Private Money For Real Estate Investing - Get Confident - Get Flexible!

What?s so great about having private money for real estate investing? Have you ever looked a fantastic deal square in the eye and had to walk away because you weren?t in a position to move on it? If so, ready access to private money could have made the difference.

Having a reliable supply of private money for real estate investing gives you two things you need to be super-successful? confidence and flexibility. Let?s see why?

First, imagine that your marketing is working like it should, and you?re getting calls from highly motivated sellers anxious to get out from under their property. Further, let?s assume you?re already in the middle of a deal or two, and you have, say, a quarter of a million dollars tied up for the next few months.

You get a call from Mr. Gotta Getoutnow, who has already moved and is shouldering two huge house payments. His vacant house, valued conservatively at $190,000, is costing him a cool $1200 each month? and he hasn?t lived in it for 6 months! He?s willing ? even anxious - to let it go, if you?ll just cash him out of his mortgage to the tune of $132,000.

Unfortunately, your marginal credit rating won?t permit another loan, your cash is tapped, and your house is already mortgaged to the hilt for those other deals you?ve got working. How much confidence do you have on the phone with Mr. Getoutnow? My guess? not much! But how much could you have if you knew you had access to a half million or so in private money for real estate investing?

See the difference? I thought so!

Now, when you get his call, instead of hemming and hawing about some nebulous ?creative acquisition techniques? you?ve used successfully in the past, trying to impress him with your vast knowledge and experience, you simply tell Mr. Getoutnow, ?I?ll be right over,? and off you go to get the house under contract. You have the confidence to do this because you know, comfortably resting in your hip pocket, is all the private money for real estate investing you could possibly need!

What about flexibility? How does private money for real estate investing give you that?

The answer is in the options private money for real estate investing gives you. Let?s face it, the number one stress inducer in real estate ? other than tenants ? has got to be obtaining financing and working with lenders. Why? Because they want so much freakin? information, that?s why.

If you?re like me, you can?t stand filling out all those forms banks ask you to fill out. What could they possibly need all that information for anyway? I mean, come on. It?s a loan, here?s the property, it?s worth $150k, I need a loan for $100K, what?s the problem? When you have private money for real estate investing, you don?t fill out forms!

Not only that, but what?s up with those lenders having to hammer my credit report every time I get a loan? First there?s an inquiry, then they add the loan to my list of debts, so the whole world knows my business. I?m definitely NOT down with that. Now that I have all the private money for real estate investing I could possibly need, there?s no hits on my credit report, and nobody ever sees the debt listed. I don?t have to worry the next time I go to apply for a car loan that I?m going to have to answer a whole bunch of stupid, embarrassing questions. I?m a happy guy!

Heck, I?m just about the most confident, flexible guy in town, thanks to my ability to raise private money for real estate investing! I can?t say this strongly enough?

You?ve got to figure out how to get some of your own!

For more information, and a more in-depth article, visit Private Money For Real Estate Investing on my website.

Now, go make more offers!

How To Get Started In Commercial Real Estate Investing

Commercial real estate investing can be very rewarding for those who take the time and effort to approach it wisely, but it can be a trap for those who rush in without doing their homework properly.

Too often, investors rush into buying a property for all the wrong reasons ? “it’s a good deal,” a “bargain opportunity” and the list goes on. Then they wonder what happened when the investment either goes pear shaped or becomes a full time job.

If you are serious about building significant wealth from commercial property investment, you must have a proper investment strategy. This is a get rich slow business that requires patience, planning and persistence.

The key elements to any property investment strategy are:

* Get your personal financial affairs in order and make sure they are geared towards building wealth, not paying off consumer debt. Also, check your credit rating to make sure it is in order.

* Draw up a list of your criteria for property type, size and location. Be aware that each type of property requires a different set of skills to manage and offers varying rates of return. It is much easier to fit the property to your strengths rather than you try and change to fit the property.

* Study your local market so you can quickly identify opportunities that are within your capacity to act on. It’s no use looking to invest in an area where you don’t have on the ground knowledge.

* Be prepared to study and learn. Once you’ve spotted a possible deal, you need to be able to accurately value a property based on its condition, your return expectation, and your borrowing power. You need to understand why “what is it worth” is the wrong question to ask, and how to answer the right question “what is it worth to me?”

* Last, you need to learn how to structure deals and make offers too good to refuse.

When you have done this homework properly, you will be in a position to act decisively, reap the profits and keep them. Of course, you will need to consult regularly with your accountant on tax planning and asset protection, which are cornerstones of any wealth building plan.

You also need to consider what your overall portfolio will look like. Don’t fall into the trap of buying all sorts of different properties and then end up with it being a full time job as you juggle dealing with evictions, skips, delinquencies, maintenance and bills.

Once your overall planning is done, the next step is to select your real estate team. You will need a good real estate agent, loan officer, tax advisor, and lawyer. These people are critical to your success because the investor with the best knowledge can quickly identify the properties to ignore and those worth considering.

Remember the old adage, “the quick and the dead” ? the speed at which you can close a deal will give you the edge in any type of market. In addition, your advisors can point you in the right direction regarding finance, tax and legal issues.

Also, there is a good reason behind the catch cry, “location, location, value”. You want a return on your dollar so you are looking for a property that requires some attention so you can add value.
One strategy is to buy real estate in up-and-coming area with new developments or renovated properties. This makes it easy to attract and keep good tenants and leads to greater returns.

Another tactic to add value is to buy properties in solid locations but require some maintenance or upgrading, such as improving the aesthetic appeal of the building, thus instantly improving its value with little outlay.

In regard to financing, banks are the most obvious first lender, but commercial loans are not quite as simple as the more commonly known residential loans and you should always seek professional advice from your accountant and legal advisor.

You should also understand the various methods of financing, such as double closing, lease options, and contract for deed.

Double closing has attracted negative publicity lately, but only because it is misunderstood. This is a perfectly legal, moral and ethical method of trading that has been around for 100 years or more.

A double closing is simply two back-to-back closings wherein the proceeds from the second closing are used to fund the first closing. Both closings are done in escrow, so the “middleman” can buy and resell a property for profit without putting up their own cash.

The main downside you have to be careful of is that the closing rarely goes to plan and there are delays of up to a few weeks, which can cause the plan to unravel. Make sure any contract allows for this and you should be covered.

Contract for deed is an agreement whereby the buyer makes installment payments on an arrangement similar to car financing. That is, the seller holds the title to the property while the buyer has the equitable title.

Lease options consist of two elements, the first of which is the lease. This is a contract for use and possession of the property, thus creating a lessor/lessee relationship.

The second element provides a purchase option, which is a unilateral agreement where the seller agrees to give the buyer the exclusive right to the leased property. This is NOT a sale.

Make the effort to prepare your own income and expenses pro formas from the beginning, or get your accountant to do it. Don’t rely on operating results or projections presented by the agent or the seller ? chances are the seller will overstate income and understate expenses, then claim ignorance if challenged.

The only way to know the investment value of what the property is worth to you, is to develop an accurate projection of income and expenses, which can only be obtained by researching the market and determining in advance what the cash flow will be once your investment and management plan is in place.

Also, you need at least a 20-25 % down payment to get access to the best financing terms. You can still get finance on a payment down to 10% but you will pay more interest, loan fees and private mortgage insurance.

Remember, borrowing to cover the majority of your acquisition costs can boost your rates of return, but too much debt expense can be dangerous if the market takes a downturn.

About the Author:

Specializing in commercial and investment real estate, Tony Seruga, Yolanda Seruga and Yolanda Bishop are always searching for new and profitable commercial properties across the U.S. Visit http://www.maverickrei.com for more great information

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