Archive for February, 2009

Warning!! Buying a Vacation Home?

February 13, 2009 at 5:18 pm · Filed under Buy a House, Get Thrown in Jail?, Buy a Property?, Buying Real Estate, Real Estate Investing, buy sell home ·Tagged , ,

Warning: Don’t Buy a Vacation Home or Timeshare Unless You Ask These Questions

These questions determine what investing in a vacation home or timeshare will mean to you:

1. How many weeks can you actually use it?

2. Do your own the property or just get to use it? Deeded Ownership v. Timeshare

3. When do you get to use it?

4. Who takes care of the property?

5. What is the monthly maintenance cost?

6. Do you share in the profit from any resale?

7. Can you deduct your investment in the property?

8. Can you really afford, or do you really want to afford to buy the whole property?

9. Can you afford a luxury million dollar home or do you have to settle for a condo?

10. Will you get a profit locked in when you buy the property?

Love to ski and longing to actually own a mountain home? Or have you always wanted to be able to enjoy the mountain climate and lifestyle during the summer months?

But:

- You can only get there for two to four weeks per year? Not enough vacation to justify owning the house?

- You hate maintaining your own house and dread the thought of having to take care of a second house

- Your pocketbook can’t afford the house you would really want?

- You want a house with room to invite friends not a condo that doesn’t really have enough room for your own family

- You realize timeshares are not a real estate investment and only make the timeshare seller rich?

- The maintenance costs of a second home scare the you know what out of you?

Ask yourself the questions above before you take any action to achieve your dream.

A mountain vacation home should be that dream. You should be able to buy the amount of the home you can actually use. It should be a real estate investment that builds equity for you, not a cash drain. You should be able to have someone else deal with the maintenance and cleaning. You should be able to go fishing or skiing without having to worry about the home when you get there or leave. You should not have to worry about the home when you are not there.

All you can find is 2 bedroom, 2 bath condos for over $300,000 plus the cost of running and maintaining it every month? Not exactly what you had in mind?

Why not buy more house than what you can afford but pay less than you would for the condo?

You want to own the house with a deed but why not just pay for the amount of time you can actually use at the house?

Would you prefer not to worry about the maintenance?

Would you prefer to just lock up and leave when you go home?

How to own a luxury, six bedroom, over 4000 square foot $1,200,000 home.

You could of course buy the house all by yourself. You would pay $240,000 down and have a 30 year mortgage for $960,000.00. Your payments would be $6,387.00 per month. You would also have to pay the taxes, insurance, utilities, and maintenance. You would though have a luxury home instead of a condo that really isn’t big enough and is not what you really want.

However, since you can only use your house two to four weeks a year, just buy the piece of the house you can use. You can even use your house at other times on a space available basis

So how much would you pay to own two weeks? $300,000 to own a condo? $200,000, the cost to own a luxury timeshare for two weeks?

Buy a luxury home instead. Properly structured, you can buy your share of a house for $50,000 to $80,000. Use it for at least two weeks and space available the rest of the year. Want more weeks, buy another share. Just pay your share of the taxes, insurance, utilities, and maintenance. Those costs will run about $400 per month. Just renting a house like that will normally run $800 per night or $11,200 for two weeks per year or IF you could pay monthly, $933 per month for just those two weeks. But by buying, you also get the appreciation in value of the house and if the house is also rented, your investment could be eligible for depreciation and deductions for the upkeep payments. Your interest in the house can be sold, willed to your family, or gifted to your family. You can donate your time to your favorite charity for auction.

You can actually own the house for two weeks for less than you could rent the house for one week!

Trick Question: Is it better to pay $5,000 annually plus maintenance for at least two week’s use (and not worry about the house when you aren’t there) or rent the house for $5,250 for one week rental? A house like these luxury homes rents for at least $800 per night. One week’s rental would be $5,250.00. If you finance the whole $50,000, your payments will be about $5000 per year. If you rent, your money is gone and all you have is the memory. If you buy, you own the house and you have the memories of at least two weeks.

What two weeks do I get? Time at the house is allocated by lottery. Your pick is determined by when you buy. Holidays are rotated so that everyone gets an opportunity. No more that 20 shares should be considered in any property.

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Home Improvement Tips: Bathroom Renovations

February 5, 2009 at 4:24 pm · Filed under Best Way to Find Deals, Buying Real Estate, Buying an Appartment, Overcome the Seller's Objections, buy sell home

One of the most popular areas of a house to renovate is the bathroom. There are many different ways to renovate a bathroom, from small surface changes to completely gutting the room. With some forethought and elbow grease, there are renovating techniques the do-it-yourselfer can accomplish, while saving money at the same time.



The first rule in any renovation is to start with a budget, and stick to it. After a budget is set, one must decide on how serious of a project the renovation will be. Surface alterations can be done fairly quickly and cheaply, while rearranging the layout of the bathroom, such as moving the toilet to a new location, will be more labor intensive, and require a contractor to move plumbing lines. A complete tear out is the most difficult, as well as money and time consuming, but is sometimes necessary if several years of moisture has begun to rot the bathroom’s wooden framework.



Hopefully moisture hasn’t penetrated the bathroom’s joists and studs, but it’s quite possible that drywall will have to be replaced. Today there is moisture resistant drywall called greenboard. If a wall is being replaced inside of the shower, a cement backerboard must be used that moisture cannot penetrate.




Many bathroom renovations revolve around the shower or tub. For the do-it-yourselfer, installing a prefabricated shower enclosure or tub is possible. The other option is a tiled shower or tub, which involves building a frame from scratch, and is best left to a professional carpenter. Though prefab showers were once fairly basic, today there are a variety of styles, colors and textures from which to choose. The units can come in one solid piece, to minimize assembly, and also panels if the complete unit can’t fit through the bathroom door (which is the case with many older homes).



There are a wide variety of flooring options for bathrooms, but steer clear of wood floors which will warp from the humidity. Ceramic tiles are the most popular choice for bathroom flooring, as it’s completely waterproof when sealed properly. There are also almost limitless combinations of shapes, sizes and colors combinations of tiles and grout that will fit all tastes. All floors must be level before laying down tile, which can be easily achieved by mixing a self leveling compound that is then spread across the floor, evening out any inconsistencies.



A new sink or vanity can spruce up a bathroom as well. There are many popular styles, such as wall mounted sinks, pedestal sinks, and vessel sinks that are fairly easy to install. It’s often possible to use the current sink piping to reconnect to an updated sink which can drastically change a bathroom’s appearance.



Some of the most effective updating can also be the easiest to do. Changing all the hardware, such as drawer pulls, faucet handles, and shower heads, can make a great impact, especially when they are all pulled together with the same materials, such as stainless steel, bronze, or brushed nickel. The cheapest home improvement choice of them all- paint- can also give a bathroom a new feel. Ditching a bland, frameless mirror for a new, large one with a funky frame is also an easy fix.



Sometimes the cost of new bathroom features is the priciest part of a renovation, but looking beyond big box stores can save cash. The local craigslist may have a treasure being thrown out by another remodeler with a different taste. Ebay can work the same way. Buying discontinued tiles is another good money saving technique, but remember to pick up extras to replace damaged tiles in the future.



Most remodeling techniques can be learned, but a contractor may be necessary to deal with new electrical or plumbing lines- it will be worth the money for it to be done correctly, and they will follow building codes properly. Getting referrals from trustworthy friends is always advisable when looking for a good and efficient contractor.

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Fixing Up Foreclosed Homes

February 5, 2009 at 3:55 pm · Filed under Foreclosure 'Short–Sales', Foreclosure Problem, Foreclosure Property

If you are ready to get into the foreclosure home investing circuit, you might be interested to know that all it takes is a little capital and some elbow grease to turn a profit. In many cases this means that you will need to fix up the foreclosed homes that you buy before you can rent them out or resell them. Many people buy foreclosed homes with the preconceived notion that they will be able to simply get rid of them right away; this can happen, but it is not the norm. Be ready to rent out the property and that means being ready to be a landlord and all the responsibilities that come with it.



A foreclosed home is typically run down and in a state of disrepair, but you can bring it back to like new if you put in enough money and effort. The reason that the owner did not keep the house up was because he or she did not have any money. Think about it, if they did not have money to pay for the mortgage, how were they going to be able to afford repairs on the home.



Before you buy foreclosed homes this is something that you will need to take into consideration. If you find a property that you like you will want to make sure that you assess the repairs before you buy the home. Remember, every bit of money that you put into the home is going to cut into your profits in the end. By assessing these details before you buy, you will be able to make an accurate guess as to how much money you will be making as a profit.



It is hard to say how much work the foreclosed homes you are considering will require. In some cases you may be able to get away with a simple repair job or two; and in other cases you may have to totally overhaul the home in order to resell it. It depends on the property, and the amount of damages it sustained in the past; obviously, this is not the same on any two foreclosed homes.



Foreclosed homes are not something that you should invest in just to invest in something. There are far less expensive investments you could be making such as the stock market. You may find one home that does not need a thing done to it, just to turn around and find another that needs a complete overhaul. In order to avoid any complications when it comes to repairs, your best bet is to assess the property thoroughly before purchasing it. Rest assured that many foreclosure property investors fail because they end up having to pour way too much money into the home and thus making a loss on the resell of the home.

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Real Estate Bubble

February 5, 2009 at 10:35 am · Filed under - ASk A REALTOR, Real Estate Bubble

I just wanted to find out people’s opinion and mostly experienced realtors if and when can we expect a decline in the real estate bubble. Comments and suggestions are welcome

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Keeping new agents motivated

February 4, 2009 at 11:16 am · Filed under - ASk A REALTOR, Keeping agents motivated ·Tagged , ,

In CO we have a unique situation: you must sign on with an employing broker before you can submit your application for a real estate license to the state.

Problem: I have agents signing on with me up to 8 weeks before they are licensed. They are fired up and ready to get started. They want to get started generating business, but they are very limited on what they can do. I have been sending them internet leads to follow up with, introduce themselves to, and see how there internet searches are working for them.

Now several of these leads are ready to look at properties right away- which means I’m out running around with these new agents showing properties with them. I don’t mind going with them the first time, but I having to go with them over and over again, write offers on homes at less than half of my usual price range, and work a heck of a lot more hours than I bargained for.

Now I would like not give leads to an agent until their license is in- but I don’t want them getting bored in the mean time. I can keep them busy learning their neighborhoods, training, etc. But 8 weeks is a long time to wait to start selling. Any ideas?

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