Green building is one of the buzzwords in the construction industry today. With the rising costs of fuel and gas prices, and the incredible advances made in building materials derived from renewable materials, green building is not only an environmental initiative, but a smart economic move as well. In fact, as early as 2003, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has required that all new federal buildings under its authority be constructed using green building practices.
Green building means a lot of things: building with materials that incorporate sustainable resources or utilize recycled materials, low energy consumption, minimal site disturbance, water conservation, solar orientation, water and energy efficiency, and healthful indoor-air quality.
Although green building practices tend to increase up-front construction costs, they often provide long-term benefits that may offset these increases. In fact, energy efficiency improvements can provide approximately 30 percent less energy than standard homes and can save homeowners approximately $200 to $400 per year.
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You see a lot of articles and books about how to make money “real estate flipping.” Perhaps you’re heard radio or television news reports about the illegalities of flipping real estate. Maybe you’ve seen the late-night infomercials promising you easy overnight fortunes.
What’s the truth about making money flipping real estate?
First, real estate flipping isn’t illegal. Because some dishonest real estate investors conspired with deceitful mortgage brokers and property appraisers, their stories made “good news” for newscasters who love to grab attention with “Investors Scam Banks and Bilk Buyers out of Millions!” sound bites. True, some investors defraud mortgage lenders and/or desperate home buyers. Cheating investors hyped up property values, helped home buyers tell untruths on mortgage applications, and conned banks and buyers.
On the other hand, ethical real estate investors make a lot of money real estate flipping. There are many ways to make money flipping real estate:
1. You can help home sellers in foreclosure save their credit by arranging a sale of the property and never even take title. In other words, buy the property and double-escrow the property to a home buyer who wants to live in the home.
2. Find a seller under stress with a bargain property, secure a sales contract, and sell your contract for roughly $500 to $5,000 to a seasoned real estate investor without financing or taking title.
NATIONAL HOUSING – More ugliness as affordability on the buy side is still a problem. Mortgage resets will continue to make struggling homeowners payments even more unaffordable. I do not think the gov’t sponsored rate freeze plan will be as effective as some think. Inventory will continue to be a drag on national housing and buyer demand will continue to be pressured. Prices will continue to drop in most of the struggling markets like Miami, Las Vegas, & Phoenix with some markets seeing 10-15% drops. I am fairly negative on national housing for 2008, however, if I were in the market for the longer term I would start to get VERY interested in bidding for distressed properties that have realized a 20-30% correction in price since 2006. All in all, I think its going to get uglier before it gets better and I expect foreclosures & delinquencies to rise in 2008 causing more pain for wall street financials. I also expect commercial to follow residential and get hit in 2008.Towards the end of 2008 I expect the rate of declines for major datasets to slow, showing a glimmer of hope for 2009.
Source: urbandigs.com
Using your time in a manner and nice relationship to your client is the way to your success to get more sales opportunities. Now, you have ACT! FOR REAL STATE 2008 SOLUTIONS to help you to get trough to it. The #1 selling contact and customer manager, ACT! will make your buyer, seller, and property in organize, and it is easy to learn and use.
The yellow pages are usually the first thing people turn to when they search for a moving company. Check out the larger ads if you are moving a long distance, since they probably cover more locations nationwide. Call different moving companies, get a quote from each, and compare before deciding which to hire. Searching for them on the internet is also one way to find a moving company. Like with the yellow pages, start by looking at the bigger companies or the ones that you’ve heard before. Word of mouth is also a great way to find a moving company, and your family and friends would be more than happy to let you know about their experiences with a moving company.
The biggest advantage to buying a condominium is that you no longer have to worry about upkeep and maintenance. The association dues you pay every month covers all of that. It might seem expensive at first, but compare it to the cost of replacing a furnace or roof and you’ll realize that the fees are fairly reasonable. Also, you don’t need to have to shovel snow to reach your front door or rake the leaves – the condominium’s staff does all of that for you. Condominiums are also great starter homes, especially for single yuppies or young families. Many people who moved into condos claim that they enjoy the close-knit community. Finally, it’s an investment property that goes up in value especially when renovations are done. A simple renovation in the kitchen or bathroom increases the unit’s value by thousands.
Today, sellers can’t expect to put their properties in the market and expect them to be sold in a matter of days. Sellers need to remember to stick to the fundamental rule of making a property attractive to buyers: get it in top condition. Buying a house will require a lot of money, and you need to show your potential buyers that it’s worth their money. First impression is important to sell a home quickly and successfully. Once you’ve made your property presentable, you can now take photographs of focal points like the living room, garden, and bedrooms. Then create a listing on the Internet or with your real estate agent.
There are many websites with experts who claim to be able to protect you from foreclosure, but all they are after is to get the title away from you. Here are some ways you can recognize a foreclosure rescue scam.
The company offers to pay your back payments to your lender for you. There is no such thing as a company who will bail out home owners form their foreclosure by giving money to the lender.
The company lets you take out a mortgage to pay off your lender. If your current lender won’t give you money to refinance your mortgage, other reputable lenders won’t do so either.
The company says that you can remain in the property as a tenant then reclaim the title later on. No other company will let you buy your property back after you deed away your interest.
Paying an upfront fee will make the company stop the foreclosure for you. No matter how much money you pay, there are no guarantees that anyone can stop your foreclosure.
According to statistics from the Joint Center for Housing Studies, there are more single women buying homes today. More than one out of five home buyers are single women, and there are twice the number of single women buying homes than single men. Single women also make up over one third of the growth in real estate since 1994. Women of all ages, sizes, and shapes buy homes because they have the strong desire to own something that’s entirely hers. They also need to be closer to their work, school, or family, or they want more space or a smaller home. So if you’re a single woman who’s looking to buy a house, don’t hesitate because the market is open for you.
People get attracted to short sales because they think they might be getting a good deal. A short sale is when the seller’s lender gets a discounted payoff so the existing mortgage gets released. However, just because a house is listed with short sale terms does not necessarily mean that the lender will accept the offer you make, even if the seller does. Buying homes in short sales is not as easy and there are few that closes in 30 days or less.
Remember that a seller does not have to have stopped making mortgage payments before his or her lender makes it a short sale. The lender can give the property short sale terms if the value has fallen, or if the seller owes more money than what the home is worth. At a discounted price, the property will be more in line with its market value, and not fall below it.