About Real Estates

By a point and a half meaning developments are being done, just at a very small scale that is enough good news for most people in the business. Any news it seems, as long as it is good is welcomed with open arms but experts warn of over optimism regarding such news for it has happened last month when surprisingly, the new home sale index also got a slight rise in points but swiftly fell down again. The recession is indeed taking its toll and people are not easily swayed by news of the sort anymore for it leads to false hope that it may be the end of the crisis. Read the rest of this entry »

It may be good news for consumers due to ever lower interest rates but the news isn’t good for the many small to medium scale lenders and brokers for they say they have been left out of the bailout assistance package. The news hits them hard as they find this out and they are crying foul on all sides due to the strain of the financial crisis. Even Freddie and Mae, have had it rough with losses in the billions but they have fared better than these guys for with low income, they stand to lose a lot from the current housing market standings. There was a shimmer of hope in the market when the consumer buying index Read the rest of this entry »

It seems the pains of this economic downturn are going to be hitting the many decorated architects the world over who may have to settle for lower incomes due to stiff competition. There are just not enough projects to go around and high-profile projects are on the decline, also victim of the recession. They may have to do so with more work but less pay due to the many people who have to deal with the downward spiral of the construction business. High-profile development projects in China, Bahrain and elsewhere have ground to a halt Read the rest of this entry »

Here are some tips when moving:

1. Soft your stuff.
Determine what you need at your new home, and toss out or sell the non-essentials. The less stuff you bring, the less you pay when you move.

2. Be realistic about the costs.
Don’t just rely on the quote you’re given, have some extra for the usual extra fees the moving company may charge. Some moving companies give fixed quotes, but are more expensive at the onset.

3. Make an inventory.
Inventory all the things you’re going to bring, and make sure to label all the boxes and containers properly. also make sure that breakables are packaged properly.

4. Plan in advance.
Moving is harder than you think, and will take up a lot of time. Haste makes waste.

5. Compare moving companies.
Choose the company that is most experienced in moving to your new area. Compare prices to get the best value for money.

There are many homeowners who have been faced by the same predicament though few would admit it, having found a new home, they are overwhelmed by joy they forgot to measure the larger pieces of furniture. They end up either getting a storage rental unit to store the stuff that won’t fit or settle to sell them outright to anybody who wants it to buy new ones that would fit the spaces in their new apartment. These are just some of the frustrating events that if it was thought of ahead of time, would’ve saved you and your landlord a lot of trouble. You may even end up paying your new landlord due to damage you have inflicted onto the property as you moved into your unit. Before going on a final inspection of the unit you aim to rent, take a measuring tape and jot down the dimensions of your furniture, especially ones that cannot be taken apart.
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The market slump may be over or it may extend for a couple more years according to experts. The market has somewhat stabilized but the prices are far from projections. The effects of the current slump would take years to recover and more has to be done to assure this doesn’t happen again.
Imagine the thousands of people who lost jobs when the market collapsed. These people should have been protected along with the homeowners who lost their homes in the blink of an eye. The market may be going up but to become competitive again, the market has to do away with the damage that is there. Hopefully, no more bad news comes from market experts who have been right so far as to the outlook of the whole market from the home owner up to the developers.

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In each kind of business there are people who look confident, knowledgeable and who see opportunities in a given scenario that others don’t. This is also true in real estate. They seem to be very lucky in all their endeavors. They seem to have the Midas touch, everything they “touched” turned into gold. Many people believe in myths - which will help them achieve their goals or not. Like an expert on investment property said, real estate investment is like a hit and miss game. With every hit and miss is a lesson to be remembered. It takes time to learn the forces at work in real estate investment. Maybe there is an element of luck and magic in success - one that comes from readiness and industry.

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If you want to invest in real estate rental properties, do the following before you actually buy anything:

• Do the math to determine the property’s actual potential income. Review the tenants’ lease agreements and check the corresponding security deposits made as initially reported to you. Have an idea whether your tenants make prompt payments or if credit and criminal background checks were actually done on each and everyone of them.
• Walk through every unit of the property to get to know the current tenants and know the real condition of the property inside. Obtain clues as to the lifestyle of your tenants. Check also for “ghost tenants”. Some sellers pad their roster of renters to boost occupancy rate. Inspect the units for fire, water or resident damage/s and pest problems.
• Find out if the property was constructed according to government specifications. Nothing is more irritating then always having government people bugging you about your property’s compliance to their standards.
• Know the existing service contracts of the present owner and check if they can still be improved, should the property become yours. This includes heating, cooling, air conditioning, pool service, advertising, parking, cable and alarm contracts.
• Check all the exterior aspects of the property especially the roof, electrical, sprinkler and plumbing systems, condition of the exterior paint, driveways, parking lots. Estimate more or less when they may need repair or replacement.

The hottest news nowadays is the worsening financial crisis. In a period of less than a month, we’ve witnessed the falling fortunes of Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, AIG, and now comes Washington Mutual, whose banking assets were acquired by JPMorgan Chase, after it was seized by federal regulators. Check out more of the story here.

The current financial crisis is even more relevant for the real estate market and its analysts, since most of it is said to be precipitated by the fall of the housing market. Real estate is also majorly affected, as housing prices fall and would-be homeowners find it harder and harder to get a mortgage.

This shouldn’t stop hopeful buyers from investing in their own homes though, and people with mortgages shouldn’t use this as an excuse to stop paying their mortgage. Hopefully, we’ll be able to ride out this wave with minimal damage.

In general, the value of homes appreciates about four to five percent per year. While this varies from neighborhood to neighborhood and region to region, this is the rule of thumb. While five percent might not be that much, and other investments like stocks, bonds and such might seem more lucrative, real estate is still a wise choice.

For example, you buy a home, and you did not pay cash for it. Say, you went for bank financing, and you have a mortgage. Suppose you have a $200,000 home and put up 20% down payment, that’s $40,000 cash.

An appreciation of 5% annually, a $200k home will increse in value by $10,000 in the first year. So that translates to an earning of $10,000 for an investment of $40,000, or an annual return on investment of 25%.

While you’re making property taxes and mortage payments, these are most likely tax deductible. Essentially, the government is subsidizing some part of your home purchase.

With these in mind, buying a home–or other real estate property for that matter–is not a bad idea after all!