Whenever I go scouting in public forums, somebody is always asking, “What’s the secret? How do you get rich in real estate?” The alternate to this question is “What do you know that I don’t?” These people are sure there’s some magic formula for getting rich quick in real estate, but nobody is willing to …
Category Archives: Buying and Selling
The Mechanics of Inheriting Real Estate
How do you transfer house ownership after someone dies and leaves you the house in a will? The will must be probated. Once all debts of the estate are paid and the court agrees to a final disposition of assets, the executor will then create a deed giving whoever it is title to the property. …
Why There Is Money in Fixer Properties
I am an adamant believer in the Non-exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement. In practical terms, as opposed to the Exclusive Buyer’s Agency Agreement, it is so much to the advantage of the consumer that it isn’t funny, and it doesn’t usually hurt good agents. On the other hand, the proponents have one argument going for them …
When You Should Not Buy Real Estate
Okay, I did an article called Why Renting Really Is For Suckers (And What To Do About It). Fairness demands that I do a companion article on situations where buying is not a good idea. There actually are some. First off, the math just plain works against it for less than about three years. If …
Do Furnishings Convey With The Property?
If a home for sale has a refrigerator included on the listing report, and the buyer’s agent does not write that it goes to the seller in a contract, is the buyer actually entitled to the refrigerator. I am actually going through this right now. The listing does not matter. What does the purchase contract …
Mortgage and Real Estate Red Flags
This is intended as one of those occasional posts that gets expanded and reposted from time to time. This list is not exhaustive, although over time it is intended to become closer. If you have one, send it to me (dm at) Any of these is sufficient reason, all by itself, not to do business …
Relying Upon Reputation: There Are No Silver Bullets
On a regular basis, I get emails that ask me what I think of a particular company. When I check out public forums, I see questions about particular companies every time. “What do you think of X Realty, or Y Mortgage?” Reputation has a certain value of course, but in my experience, these people are …
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Why Renting Really Is For Suckers (And What To Do About It)
Okay, you might expect a Real Estate Agent to have a post with that title, but I’m going to surprise the doubters by hauling out a spreadsheet and proving it with numbers. The more you have for a down payment, the better your interest rates and the lower your payments, but even so, you can …
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Variable or Range Pricing of Real Estate
About half the listings around here do not have a single number asking price, but rather a range in which offers will be considered. Even many agents have trouble understanding range pricing. I’ve seen and heard more than one agent rail against it, saying that it is essentially “repricing the home”. Range pricing began in …
Buyer’s Markets
One of the phenomena that I am encountering is fear of the market in buyers. They are concerned that prices are falling, and that they will lose some or all of their investment. Well, the first thing to understand is that buyer’s markets are not the time for “flippers”. You are not going to buy …