Commercial Real Estate Investment Articles

Investing in real estate or discounted paper is a wonderful way to increase the size of your retirement fund rapidly. The “Rule of 72” explains why. The Rule of 72 is a banker’s rule that calculates the number of years it will take for a sum of money to double. You divide the number 72 by the annual percentage rate you are receiving on that sum of money. For example, if you are earning 6% interest on a CD, divide 72 by 6: 72 / 6 = 12 years

People spend cash on real estate for a variety of reasons. Probably the most common reason for spending any cash at all is that the bank making a new mortgage on the property requires a cash down payment or it won’t approve the mortgage.

There is an incredible power in understanding the time value of money. The investor who understands the power of cash flows will be the investor who gets very rich. No matter what you do in your investment life you simply must understand the time value of money.

Here’s how I found seven (7) new real estate investors who will pay me cash to buy my position in escrow. I found a local chapter of “National Association Of Remodeling Contractors” and called a couple dozen names on the membership roster. I told each one:

When you are pricing your properties, it is important to balance your desire to make the most money possible and your need to keep a low workload.

If you are buying on a lease option, how do you protect yourself from the buyer backing out of the deal down the road? There are three ways for you to lock in your position:

The quirky practice in grading mobile home parks with a “star” rating (usually one to five stars) exists for no other type of commercial real estate.

Imagine mailing 3000 real estate marketing pieces, targeted to ideal neighborhoods, for only $900! This article will show you how to mail a three-page sales letter to sellers for only 30 cents each. That’s for everything including postage, list, labor, and printing. By getting only a .3% to .5% response, you’d get 9 to 15 sellers calling you from your mailing. And if you know how to buy houses creatively, that means one or two deals.

Anyone investing in real estate foreclosures and distressed properties has come across one major problem–finding deals with equity! There are so many foreclosures out there. Unfortunately, most of the homeowners owe what their property is worth.

People are always seeking a way to finance 100% of income property. It’s fueled by the late-night infomercials touting no money down deals.

One question I get asked all the time: Is it better to buy on a lease option or to buy subject to the existing financing? Before I give my answer, let’s get clear on what the two buying strategies are.

I get many calls asking for help understanding how to use a financial calculator, especially figuring yields on mobile home deals. I hope this clears up some of the confusion you may have and to help you structure better, more profitable deals.

Most of the time, as real estate investors, we are buy on lease option for a property’s cash flow, appreciation potential, or time to get our financing in place. What happens when one of our tenants wants us to option a property to sell to them?

Many investors are generally familiar with the concepts lease option and contract for deed (aka “installment land contract”). Many investors confuse the two, and this article will help you understand the tax, legal, and practical issues between them.

One of the common complaints investors across the country share with me is that they talk with a seller who sounds motivated on the phone but turns out to be a dud when they go meet with this seller.

Welcome to the year of confusion. A whole different marketplace from last year, isn’t it? As real estate investors, there are many issues to consider before we really develop our business this year.

I recently spoke about marketing at a national convention for real estate investors and brokers. I ended up spending a lot of time after my presentation with people who had marketing pieces that needed critiquing.

Dwan Bent-Twyford is a distinguished author, motivating national speaker, and incredible teacher. Her niche is finding foreclosures with no equity, negotiating with the banks to accept less than what is owed, thus creating a “short sale.” As a result, Dwan has developed several hugely successful systems that have earned her students hundreds of thousands of dollars. Her goal is simple, to teach you how to become a super investor using her own proven techniques, strategies, and concepts.

I think investors as a whole have a bad reputation. People think of us as sharks, piranhas, and vultures. They think we thrive on taking advantage of people in distress to better ourselves.

Money in an IRA (and other retirement plans) is a great source of real estate investment funds. In fact, most people don’t even know they can use their IRA money to invest in real estate, mortgages, and trust deeds. And, once they stash it away, many folks forget they even have money in a retirement account.

As a real estate and marketing consultant, the majority of questions I am asked when lecturing or consulting involve marketing: How do you find the deal? How do you find the money? How do you grow the business?

Here are five ways to structure deals with owners of free and clear properties:

I recently talked with a Realtor friend of mine who told me that over 35% of all properties in the United States are owned free and clear with no outstanding mortgages or liens

There are several ways to purchase homes. We have all heard about buying on contract, lease optioning a home, or paying cash. The one way to purchase homes that is not new, but is getting a lot of attention is buying homes “subject to.”

Recently, I made a presentation to a group of real estate investors on the subject of landlording. Specifically, how to determine if your marketplace is one for holding real estate, the pros and cons of being your own property manager, as well as creative ways to find good tenants and keep them for the long term.