Top Ten Reasons The Bad Economy Is Good

I like to stay productive by listening to podcasts in my downtime, and I just listened to a great episode of the Real Estate Guys Radio podcast. If you are not familiar with these guys, I highly recommend their show for picking up some very current real estate investing tips. I want to share this last one with you…

The episode is called “The Top Ten Reasons to be Glad the Economy Sucks” so you know I loved it! Russell Greg and Bob Helms are the co-hosts of the show, and here is what they had to say about our sucky economy:

1. Great Real Estate is on Sale
Home prices are cyclical, and right now we’re in the trough. Properties are really priced well today, and it’s a great time to start buying. It is so much easier to find a great deal these days than it was in the past. A significant portion of the downside risk is now gone; there is a long term need for real estate, so if you’re smart about it, great real estate is now on sale.

2. Interest Rates are Great
It’s hard to find a period of time in our lifetime when interest rates were as low as they are now. A lot of people are saying that interest rates are going to start edging up in the near future, so it would be smart to buy now. It’s easier to cash flow in a market like this with lower interest rates, so take advantage of the great rates while they last!

3. It’s a Great Time to Become a Private Investor
There are great opportunities today for you to lend money, not borrow it. People have a need to borrow and can’t go to conventional sources as liberally as they used to be able to. People who can’t fit into these new strict lending criteria will be willing to pay a premium over the going rate. This could be a very good time to come in as a private lender and get a 7-8% (or even MUCH more) yield on your money, backed up by real estate.

4. Now is a Great Time to Get a Contractor
Due to fewer construction projects out there, contractors are more likely to call you back and show up on time these days. If you don’t have the capital to purchase more property, now is a great time to fix up the properties you do have; you can then raise the rent and get better tenants.

5. Title, Escrow, and Real Estate Companies Need Your Business
Everybody in this particular sector is looking for work, so you’ll be able to move quickly, get things done, and get great productivity out of your team without having to pay top dollar.

6. Affordability
In the past, less than 20% of people who live in the United States could afford to purchase a home. Affordability is defined as someone making a median income being able to put 30% of their total household income toward their total housing expenses, when purchasing a home at the median price range. This number varies from area to area, but a recent study says that over 60% of all houses sold in the last few months of 2008 were considered affordable, up from 46.6% at the end of 2007.

7. New Housing Starts are at an All Time Low
This is a good thing because of supply and demand – if you have less inventory coming into the marketplace to compete with the current supply, the existing inventory will become more valuable. Last year, the annualized pace of new home starts was the lowest since 1963. Builders need to get rid of the inventory they’re sitting on, so this is a great time to start buying as long as the properties cash flow while you’re holding them.

8. The Repeal of the Four Property Limit
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have repealed their four-property limit per person and will no longer refuse to finance investor mortgages where the borrower already owns four investment properties with mortgages. This means that successful, savvy investors can again have more than four properties with mortgages.

9. It’s a Great Time to Buy a Car
Well, the podcast wasn’t all about real estate. Those guys know how to spot any good bargain! And they made a good point: if you’re a buyer today, sellers are willing to deal, especially if you have cash. Cash is king! It’s also a great time to buy furnishings for rentals, which will then generally rent for more and to a better tenant. Everything is on sale these days.

10. Can Get Loans Modified Like Never Before
These days, you can get your loans modified much easier than in the past, whether it be because you’re having a hard time paying the bills, you lost your job, or for any number of reasons. It’s more likely that they’ll work with you and help you figure something out, while it would have been unthinkable two years ago. Getting people current with their mortgages is probably the most important thing that can happen to bring confidence back to the marketplace and help get the economy stabilized.

This podcast was almost an hour long, so the Real Estate Guys covered a ton more information than what I could give you here. I think it would really benefit you to listen to it for yourself, so go check it out at www.RealEstateGuysRadio.com!

A Little Bit Of Knowledge Can Be Dangerous!

So many people are scared of what is going on in our economy because of what they are told by others. Yet, they really don’t understand what is making our economy tick. I recently received an ‘economic update’ from my financial advisor and it raised some very interesting information. I completely understand that some people are knowledge junkies, and others only care about the end result. I also understand that people have different learning styles, and grasp information to different extents and levels of clarity. I’ve taken much of the information that I just received from my advisor and tried to clarify/simplify why the fears and panic of many people today are unfounded. Furthermore, there is much hope coming our way very soon.

Many people compare our current economic condition to the Great Depression. However the early 1930’s was very different (in many ways). Almost 10,000 U.S. banks went bankrupt and the unemployment rate surpassed 25%. The supply of money decreased by 30% and so the entire economy actually decreased in it’s total size.

Our current situation is different in many ways. The unemployment rate is only 6.5%, the entire economy only declined by less than 0.5% in 2008, the supply of money is still increasing, and there are many new insurance programs to protect depositors’ funds.

Now, there have also been comparisons between our current economic situation to those of Japan. Japan is now fighting their 5th recession in 15 years. Many have said that our economic situation is not unlike Japan at the moment. The current economic crisis is similar in some ways to what Japan experienced in the early 1990’s, however the (government) policy response is very different.

After the 1989 Japanese equity market crash, the Bank of Japan continued to raise rates. It actually took over 5 years for the government there to cut rates to 1%. The U.S. Federal Reserve board cut rates immediately (here) when it realized that the markets were in trouble.

It took Japan over 6 years to launch their economic bailout, while ours is already being implemented, along with many other policy tools that were not available to the bank of Japan.

Conclusion 1: Nobody can deny that we are amid a difficult economic slowdown, but it certainly is not another great depression. Thanks to the many policies and initiatives launched by our government, we are not heading for the same troubles seen in Japan. The global economic recession is already 12 months old. It appears to the experts that we will remain in tough times for the first 6 months of 2009. However, current and future stimulus activity will provide for an economic recovery, which is likely to show signs of turnaround in the second half of 2009, with solid economic performance in 2010.

Conclusion 2: Many people live in fear because of what they hear in the media, while others chase ‘get-rich-quick’ schemes, or do what everybody else appears to be doing (eg. stop spending and hold on to every penny they have). In the great gold rush, the majority rushed out with shovels to dig for their own gold, hoping (either out of panic for recovery and/or sheer greed) to strike it rich with their own found gold. The people who made fortunes during that time (without having specialized knowledge, skills, or panic) were not the people who were lucky enough to dig in the right place and strike gold (which by the way were few and far between). They were the people selling the millions of shovels.

Summary: Last year many investors asked me about investing in real estate in regions like south Florida. When I told them they could acquire properties at $0.40 cents on the dollar, they hesitated. They were always worried that if they waited longer, they could still get a better deal, and knowing that they could have got a better deal would bother them.

Now, with all indications that the market is close to the bottom (in many areas), people still seem afraid to invest their money until the majority of other people (and the media) say that the troubles are all over and it’s okay to part with your money. Fact is, by the time that happens, the prices are already going up. That (the price increases) is obviously one of the justifications that the media would have for releasing such a statement.

Where are the people now who fear that if they wait to long to start investing, they might pay more for a property, than if they bought sooner, while the prices were at an all-time low? That time is now folks! There is a very popular saying that all of the professional real estate investors say: “You make money in real estate when you BUY … not when you SELL”. When you buy, you negotiate the best price, and that determines how much room you have for capital appreciation.

Buying investment properties now is like stocking up on your shovels. When the country starts buying real estate and renting places to live, you want to have the inventory and meet their demand. Don’t forget – demand is what drives up prices (profits)!

Ready ... Set ... ACTION !!!

The economy is awful, job losses are at historic levels, and there is a huge opportunity to make money from this mess.

Albert Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

The truth is that knowing more information is helpful, but NOT sufficient.
The lie is that knowing more is sufficient to succeed.

The truth is that the people who succeed in real estate investing are not necessarily the smartest or the most knowledgeable.

The people that succeed are those who go out and 'do' something. The ones that go out and DO all the things that have to be done (and have been proven by other successful investors) to succeed.

You’ve heard it before – they take ACTION!

Fear is the most powerful emotion and it controls every single one of us. But you must consider the facts.
You can always get advice (free or paid) from experts who have the answers that you don’t have, when it comes to analyzing or acquiring an investment property. But you can’t go out and get ACTION. You must do that yourself.

You can’t steal second base, while keeping your foot on first base!

Lately I have been emailing my database of buyers, with phenomenal investment opportunities. They offer more ROI and less risk than anywhere else in the country at the moment. I take away the work of finding the deals, and I analyze the deal for them. I'm more than happy to answer any and all questions they may have.
These deals are also affordable by most people. Yet, they (investors) inevitably seem to take forever to make a decision.

When I offer a property to my private database, of course I remind them what a good deal it is.
Those who know me by now, would agree that I don't just hype every possible property that becomes available, by using fancy marketing words - I leave that to the scam artists.

There is an abundance of properties and deals out there right now, but I ONLY pick the very best deals of the crop.
After all - who wants to take chances and risks on volume deals, when there are specific deals available that have less risk and more upside (R.O.I.) than we'll ever see again in our lifetime.

Because real estate investing is a business, and because professional investors analyze deals based on numbers and facts ... not emotions .... if the deal really is a good deal …. then it stands to reason that it will get snapped up very quickly.
I understand investors struggling with the emotions and fears of taking the first step … and I respect their feelings. I was there myself when I started. But what I said in the previous line is undeniably true - you are not buying a home to live in. You are buying an investment - and investing is a business, so all that matters are numbers and facts.

Here is how my deals pan out (lately) when I offer them to my personal database of investors. Those who immediately analyze the numbers and spend a short period of time doing their due diligence, snap up the properties within hours to days of me notifying them. That is not because I’m a good salesman or I offer a lot of fluff. It is simply because the numbers and facts speak for themselves.

NOTE: I'm not 'selling' these properties myself (they are not mine). I am putting the investor in touch with the seller, so I have nothing to gain from lying or deceiving.

When the deal is a GOOD deal, someone will grab it quickly. Then there are the those people (and I hope you benefit from this email) who worry about everything that could possibly go wrong and take their time wondering what they don’t know.

First of all, nobody knows everything. Information is always available. You don’t know everything about accounting, but you hire an accountant. You don’t know everything about the law, but you use a lawyer when you need one. But the old saying is true – you snooze, you lose!

For that matter, consider the following - if any deal was still available after 4 weeks of me telling you about it, (or many weeks after you found it somewhere online) and after many weeks of you over-analyzing, then there probably would be something wrong with that deal (otherwise a savvy investor would have grabbed it much sooner) - right?

I'm not suggesting that you just act quickly out of fear of losing a deal, and risk making mistakes. But when deals come up, they usually only last days ... if that long (if it is truly a good deal). And by a good deal I mean highly profitable, and low risk. So if you want to get into this business and make a lot of money, but you feel that you can never get all of the pieces to fit together for you, before someone else snags the deal, then you should make sure your buying criteria, your expectations, your pre-approval for financing, your comfort level, and all of your concerns are addressed beforehand. That way you'll know when a deal comes up if it's right for you or not, and the only thing you’ll have to do is run the numbers to see if it works or not.

If you want more information on getting yourself prepared to make that investment or identify your comfort zone and what you are looking for, just let me know – I’m happy to help!

Tel: (905) 364-5250
Toll Free: (866) 966-0516

Get Off Your Assets!

There is a book out called “Stop Sitting on Your Assets: How to Safely Leverage the Equity Trapped in Your Home and Transform It Into a Constant Flow of Wealth and Security” (Hardcover) by Marian Snow.

I don’t necessarily recommend everything in the book for everybody out there with a home, but the title caught my eye.

It really got me thinking about how many people dream about making big money in real estate, but think they can’t b/c they don’t have cash. We live in a world of fear, distrust, and worst of all, a follow the herd mentality. From this recession, will come more self made millionaires, who started with very little, than from any other era or world situation in our lifetime. And it is not necessarily the rich who get richer – it is the people who seek advice and expertise, and think out of the box.

There are many people who don’t have cash in the bank to simply pay up front for an investment property, but they are sitting on tons of equity that they can leverage.

To raise a point that Robert Kiyosaki talked about in his book “Rich Dad..Poor Dad” - there is good debt and there is bad debt.

Bad debt is when you borrow money to buy thing that lose money, don't go up in value, or cost you to keep.

Good debt is borrowing/leveraging money to by an asset that increases in value and/or provides cash-flow for you. In my case, we help find investors find properties that will provide both (cash-flow and appreciation in value).

Last year (2008) we had investors refinance their home, buy a U.S. property with the cash, and the cash-flow from the investment property, not only covers ALL expenses to carry that property, but it also covers their increased mortgage payments (if their payment has in fact increased) ... AND it provides extra cash-flow/profit for them to save/spend/invest. While the cash-flow from the property covers all costs and pays the debt-service, the capital value of the house has ALSO gone up 10% in one year. Some investors have realized over 150% ROI last year.

If you want more details on how you can do this, (find additional monthly cash-flow), own an asset that goes up in value, and pay off your debt, then give us a call:

Tel: (905) 364-5250
Toll Free Tel: (866) 966-0516

Why Some Succeed And Others Fail

As I have personally attended and taught several real estate investing courses, I have always been intrigued about why some students succeed tremendously, while others fail miserably - all given the same information and education.

There are MANY differences between each person, but when we develop patterns (find common denominators that are present in one group, and not present in the other group), we can determine certain practices, beliefs, and methods that are sure to lead you down the same path (success or failure) as the others in the study group.

There is one blatantly obvious characteristic that is present in every success story, and non-existent in every failure story. You've probably heard it before, but it here it is. You MUST take ACTION!

It is amazing how many people think action is 'over' analyzing data out of fear. Of course fear exists, but those who don't want to take action use "not enough time to analyze" as an excuse. There are tons of fellow investors out there who are not afraid to take action.

When you buy a home to live in, that is an emotional decision. As an investor, every decision must be based on the numbers and the facts (with no emotion). Bottom line - either the numbers work or they don't. Numbers don't lie. But those who are afraid to take action typically continue to analyze the numbers as if they are trying to find a problem with the deal.

Guess what folks! If the numbers do in fact work, and numbers don't lie, then if you don't grab the deal ... another investor will.

You can take as many courses and read as many books as you would like. Information alone will not make you a penny. Acting on your information is where the money is at. Of course that sound easy to say but not easy to do (if you are a beginner), but there are always other 'mentors' out there who would be happy to help you analyze a deal to see if the numbers work.

One word of advice that I pass down to many of my students is to ACT on the information. Here is how I like to consider the word ACT as an acronym:

Action

Compensates

Tremendously

To your success ......

7 Real Estate Success tips for 2009

I recently received some advice via email from my friend Doug at MyHouseDeals.com.

The advice was so valuable, and because I not only endorse his comments, but have enjoyed much success due to some of the ideas he recommends in his email, that I thought I would share it with you.

Bottom line - it’s time to make a plan for 2009.

Tip #1: Create a Game Plan – Know what you want, and outline the steps that you must take to get there. Who will be involved? How will you meet them and gain their cooperation? How much time will it take? Where will you get this time? How much will it cost, and where will you get this money? What’s the risk? How will you handle it?


Tip #2: Have an Expert Review Your Plan – The first real estate plan that I created involved me single-handedly buying 100 houses in a year. And it listed out several different marketing strategies that were completely cost ineffective. I had a friend of mine who isn’t even in real estate review the plan, and he said it looked good. How stupid of me. About 8 months into working this over-reaching and misguided plan, I had an expert investor review it. He tore it apart, and together we re-constructed a better plan with more realistic goals (buy 12 houses, not 100) and a better marketing plan. Shortly thereafter, I bought 6 houses, and I actually felt good about my progress. Six out of twelve feels much better than six out of 100!

Tip #3: Don’t Give Up – The life of a new real estate investor is filled with countless highs and lows. You’re on a high when you think you have a property all locked up to purchase, and then you hit a low when it suddenly falls though at closing. Or you’re on a high when you finally do close on that house, but you hit a low when you hit a 3-week dry spell where it feels like you couldn’t get a seller to agree to your price even if you paid double. I hit a personal low when I was $5,500 in debt from fruitless marketing attempts. Oh, and jobless. But I got up early each morning and worked toward my goal of financial freedom. Even though a voice in my head told me to give up, I never did. That’s probably the #1 key to success. Don’t give up. I swear, you can be as dumb as a box of rocks, but if you don’t give up, you’ll eventually succeed.

Tip #4: Take Baby Steps – When you break it all down, big goals, big dreams, and big plans comprise nothing more than a series of miniature action steps or “to do” items. When you dissect the daily life of a successful investor, you’ll find that he or she does 8 to 12 things each day that are real estate related. One item might be “Watch DVD #5 in the new investing course I bought.” Another item might be “Call title company about the name on the warranty deed”. Or “meet inspector at house on Watson Street”. All of these little tasks each day add up to what is or what eventually will be a large and highly profitable real estate investing operation. So don’t toss that “to do” list by the wayside, thinking that your little efforts today don’t mean much. They mean everything.

Tip #5: Become Comfortable with Discomfort – I was actually nervous at the first real estate investing meeting that I attended. I was wondering if I would say something stupid or if I wouldn’t fit in. After all, most of the investors in the room were 40 or 50 years old, and I was 22. But by the third meeting I attended, I became comfortable with the crowd. Had I quit after the first meeting, I would have missed out on the very information that enabled me to buy so many properties. I’ve learned that one of the biggest keys to success is persisting though uncomfortable situations until they eventually become comfortable. This is where true growth occurs.

Tip #6: Do What You Say You’re Going to Do – As a real estate investor, your reputation means everything. They say it’s a small world, but the world of real estate investing is even smaller. So be honest, be courteous, and for heaven’s sake, do what you say you’re going to do. If you say you’re going to buy another investor’s house, by golly, you better move mountains … if that’s what it takes … to buy it! Otherwise, your name will eventually become mud, and you’ll have a tough time buying from not only that investor, but just about every other investor in town. Believe me, I can count at least 10 local investors of the top of my head who I will NOT do business with because their word means nothing. And I know several other investors who won’t deal with them either. You DO NOT want to be black listed.


Tip #7: Be on Time – Showing up late is just about one of the most disrespectful things you can do to another real estate investor, or anyone for that matter. It shows them that you don’t value them or their time. And whether you realize it or not, our time is MUCH more valuable than money. Money can be replaced. Time cannot. When someone shows up late for a meeting with me, I instantly throw their credibility in the toilet. And there are countless other investors who feel the same way I do. On the other hand, when an investor shows up on time or early, it makes me want to smile, reach out my hand, and strike a win-win deal. So be on time, and you’re much more likely to create trusted allies who can help you along your path to success.

I do hope some of these help you!

If you are looking to advance your real estate investments and need some ideas or feedback on your ideas, check out our website (www.mandmproperties.biz) or send us an email at: Info@MandMproperties.biz

Happy New Year!

Benefits of Real Estate Investment (Income) Properties

As the doom and gloom grows, people who already own income properties suddenly start to panic and fear the worst. Hopefully if you got into real estate investing, it wasn’t on a dare or because you were following a fad. Specifically, you became fully educated on the topic and understand that there are MANY ways to make money in real estate. I am not simply referring to the many ways that you can invest in real estate, but even if your sole focus is income properties, then there are many ways to benefit from your investment.

Some people think the only way to make money is from the appreciation of your property.

Flipping became very popular just a few years ago. However, the key to building wealth in real estate is through buying and holding. It is not a get rich quick scheme, and the wealthiest investors I know have a motto – they will never sell a property. They continually leverage the equity in each property (as that equity increases) to finance the next property. When they retire they live off of the income from their portfolio of properties. Ultimately, their intent is to leave the entire portfolio to their family when they die. But they will never sell an income property. There are just too many benefits of owning them (properties).

When you rent your property, the tenant indirectly creates wealth for you by paying your mortgage, insurance, taxes and monthly fees through their rental payment to you. In addition, you have an asset that is (or can be) leveraged by a fraction of it’s value. If you buy mutual funds or stocks, and you invest $10,000 today, in return you will receive $10,000 worth of shares. However, if you purchase a property with a mortgage, and only want to use that same $10,000, based on 10% down, you can buy a $100,000.00 property. As your tenant is paying down your mortgage, that tenant is effectively paying for the other $90,000 for you over time (back to the bank). Plus … if a stock increases by 5%, you gain 5% of the $10,000.00. But if your property appreciates by 5%, you gain 5% of the $100,000.00.

The authors of Investing In Real Estate, Andrew McLean and Gary Eldred (2006, John Wiley & Sons Inc.), have offered many ways to grow your wealth in investment real estate. Nobody can predict short-term price increases -- but that's why the savvy investor doesn't look to just appreciation to make money. Here's how you can build wealth through your real estate investing:

1. Positive cash flow. This is simply what it sounds like -- the rent covers the mortgage, taxes, insurance, fees, etc., and once all that's paid, you have money left over at the end of the month. A wise investor will also have enough money in reserves to cover all these expenses for a few months in case the property goes vacant.

2. Equity growth via amortization. As the mortgage shrinks from the mortgage payments, your equity grows (and so does your net worth). This is one of the most powerful means of wealth growth -- using OPM (other people's money) to build your net worth. The tenant is providing the investor with hundreds or thousands of dollars per month to pay off debt, which turns into equity for the landlord.

3. Capital improvement. This is the fixer-upper that most people think about when investing in real estate. Purchase a property for $50,000, put in another $25,000, and voila, the house is now worth $125,000 ($50,000 more than the initial investment).

4. Wholesale purchases. The most effective way to build net worth and equity is to buy a house for a bargain price. These properties would be the pre-foreclosure, foreclosure, tax sales, etc., where the investor buys the property well below market price. In essence, you make your money when you buy the house at such a low rate.

5. Lowering tax bills. One of the greatest benefits about real estate investing is all the tax breaks allowed for these type investments. Uncle Sam allows many tax deductions, tax credits and other government-sponsored programs connected with real estate investing that cut the investor's tax bill, thus, increasing the bottom line and equity growth.

6. Smart asset management. Many novice or ignorant real estate investors lose money simply by not managing the asset wisely. For instance, painting properties before the wood is actually peeking through will keep the asset in good shape, seal the wood, and protect it from more expensive damage. Managing the asset is just as important as buying smart and cash flow. The real estate investment is a commodity, not a money machine, and must be managed and protected to maintain future wealth growing potential. A

7. Asset value growth. As your property increases in value, so does your wealth. This is the old fashioned principle of buy and wait. Buy at today's prices and with time, your asset will grow in value because of local appreciation. In addition, your equity will grow along with the amortization principle mentioned above.

8. Rent appreciation. As the cost of living increases, so, too, should your rent cash flow. Increasing your rental income per month by 5 percent could result in hundreds of dollars of cash flow per year -- year after year.

Is Real Estate Investing Your Best Opportunity?

Real estate has made a lot of people very wealthy over many generations. Granted, we are now seeing price falls like never before (for some). Some start to question if they should still invest in real estate.

Consider that 91% of homeowners surveyed by real-estate-services firm Realogy Corp. thought that owning a home was the best long-term investment they could make, according to the Wall Street Journal. That is what the homeowners think – but what about the experts?

According to this article (I read) , most experts expect housing prices to level out over the next few years, and then regain a more historically balanced appreciation rate of between 2%-4% per year. The tone of the article—seems to imply that real estate is not really a good investment anymore. Do you think perhaps the growth that was experienced in the past decade was not only unparalleled, but unsustainable as well? Therefore, as ROI (returns on investment) come back to realistic levels, we suddenly interpret them as “not worth it”.

I think that they left out some important facts to consider. In the article Kenneth Rosen, chairman of the Fisher Center for Real Estate at the University of California, Berkeley, advises that people should think of their own homes mainly as places to live, not as investments. In fact many experts will tell you that the house you live in is not an investment nearly as much as it is just a roof over your head.

Throughout the article the author evaluates the merit of real estate investment assuming solely that the “investment” is a person’s primary residence. Yet, when he interviews investors that talk fondly of real estate, they talk not about their primary residences, but about rental homes they own. There is a huge difference. Primary residences might not be your best investment. Rental housing however, can be an incredible investment if managed properly.

No one can predict which way prices will go, but true investors do not rely on appreciation estimates when evaluating the worth of an investment opportunity. Investors look instead at the cash flow numbers. Cash flow is something tangible, and can be budgeted for in the present and future.

Furthermore, the market drops are generally based on personal residences, not income properties. Properties that provide good cash-flow typically do not drop in price as much during market fluctuations. Dramatic price drops happen when people sell in desperation. They are forced to get out of their mortgage or other debt, so they drop the price until it sells. What motivation does an investor have to drop the price on their rental house if it is bringing in money every month? The answer is that they have very little motivation to do so, and so they probably won’t.

Investors can still make great money in the real estate market if they focus on the right things.

Think Out Of The Box Real Estate Investing

In times where there is so much pessimism and gloom, I thought it appropriate to add a bit of humor. Although the following is a rather humorous joke that crossed my desk today, I find it very indicative of how thinking out of the box can work with real estate investing.

Dan was a single guy living at home with his father and working in the
family business. When he found out he was going to inherit a fortune when his sickly
father died, he decided he needed a wife with which to share his fortune.

One evening at an investment meeting he spotted the most beautiful
woman he had ever seen. Her natural beauty took his breath away. 'I may look like just an ordinary man,' he said to her, but in just a few years, my father will die, and I'll inherit $20 million.'

Impressed, the woman obtained his business card and three days later, she became his stepmother.

So many people are living in fear these days, tightening their wallets (even if they have a lot of savings put away) and just waiting for the proverbial "go-ahead" to start investing again. In reality, there really are people out there who don't wait for the cash-cow to come to them - rather, they find an alternate way to go grab the cash-cow before someone else does.

If you want some helping in finding these opportunities before someone else does, just send us an email to introduce yourself.
Info@mandmproperties.biz

When The Economy Recovers It Will Be Too Late

I find it rather puzzling that our society has allowed the media to force us to abort one of our natural gifts in life – our ability to use common sense. While I continue to invest in real estate (I doubt if I will ever see a better time to buy in my lifetime), I am constantly meeting people who say they want to invest in real estate, but they are not sure if the time is right.

Is it greed controlling their actions – suggesting they might find an even better deal tomorrow if they wait?

Is it fear controlling their actions – because they constantly hear about the doom and gloom from the media?

The common question I keep getting from potential investors is “do you think the market has bottomed out yet?” These people all know that nobody has a crystal ball. But there are a lot of ways that we can benefit from good old fashioned common sense.

The first thing I notice is that the wealthy people are buying anything and everything they can get their hands on. If they are wealthy then it is very likely they got that way for a reason (excluding people who inherit wealth). We’ve all heard that that the rich get richer, and we are all jealous when times are good and we see wealthy people like Warren Buffet and Donald Trump say that they bought low and sold high. It sounds easy enough. Guess what – NOW IS LOW !!!!!

As I listen to my local news (non-business specific networks) and I talk to common folks, I continually hear them warning us to save every penny, don’t spend too much on Christmas presents, because this whole ‘recession’ is only going to get worse before it gets better. They are selling fear and we as the public are buying. So, we stop spending which only makes things worse and proves them right.

Common sense also tells me that if you want to learn how to do something well, you should seek advice and knowledge from someone who has succeeded in that industry. Anybody can give free advice, but that is usually about all it’s worth.

Yesterday I was listening to Tom Keen on Bloomberg radio (a financial focused network). From that program I heard some very interesting comments that I know you will find interesting as well.

The first quote I had to write down from that program was as follows: “When the economy recovers … it will be too late!” Think about that for a minute. If you are one of those people who is afraid to take action until you see the rest of the “herd” doing the same thing … it will be too late. The deals will already be on the way out, the markets will already be on the way up, and the profits for you are already diminishing. By that time the rich will be laughing all the way to the bank.

Real estate continues to evolve in trends, and trends don’t form overnight. You are not going to wake up one morning in coming months, and see every news program and front page of your newspaper saying: “Finally, yesterday we had no hope but last night everything was fixed and today everything is all better again”. Even if the market goes a little bit lower, it can’t go much lower, and then there is only one way for it to go – when do you want to get in on it?

In fact, another interesting thing I heard on that Bloomberg program was a panel of experts in agreement that the market keeps trying to bottom out. They gave it until the end of this quarter and then predict that the market will stop trying so hard to hit the bottom.

Finally, one of the panelists said “pessimism has peaked”. Admit it – haven’t YOU had enough of this doom and gloom already? People are exhausted from it already. And when they are tired of buying into the doom and gloom that the media are selling, the will ultimately start spending again. And spending is what will turn this whole economy around.

The way I see it, common sense is becoming clearer and clearer, and the next wave of millionaires are being launched today. In real estate investing you don’t make money when you sell …. You make money when you buy! That is where you determine your fate in each deal. So the only reason you might continue to sit in the sidelines, is if you don’t have a lot of cash in the bank to buy real estate. And most people only believe that you can buy real estate by putting down a pile of cash up-front.

Fact – I personally know a lot of millionaire real estate investors who can put down very large piles of cash – but they don’t. They know the various tricks of buying real estate without using piles of your own money.

If you are not clear on how they do this, then don’t worry. That is exactly how we help investors. Whether it is our training or joint-venture partnerships, or whether you turn to us to help you find and analyze a great deal in a market that is already starting to appreciate (yes we have found those), we have the necessary members of our “power team” to help you get started, regardless of your age, income, bank account, or where you live.

If you have questions about how you can get in before it’s too late, just let us know.
Send us an email and we will answer all of your questions.

To your success ….