investing tips

How To Use Private Money To Secure & Grow Your Real Estate Investing

September 23, 2022 by Realty411 Team

By Tim Houghten

We are certainly in exciting times for real estate investing. A lot may feel like it is changing from our 12-year bull run. But if you’ve been through a cycle or two in the past, then this may feel a lot more familiar and predictable.

Success in the months and years ahead is going to largely depend on investors’ financial position and access to capital.

Critical questions all investors should be asking themselves right now include: If their debt has been optimized to survive, what’s next? And, will they be able to secure new funding to keep thriving and growing as more opportunities arise?

Meet Joe

We caught up with Joseph V. Scorese to gain insight on the lending landscape, including what we can expect from lenders and what types of funding is still available for investors.

Joe is Regional Development Manager, Northeast, for Lending One. A national private lender focused on providing loans for real estate investors, LendingOne has funded over $1B in loans.

He has personally been investing in this space since 1992. So, he certainly knows a thing or two about the market, how it works and how to make the most of it.

One of the things that Joseph is most passionate about is educating others on the availability of private money and how it can be used to grow their real estate investing.

What Exactly Are Private Real Estate Lenders?

Joseph specifically wants investors to understand that there are alternatives to the credit sources that they used to be limited to.

In his opinion, traditional banks and mortgage lenders really let investors down in the wake of the Great Recession. He doesn’t see them stepping up to be competitive or provide the backing that real estate investors need now or will need in the next phase.

At the other end of the mortgage market spectrum have been hard-money lenders. They have certainly had their place in the market, although their high-interest rates and limited scope of underwriting hasn’t made them the optimal solution for many.

Today, LendingOne is a private real-estate lender. A distinctly different industry to the others. LendingOne is backed by Blackstone and its deep pockets of private capital.

They are an asset-based lender. Though in contrast to hard money, they also look at DSCR (Debt Service Coverage Ratio), plus the strength of the borrower and their experience. This allows them to make more aggressive loans — with better rates and terms than hard money lenders — while providing loans that traditional mortgage lenders wouldn’t consider due to their rigid underwriting criteria.

The Current & Evolving Landscape

We picked Joe’s brain for his insights on the current market and what’s ahead.

While no one knows exactly how things will play out, with enduring inflation — the highest in 40 years — he acknowledges that we could probably use some cooling in the housing market. Not that we need a crash, but more sustainable growth would be wise.

We have already seen a significant reset in the past 90 days. Joe says that in addition to the extra inventory we’ve seen coming along over the past couple of months, there are a lot of foreclosures in the works. It could be another 12 or 18 months before they hit the market. Together these factors suggest that there is going to be a lot more negotiability for acquisitions coming and hopefully more discounts to be found.

So far the only obvious changes in the lending space have been in interest rates. Most of today’s investors weren’t around when rates were at 20% or even 14%. Joe says that while they might not get that high, they are indeed rising. He predicts they will likely hit the 8% to 9% range.

This should definitely be creating a sense of urgency among investors to do two things:

Optimize current debt structures to make it through this phase of the market.
Lock in great long-term fixed rates on new acquisitions while rates are low.

Additionally, investors need to be really getting in tune with their numbers, evaluating their assumptions and bids, and planning for new dynamics in the market.

Loan Programs To Fuel Your REI Business

Joseph V. Scorese says that LendingOne has $3B already committed to lend next year. He expects that to be consistent over the next several years.

LendingOne offers a variety of real estate financing options, including the following.

Fix & Flip Loans

Up to 90% of purchase and repair costs, and closing in as little as one week. BRRR-friendly, and interest-only payment options.

Rental Property Loans

Loans for individual rental properties, with 30-year fixed-rate options, no personal tax returns needed, and corporate borrowers allowed.

New Construction Loans

Ground-up construction loans with interest-only payments for up to 24 months.

Multifamily Property Loans

Multifamily bridge loans for value-add apartment building projects with loan amounts up to $15M, and no DSCR requirement at closing.

Portfolio Rental Loans & Blanket Mortgages

These loans are ideal for those with five or more rental units, with 30-year fixed-rate loans, and loan amounts up to $50M.

Smart Money Moves To Make Now

With the insights we gained from Joseph in our interview, it seems there are some obvious moves most investors should be making.

Recalibrate your buying criteria to demand better deals
Refinance now avoid rate shock on loans maturing in the next couple of years
Lock in long term fixed rate loan terms on new acquisitions now
Be sure you are staying on top of market changes on a daily basis

Find out more about LendingOne and their financing options at LendingOne.com.

Learn live and in real-time with Realty411. Be sure to register for our next virtual and in-person events. For all the details, please visit Realty411Expo.com or our Eventbrite landing page, CLICK HERE.

Converting Home Equity to Cash

September 2, 2022 by Realty411 Team

By Rick Tobin

The average American homeowner has the bulk of the household’s net worth tied up in the equity in their primary home where they reside. As noted in my past Equity Rich, Cash Poor article, the average US homeowner at retirement age has 83% of their overall net worth tied up in home equity (or the difference between current market value and any mortgage debt if not free and clear with no liens). As a result, the typical homeowner only has about 17% of their overall net worth available for monthly expenses.

Real estate isn’t as liquid, or the ability to quickly convert to cash, as a checking account. We can’t just go to our local grocery store and ask the cashier to deduct the full grocery cart from our debit account tied to our home’s promissory note or deed of trust. Yet, we all have to eat, so what are some ways to gain more access to cash that originate from the equity in our primary home or investment properties?

Let’s take a closer look at ways to convert equity in real estate into spendable cash:

● Sell your primary home or rental properties: If so, where will you live? Are rents nearby lower or higher than your current mortgage payments if you need to move? Are there any potential unforeseen tax consequences or benefits? Will you miss the monthly rental income from your investment properties?

● Sale-and-leaseback: You find an investor willing to purchase your primary home while allowing you to stay there for months or years as a tenant.

● Cash-out 1st mortgage: Pay off some or all forms of consumer debt (credit cards, auto loans, school loans, business loans, tax liens, etc.) with a larger mortgage while possibly lowering your overall monthly expenses significantly with or without any verified income.

● Reverse mortgage: A combination of a mortgage and life insurance hybrid contract that gets you cash out as a lump sum and/or with monthly income payments to you while not requiring you to make any monthly mortgage payments. Lower FICO scores are usually allowed and minimal sourced monthly income like from Social Security may be sufficient to qualify.

● Business-purpose loan as a 1st or 2nd: A type of loan that may be tied to an owner-occupied or non-owner-occupied property for so long as the funds are used for business or investment purposes such as assisting your self-employed business or buying more rental properties. These types of loans have much less paperwork and disclosure requirements and can be funded within a few weeks with or without income or asset verification.

Declining Dollars and Rising Expenses

Although U.S. wage earnings rose 5.1% nationwide between the 2nd quarter of 2021 and 2022, the published Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation rate reached 9.1% in June 2022 which was the highest inflation rate pace in over 40 years. As a result, the purchasing power of our dollars continues to decline while consumer goods and service prices rise too quickly.

In July 2022, credit card rates and overall consumer debt balances across the nation reached all-time record highs. This was partly due to more Americans relying upon their credit cards to cover basic living expenses to offset inflated prices.

Simultaneously, the Federal Reserve increased short-term rates a few times so far this year while making consumer debt balances more expensive. At the June and July meetings for the Federal Reserve, they increased short-term rates 0.75% at each meeting. This was the largest back-to-back or consecutive rate hike for the Federal Reserve in their entire history.

To bridge the gap between expenses and income, total credit card debt balances surpassed $890 billion in the second quarter of 2022. The increase in overall credit card debt rose 13% in the second quarter of 2022, which was the largest year-over-year increase in more than 20 years. Near the start of 2022, the average American had close to $6,200 in unpaid credit card balances as per the Federal Reserve and Bankrate.

An additional 233 million new credit cards were opened in the second quarter. This was the largest new credit card account increase in one quarter since 2008 (or near the start of the Credit Crisis). A consumer who pays just the minimum balance for a credit card with a few thousand dollar balance may need more than 30 years to pay off the entire debt partly due to the horrific annual rates and fees that are generally much higher than 30-year mortgage rates.

Short-Term Cash Supplies

It would take 64.4 days for a Californian to run out of cash if they had average American savings amounts of $9,647 based upon a recent study from ConsumerAffairs.

Here’s the top 10 most expensive regions in the nation and the estimated time that it would take to run out of cash:
Hawaii (62.5)
California (64.4)
Washington, D.C. (72.1 days)
Massachusetts (73.6 days)
New Jersey (74.8 days)
Connecticut (76.3 days)
Maryland (77.9 days)
Washington (79 days)
New York (79.9 days)
Colorado (80.8 days)

Living Wages, Debt, and Wealth Creation

Another survey conducted by GOBankingRates that was published in July 2022 found that the median annual living wage, which is defined as the minimum income amount needed to cover expenses while saving for retirement, is $61,617 per U.S. household. However, the Top 14 most expensive states required much higher annual household income or living wages as listed below:

1. Hawaii: $132,912
2. New York: $101,995
3. California: $94,778
4. Massachusetts: $86,480
5. Alaska: $85,083
6. Oregon: $82,926
7. Maryland: $82,475
8. Vermont: $78,561
9. Connecticut: $76,014
10. Washington: $73,465
11. Maine: $73,200
12. New Jersey: $72,773
13. New Hampshire: $72,235
14. Rhode Island: $71,334

Nationally, the lowest required living wage income for households was $51,754 in Mississippi.

These Top 14 expensive living wage regions also share something in common in that they have some of the highest median-price home values in the nation, especially Hawaii, New York, and California. While the monthly living wages may be highest in these regions, the net worths for homeowners is probably much higher due to so many properties valued well over $1 million dollars.

Ideally, we should all focus on keeping our monthly expenses as low as possible while investing in prime real estate to boost our overall net worth. If so, you’re more likely to retire sooner rather than later while your money works hard for you (or rapidly increasing annual home value equity gains) instead of you working too hard for your money.

Rick Tobin

Rick Tobin has a diversified background in both the real estate and securities fields for the past 30+ years. He has held seven (7) different real estate and securities brokerage licenses to date, and is a graduate of the University of Southern California. Rick has an extensive background in the financing of residential and commercial properties around the U.S with debt, equity, and mezzanine money. His funding sources have included banks, life insurance companies, REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts), equity funds, and foreign money sources. You can visit Rick Tobin at RealLoans.com for more details.

Learn live and in real-time with Realty411. Be sure to register for our next virtual and in-person events. For all the details, please visit Realty411.com or our Eventbrite landing page, CLICK HERE.

REO’s (Real Estate Owned) Investing Explained

August 30, 2022 by Realty411 Team

By Tamera Aragon

Let’s explore a real estate investing niche that could bring you riches: REO’s (Real Estate Owned By The Bank). It’s formed from the third and final stage of the foreclosure process. An REO property is created when no one purchases the house at the auction, forcing the bank to buy the property back itself. Remember the bank didn’t want the house back, but the property was the collateral for the money lent to the homeowner. The property now becomes “Real Estate Owned” meaning- it’s 100% owned by the bank. REO investment properties can present many profitable opportunities for real estate investors.

Why Is Investing in REOs a Good Niche to Consider?

Below Market Value – One of the prime benefits of buying a REO property is most REO properties are available at below market value. The reason for this is that the bank is liable for the taxes on the property and they generally prefer to sell it to you at below market value and get it off their books.
REOs are a Nightmare to Lenders. Property taxes, city and county assessments, utility bills, and maintenance costs eat into the lender’s profit. The threat of vandalism and illegal occupancy requires that lenders board up REO windows and doors. Often times lenders must hire security services to watch over REOs to keep out trespassers. For these reasons, lenders are often eager to sell REOs quickly.
You are Buying Property Free and Clear of Liens – once you close, you receive clean title policy without exception.
No Back Taxes – banks have paid everything at closing.
House is Most Often Vacant – I can go there as much as I want before I close.
Clear Equity Value – You do not have to argue about “correct” amount of equity with the homeowner.
Minimum Risk – Among the different types of bank foreclosed properties – pre-foreclosures, foreclosure at auctions or HUD foreclosures – REOs offer the buyer the least amount of investment risk. REOs are generally properties that have survived a foreclosure auction and now belong in the lender’s inventory of non-performing assets. The banks maintain these properties and are generally sold free of liens and other encumbrances. This is why you would use a title company to insure the property in case a lien as later found.
Availability – Compared to other foreclosure properties, REOs are easier to locate. All you need to do is to contact any Real Estate Agent who will send you current listings. You might also go online to mortgage companies or banks directly. You can usually find a list of REOs in your area online if there are any. Pick an area and start buying every good deal in sight. 🙂
Potential for Great ROI (Return on Investment) – Reselling a foreclosure home can provide a great return on your investment. You may not be interested in buying a foreclosure property for yourself, but you still have the option to make a profit by reselling it. After all, this has been the most frequent practice used by many real estate agents to generate income. Moreover, a little renovation work can further add to the value of the property and generate higher returns.

Buying REO’s is one of the best ways to generate profit in the real estate market today. However, before you finalize your purchase, make sure you do your due diligence and research the property so you feel comfortable with the purchase. It’s important to research as much as you can about the area, current housing prices, planned developments, proximity to stores, the town, etc. This research can save you many headaches and problems down the road. The research required and other steps to succeed in this niche should be supplied to you by your mentor, trainer and coach.

What Are The Downsides of Investing in REOs?

While there are bargains to be found, REO properties don’t always sell below market value. The bank will always do a BPO (a kind of appraisal) and often the person doing this property appraisal is from out of town and does not completely understand the market.
It can be difficult dealing with bank-owned properties as some lenders are in offices far away from where the loss-mitigation department is struggling to process the listings and getting everyone in sync on your end can be a challenge. Today’s REO’s are almost always handled by the bank hired Real Estate Agent who would be accepting your offer from another agent or representing you in the process.
The investor must be careful when looking at bank owned property to know what the real value of the property is. The bank owned property might not be a great bargain. Be sure and include a time for inspection in your offer contract and do your homework before finalizing. Make sure that the price you pay (if you’re successful in getting offer accepted) is comparable to other homes in the neighborhood. Consider the costs of renovation, including time to complete them. Don’t get caught up in a bidding war and pay more than you should.

Good Market Conditions:

A lot of houses on the market
Average time on the market for houses is 4 months or longer
Depreciating Market
Large number of foreclosures

Bad Market Conditions:

Low inventory of Houses
Average time on the market for houses is 3 months or less
Appreciating Market
Low number of foreclosures

10 STEPS TO INVEST IN REO NICHE

1. You must find the right buyer’s agent to work with you on finding properties. If you are going to employ the services of your own real estate agent (a buyer’s agent) be sure to find one based on the following criteria:

2. Ask Realtor for a list of all REO properties with some recommendations for good deals.

3. Ask Realtor to contact you first when they know of an impending listing giving you chance to make an offer before it hits the market.

4. Before finalizing your offer, have your agent contact the listing agent and ask the following:

Are there any inspection reports?
What work has the bank agreed to?
Is there a special “as is” form?
How long does it take the bank to accept an offer?
How does your agent deliver the offer

5. Make an offer.

Your offer should include an inspection contingency period that allows you to terminate the sale if the inspections reveal unanticipated damages that the bank will not correct. Even though you agreed to purchase property “as is,” always give the bank another opportunity to make repairs or give you a credit after you’ve completed your inspections. Sometimes the bank will re-negotiate to save the transaction instead of putting the property back on the market.

Banks do not want to see a lot of proprietary disclosures; For instance, they are exempt from the California Sellers Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS-14). If there are real estate agents involved, either representing you or the bank, those agents are required to provide you their disclosure statements.

Offers are usually FAXED to the bank. The listing agent needs your originals. There is no formal presentation. Keep in mind: nothing happens evenings and weekends (banks are closed).

6. Since there is no face-to-face presentation to the bank, provide the listing agent with a pre-qualification or better yet, a pre-approval letter along with proof of funds and copy of down payment check. A cover letter adds a nice touch as well. You should make your offer easy to accept.

7. Wait for bank to counter or accept offer.

8. Negotiate terms until a profitable offer is accepted by the bank in writing. (Do not spend money on property until you see a written acceptance by the bank)

9. Close on the property

10. Sell or Rent property for profit.

Where to Obtain REO leads:

Search Public Records:
In various stages of the foreclosure process, notices are recorded with the County Clerk at your County Recorder’s Office. This information is public record and is available to anyone. Just visit your county’s office and you can search for a Notice of Default (NOD), Lis Pendens or for a Notice of Sale. The best part of searching public records yourself is that it is Free. In addition, you’re likely to find newly posted properties that haven’t yet reached many of the online foreclosure data providers.
Find Asset Managers:
You can also find REO properties through Asset Management companies. Simply put, these companies help lenders dispose of assets. Many of these asset management companies will provide listings of the REO properties that they represent on their website.
Find Government Foreclosures:
The government can also foreclose on properties. Good place to start is www.hud.gov.
Make contacts at local community banks who take in their own REO’s and make friends with the person who oversees the sales of them. Many smaller banks don’t have as many REO’s therefore, don’t send out to other companies to handle.
MLS: This is the most common way to find REO’s today is this way. After a property has been foreclosed on and taken back by the bank, they are usually listed with a Realtor on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). .With the number of foreclosures banks are holding right now and most are not handling their REO’s sales in-house. In fact it is nearly impossible to purchase 1 single REO from a large bank, let alone going in with millions of dollars offering cash for bulks of them. I personally have not been able to get through to the big banks directly to buy REO’s for the past 18 months as of the time of this training. This is the source I have used most successfully in today’s market.

This concludes my article on Investing in Real Estate Owned by the Bank (REO’s)

Tamera Aragon

Tamera Aragon is a professional online entrepreneur and has bought and sold over 300 properties, establishing her as an expert in the real estate investing field. Since 2003, she has purchased over 10 million dollars in real estate and currently holds properties all over the world. Tamera’s focus is on the booming Foreclosure market, buying Pre-foreclosures, REOs and Short Sales. Tamera who is a noted Author, Success Trainer, Speaker & Coach, shows her passion for helping others with the 17 websites she has created and several specialized products to support fellow investors throughout the world. When Tamara is not busy running her website, she is very involved with her Fiji joint ventures and investments. Tamera Aragon is one of the few trainers and coaches who is really “doing it” successfully in today’s market. Tamera’s experience has earned her a solid reputation in the industry as well as the respect and friendship of many of the top national real estate investment and internet marketing experts. Tamera Aragon believes her success has garnered her the financial freedom to fully enjoy her marriage and spend quality time with her children.

Do I Have to Network to Succeed in Real Estate Investing?

August 18, 2022 by Realty411 Team

Image from Pixabay

By Tamera Aragon

Yes! I know you may have wanted a different answer, but this is the honest truth. Networking is such an important part of your business. You must introduce yourself and let others know what you are doing. Everyone can be a referral resource for you… and you for them.

The best book I’ve read to help me to become more comfortable with the idea of networking is called ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ by Dale Carnegie. It’s a great book that helps you to understand why you need to network with others as well as teaching you exactly how and what to say when you meet with new contacts.

Throughout my own 30 years of owning several businesses, (W0W – Am I that old?!), I can honestly say personal networking has been the most effective … and the most fun way to market myself!

How to Network Your Way to REI Success

As a real estate investor, where can you reach out to network your business?

1) Search Real Estate Investor Clubs in Your Area.

2) Check meetings and trainings for local Real Estate Associations.

3) Check meetings and trainings at local Title Companies.

4) Check on handyman, builders and contractor associations in your area.

5) Ask everyone you talk to for referrals for networking events that have worked for them.

6) Of course chamber events and networking clubs that meet at breakfast and lunch are a general source to get to know the general public.

What do I say? Just remember the acronym F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

I know the biggest fear and reason many people don’t attend networking events is they don’t know how to approach or what to say to others when first meeting them. I am going to give you a script that will be easy for you to memorize…

Image from Pixabay

For every person you come in contact with at any type of networking meeting, your conversation might go something like this: Just remember the acronym FRIENDS:

F is for Forthright. Be forthright in reaching out and saying hi. Don’t wait for others to come to you.

“Hi there, my name’s __________. What’s your name?”

R is for Remember. You need to first always remember to ask them their name.

Ask for their card – and them hand them yours.

I is for Income. Ask them what they do for a living? How do they make their income?

“Say their name, and ask “What is it that you do?”

E is for Everyone. Everyone likes to talk about themselves.

Ask questions like, “How long have you been doing this?” or “What do you like most about what you do?”

N is for New Business. No matter if the person you are talking to has an occupation that is real estate related or not, you will want to find ways you both can support each other .

Ask : “What sort of clientele could I refer to bring you additional new business?

D is for Determine. After listening for possible ways to support each other, Determine where to take this relationship from this point.

S is for SUMMARIZE: When the time comes to share what you do, be prepared! Have a 30 second summary of what it is you could say to leave an impression on your new friend.

1) Hand everyone you network with your business card.

2) Summarize your business in 30 seconds or less. This is where spending time writing down how you want to market you and your business is important. You want to be concise and clear in describing what you do and what types of referrals would be most helpful. Try to incorporate something that differentiates you from the rest?

SAMPLE: REI 30 Second Commercials

6 Important Things to ALWAYS REMEMBER When Networking;

The important thing is that you are interested in what they do for a living.
Don’t talk about yourself until asked or the timing is right.
Ask them questions about their occupation and how you can be of support to them in their line of work.
If this person is a potential power team member for you, ask if you could contact them in the future. (You would be able to follow your list of questions for power team members and take notes when you called them back)
Make sure to collect a card from everyone you meet
Make sure you have their email address, fax, cell, and correct spelling of first and last name. (Write on the back of the card if any of this information is missing – it shows your interested!)

Questions To Ask When You Meet Real Estate Investors

“Do you buy, fix and sell or do you buy and hold?”
“How many properties do you own and/or have you sold?”
“What part of town do you invest in?”
“Really, why that area?”
“What do properties cost in that area?
“Do you pay cash for them or what banks do you use that are investor friendly?”
“What title company do you enjoy using the most?”
“Do you know any of the other people here?”
“Who are the big investors in this area?”
“If you ever come across some good deals and you don’t want them let me know.”
“By the way, do you have any property you want to sell?”
“We sometimes have properties for sale as well, if you’re looking to increase your inventory.”
“Well, Mr. /Ms. Investor based on what you told me and where you prefer to buy; if anything comes along I’ll make sure to call you first”.

Final Important Points To Maximize Your Networking

Always write notes on the back of business cards you collect, helping you remember the next steps you will want to take with this contact in the future. Often times, just a “nice meeting you” card in the mail or email can be seen as a memorable gesture encouraging future communication to support each other’s business needs.

… as you get in front of people and

NETWORK YOUR WAY TO REI SUCCESS!

Tamera Aragon

How Do I Know What A Property Is Worth?

July 18, 2022 by Realty411 Team

Image from Pixabay

By Tamera Aragon

In considering the price to pay for a property, the first step you must take is to know the ARV (After Repair Value), of a property. Of course there are other costs to consider in buying and selling but it all starts here…The value of the property.

I know I get this question a lot…

Question: “How do I value the property I am interested in?”

I want to start by sharing that comps, or comparables, are regarded as the single-best tool in determining a home’s value. Comps will compare criteria from recently-sold properties in a neighborhood, such as sale price, age of house, size, and square footage and come up with an average value based on these elements.

I like to look at the last 90 days SOLDS and use ½ mile radius at most when considering comps around a property I am looking to value.

On a side note, for easy online access to the information I am sharing here anytime, go to this website where you will find a ton of other FREE tools and resources catering to real estate investors.

So… back to the original question…

Answer: COMPS! You need to use comps to come up with value. This is what the banks use to come up with how much they loan. This is what appraisers use. This is the common way to come up with base valuation of property.

2nd Question: So you next question I get is, “Where do I find good comps?

Some of you reading this might be a Realtor and have easy access to comps.

However, others who are not Realtors, finding good comps is not so easy. And I know I hated to bother my Realtor to have to look up comps when I am making 20+ offers a day.

2nd Answer: So here ya go…here are some free resources that will help you in getting started in valuing a property using some simple online tools.

NOTE: Most of these sites include the value of a mortgage when it goes into Foreclosure as a sale, which can make these numbers skewed from facts. Be aware of this. However, these are good starting points and can be used in your initial evaluation.

Most popular – Zillow – www.Zillow.com who owns the term, “ZESTIMATE”. You just type in the address and their value comes up. If you want to learn how they come up with their Zestimate, go here: www.zillow.com/wikipages/What-is-a-Zestimate
NEW – In Beta Form- Find Comps Now – www.FindCompsNow.com Seems to utilize Zillow yet lists the properties used to come up with estimate but adds some interesting features like separating out the cash buyers’ purchases from those who were purchased with mortgages.
Offers Comps plus Property Operating Data Tool – Finest Expert
Connected to most MLS Services – www.Realtor.com
Most Comprehensive – Redfin – www.redfin.com Study showed they had 100% of all homes listed by compared to others.
Easy Sort feature to weed out comps that don’t apply (Foreclosures, too old, too far).Trulia – www.Trulia.com Do not just take the value shown.

Follow these Instructions to get the best free comps from Trulia.

Go to: www.Trulia.com
Type in the address, city, state and if possible, the zip code for the property you need to run comps.
Wait for small box on right to pop up and click on the words “view details” inside that box
On this page look for tabs about 1” down – one says comparables – click on that tab
On this page ignore the comps you see and scroll to the very bottom of the screen and click on the words view more comparables
On this page you will see a tab for “Solds” and a tab for “For Sales”. These are the comps you want
Note: This site also takes into account properties the bank has taken back at full price owed because they buy these on the court steps. Therefore, ignore the property prices that are out of line with the majority.
Put properties in order of proximity by clicking the “proximity” tab and then clicking the arrow. This puts properties in order of how close they are to your
Use the Per Square Foot price located on the right side.
Average the Per Square Foot price by adding up those located a mile or less from the property and averaging the number by how many properties you added up. Example:
10 properties added up to be $1000.00
Divide 10 properties by the $1000.00 total and that means the property you are researching is worth $100 psf (per square foot)
Multiply this per square foot price by the square footage of your subject property.

Image from Pixabay

Again, there are many other factors to consider when looking to buy a property for investment services, (More on this in future blog posts.)

Are you interested in real estate investing?

Be sure to click on the link below to take advantage of many that I use in my REI biz.

On a side note, for easy online access to the information I am sharing here anytime, go to this website where you will find a ton of other FREE tools and resources catering to real estate investors.

If you have any other ideas, experiences or questions about using and finding comps, please leave me a comment below! It’s great to have the interaction and appreciate hearing from you.

TAMERA ARAGON

Tips For Flipping Commercial Real Estate Properties

July 1, 2022 by Realty411 Team

Image from Pixabay

By Vista Capital Solutions

Flipping commercial real estate properties can be expensive– there’s no doubt about that. From taking out loans to paying for repairs, it’s hard to say what a project’s final expenses will look like. Luckily, there are a few things that even first-time flippers can do to reduce their final expenses.

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Pay in Cash Whenever Possible

Did you know that you may be able to cut a deal if you are able to pay for something in cash or for a majority of the final cost in cash? This is true even at professional lending institutions and loan offices. The best way to find out if a business will give discounts for paying, in part, with cash is to simply ask.

Even if a business or loan officer will not give discounts for paying in cash, you will still benefit from paying as much out of pocket, to begin with, rather than taking out the entire amount for repairs that you need in loans. This is because the less money you take out in loans, the lower the payments will be. As a bonus, interest will not compile as quickly, which will also help to save money.

Use Fix and Flip Financing Programs

There are financing programs designed specifically for property flippers, and cover the costs of acquisitions and renovations. Fix and flip lines of credit, and fix and flip loans, can be used by property investors to tackle individual projects, on up to hundreds of units simultaneously. Fix and flip financing programs are structured around the value of the property involved, and are very accessible to property flippers at all levels.

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Work With a Partner

Lastly, having a business partner can help to relieve the burden of some of your expenses. When you have a business partner, all of the expenses should be divided between the two (or more) of you. This option can work whether you can pay in cash or not and whether you can get a government-funded loan or not. Just make sure that you are working with someone you can trust, as you will also need to share your profits.

When looking to fix and flip commercial real estate, try to pay in cash, take out loans with low-interest rates, and work with people who you trust. Doing all of these things can go a long way to saving you a lot of money.