentially. The big question is, not how technology will advance the real estate industry, but rather how will you use it.

2008 poses many challenges for the real estate industry and its irrevocable relationship with the internet. How are you positioned to garner your share of targeted real estate leads and marketing potential of the internet? Are you investing in old traditional training techniques of sending out post cards, fancy listing presentation displays and a clever tag line? You already know that marketing to your sphere of influence and past clients is essential. But what other business systems have you implemented for seller or buyer leads?

How are you spending your education dollars and time? Now is the time to take action.

Search engine optimization and online lead generation is a competitive game, and it is growing more competitive by the day. You’ve read the articles, watched it on the news and read all the press releases. The biggest companies in real estate are investing the lion share of their resources to the internet. No more old traditional training, old school marketing or ideas. Major corporations are dumping money into their internet business in order to compete in the networked society we live in. What are you doing now to further your education and online real estate lead generation business? That’s your challenge in 2008 and beyond.

As I’ve stated before, you can still create a very successful online real estate lead-generation business. However, these days are numbered.

The Web is big, but it’s a finite resource. Well, more accurately said, cyberspace is infinite, but people will only dig so deep. Real estate Web sites that capture the top spots in the search engines are garnering high quality leads and massive lists of interested buyers and sellers. But, as more and more big-brand companies compete and figure out how to grab high ranking search engine positions, they will slowly but surely elbow out the little guy. It’s the nature of an industry to be “open” to early adopters at the beginning and then slowly close to only those that can afford the great investment of time and money needed to stay competitive. As more and more buyers and sellers use the Internet for real estate research, the “evening and weekend traditional real estate agent marketing model” is fast becoming extinct.

If you want to stay competitive in the period ahead, you will need to grab a piece of the Internet action, and now is the time to establish your foothold. You CAN still create a successful real estate online lead-generating business. You CAN still get top spots in the search engines. It’s not too late, but I guarantee if you wait, it soon will be.

More and more, I get calls from companies selling real estate leads. They notice I’m everywhere on the internet. My sites rank very high organically for specific real estate search terms and cpc. I also own the right spots on other real estate portals that drive targeted traffic to my listings, my sites and yes…..generate high quality, exclusive leads.

I just received a call from a company selling real estate leads. As published in my book, Internet Real Estate Agent: A Guide To Dominating Internet Real Estate Leads and Marketing, there are specific questions you must ask to avoid wasting money and time. After going back and forth with the skilled sales rep., I was able to hone down the basics of how the program works.

Here’s how their lead program works:

1. A person is watching television, listening to the radio or sees a banner ad online. The add is asking the person to call a phone number to learn about a real estate tax advantage and commission rebate back to them if they buy or sell real estate.

2. Pay $60 a month for a zip code.

3. Pay 19% referral fee at closing (this gets split between the “lead company” and the customer at closing).

4. Here’s the kicker….the leads are given to 7 other agents as well.

This real estate sales lead business model isn’t new and many companies have a slight variation to it. Personally, I would never buy leads from this business model. I prefer to create my own exclusive lead systems.

Here’s some of the pitfalls with the real estate lead business model you’re being sold.

1. Leads coming from TV, Print, radio or the internet that rely on some form of incentive offer are usually very low quality leads. One of the incentive offers is a “commission rebate program”. Need I say more?

2. Why pay a monthly fee so you can compete for the lead? Why not get EXCLUSIVE leads that are not incentive leads. You can’t do every lead program on earth, so pick and chose how you spend your money and time.

3. I have a hard time paying a referral fee to someone when I’m competing with other agents, given a low quality lead and there’s no personal relationship. That’s not a referral, it’s a lead. No relationship, no history and no commitment from the potential customer to use me. I like paying referral fees to agents that have personal relationships with their real clients. When I get a referral call from another agent, they know the person being referred to me and I get the client. That’s a real referral and qualifies for that big referral fee.

4. There are so many ways to generate leads. You should pick and chose the best ways to spend your time and money.

After reading Internet Real Estate Agent, you won’t fall prey to poor Internet business models. You may make a mistake or two–I do from time to time when trying something new–but, these mistakes are quickly remedied. You will understand exactly how to improve your real estate website, what to know before buying a real estate website, advanced concepts for Google AdWords, how to market your listings online for more leads, the changing Broker/Agent model and much more. Discover how to set up your own internet real estate lead generation machine. Don’t be dependent on any one company for leads. Get educated and become independent!

The book will guide you through a tremendous amount of information and facts, not hype, regarding Internet real estate lead generation and Internet marketing. It’s the lowest cost real estate training and education you will ever spend. It’s all about internet real estate lead and marketing. Keep this book by your side and use it as a trusted reference guide. Start working on your Web site, and then move onto the other areas of online lead generation and Internet marketing. Once you have your online real estate lead-generation business set up, it really will run 24 X 7, by putting the right message in front of the right people, at the right time.

Agents and Brokers already know they need to market to past clients and their sphere, but it only gets you so far. They also know the urgent need to embrace the internet. The value of traditional farming techniques is diminishing. The fact is, everyone is mailing something; everyone is doing longer open houses; and everyone is getting into the real estate business. But, hardly anyone is doing online advertising. Even fewer are doing it right. In fact, most agents and brokers attempting to do online lead generation and property marketing are doing it totally wrong. Don’t waste money and time by buying leads from a company that sells false dreams of Internet riches. Take control of your business lead systems and start implementing your plan today.

Here’s a short sample from the book:

Marketing Your Listings for Leads

The majority of this book has been on creating a real business Web site, driving quality traffic to your Web site, and converting that traffic into leads. Now let’s focus on how to create more business by marketing your listing online. You’ve worked long and hard to get the listing, now let’s leverage that listing to create more business. For most of the homes I’ve sold, the buyers began by viewing the pictures and details online and then contacted me about a private showing. If you market the property correctly, you will get leads. Using the list of marketing resources below, I average over 2,500 targeted property views for each listing. I get highly qualified internet buyer and seller leads when marketing a property online. Think about that for a second. Online, people are searching for a specific home, in a specific area, in a specific school district, in a certain price range, etc….and my listings are showing up. That’s a ton of quality traffic almost all of it was free.

I just read the other day about a Director of Technology who serves on a major MLS board who said the traditional business model of getting leads from holding open houses is almost dead. People are using the Internet for research, and they are contacting an agent long before they enter the house. Based on my personal experience, I agree with this assessment. Having spent many Sunday’s working at open houses, I find it very rare for someone to walk through the door and say “I don’t have an agent.”

The following list of ideas will put you in a position to actually make more money from each listing you have. If you don’t have any listings or are new to real estate, I suggest approaching an agent in your office that has a listing and ask if you can do some Internet advertising for him or her. Just be sure to abide by any local MLS rules you have…

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