Buying Vacation Property in Palm Beach

The boom in vacation properties is just beginning. It appears to be a strong real estate trend in the coming years.

There are two main reasons for this trend. First, people born in the 1940s and ?50s are now looking toward retirement and are financially able to own a second home. As they live longer, healthier lives and stay active, many are choosing vacation homes near ski slopes, golf courses, or water-sport areas.

The other reason for the growth in the vacation market is money. Many people have refinanced loans and taken the equity from their primary residence to purchase a vacation home. Owning a second home appeals to some people as a safer investment than the stock market.

Here are some tips to help you select a vacation home:

* Buy a home you are going to use in an area you enjoy visiting. If it is too far away or inconvenient to travel to, you won't go often enough.

* Choose a location with a variety of indoor and outdoor activities for when the weather turns bad.

* Research locations and visit destinations, preferably in different seasons.

If you're thinking about buying a vacation home in Palm Beach, make sure to take care of the points made above. The market for Palm Beach real estate is finnicky and the devil is definitely in the details. After talking with many a Palm Beach realtor, it is clear that the difference in making a fast sale and staying on the market for a while is the small fixes that svae lazy buyers from doing it themselves.

Commercial Metal Buildings

There are many advantages to choosing commercial metal buildings over the more traditional wooden structures. Metal buildings, such as steel buildings, are often quicker to build because most companies offer kits with a pre-arranged design.

Commercial metal buildings are also strong and sturdy, which makes them a great option for areas that have extreme weather. Many report that choosing commercial metal buildings over the traditional wooden structures can also help save money.

There are so many companies that offer commercial metal buildings, choosing one can be overwhelming. Below is some advice that will help you choose the metal or steel structure that best meets the needs of your company.

First, decide what type of metal building you require. Commercial metal buildings span a whole range of options including whole building construction, storage facilities, air plane hangers, etc. Some companies specialize in buildings with certain uses, whereas others take a more generalized approach. If you need several types of structures, picking a company that has many different services is your best bet.

Next, determine your budget. You may have specific budget needs, or perhaps you are waiting to see how much your desired structure costs. If there isn?t enough money in your budget to spend on what you need, consider taking out a loan or a mortgage. Ask your financial advisor for the best options.

Once you choose the company and decide on your budget, you will have to pick your specific design and see to its construction. If you are knowledgeable and skilled in the building craft, you can probably construct it yourself with a team. If not, hire an expert. Even if you are skilled, hiring an expert to help because it can help save time.

Commercial metal buildings are a great alternative to traditional wooden structures. Researching which type of metal or steel building is best for your company can be a long process. However, the benefits of these types of structures outweigh the disadvantages, thus making the process worth it.

Metal Buildings provides detailed information on Metal Buildings, Metal Storage Buildings, Metal Building Kits, Commercial Metal Buildings and more. Metal Buildings is affiliated with Pre-Fabricated Steel Buildings .

First Time Home Buyers

Are you itching to experience the feeling of having a home that you can call your own? You can do it. With a little help from the experts, you can achieve complete independence by owning a home ? one that you would have sole responsibility for. This would be a far cry from the one that you grew up in. There would be no rules in this one ? just your own.

Are you a first-time home buyer?

Technically speaking, first-time homebuyers are those who have not had any kind of ownership in a home for three years. So, generally, if you have had an ownership interest in a home more than three years ago, then you could be considered as a first-time homebuyer again.

Now you?re looking for a home. Where do you start?

The two things that a first-time home buyer such as yourself should do is to (a) try to understand more about the home buying process and its technicalities, and (b) find out which financial resources are best for your particular situation (unless you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, in which case you certainly would not need a loan from the bank).

Knowledge for and about first-time home buyers has been scattered throughout the internet so as to provide people like you with insight and basic knowledge as to what they need to do and expect with regard to buying a home.

There are several first-time homebuyer programs that are designed to help people like you find a home that suits your needs and your finances.

First Time Home Buyer provides detailed information on First Time Home Buyers, First Time Home Buyer Programs, First Time Home Buyer Grants, First Time Home Buyer Loans and more. First Time Home Buyer is affiliated with Home Owner Insurance Rates.

Maryland Mortgage What to Expect When Buying a Home in Maryland

Maybe you?re buying your first home in Maryland, or perhaps you?re relocating to Maryland from another state. Either way, it?s important that you educate yourself on Maryland home loans before shopping for a home and mortgage. This article explains what you?ll need to know before buying a home in Maryland:

The median price of a home in Maryland is $146,000. Recently, homes in Maryland have been appreciating at record highs for the state. As a result, income levels in many parts of Maryland are too low to purchase a median-priced home with a conventional loan. In fact, homeowners in many Maryland cities pay more than the recommended 30% of their incomes toward housing.

The price of homes in Maryland varies widely between zip codes. For example, in Annapolis, Maryland, the median price of a home in the summer of 2005 was $315,000; however, in Fort Washington, Maryland, the median price of a home was $375,000, and in Silver Spring, Maryland, it was $450,000. Average interest rates in Maryland are above the national average, and job growth rates are ninth highest in the nation.

In Maryland, the borrower employs the settlement attorney or title agent. The lender is not permitted to do so. Maryland has strict anti-predatory lending laws. Among these include the prohibition of prepayment penalties and reduced-rate options on adjustable rate mortgages and fixed-period adjustable rate mortgages.

Jessica Elliott recommends that you visit Mortgage Lenders Plus.com for more information about Maryland Mortgage Rates and Loans .

Metal Building Manufacturers

There are so many metal building manufacturers, and it can be time consuming settling on the company whose products and services best meet your needs. Metal buildings offer a wonderful alternative to the more traditional style of building and can also help you save money. Here is some advice on how to narrow down the list of metal building manufacturers to find the one that best meets your needs.

First, decide which type of metal building you need. Is it for residential or commercial use? Will you need storage? Does it need to be portable? Are you interested in using a kit? Make a list of questions and criteria that are important to you and then select a list of metal building manufacturers to contact.

Once you figure out which metal buildings are right for you, you will next need to consider your budget. Do you have enough money in your budget to fund your project? If not, contact your financial advisor to work through your options. Metal building manufacturers? prices vary, so you can save money by doing adequate research.

Next, you?ll need to decide who is going to perform the actual construction. If it is a smaller structure, such as a shed, and you have the skills, you may want to consider putting the structure together yourself. However, keep in mind that if something goes wrong, contacting the company to help resolve any problems that occurred because you lacked an essential skill can cost you more money. Hiring an expert is a great option if you lack the time and skills to complete the project. They can often finish the project in a much smaller time frame than if you did it yourself

After initial construction, check the structure for any problems and areas of damage. If you find anything questionable, contact the company immediately to increase your chances of getting a refund or to resolve the problem quickly. However, metal buildings are extremely sturdy so the likelihood of having major problems should be small.

Metal Buildings provides detailed information on Metal Buildings, Metal Storage Buildings, Metal Building Kits, Commercial Metal Buildings and more. Metal Buildings is affiliated with Pre-Fabricated Steel Buildings .

Is It Really Possible To Sell A House Quickly And Easily?

As a home owner, with a stable and secure job, I am now earning just enough to purchase a larger property. Although I have been already through the buying process once before, I am finding the new challenge of juggling the sale of my old property along with the purchase of my new dream home all very daunting. I found the house that I want to buy very quickly, but I now seem to be stuck in a common nightmare scenario trying to conclude the sale of my current home before the owners of the house I want to buy lose patience and decide to simply sell to someone else for a quick sale.

Like many sellers in my position, my current house has received a high level of interest from various buyers and several times contracts have been about to exchange, when suddenly it all falls through and the buyer drops out at the last minute. This is causing me many problems and I fear the owner of what I hope will be my new house, may soon put it back onto the open market. Frankly I have had enough of this now.

Whilst wading through all the information that has been provided to me by my Estate Agent, I under took some research of my own and happened upon some alarming statistics regarding exactly how difficult and stressful owning property can be, especially when you decide to move on and sell it. What I have found doesn?t exactly fill me with confidence that the financial side of buying of another house and selling my old one is anything near the relatively simple task the Estate Agent promised.

The information I found was the latest research from a property purchasing company, A Quick Sale, which although it is not the sort of thing I normally read, the information seemed pertinent to my current problems. They have revealed that potential the costs from estate agents, legal fees and additional mortgage payments which can be built up while waiting for a house buyer, is on average ?13,633.

The research also had the worrying statistic that 59% of people who lost a buyer for their house also lost their dream home as a result. As you could imagine panic alarm bells started ringing. Was I now going to lose my new home because of the actions of potential buyers for my old house?

I am very concerned about selling my house and this research appears to show that I am right to be and that I'm not alone. As soon as realisation dawned that it wasn?t just me that was in this predicament, several questions started to form. What have other people done to get out of this situation? How do I sell my house quickly to prevent losing my new home? Does this happen to everyone?

Obviously I don?t want to lose money selling my current house and I certainly do not want to lose my next dream property. I have numerous friends who have brought and sold property and they have never seemed to experience anything like this, and I find it very hard to believe that things can be this difficult especially when I'm paying an agent to supposedly take care of all the hassles of making the sale.

When I look back, the purchase of my first home was great. I had arranged a first-time buyer?s mortgage and I had no house to sell. When I finally moved into the first house of my own, I felt like I had become a full member of society. The future looked rosy. The dream first home which I bought back then is still in a well kept and attractive state, positioned in a good location and is apparently competitively priced for the current market. Back then there was a high level of competition from other buyers, but I managed to come out on top, and the purchase went through without any real problems. Today however I am becoming angry that although I have achieved a good level of interest, the buyers seem to be taunting me with offers then suddenly pulling out.

As a result of all the difficulties, my feelings towards my current home are rapidly starting to sour, along with my patience. Another of the research statistics which has particular resonance for me in my present state, is that apparently 39% of people stated they wanted a quicker and easier way to sell their home rather than the mess we currently have to deal with, and I can definitely say I'm now one of them.

Michael Hanna is a keen writer, and internet marketer living in Scotland.

Contact details:
E-mail: samqam@googlemail.com
Phone: 0131 561 2251
Michael's Website: Taxis Belfast

Your FICO Score and Purchasing San Diego Real Estate

You have found your perfect piece of San Diego real estate, and now you only need secure a real estate mortgage at a great rate. Simple, right? Definitely not!

Before a mortgage makes that real estate yours, the lender is going to check your credit score, which will determine what type of terms they offer to you, how much you will pay over the life of the real estate mortgage, and even if you can secure a mortgage. Your credit score tells a lender what type of credit risk you are and the likelihood that you will repay the money loaned.

Though there are several types of credit scores, most real estate mortgage lenders use the FICO score, which was developed by Fair Isaac. The FICO is used for several types of credit and can affect terms offered for credit cards, car loans, home equity loans, private mortgage insurance, the required size of your down payment, and even the amount of documentation a lender will require of you during your mortgage application. Your score determines what type of loan for which you are eligible, as well as how much money you can borrow.

Every person has three FICO scores ? one with each of the three major credit bureaus: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. Since the information retained by each credit bureau varies, your score will differ between the ?Big Three?. Before you begin hunting for real estate, it is a good idea to check all three bureaus for your FICO score, as well as right before securing a real estate mortgage. Even if you have checked your FICO scores recently, your scores fluctuate as new information is received by the credit bureaus. It is best to know for certain your FICO scores, than to be surprised during crucial negotiations.

Some of the things each credit bureau looks at in developing your FICO score are your payment history, the amounts your currently owe, the length of your credit history, new credit you have obtained, and the types of credit you use.

The Higher Your Score, the Better

There have been many commercials on television recently about the FICO score and how it follows you wherever you go (as far as credit is concerned). Just remember, the higher your score, the less you will pay to buy real estate on credit. You can save thousands of dollars every year, or you can pay thousands of extra dollars each year on your real estate mortgage, depending upon your score.

The median FICO score is 723, with most lenders requiring at least a score of 760 in order to get the best real estate mortgage terms. The highest FICO score attainable is 850; however, only 13 percent of the population score over 800.

According to myfico.com, a score of 760 or better currently makes you eligible for an average interest rate of 5.98 percent on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage of $216,000. The interest rate rises to 7.47 percent, if your score is between 620 and 639, which translates to paying an additional $227 each month or $81,720 for the life of the mortgage. A score below 620 can add another three-to-six percent interest. Even a point or two can make a major difference over time. As scores dip below the 700 mark, borrowers are often limited on how much money may be financed; while many lenders will disqualify you all together for a mortgage, even if the rest of your credit file is fantastic.

So, check your three FICO scores when you first decide to look for real estate. Get counseling in how to raise your scores, if it is below 760. If you must purchase sooner than you can repair your credit scores, then plan to refinance after you have raised your FICO scores. Buy real estate with terms that are to your advantage. Know your credit scores and repair any problems early.

John Harris is an expert researcher and writer on real estate topics such as economics, credit improvement tips, home selling advice and home buying preparations. For more on San Diego Homes for Sale visit http://www.twtrealestate.com

Property Renovations: Keys to the FixerUpper

In the realm of real estate, there are numerous ways to go about making profits. One of the most effective methods of achieving financial success is in dealing with a fixer-upper. Home renovations are very important if you are in the business of making profits, so let's overview some of the key points that can help you in your ventures.

First of all, when you're dealing with a fixer-upper home, or any sort of renovation, it's important to keep in mind your main objective: to make a profit. It's an easy to forget, sometimes, that the long-term goal of the project is not creating your dream home. Sure, a big screen T.V. may look great in the living room corner, but making big purchases are unnecessary for a home you may not be keeping for long.

Let the potential buyers take care of the details; your focus is to provide the necessities, not to practice home decoration. Your choices should be neutral and simple, in order to appeal on a basic level to a wide variety of potential buyers. Keeping it simple is a must, but this doesn't mean you should leave the home as a permanent fixer-upper. Home renovations, in this sense, should include a number of basic tasks.

The first thing you should do is go through the property and determine what needs to go. Undoubtedly, there will be various pieces of furniture or other items around the house you may want to clear out. Get rid of anything that isn't working properly, or anything you think doesn't quite fit with the rest of the house. You may choose to leave carpeting for a while, even if you aren't its biggest fan; if you plan on doing any painting, old carpet can serve as the perfect placemat.

In order to catch the eye of a passer-by, you need to have an inviting exterior to your fixer-upper home. If there is a front gate, be sure to paint or replace it. Make sure the hinges and latches are in proper condition. Nothing says Welcome! like a picket fence, so if your home doesn't have one, be sure to get one. If so, make sure it is painted and sturdy. Keeping a healthy lawn is another must, so make sure everything is as green and tidy as possible. Pay attention to the little details, like your mailbox and shutters; these minor details aren't always as obvious, but create just as much of an impression.

Some simple gardening can go a long way, as well. Remove weeds, plant flowers- whatever it takes. This is your chance to be creative for little to no expense. When it comes to painting the exterior of the house, try to keep in the same color scheme as the surrounding homes. Make sure there are no missing or damaged shingles on the roof, and replace any cracked or broken boards. The backyard should be freshly mowed and watered.

Maybe the most important aspect of the home exterior is the front door: the grand entrance. If you have an unappealing front door, no one will want to see what's past it! Make sure to repair or repaint if necessary.In part two on home renovations, we will discuss more of the aspects important for the long term.

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Sal Vannutini is the owner of http://www.fixerupperfortunes.com. Did you know that he is giving away a 14 part e-course for free! Visit now and grab this amazing opportunity, to find out how you too can make profits from your fixer upper home.

Philippines Real Estate

The real estate business in the Philippines has recently been gaining popularity with several real estate companies developing their own sites in several parts of the country, including the non-metropolitan areas. Prices of real estate properties are relatively low when compared to those located in the United States. This makes investments in the Philippines attractive because their values are expected to appreciate in years to come.

People who want to make an investment in the country or make profits by selling a real estate property can manually contact real estate brokers for the packages they offer. However, the easiest and most practical way to locate brokers or agents is by searching for them in the Internet. There are already several online real estate marketers available in the Philippines.

Online real estate Philippine marketers promote their sites that include real estate listings and brokerages to international search engines. This makes their coverage wider and as such, heightens the possibility of getting closed deals quickly.

If a person plans to sell real estate property located in the Philippines, online real estate marketers can act as their brokers. They will be the ones to look for potential buyers and explain to them the initial policies and terms of the offer. The investor can also use their site to promote additional real estate items they want to sell.

For people who want to buy real estate property in the Philippines, online marketers also provide real estate listings that come from brokers in several parts of the country. Because it may be very difficulty to scan through the available properties for sale, some marketers have developed a system to filter out the choices. A leading marketer has set up a buyer's wizard that helps buyers narrow down the choices by their budget, preferred location and size. Once a selection has been made, the buyers submit the online form. The broker of the selected property will be contacted by the online marketer for a detailed discussion of the real estate package.

With the online marketing trend in place, real estate in the Philippines can be expected to register more profits in the coming years.

Philippines provides detailed information on Philippines, Philippines Tours, Language In The Philippines, Philippines Real Estate and more. Philippines is affiliated with Hong Kong Travel.

Real Estate Investment Tip Getting Far Lower Property Taxes!

When buying real estate for investment many buyers look overseas and one of the big advantages is normally the generous tax incentives on real estate investment property.

How does real estate taxes and no capital gains tax sound?

Combine this with fantastic growth potential and you can make money and save tax. Let?s look at one market as an example.

1.Low property Tax.

Property taxes in Costa Rica are extremely low when compared to say the United States. Property taxes vary from 0.5% to 1.5% of the declared value of the property.

The Municipal Tax is administered at the municipal level and varies throughout the country. Paid quarterly, the type of property, location and other factors contribute to the calculation of this tax.

2. No Corporation Tax

A great incentive provided by the Government for overseas investment is that there is no capital gains tax.

A buyer would not be taxed by the government on the profit from the future sale of the property as long as this is not undertaken as a primary means of business.

3. Legal rights of overseas buyers are protected

Ownership of real estate in Costa Rica by foreigners is fully guaranteed by the Government.

In addition, foreigners enjoy the same ownership rights as Cost Rican residents, regardless of whether the property is placed in the name of a corporation or in the name of the buyer.

The decision to have the property under the name of a corporation is up to the investor.

Corporations are very common and can offer benefits of asset protection and anonymity for the actual owner. The cost is approximately $500.00

Costa Rica is looking for overseas investment and its steadily rising with American buyers in particular for the following reasons:

? Its just a 3 hour direct flight yet property can be up to 70%

? Living costs are far lower

? Amenities and infrastructure are good

? The country is peaceful and beautiful and one of the top adventure tourism spots in the world

? Capital growth potential is fantastic those buyers who bought near the popular town of Jaco with 30,000 dollars 15 years ago are worth $750,000 today and with investment at record levels further growth is expected

? Buying is easy, with very little red tape

Consider this

The baby boomer generation are buying second and retirement homes in record numbers and low taxes, cheap properties, great growth potential and in a safe and stable environment is very appealing.

Check out overseas destinations like Costa Rica for yourself and see.

FREE REPORT

On how to invest in property and get great growth potential, as well as low risk and pay less tax visit: http://www.net-planet.org/costarica.php

Retiring Abroad The Retirement Home of Your Dreams Can Be Yours

A new phenomenon with people in Western countries shows they are now buying their second homes abroad with a view to retiring there and their gaining a massive increase in living standards

Why? Because they can retire close to home and take advantage of vastly reduced living costs and enjoying their Golden years in luxury.

What are the advantages of retiring abroad?

1. Geography

For Americans anyway, as places such Central America are close by (just a few hours from US), flights are cheap and frequent.

That means, you gain a higher standard of living than your home country, but you are still near by. It seems that for Americans, Costa Rica presents both a closeness to home and a real step up in living standards.

2. Can a Less Expensive Lifestyle Also be a Better Lifestyle?

The answer is YES! Right now, comparable homes are 70% cheaper in Costa Rica than in the US Southern states.

Retiring abroad in Costa Rica on say, a pension of $2,000 a month will bring you a relaxed and comfortable lifestyle.

In the States or Canada, such an amount would just let you barely get by.

3. The Retirement You Deserve

Having worked hard all your life, you deserve to pass your silver years in enjoyment.

Instead of crowed cities, crime, pollution and runaway inflation, living in Costa Rica can mean pristine beaches, unspoiled nature, rolling hills, rainforest and bountiful wild life.

As for the local population, they are in a country friendly and glad to have you living in their country and their are plety of foreigners just like you who have retired abroad, so you will feel at home.

This is a place where serious crime is rare; where people have time to talk and enjoy themselves. Compare this to the daily drama of any American city.

4. Can Costa Rica Provide the Same Amenities as the American Cities then?

Americans are especially surprised to find everything they had at home, and more,when they retire abroad to Costa Rica.

They have the most modern communications, unlimited entertainment, a real nightlife and shopping with the world?s top brands. If you like golf, this is a golfer?s paradise fancy some fishing its fantastic! The list is endless.

5. Retiring in Costa Rica 1.01

The main reason people are now retiring in Costa Rica (from the US, Canada and Europe) is that the economy is booming, the country is modern and safe, and the government makes it easy for foreigners to do so.

The new land investors from abroad are given the same rights to land and property as Costa Ricans themselves. Add to that the fact there is no tax on your social security and inflation is in check there.

Remember that Costa Rica is only a three hour flight from many US cities. This means you are never far from home.

With excellent communications, the latest internet technology available (at very good rates), and some of the world?s best healthcare, one has to really question the choice of remaining at home or moving to Costa Rica.

Some Food for Thought

Inflation and security in the States are making life very difficult for those of retirement age and retiring abroad is an option more and more people are looking at.

Prices of places in Florida or California have price tags that restrict the average retiree.

As for lifestyle, crime, and crowding is making retirement a nightmare instead of a well deserved rest from your toils.

Thinking about Costa Rica, you can still find a bit of paradise at a cost you can afford, where nature is at its finest, where the food, the people, the infrastructure and laws all favor the retiree, rather than making them victims, as they are becoming now in the Western world.

If you are retiring abroad consider Costa Rica it has much to offer and you will have the time of your life.

More FREE info on retiring abroad and the beneifits of invest in land and to learn more about this fabulous country see the videos on our site, read the information and even win a free holiday to see for yourself at http://www.costaricalandlots.com

Top Ten Least Afordable Places To Live

According to a new report, greater Los Angeles ranks as the least affordable metro area in the country.

In fact, the report by the California Building Industry Association found that nineteen of the top twenty least affordable metropolitan areas are located in California.

The report is sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo Bank. Called the Housing Opportunity Index, the report calculates the percentage of homes sold in an area during a three-month period that were affordable to a family earning the median income for the region.

Greater Los Angeles, which includes Long Beach and Glendale, was the least affordable area studied, with only a 1.9% affordability.

Greater Orange County was second, with every single spot in the top 10 located in California.

Metropolitan New York City was the only non-California city, ranking at number 11.

Only 57% of Californians own their own homes. The national average for home ownership is 70%.

Nationwide, the affordability index stands at 40.6%. This means that only 40.6% of households with median incomes are able to afford the median home in the area.

The top ten least affordable metro areas in the US in the second quarter of 2006 were:

Los Angeles/Long Beach/Glendale -- 1.9

Santa Ana/Anaheim/Irvine -- 3.2

Salinas -- 3.5

Merced -- 3.6

Modesto -- 4.1

San Diego/Carlsbad/San Marcos -- 4.6

Santa Cruz/Watsonville -- 4.8

Santa Barbara/Santa Maria -- 5.3

Napa -- 5.4

San Luis Obispo/Paso Robles -- 5.9

Martin Lukac represents http://www.RateEmpire.com and http://www.1AmericanFinancial.com, a finance web-company specializing in real estate and mortgage rates. We specialize in daily updates, mortgage news, rate predictions, mortgage rates and more. Find low home loan mortgage interest rates from hundreds of mortgage companies!

Purchase Property With The TwoNote Technique

The two-note technique is another of the many ways to purchase property with no money down. It not only gets you into real estate with zero down, but it can also get the seller a good chunk of cash at closing. This is especially important if he has to pay off an existing mortgage loan on the property.

First, a definition is in order. What is a note? It is the debt instrument created to finance a real estate purchase. The most common example is a mortgage note. A bank loans you the money to buy a house, and you sign a note promising to repay, and you pledge the property as collateral. Other notes include land contracts, second mortgages, and any legal document obligating someone to repay a certain amount of money under specific terms.

You may be aware that a bank often sells it's mortgage loans to large funds that invest in such notes. Maybe you have had to start making the payments on your own home loan to some other place than the original lender. What you may not have thought of, is that if you someone owes you money on a property, you can sell that debt to an investor. More importantly, if you owe a seller on a real estate purchase, he can sell that note. This is crucial to understanding the two-note technique.

A Creative Way To Purchase Property

This creative way to purchase property may initially sound more complex than it is. Read through the following example a couple times, though, and you'll understand.

Suppose a seller is asking $350,000 for a rental property. He may only expect to get $335,000 in the end, right? Let's also assume he is willing to take payments on the property (much more common with investment properties than with homes). He hopes to make 7% on his equity instead of the 4 or 5% he'll make in the bank. The problem is that he needs to get at least $60,000 out of the deal in cash, to pay closing costs and to pay off the small mortgage balance remaining.

You, on the other hand, have to buy his real estate with no money of your own. You offer him $360,000, in the form of two mortgage notes, one for $280,000, and the other for $80,000. Amortized over 30 years, with 8% interest the payments on the first would be $2,054, and $587 per month on the second. You'll have total payments of $2,641 per month (be sure you still have cash flow).

As part of your offer, you arranged for the sale of the second note at closing for $60,000. Unfortunately that's all a note investor is likely to pay for an unseasoned note. The seller gets that $60,000 at closing though, which is what he needed, and he gets 8% on the other $280,000, which is better than he expected. He effectively got $340,000 for his property, which is also more than the $335,000 he was expecting.

You now make payments to the seller of $2,054 every month for 30 years, or until the balloon is due, if the seller insisted on structuring the loan with one. The note investor gets your other payment of $587 per month. You invested none of your own money. In fact, if the seller had been willing to take $55,000 cash at closing and a note for $280,000, effectively getting him what he expected, you could keep the other $5,000 cash from the sale of the note for yourself. That might cover your closing costs, making this truly no money down.

The numbers and exact structure of the offer will be different in each deal. You might have some cash. The seller may need more cash, so the second note will have to be for a higher amount. Interest rates, balloon payments, and your credit rating all affect what a note buyer will pay for the note as well. In any case, the lesson is that you can create cash out of seller financing, meaning you can purchase property with nothing down, or with less down.

Copyright Steve Gillman. For a Free Real Estate Investing Course, visit: http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com

Earnest Money and Real Estate Transactions

First-time homebuyers and those that haven't purchased a home for many years are often surprised at how important earnest money in negotiating the purchase or sale of a home. What changed is the prices of today's homes and the old saying give us a thousand dollars and see you at closing is really outdated. Would you take a home you've been actively marketing for ninety days off market for four hundred thousand dollars, for a thousand? No, and you shouldn't. Here are the ins and outs of earnest money and a couple of related experiences.

-Earnest money deposit: The money given to the seller at the time the offer is made as a sign of the buyer?s good faith.

-Earnest money amounts vary, but here are some guidelines. 5-10% of contract price is typical. Flat amounts like $5,00 or $10,000 also work.

-Most states require that real estate brokerages now pay interest on earnest monies over a certain amount, here it's $5,000. You will have to fill out a W-9 though to receive interest. Brokers can't co-mingle earnest monies funds with their business, it needs to go into an escrow account.

-Escrow accounts. Require all deposits you make go into an escrow account. Research state brokerage laws to discover what regulations brokerages must follow with buyers funds.

-All earnest money checks should be made out to a real estate brokerage, not a person.

-Require that you receive a receipt for all earnest monies delivered to a real estate agent or brokerage. This should include a copy of the check on the brokerage letterhead and a signature of person accepting delivery, date and location check was received.

-If the earnest money system is a two-step, with an initial deposit and than a balance, make sure the second one is not delivered until after the attorney and inspection approval period have come to a successful conclusion.

-A quick closing date requires certified checks for earnest money. Many a delay in closing has occurred when buyers earnest money checks bounced. If you're closing soon, utilize certified funds.

-The buyer ripped to shreds inches from my face his earnest money check. We looked at over a hundred and fifty homes, it was grueling. I couldn't screw up, this relocating CEO was bringing another two hundred employees, and our firm would be finding them homes too. The problem was that the husband wanted traditional and the wife wanted contemporary, and eventually as their feud escalated, I counseled that it wasn't the inventory, it was their relationship that was creating the barrier to agreeing on a home. So finally he gave in and we put together an offer, including his $100.000 earnest money deposit, except he sabotaged it with an unusually low price and wouldn't move off of it. We lost the house and I met them in my office to return their check. As I was delivering the check back to him, I said that maybe they needed a fresh perspective in their home search and that I would find them a new agent. He got up and took the check and inches from my face tore it up dramatically, with the pieces falling down to the conference room table.

-The huge but lost earnest money check. I was representing young, wealthy newlyweds in the purchase of a very, very, very upper-bracket home. The husband was a principal in a investment banking firm, and audited his money market accounts hourly, 24/7. After negotiating a successful contract on their dream home, the husband delivered an earnest money check for a half-a-million-dollars. I in turn delivered it to the listing agent, as is the custom. A week went by and my banker-buyer called and said the check had not been presented against his account. I queried the whereabouts of the check with the selling agent. She said that it should go through any day, sit tight. Three weeks went by and my buyer called again, still no check had been presented. I called again, um, yes she found the check, I never new it was lost. Don't tell anyone, but my cleaning lady found it behind the sofa in my family room.

Mark Nash is the author of Fundamentals of Marketing for the Real Estate Professional, Starting & Succeeding in Real Estate, Reaching Out: The Financial Power of Niche Marketing, and 1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home. Mark is a contributing writer for: Realtor (R) Magazine Online, Broker Agent News, Real Estate Executive Magazine, Principal Broker, and Realty Times. He contributes residential real estate analysis to Business Week, CBS The Early Show, CNN, HGTVpro.com, The New York Times, and USA Today. View his books at http://www.1001RealEstateTips.com

Investment Property Overseas: It's Getting Easier to Talk Turkey

Turkey is one of the most established holiday destinations for UK holidaymakers, and with the introduction of new flights and mortgages deals it will become even easier to buy yourself a place in the sun especially for example property for sale in Alanya Turkey.

From September, specific mortgages will be available for buyers looking to invest in Turkey, making the buying process easier and more affordable, particularly for those looking for investment property overseas.

On top of this, low-cost airlines are beginning to run routes into major cities and with every passing day talks to allow Turkey to join the European Union within the next 10-15 years are progressing amid overwhelming public support.

Mediterranean coastal town of Alanya is ideally placed to take advantage of the wave of interest in Turkish property. The international airport at Antalya is just 90 minutes away by car, and tourists keep coming back to the town year after year to enjoy the warm climate, fantastic beaches in the Bay of Antalya and the fine local cuisine.

The old town of Alanya is home to the small harbour with its waterfront full of friendly bars and restaurants, as well as scattered churches, temples and towers. This display of ancient architecture should whet your appetite to visit the 14th Century citadel high above the town. Within the walls you will find mosques Byzantine churches, and narrow twisting alleyways full of colourful boutiques to tempt shoppers in.

Below the citadel are sea-caves and grottoes, including the famous Cave of Dripping Stones with its hugs stalactites and stalagmites, which lead you back towards the nightlife of the harbour. The social scene in Alanya is extremely relaxed, with laid-back bars and unhurried dining in the restaurants.

Whether you are looking for a holiday home, permanent move or and investment property, Estate Master has the property for sale in Alanya which is perfect for your needs. Not only do we have access to the latest projects and agents on the ground in Turkey, but also a wealth of experience in international property to help guide you through the buying process.

And then there are the properties themselves. With resale apartments available at around ?45,000 for a two-bedroom, centrally-located property in superb condition it is hard to look elsewhere. We also have a comprehensive range of new-build and off-plan developments, so your property needs will be completely satisfied.

Europe is growing, and Turkey will be at the forefront of bringing the eastern Mediterranean into the fold. Buy now, and as has been demonstrated in central and eastern Europe, prices will rise quickly. Therefore investment property overseas especially property for sale in Alanya Turkey is a much more realistic goal for many more people in the UK.

This article was provided by Luke Fitzsimmons on behalf of http://www.EstateMasters.co.uk an established overseas property investment agency offering Orlando Real Estate, property in Turkey, Bulgaria, Thailand, Spain, and the Caribbean.

For more information about Turkey and Alanya and to view current properties for sale in Alanya Turkey please visit, http://www.estatemasters.co.uk/pages/content/property-sale-alanya-turkey.html

California Real Estate Market Gives Mixed Messages

In April 47,250 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the state of California. That?s down from 54,500 in March which is a drop of 13.3%. April of 2005 was one of the strongest months for real estate in California?s history. What a difference a year makes. Sales were down 21% from last April. Even though sales were down, prices were not.

In April of 2006, prices were up 10.2% from the same period a year ago. The average price of a home in California now is $562,380. Nearly 85% of the cities in California have shown an increase in prices since the same period last year. Since California trends are so important to the Real Estate market, the Real Estate market there is being watched very closely.

One market that is watched closely is the luxury home market. The feeling is in a market downturn, the luxury market will be one of the first markets to suffer. So what is happening in the luxury market in California? Lets take a look at these markets in Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco.

In Los Angeles values rose 0.1 percent from the previous quarter and 12.4 percent from a year ago. In Los Angeles the average luxury home was priced at $2.29 million.

In San Diego prices rose 0.9 percent from the previous quarter and 6.8 percent from a year earlier. The average luxury home in San Diego priced at $2.1 million. San Diego as a whole has been one of the most overheated markets in California, so the fact that luxury home prices continue to hold up there may be good news for the rest of the homeowners in San Diego for now.

In San Francisco prices were up 1.6 percent from the previous quarter and up 8.6 percent from the same period of time last year. The average price of a luxury home in San Francisco is $2.92 million.

So what direction is the California Market moving? There are investors cashing in on their profits and getting out, however most homeowners are not investors. Investors poured into lower priced markets during the recent boom and areas in Florida and Arizona have many residential investors. The market has started to reflect this. In Phoenix the real estate market is pulling back due to rising inventory from investors trying to cash in, however at this point you couldn?t call this a bust. In other areas of the country prices are still inching up.

In California the market is returning to normal conditions. It will take longer to sell a home and prices may stay flat or increase slowly.

So far the signs of market stress that would indicate a bust are not there. Down payments remain stable and speculation buying is moderate. The default rates are up, however these rates are still low.

Andrew Goldman is president of Metal Rabbit media services, the operator of http://www.carealestateinvest.com and http://www.Exchangetradedfundinvesting.com He has written a number of articles on finance and investment over the last ten years.

Protect Your Investment: Real Estate Investing Secrets For A Zero Vacancy Factor

I hate empty rentals - as a landlord, as a neighbor and citizen. As a landlord, yeah I lose lots of money and time, not to mention the extra hassles.

And no matter what, empty rentals bring extra worries and headaches: vandalism, neighborhood kids, landscaping upkeep...

What most property owners don't know or understand is the concept of marketing their rentals. I try to be flexible and treat my renters as partners, because they are. If you don't have tenants, you're left with empty houses and costly real estate investments.

If the property has been vacant for only 1 month, the entire years profit from that property is affected. If it's vacant longer, well, you can do the math.

Here are some investing secrets and strategies that I use to get my units rented faster.

Give the first months rent for free. If a unit is vacant, your renter will many times be ready to move in sometime during the monthly cycle, not necessarily at the beginning of the month.

So give them the rest of the month for free as an incentive. You'd lose the rest of the month anyway if the renter doesn't move it, but now you have the place rented, and the security that (and since I only do 1 year leases) you have them for a full year - because their full paid year doesn't start until the first month they pay rent.

Reward your tenants. Yeah, we all fall for this tactic. If my tenants keep the unit in great condition, keep the landscaping up, pay on time... sometimes I pay their water bill, or give them a gift certificate for a free dinner or pizza.

It it's a multi-unit, I tell the other tenants about the reward to get the other tenants motivated.

Stage the place. No matter what kind of neighborhood, I always stage my rentals. Many people don't have the vision to see what the place will look like with furniture. Most people are driven by emotions, and if they like what they see, they go with it.

Helping them with the deposit and rental monies. It's about being flexible again, but you have to be careful of course. I meet with them first, check their background, their credit, and other factors, and sometimes I do cut them a break if I feel they need it. There are people who are trying hard to get themselves back on track. And others who aren't. So you need to decide who is up for the extra help and who it won't work with.

Provide an upgrade. Since I know my rentals, I know the things that are targeted for upgrades or replacement. Every so often, I'll take care of one of those. The tenants love it and it keeps the value of my properties up. Another win/win situation.

And last but not least, marketing, marketing and more marketing. Real estate investing is no different than other businesses. You have to keep marketing and keep your leads coming in. Expose your marketing to as many people as you can.

Send postcards in the neighborhood, even to other rental properties. Give them reasons why they should rent from me instead of where they are. Give them the benefits of living with me. I take pictures of my rentals and send them to my prospects so they can see the beautiful places I have.

You have to take care of your tenant's interest first before you own. I've learned that in life, the problems start when we take care of ourselves first before others. When you help other people and take care of their interest first, your own interests will be taken care of automatically.

Raul Luna officially became a millionaire before he turned 21! This successful speaker and educator is turning ordinary people into millionaires. Discover his secrets: http://www.moonvesting.com

Maine Real Estate

Located on the east coast of the United States, Maine is located in the New England region. The capital city of Maine is Augusta in Kennebec County. Other important cities in the state include Portland, Laval Mayenne and Vendome.

With its beautiful landscapes and abundance of open spaces, real estate has become a booming industry in the state of Maine. The state also has several vacation and recreational sites, making real estate investment a very viable solution.

The most popular urban area in the state of Maine is Portland. Owing to a booming economy, the city has a well-developed infrastructure, making it a popular destination for real estate investors. Other factors which provide an impetus to the real estate business is the metropolitan populace.

The beautiful coastline of Maine provides many great real estate options. The property rates are also affordable. Usually, properties near the coast tend to be more expensive. However, in Maine even the sea-facing properties come at an affordable cost. The average home in Portland may cost around $370,000 near the coast and approximately $100,000 in the interiors.

There are a number of factors that influence the purchase of real estate in Maine. The locality should be chosen to suit a person?s lifestyle. Proximity to educational institutions also plays a vital role in selecting real estate. Fortunately, Maine has a number of quality colleges and universities scattered all over the city. These provide quality education in a variety of faculties. Other factors include nearby medical facilities and recreational parks and gardens.

For those investing in real estate in the state for the first time, it is advisable to consult a real estate broker or consultant. These people can provide the best information about the different areas and rates, hence helping the prospective buyer to get the best value for money.

Pristine settings along with peaceful neighborhoods make Maine a desirable place for all.

Maine provides detailed information on Maine, Portland Maine, Maine Real Estate, Maine Vacations and more. Maine is affiliated with Freeport Maine Bed And Breakfast.

Oil Paintings The best Real Estate Closing Gift Idea

There are many reasons why oil paintings make great gifts. They are a timeless representation of life and are a medium that can be appreciated by everyone for their meaningful content. When it comes to finding people and occasions to give the gift of oil paintings, few occasions are better than for a house warming. A custom oil painting is a great real estate closing gift idea for a broker or even for a buyer.

How to Choose Your Painting

When choosing an oil painting as a real estate closing gift, be sure to take a number of factors into consideration. First of all, it is best to avoid an oil painting with large, obvious shapes or bright, overwhelming colors. When purchasing a custom oil painting from an artist or an art expo, choose an oil painting that has a calming effect and uses more neutral tones. This way it can be used in any room, whether it is in an office or home.

Also, choose a custom oil painting that is not too large or too small. If an oil painting is too large or too small, it will have limited potential for use in certain rooms. Keeping the painting to a medium size will give the gift receiver some flexibility and options.

Be sure to keep the subject of the custom oil painting relatively neutral, unless you are certain about the tastes and styles of the person you are purchasing it for as a real estate closing gift. Landscapes are a great choice when considering a custom oil painting as a real estate closing gift idea. A still life is also a good idea because most still-life oil paintings can be broadly appreciated by most people.

How to Find a Custom Oil Painter

A custom oil painting can be purchased outright through an artist or at an art expo. Often, people want to create a specific scene or still-life that they wish to include in the oil painting For example, many landscape oil paintings deal with woodland or beach-themed scenes. If you would like to give a custom oil painting as a real estate closing gift for a transaction in a tropical location or even a particular city, it may a good idea to contact an artist who specialized in that particular subject matter and commission a custom oil painting.

Purchasing a custom oil painting is a great real estate closing gift idea because it will be not only useful for decorative purposes, but also as a reminder of a successful business interaction and partnership. A custom oil painting can express gratitude for a job well done and does not have to be limited to being used in a certain area of a home or office or even necessarily alongside a specific d?cor. A custom oil painting is timeless.

Allan holder is the founder and owner of My Picture Painter Oil Paintings: which is a site dedicated to the revival of the lost art of portrait painting. In today's fast paced world, sitting for a portrait painting is simply not practical. We allows the user to submit a photo to our network of talented artists who will paint a personal oil painting from your photo.

A $2 Guide to Miami Real Estate Investment

What could a $2 bill get you? Big Mac, large fries and Coke. Or, perhaps a pack of Players filter cigarettes. On quick notice, not much. But an article I came across online which cost me $2 on subscription, saved me from real estate investment catastrophe I could have willingly and voluntarily willed upon myself, due to sheer ignorance and reluctance to be coached by those who have gone before me, in what everyone perceived as the only way to financial glory - Real Estate Investments.

The article was concise, it could just pass up as an ordinary high school essay, but I subscribed to it because it had on its title what I urgently needed - a guide to Miami real estate investing.

What I got was a guide, all right, but it was not written by real estate gurus, rather by someone like me who flanked even harder than I imagined to make myself.

What's $2 anyway, so I read on.

The words hit me like an upper cut with a twin jab on the torso. It still sounded like an ordinary high school essay but the tips are workable, sincere and practical. In fact, I never thought real estate investing in Miami could get THAT simple. The scholarly materials I had, suddenly paled in comparison. For one, my $2 article didn't tell me I will succeed, it simply pointed the way for me not to go bankrupt!

Here are the rules - for free:

RULE NO. 1 - Partner with a Pro.

If you have decided to build a lucrative income through Miami Real Estate investments, affiliate only with Miami's most trustworthy Real Estate Brokers. There is more than a dozen to choose from. Take your best pick based on their past experiences and level of market dominance.

Partnering with a trustworthy broker saves you years of learning the basics, and ward off errors that often come with inexperience.

RULE NO. 2 - Back off early when you are not fully ready.

Miami Real Estate investment may be fast-paced, and properties don't sleep too long, but there are occasions they could also slow down. This is the real nature of real estate investment in Miami and anywhere else. The proverbial hotcake selling isn't always easy. Real Estate is not a liquid investment. Your money could sleep a while, longer than your expectations. Without sufficient capital reserve, it is unwise to go into real estate investing.

When you have assessed your financial capacity and found out that you are not ready - step out. Knowing your limitations will save you the shirt on your back, as well as the roof over your head.

RULE NO. 3 - Master the WHAT, WHERE and HOW of Miami Real Estate

Investing.

What to buy will determine largely your failure or success in real estate investing. As a rule of thumb among successful real estate investors, the purchase of a low-cost property, made to wait for the right time to be sold for a profit, promises higher yield.

Where to look is almost as crucial as what to buy. Develop a keener sense of prospecting locations that have a good chance to appreciate in the coming years. Observe fads, as well as trends. These dictate behavioral patterns of individuals that can affect their choices of investment properties.

How to recoup investment in a shorter duration of time will determine the kind of progress you will have in real estate investing, as it will define the level of your maturity to manage investments in the long term.

Research on various trends and approaches. In Miami today, preconstruction investment has sent out a fever-pitch enthusiasm among investors looking for partially-developed or yet to be developed investments in promising locations. They make a small down payment to put a hold on that property even before construction begins. As soon as construction is completed they resell the property right away for a tidy profit.

You can develop expertise on managing preconstruction investments, or flipping real estate properties. This is where this $2 article created millionaires out of ordinary individuals.

RULE NO. 4 -- Decide where you will build expertise and focus on it.

Does lease/rent option appeal to you? Would you sell wholesale or retail?

What are your interests, educational preparation, present assets and personality profile that create a fit to available investment options. Decide on a single investment strategy, and build on it.

Don't fret if you are a newbie in real estate investments. Bigtime achievers also took the first steps you are about to take. Their success could be yours, too if you follow the four (4) simple rules outlined above. These rules were carved from the experiences of those who went ahead and succeeded.

But as experiences are comparable to fashion, don't get stuck with them for a long time. Instead, continue to observe and learn new trends. Investing in Miami Real Estate is fast-paced, the trick to keep up with it is to know where it is heading, get there before your competitors do, and cash in the advantage.

Christiene Socorro C. Villanueva

Miami Real Estate

Christiene Socorro C. Villanueva - http://www.floridarealtyfinder.com

Real Estate Lead Online Marketing Made Easy

Whether you're newly licensed, or an old real estate pro you need leads. They're not easy to come by, but are easier to get than most agents make it out to be.

For example, you can create an online newsletter, or ezine as it's called in the online community, and give it away via a FREE Subscription in exchange for a site visitor's email address. Many people are eager to do this, especially if your newsletter is perceived to be of high value and contains useful information.

2)Another real estate lead, online generating idea is to attract people to your web site by way of offering great web site content. People and search engines love quality content, and both reward you by becoming frequent visitors, and the more they visit, the more likely you are to convert at least the human visitors to paying customers.

You can educate them about consumer loans, the ins and outs of buying and selling homes, how to stage homes to sell for maximum profit, etc.

With the right marketing strategy, you can brand yourself as the expert in your community by providing buyers, sellers and others with community resources and powerful community property searches. You can easily provide your web site visitors with mortgage calculators, mortgage rates, school information and local weather.

3)Give your visitors a free ebook. People love ebooks, and easily give their email addresses and other contact information in exchange for them. If you don't have a free ebook there are lots of places on the Internet offering freebies that you can start collecting to give away.

One way to get a lot of freebies is to search the Internet and find a few websites offering a ton of giveaways in exchange for signing up for their newsletter. Many allow you to then turn around and give away the same products they give you.

4)Have a contest and give visitors a free entry into it, with the prizes being something of interest, or of value to them. Many of them will regularly revisit your web site to get the results, so be ready to capitalize on it.

5)Offer free, interactive services on your website, calculators, amortization schedules, and the like. The more engaging the services, the more popular your web site will be.

6)Start an online club, or a special membership area, and give your visitors a free membership. Everybody loves to feel special.

7)Finally be sure to have a place on your web site to capture the names and email addresses of people visiting your website. This is known as an opt in form and is key to your overall online lead generating success

Real Estate Search Engine optimization Optimized Web Site information can help you get your real estate web site indexed by search engines faster.

However, key to this is the uniqueness and quality of your content. The more original it is the better your search engine rankings will be. Well written, unique content will get you noticed by human visitors and search engine spiders alike, while poorly written content is virtually assured to get you ignored.

Human beings are curious creatures. They will keep their eyes glued to their computer monitors if you post fresh, useful news frequently. Search engines are just as curious, but are also needy in that they need to provide good information their searchers or risk losing them to another search engine. So they need you, like you need them.

Summarily, these are just a few ideas about how you can have effective real estate lead, online marketing campaign. Making them a part of your online marketing efforts now can pay dividends in the future.

Visit Real Estate Marketing Talk for more information about Real Estate Agent Web Sites.

Condo Hotels: The Math

The SEC has legitimate concerns about some condo hotel developers selling units in their projects based solely on the 'forward looking investment potential'. If developers were left unchecked, with a pile of spreadsheets touting income potential, every condo hotel unit in the country might cash flow at remarkable levels, on paper, and every small real estate investor would have a PhD in condo hotel lingo. This is the fear.

I believe we are not giving the consumer enough credit, but I understand the fear. ADR, Occupancy, RevPar, the language of the hospitality industry can appear sexy at first glance. Nightly rates, rack rates and Average Daily Rate (ADR) can vary widely. Occupancy at a hotel has so many variables. Hotel management is one part science, and one part art, but it is all business. Real estate salepeople and developers are not licensed to sell business interests and this is the crux of the dilemna.

SEC rules require that securities or business interests are sold with complete and proper disclosure, but disclosure is such a slippery slope. Afterall so many other real estate properties are sold for their investment potential, like apartment buildings and warehouses, why are condo hotels treated more conservatively?

Consumers, while on vacation, buy condo hotel, not savvy seasoned investors. Again, I think we are giving the consumer far too little credit and information.

Consumers who look to purchase a condo hotel, are told to consider it just as simple real estate. To attempt to ignore the rental income potential and make their purchase more like a second home or vacation residence. But the income potential is still a large part of the decision. When the consumer is told by the real estate sales representation that they cannot in any way discuss income or income potential, time and again the consumer feels something is being withheld. I have witnessed as the potential condo hotel buyer asks why?

The consumer deserves an open dialog about risks and rewards in condo hotel ownership. Attempts are being made to create a firewall between real estate sales and hotel rental management departments but it is still disjointed and spooks consumers trying to understand their purchase decisions.

As CPAs, financial advisors, bankers and other trusted consultants better understand this new real estate product, its potential and risks the gap in the information for the consumer can be bridged.

Bob Waun
CEO
Vacation Finance
waun@vacation-finance.com

Vacation Finance, America's First Second Home Lender is an innovator in condo hotel mortgage lending and has been a leader in educating consumers and developers in the risks and rewards of this new product. Vacation Finance also offers a full line of mortgage products for fractional, true condo hotel, non-warrantable condos, vacation land and timeshare.

Oregon Home Buying

Maybe you?re buying your first home in Oregon, or perhaps you?re relocating to Oregon from another state. Either way, it?s important that you educate yourself on Oregon home loans before shopping for a home and mortgage. This article explains what you?ll need to know before buying a home in Oregon:

The median price of a home in Oregon is $152,000, and homes in Oregon have appreciation rates higher than the national average. The rate of job growth in Oregon is among the top five states in the nation. Additionally, mortgage interest rates have recently been lower than the national average, and many Oregon residents have been refinancing their adjustable rate mortgages.

Home prices in Oregon can vary greatly between zip codes. For example, in Portland, Oregon, the median price of a home in the summer of 2005 was $262,000; however, in Beaverton, Oregon, the median price of a home was $187,000.

The Homeowner Education Collaborative of Oregon offers a training course, The ABC?s of Homebuying, to Oregon residents planning to buy a home. This course covers the basic information a homebuyer needs to know about housing decisions, financial preparation, mortgages, shopping for a home, closing your loan, and protecting your investment.

If you?re buying a home in the state of Oregon, you qualify for both federal and state FHA and VA loans. First-time home buyers qualify for Oregon FHA loans with below-market interest rates, and, depending on their income, may also qualify for down payment assistance. The Residential Loan Program offers below-market interest rates to first-time homebuyers with low to moderate incomes, and the Downpayment Assistance Program offers down payment assistance to first-time homebuyers who meet certain income requirements. The income requirements vary from county to county.

Jessica Elliott recommends that you visit Mortgage Lenders Plus.com for more information about Oregon Mortgage Rates and Loans.

14 Steps to Creating a Real Estate Business Plan You Can Use

This model of business planning and goal setting for Real Estate Professionals breaks the process down to five sections and fourteen steps.

SECTION A: The Big WHY

It is important to first look at who you really are and what your core values are. These things will drive you and carry thorough to your business.

Step 1 - What is your purpose?
Uncover your purpose, what provides the foundation of our values, vision and goals.

Step 2 - What are your values?
Know your core values which dictate what is important in both life and business: how business should be conducted, your view of humanity, and your role in society.

SECTION B: Vision - Goal Setting

This is where you take a hard look at where you are at and figure out where it is you are going in your business and in your life.

Step 3 - The Year in Review
Recognize what it is you have done this year, celebrate the accomplishments and also look at what may have stopped you short of reaching a goal.

Step 4 - Is your life in balance?
The Wheel of Life, sometimes called the Balance Wheel, will help you visualize your current situation, providing a snapshot of how you see your life today.

Step 5 - Business Review
Take a look at the results of the last 12 months. Did you reach your goals and achieve what you wanted?

Step 6 - Goal Setting
Don't hold back, dream LARGE, think BIG, aim HIGH.

Step 7 - Production Goals
Work the numbers. Create specific number goals for the next one to five years.

SECTION C: Creating an Action Plan to Achieve Your Goals

All Real Estate Professionals know they need a Business Plan. By following these steps you will create a plan that will help you hit your business goals.

Step 8 - Define Your Niche and Value Proposition
Become a specialist and build perceived value. Know your true value and learn to articulate your value proposition to your clients.

Step 9 - Lead Generation/Marketing Plan
Recognize what specific changes to your current plans are necessary to make in order to reach your goals.

Step 10 - Define Your Team Organizational Structure
Understand the organizational structure of your team.

Step 11 - Development Plan
Capture all of those things you have wanted to research, create, do, perfect, delegate and implement in your business.

Step 12 - Budgeting
Review your expenses for the current year and include any new marketing and development changes.

Step 13 - Production Plan
Create and monitor goals on a monthly basis in order to hit your production goals for the upcoming year.

SECTION D: Achieving Your Goals: How do I get there from here?

By breaking your large goals into smaller steps you will always know what you need to do next in order to keep working toward hitting your business and personal goals.

Step 14 - Creating a Master Project List
Change your goals into projects to actively work on over the next twelve months, and from this create a Master Project List.

Real Estate and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Real Estate Professionals to help them become more successful in business and in life. Coach Cheri is also the creator of the highly sought-after Five Year Business and Life Planning Guide for Real Estate Professionals. Learn more about this and Coach Cheri's other products and services at http://www.NextLevelServices.net

Virginia Home Buying

Maybe you?re buying your first home in Virginia, or perhaps you?re relocating to Virginia from another state. Either way, it?s important that you educate yourself on Virginia home loans before shopping for a home and mortgage. This article explains what you?ll need to know before buying a home in Virginia:

The median price of a home in Virginia is $125,400, and, recently, homes in Virginia have been appreciating at rates well above the national average. However, the rate of job growth in Virginia is below the national average. Additionally, income levels in many parts of Virginia are too low to purchase a median-priced home with a conventional loan.

Average interest rates on mortgages in Virginia are just slightly higher than the national average interest rate. Home prices in Virginia can vary greatly between zip codes. For example, in the summer of 2005, the median price of a home in Richmond, Virginia, was $335,000; however, the median price of a home in Roanoke, Virginia, was $220,000.

Virginia state law prohibits the issuance of high-cost closed-end fixed-rate second loans. Additionally, Virginia law does not require lenders to issue borrowers a written lock-in agreement. This means that stated interest rates and loan terms issued at the time of mortgage application are not set for any fixed period of time.

The Virginia Housing Fund has programs that stimulate homeownership for low-income, minority, immigrant, and disabled consumers. These programs are available to individuals and families with incomes at or below 50-60% of median household incomes and cannot qualify for financing with a conventional mortgage.

Jessica Elliott recommends that you visit Mortgage Lenders Plus.com for more information about Virginia Mortgage Rates and Loans.

Realty Agents and Clients:Fine Line of Personal Familiarity

Working with home buyers and sellers in the sale or purchase of their home, falls on the personal side of their life. But maintaining a professional perspective on all the information that we know about the private side of their lives, can make it difficult when working with them or after you have closed a transaction, on how to respond to direct or indirect information concerning them. What to do, especially when some clients are referred by other clients of yours who might have a more intimate or familiar relationship with them and information comes to you second-hand related to important life changes about your clients.

With today's melting pot of ethnic, racial and religious origins, blended and multi-generational families and an outwardly more open society, it pays to be extra careful when responding to client news of an personal nature. Before setting out to write this article I talked to many of my past and current clients to hear what they say on this important topic that can easily derail business relationships. Here are some guidelines on how to cope with and respond to touchy or tricky situations with clients.

-Client. A customer whom we have served in our real estate business.

-Acquaintance. One who is familiar to an agent.

-Friend. A trusted, ally and supporter of an agent.

-Weddings. Don't call and ask why you weren't invited. Due to customs or finances you weren't. Send a card (no gifts, unless you receive a personal announcement but not an invitation in the mail) after seeing an announcement in the newspaper.

-Deaths. Send a card after seeing a public death notice. If the notice contains wishes of the family, follow them. Don't call for details or ask heirs about timelines for selling the deceased's home, it's a difficult time.

-Divorce. It's not a fact until you her it from one of the principals. Don't discuss details if you know them with anyone. Don't be surprised if you don't get the listing, sometimes one of the parties wants to use someone that doesn't know them.

-Affairs, flings and general gossip. You sell residential real estate, not super market tabloids.

-Births. Send a card after seeing a public announcement. Send gifts only if you receive a personal announcement from the parents. Don't go overboard on gifts.

-Miscarriages. Don't touch it, unless your client brings it up. And still think long and hard about what you say.

-Substance abuse. Again, it's not a fact until you her it from the principals. Many people are very private about this issue, tread carefully.

-Criminal charges. Everything is an allegation until a conviction is handed down.

-Bankruptcy. Money is a major topic that people avoid, especially if it is embarrassing. Have a mortgage lender review with clients personal information of this type.

-Same-gender sexual identification. Principals and their families appreciate deferring to them on the dissemination of true and accurate information relating to this topic.

-Membership in organizations. Just because you see Marion or Mack at Weight Watchers or Al-Non doesn't mean anyone else needs to know. outside of these meetings, don't bring up your common membership in social situations unless your client does first.

-Illness. Alzheimers, cancer, and Attention Deficit Disorder are very personal matters, don't pry or patronize. People approach these situations differently, take your lead from those directly affected.

-Graduations. Unless invited to a celebration or the ceremony, a card is enough.

-Holidays. Factor in religious beliefs and customs, remember some couples have different religious backgrounds or don't celebrate or enjoy holidays.

Mark Nash is the author of Fundamentals of Marketing for the Real Estate Professional, Starting & Succeeding in Real Estate, Reaching Out: The Financial Power of Niche Marketing, and 1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home. Mark is a contributing writer for: Realtor (R) Magazine Online, Broker Agent News, Real Estate Executive Magazine, Principal Broker, and Realty Times. He contributes residential real estate analysis to Business Week, CBS The Early Show, CNN, HGTVpro.com, The New York Times, and USA Today. View his books at http://www.1001RealEstateTips.com

Sicily Italy: Choosing the Right Location to Buy your Second Home

You may have made the definite decision to buy a second home abroad and you may have made the decision on what country. If you have chosen Italy and selected Sicily, then you still need to carefully consider where in Sicily you will buy. Living in a rural area and finding yourself bored senseless, or finding yourself in a busy, slightly wild city such as Palermo may equally be incorrect for your needs. So where in Sicily should you buy real estate or property. Where is the ideal place to buy a villa or apartment?

There are several factors you might want to consider when choosing a location especially:
- Your reason for buying (i.e. investment or for personal use)
- What transportation you will have at your disposal. Getting to and from your country of residence to the holiday/investment home
- Your hobbies/interest
- Language

YOUR REASON FOR BUYING YOUR VILLA/HOME
In Sicily, you may be buying real estate as an investment opportunity or you may be buying as a holiday home. If buying as an investment opportunity, both rental opportunities and capital growth will likely be of concern to you. An area such as the stunning seaside town of Taormina, despite being expensive, can offer a very reasonable yield on a 1 or 2 bedroom apartment. For investment parts of Catania might also be worth considering. If buying for a holiday home then the ideas below wil become more important.

TRANSPORTATION
Getting from your country of residence to the door of your property is a very important consideration. You may have do a trip to your property for some unexpected reason, in addition to the regular trips to sort out the buying process and for visiting your property. Public transportation is not the best in Sicily hence this is an important consideration. The main airports into Sicily are Catania and Palermo airports and car hire is reasonably easy to sort out in these airports. Consider though that the Italian and even more so, the Sicilian way of driving can be very stressful for someone not used to it. To get to Sicily with your own car can be difficult thus buying with reach of Catania or Palermo may be worth considering.

YOUR HOBBIES AND INTERESTS
If you are planning to spend time in your Sicily property yourself, think carefully about how your own interests and hobbies match the place you buy. If you enjoy beach life, eating fresh sea-food every night and also having enough to do in the evenings i.e. theatre, then consider a main city such as Catania. If you enjoy tranquillity and wish to write or paint but still enjoy the sea life, then maybe somewhere such as Messina or Noto. Do your research carefully.

LANGUAGE
In terms of language, Sicily I think it fair to say, is further behind compared to many other places in Europe. People tend NOT to speak English and if they do it will be in the main cities. If moving and buying an apartment, villa or casa in rural Sicily, ENSURE you learn Italian.

http://www.investsicily.com

What Are The Benefits Of Hiring A Commercial Real Estate Broker?

A commercial real estate broker is a person who acts as a link between a buyers and a sellers real estate. This relationship is one of fiduciary responsibility, meaning that it is a relationship based on trust.

The person appointed as the broker, has the responsibility of ensuring that his salespeople handle the transactions according to law. The sales people are known as real estate agents and their responsibilities include representing the seller or the buyer in the transactions and making sure that they get the best possible treatment. The agent representing the seller ensures that the seller receives the highest possible price for the property they are selling, while the agent of the buyer will negotiate for the lowest possible price. The buyer's agent will also try to find properties in the best structural shape that fits within their estimated price range.

In many places, such as the United States, it is mandatory for the broker to have a license to negotiate the sale and purchase of property. The broker can act as either the proprietor of a company or as an agent for another company. There are various ways to get the certification as a broker. One way is by going to school and passing a state test. Another way is to hold a position that automatically allows you to apply for and receive the certification, such being an attorney.

Following 1992, there were brokers from Florida and Colorado that recommended that the professional relationship between the agent and the client should be broken. Instead, they felt that the dealings between the two should be strictly limited to the actual sale and purchase of real estate, without taking the personal interest of the client into consideration. In Florida, the Broward Board of Realtors went so far as suggesting that the brokers and agents merely help the selling and purchasing parties with finalizing the sale, without the bond of trust. The only requirement being that they adhere to both legal and moral standards.

The result was that in 2003, Florida amended the law and made all real estate licensees have only a transaction relationship unless there is only one person acting as the representative for both parties. This will not apply if there is a business link between the two parties.

The change in the law also made it mandatory that the aspects of the transactions be made in writing and removed the dual and sub agency designations. A dual agency results when a broker handles the transactions of both the purchasing and the selling parties. Both parties would have agreed to this arrangement in writing. The sub agency agreement meant that two agents from the same brokerage would represent the selling and purchasing parties. Like a dual agency transaction, it would have to be agreed upon in writing by both parties to the transaction.

Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Florida. Find more about this as well as commercial real estate loans at http://www.commercial-loans-now.com

Why Do Successful Realtors Earn Money When They Sleep?

With the Internet penetrating every aspect of our life, it?s getting impossible to stay uninvolved. You can?t ignore the World Wide Web with its millions of users, or else it will ignore you. If you deal with vacation rentals business, but you haven't yet gone online, you are missing an opportunity to vastly increase your exposure to potential customers and increase your revenue.

?I wish I could work 24 hours a day as my web site does?, - said one of my friends. And here it is, the main secret of online presence: You can be in many right places at many right times. In fact, the time and place are always right on the Internet. Discover other secrets:

Full automation of your business
If your business is online, you can earn money round the clock. The property management software, which your rental portal is based on, automates guest-owner negotiations, accepts payments, tracks the statistics, shows property photos, and displays the available/ reserved dates for a property. The best thing about it is that it requires no involvement from your side.

Money Flow
You may charge property owners for being listed on your rental portal. This is more convenient than taking commission on every rent. A regular, stable income is better than one time commission ?jackpots? from rents; at least if you intend to be in the business for a long time. Still, no involvement from your side is needed. Owners can simply pay the membership fee via a built-in credit card processor. You may clean your teeth, sleep, eat, do whatever you want to do; the Internet means that you can accept payments from eager property owners to your online account at any time.

Word-of-mouth advertising
Those who offer rental property via your web site and see good results are likely to recommend you to their colleagues. Thus, more and more owners will want to be listed on your web site. The more owners you have, the more money you earn.

Likewise, those who rented a property via your web site and liked the ease and availability of the online service are likely to recommend you to their relatives or friends. Bringing them to your web site is better than to just giving your phone number. Via phone, you can not show property photos and very often can not check immediately the availability of the property within the specified period of time.

Affordability
To market your properties online you do not have to invest a lot of funds. You may purchase a turn-key solution and install it in a few clicks. It costs from $200 to $400 depending on the features. Other expenses you will have are customization costs (if needed), hosting fee, and advertising. But the online world charges for all this much less than an offline one does. All this can be done from your home computer, isn?t it a real honey?

Quick return on investment
The beauty of taking your business online is the speed you start returning your investment with. Most online realtors state that to become conspicuous in an Internet media is easier and quicker than in other media. Indeed, you may promote your rental web site all over the world. Anyone from any location can access your web site 24 hours a day. More visitors result in more customers. Would you mind being globally known?

Dear realtors, I urge you to take your business online. Do not lose precious time.

Stacey Daniels is an advertising copyrighter and a marketing consultant of iStateSoft LLC

Understanding Seller Pricing In Real Estate

Many homebuyers make the mistake of assuming the price listed with a home is somehow related to the actual value. In fact, the price often is not.

What is the fair price of a home? Many would argue the fair price is the one agreed upon between a buyer and seller when negotiations conclude in the offer and counteroffer process. While this is certainly one approach to the situation, many buyers make the mistake of assuming the listing price on a home has some inherent relationship to the appraised price. This is sometime incorrect because of issues involving the seller.

Obviously, the first issue to consider with pricing is the natural tendency of the seller to try to get as much as possible for the property. In practical terms, this means the property will almost always be priced above what the market will support. It may be just above or well above, but it will definitely be above. The only exception to this situation is if the seller is motivated to sell fast for some reason such as divorce. In said situations, the seller may price the property at or below what the market will support.

A less obvious motivation for overpricing a property boils down to simple financial numbers. If you own a home, you are bombarded with offers for home equity credit lines. The credit line is essentially a way of liquefying the equity in a property. Many people use these lines to pay a wide variety of bills. When it comes time to sell the property, however, they suddenly realize their profit from it is going to be very small. In such a situation, the natural reaction of the seller is to ask for price at the high end of the local market. In such a situation, the seller is unlikely to be amenable to negotiating down the price because they simply cannot.

When looking at homes it is important to understand the motivation of the seller when setting the asking price. Doing so allows you to determine if the price is negotiable or the seller is stuck.

Raynor James is with the site - FSBO America - FSBO homes for sale by owner.

5 Tips To Buy Cheap Seized Homes From Government Auctions

One way on how people can get their dream home, or an ideal home is by checking out the latest government auctions for confiscated, sequestered or seized homes.

Through the activity, governments are able to convert to cash the asset or property they have acquired legally. Many people are interested and excited about buying homes during such transactions because they find these homes priced practically.

It also follows that the homes auctioned by the government are quality houses whose values are definitely at premium or more than the tag prices attached to them through the auction process.

Here are some useful tips that could help you buy the perfect home during government auctions for seized houses.

1. Seek the advise of experts. In this case, brokers or home agents will be the principal people you should deal with. The setback would be, that you have to pay them commission, making the acquisition price seem more.

2. If you do not want to seek the help of agents or brokers or you simply do not want to pay commissions, rely on yourself and follow your instincts. Buying such houses would definitely not fall different from buying commodities or things at shops and department stores.

3. Inspect the overall features of the house and find all the obvious flaws and ruins. That would make for significant discounts. Also consider the location of the house. If the location is easily accessible, then higher pricing is justified. Otherwise, haggle and point out the location factor.

4. As much as possible stick to practical prices. Some government auctions are like bidding when the highest bidder gets the prize. Since the times are hard, those days are almost not happening anymore.

5. Arrange for payments, whether it be in cash, in cheques, or in installment terms. Remember, you are dealing with the government, so expect the legalities and documentary aspects of the transaction to be really meticulous and tedious.

Buying homes during government auctions would not be a hard task, if you would only open up your mind and maintain focus. The name of the game is always focus, so do not lose it when you see your dream house. Keep your eyes on the house, and the tag price as well, and you would not go astray.

For listings of cheap seized homes, please visit http://www.real-estate-foreclosed-home.info/

1031 Exchange ? The Most Common Mistakes!

A property transaction related to a 1031 exchange into a Tenant in Common property could have a great impact on the financial stability of a person. Any mistake or a wrong decision in regards to a 1031 exchange can put you in deep trouble, besides unexpected financial liabilities.

It is often seen that most people interested for a 1031 exchange into a Tenant in Common property commit certain basic mistakes that jeopardize the whole transaction or results in a complicated legal situation leading to the client paying a huge tax or penalty amount.

Before I tell you about these common mistakes, let me first explain in brief what is 1031 exchange and how it helps.

Section 1031 of the IRC gives a chance to real estate buyers to defer the capital gain taxes that they incur by selling a property. It states, a real property owner can sell his property and then reinvest the proceeds to purchase of like-kind property and defer the capital gain taxes. Like-kind exchange is considered as one of the best-kept secrets of the Internal Revenue Code and very few CPAs, lawyers and financial advisors have proper knowledge about this.

By doing a 1031 exchange into a Tenants in Common (TIC) property, you can become a part owner of a large commercial property managed by professionals, who pay you a monthly income for the property. This is favorable for most people because it has got fewer strings attached compared to private annuity trusts, charitable trusts etc.

There are 3 Major mistakes that are generally committed by people going for a 1031 exchange into a Tenant in Common property.

a) Ensure that your investment company has their act together. Ask them for their history in TIC offerings, check referrals for satisfied clients. A good and experienced investment company should be able to provide you with multiple references of satisfied clients. Also check the properties available with them, a good investment property would only pick the best properties ? good real estate properties are hard to find and sells fast. While mediocre or small investment companies will deal with B grade or less desirable properties, the good investment firms will have only the best properties on offer.

If you are planning to do it privately, be cautious about getting into a Limited Partnership where only one or two members make all the decisions. Another alternative to could be to get a group of friends together and do it all by yourself, however, that is feasible only if you have extensive experience with commercial property and property management.

b) Choose a well-experienced qualified intermediary. A qualified intermediary is extremely instrumental in the successful completion of a 1031 exchange for Tenants in common property. They need to be well conversant with 1031 exchange rules. They ensure that all documentation and money transfer meets the guidelines set for the by section 1031 of the IRS.

Your Accommodators will set up your LLC. It is suggested that you should not work with an accommodator with whom you have an existing relationship. Your family attorney or estate planning attorney may not qualify as your accommodator. A small mistake here can lead to a hefty bill for taxes or penalties by the IRS, or even worse, the whole transaction might fail due to the incompetence of your accommodator or qualified intermediary.

c) Don?t try to cut corners on your property management company. This is extremely important for profitable performance of your investment. You will have to depend on your property management company for the day-to-day problems that will arise; they will be responsible for paying your property taxes in time and maintaining your building. Your property management company should be able to offer you a long term Triple Net Lease that has detailing of your annual income percentage along with scheduled increase. Only reputable management companies would be in a position to offer this. It is worth spending on a good property management company as you get a much higher return on your investment with them compared to any startup. Let your management company have a small profit because their performance is directly related to your investment stability and is going to get you multiples of that amount.

If you are hiring an experienced property management firm it is always a win-win situation of both the parties and you are sure to make the best out of your investment.

Avoid these common mistakes while planning your investment for 1031 exchange into Tenant in Common properties and you can ensure a continuous flow of monthly income while your investment experience a steady growth.

This article is written by Ray Smith, a marketing expert with years of experience in different industries and specialized knowledge on branding and Internet marketing. 1031 exchange rules

First Time Home Buyers

Are you itching to experience the feeling of having a home that you can call your own? You can do it. With a little help from the experts, you can achieve complete independence by owning a home ? one that you would have sole responsibility for. This would be a far cry from the one that you grew up in. There would be no rules in this one ? just your own.

Are you a first-time home buyer?

Technically speaking, first-time homebuyers are those who have not had any kind of ownership in a home for three years. So, generally, if you have had an ownership interest in a home more than three years ago, then you could be considered as a first-time homebuyer again.

Now you?re looking for a home. Where do you start?

The two things that a first-time home buyer such as yourself should do is to (a) try to understand more about the home buying process and its technicalities, and (b) find out which financial resources are best for your particular situation (unless you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, in which case you certainly would not need a loan from the bank).

Knowledge for and about first-time home buyers has been scattered throughout the internet so as to provide people like you with insight and basic knowledge as to what they need to do and expect with regard to buying a home.

There are several first-time homebuyer programs that are designed to help people like you find a home that suits your needs and your finances.

First Time Home Buyer provides detailed information on First Time Home Buyers, First Time Home Buyer Programs, First Time Home Buyer Grants, First Time Home Buyer Loans and more. First Time Home Buyer is affiliated with Home Owner Insurance Rates.