Beginning Real Estate Investing - Understanding Market Values

Another in a series of articles on beginning real estate investing. A crucial step to becoming a wise real estate investor is getting to know your local market, and learning to put a value on the properties within your target neighborhoods.

Beginning real estate investing involves learning a new set of skills, one of the most important of which is valuing property. For the limited scope of this article, we?ll limit our discussion to residential single-family and duplex homes.

When you are just beginning real estate investing, it?s helpful to set a goal for yourself to become the market value expert in one or two select neighborhoods. When choosing these neighborhoods, look for locations close to your home with a good selection of homes in the lower-middle to middle price range for your market. This is where you?ll find the best combination of working-class homeowners and what I call ?aspirational? renters- those renters who aspire to homeownership. These will become your best customers.

Once you?ve found one or two of these neighborhoods, start driving through at least twice a week, looking for all real estate activity, including listed sales, For Sale By Owner, auctions, estate sales, vacant property, even moving van activity. As someone who is beginning real estate investing you should get tuned in to the pulse of the neighborhood.

Look for and get to know the local Realtors. Stop in to the Realty offices and introduce yourself. Find out who the most active listing agents are, who sells the most houses, who deals with the most foreclosures, and who works with the investors. These are the best Realtors to work with as you are beginning real estate investing.

Also, beginning real estate investing means getting to know local service people, especially contractors. Talk to as many of these as you can, and find the ones that do a lot of work in your target neighborhood, especially plumbers. Ask them what kinds of recurring problems they see. They will provide you a wealth of information.

Give yourself a timetable to learn property values in your target neighborhood. Three to six months is probably realistic. When you are just beginning real estate investing you will need to work closely with a Realtor. Ask for all the listings in your target neighborhood, and try to see them all. Ask also for the listings of comparable sales (Comps) so you can see what similar properties have sold for recently.

Build a spreadsheet, database, or even just a handwritten notebook so you can refer back to it from time to time. This will become a valuable resource for you as you progress beyond beginning real estate investing. Slowly but surely you will become an expert on property values in your target neighborhoods. You will be able to look at most any property and know, within a few hundred dollars, exactly what it?s market value is. This knowledge will serve you very well as you progress in your real estate investing activities.

For more in-depth information, visit my website and read more about beginning real estate investing.

Now, go make more offers!

You Can Succeed With Real Estate Investing

You?ve decided you would like to enter into the world of real estate investing, but you?re not sure how to get started. You?re wondering if there are specific things you need to do to achieve real estate investing success. Read on.

For myself and most of the people I know who enjoy real estate investing success, there are a few things we can point to with assurance and say, ?Do these things consistently, and you can succeed. Fail to do them, and you will continue to struggle.? What are they? I have boiled them down to just four.

First, you need to be oriented toward taking action. It?s all well and good to learn and study what others have done, and there?s plenty of material on the internet and elsewhere on how to achieve real estate investing success. You can have too much of a good thing, however, especially when it prevents you from taking action. Only action will get you where you want to go.

Second, you need to conquer the fear that holds you back. Yes, you probably will make a few mistakes along the way, but those who are successful know that they can?t allow their fear of making mistakes to keep them from moving forward. If you?re in the midst of what I call ?fear paralysis? ? shake it off and do something!

Third, the smartest investors I know keep their investing activities simple. By doing that, they maximize their knowledge and limit the possibility and severity of the mistakes they inevitably will make. Real estate investing success, like success in other endeavors, requires mastering the basics, a few simple and repeatable skills that will get you well on the road to the top of the heap.

Fourth, understand your market. Those who enjoy real estate investing success are masters of their local market. How? By taking the same actions over and over they get to know how things work in the market they invest in. They learn market values, who the players are, and what works, as well as what doesn?t work. They become specialists rather than generalists.

Take action, overcome your fear, keep it simple, and understand your market. Apply these four things consistently and you will certainly achieve real estate investing success on a level most people only dream about. That?s how to get started in real estate investing.

Beginning Real Estate Investing - Understanding Market Values

Another in a series of articles on beginning real estate investing. A crucial step to becoming a wise real estate investor is getting to know your local market, and learning to put a value on the properties within your target neighborhoods.

Beginning real estate investing involves learning a new set of skills, one of the most important of which is valuing property. For the limited scope of this article, we?ll limit our discussion to residential single-family and duplex homes.

When you are just beginning real estate investing, it?s helpful to set a goal for yourself to become the market value expert in one or two select neighborhoods. When choosing these neighborhoods, look for locations close to your home with a good selection of homes in the lower-middle to middle price range for your market. This is where you?ll find the best combination of working-class homeowners and what I call ?aspirational? renters- those renters who aspire to homeownership. These will become your best customers.

Once you?ve found one or two of these neighborhoods, start driving through at least twice a week, looking for all real estate activity, including listed sales, For Sale By Owner, auctions, estate sales, vacant property, even moving van activity. As someone who is beginning real estate investing you should get tuned in to the pulse of the neighborhood.

Look for and get to know the local Realtors. Stop in to the Realty offices and introduce yourself. Find out who the most active listing agents are, who sells the most houses, who deals with the most foreclosures, and who works with the investors. These are the best Realtors to work with as you are beginning real estate investing.

Also, beginning real estate investing means getting to know local service people, especially contractors. Talk to as many of these as you can, and find the ones that do a lot of work in your target neighborhood, especially plumbers. Ask them what kinds of recurring problems they see. They will provide you a wealth of information.

Give yourself a timetable to learn property values in your target neighborhood. Three to six months is probably realistic. When you are just beginning real estate investing you will need to work closely with a Realtor. Ask for all the listings in your target neighborhood, and try to see them all. Ask also for the listings of comparable sales (Comps) so you can see what similar properties have sold for recently.

Build a spreadsheet, database, or even just a handwritten notebook so you can refer back to it from time to time. This will become a valuable resource for you as you progress beyond beginning real estate investing. Slowly but surely you will become an expert on property values in your target neighborhoods. You will be able to look at most any property and know, within a few hundred dollars, exactly what it?s market value is. This knowledge will serve you very well as you progress in your real estate investing activities.

For more in-depth information, visit my website and read more about beginning real estate investing.

Now, go make more offers!

Beginning Real Estate Investing - Understanding Market Values

Another in a series of articles on beginning real estate investing. A crucial step to becoming a wise real estate investor is getting to know your local market, and learning to put a value on the properties within your target neighborhoods.

Beginning real estate investing involves learning a new set of skills, one of the most important of which is valuing property. For the limited scope of this article, we?ll limit our discussion to residential single-family and duplex homes.

When you are just beginning real estate investing, it?s helpful to set a goal for yourself to become the market value expert in one or two select neighborhoods. When choosing these neighborhoods, look for locations close to your home with a good selection of homes in the lower-middle to middle price range for your market. This is where you?ll find the best combination of working-class homeowners and what I call ?aspirational? renters- those renters who aspire to homeownership. These will become your best customers.

Once you?ve found one or two of these neighborhoods, start driving through at least twice a week, looking for all real estate activity, including listed sales, For Sale By Owner, auctions, estate sales, vacant property, even moving van activity. As someone who is beginning real estate investing you should get tuned in to the pulse of the neighborhood.

Look for and get to know the local Realtors. Stop in to the Realty offices and introduce yourself. Find out who the most active listing agents are, who sells the most houses, who deals with the most foreclosures, and who works with the investors. These are the best Realtors to work with as you are beginning real estate investing.

Also, beginning real estate investing means getting to know local service people, especially contractors. Talk to as many of these as you can, and find the ones that do a lot of work in your target neighborhood, especially plumbers. Ask them what kinds of recurring problems they see. They will provide you a wealth of information.

Give yourself a timetable to learn property values in your target neighborhood. Three to six months is probably realistic. When you are just beginning real estate investing you will need to work closely with a Realtor. Ask for all the listings in your target neighborhood, and try to see them all. Ask also for the listings of comparable sales (Comps) so you can see what similar properties have sold for recently.

Build a spreadsheet, database, or even just a handwritten notebook so you can refer back to it from time to time. This will become a valuable resource for you as you progress beyond beginning real estate investing. Slowly but surely you will become an expert on property values in your target neighborhoods. You will be able to look at most any property and know, within a few hundred dollars, exactly what it?s market value is. This knowledge will serve you very well as you progress in your real estate investing activities.

For more in-depth information, visit my website and read more about beginning real estate investing.

Now, go make more offers!

How Does Real Estate Investing Work - The Will To Win

In October 1941 Winston Churchill visited Harrow School (his alma mater) and spoke to the students. Included in that speech is one of the most famous quotations in history. Churchill said, ?Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never–in nothing, great or small, large or petty–never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense.? If you?re wondering to yourself, ?How does real estate investing work?? you could do worse than to start by memorizing those immortal words.

As in most other worthwhile endeavors, real estate investing requires one thing above all else? perseverance. Otherwise known as the will to win, perseverance is the quality I find in the shortest supply among those I run into who are asking the question, ?How does real estate investing work??

There?s plenty of strong starters? lots of folks come out of the gate and sprint well.

There?s no shortage of brilliant strategies? creative acquisition and finance techniques abound.

There?s a plethora of aggressive and clever marketing? witness all the ?We Buy Houses? signs and ads in your town.

There?s even a host of investment clubs and forums? people are partnering and working joint ventures in record numbers.

Unfortunately, there?s a lack of consistency. The investors I meet today are often not the investors I was meeting at this time three years ago, or two, or even last year. Why? I can only conclude that many investors are woefully ill prepared for market conditions as they truly are, and therefore are all too quick to exit the game when the going invariably gets rough.

Many of the failed investors I?ve spoken to had a ?pie in the sky? mentality when it came to the realities of real estate investing, especially regarding market values and lending criteria. As a result, they just couldn?t stick it out. They gave in.

How can you avoid becoming one of these disillusioned ?former investors??

One simple answer? enter in to the investing game with both eyes wide open, and a willingness to look at things the way they truly are, not as you would wish them to be. If you do that, you will position yourself to be one of the winners, consistently, over the long haul.

Winston Churchill had a funny habit of telling the truth. He told it to pretty much everyone he met. He didn?t sugarcoat reality, even with himself. Especially with himself.

Make sure, when answering the question, ?How does real estate investing work?? that you do the same.

I?ve got more on the question, “How does real estate investing work?”

Now, go make more offers.

How Does Real Estate Investing Work - The Will To Win

In October 1941 Winston Churchill visited Harrow School (his alma mater) and spoke to the students. Included in that speech is one of the most famous quotations in history. Churchill said, ?Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never–in nothing, great or small, large or petty–never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense.? If you?re wondering to yourself, ?How does real estate investing work?? you could do worse than to start by memorizing those immortal words.

As in most other worthwhile endeavors, real estate investing requires one thing above all else? perseverance. Otherwise known as the will to win, perseverance is the quality I find in the shortest supply among those I run into who are asking the question, ?How does real estate investing work??

There?s plenty of strong starters? lots of folks come out of the gate and sprint well.

There?s no shortage of brilliant strategies? creative acquisition and finance techniques abound.

There?s a plethora of aggressive and clever marketing? witness all the ?We Buy Houses? signs and ads in your town.

There?s even a host of investment clubs and forums? people are partnering and working joint ventures in record numbers.

Unfortunately, there?s a lack of consistency. The investors I meet today are often not the investors I was meeting at this time three years ago, or two, or even last year. Why? I can only conclude that many investors are woefully ill prepared for market conditions as they truly are, and therefore are all too quick to exit the game when the going invariably gets rough.

Many of the failed investors I?ve spoken to had a ?pie in the sky? mentality when it came to the realities of real estate investing, especially regarding market values and lending criteria. As a result, they just couldn?t stick it out. They gave in.

How can you avoid becoming one of these disillusioned ?former investors??

One simple answer? enter in to the investing game with both eyes wide open, and a willingness to look at things the way they truly are, not as you would wish them to be. If you do that, you will position yourself to be one of the winners, consistently, over the long haul.

Winston Churchill had a funny habit of telling the truth. He told it to pretty much everyone he met. He didn?t sugarcoat reality, even with himself. Especially with himself.

Make sure, when answering the question, ?How does real estate investing work?? that you do the same.

I?ve got more on the question, “How does real estate investing work?”

Now, go make more offers.

Beginning Real Estate Investing - Understanding Market Values

Another in a series of articles on beginning real estate investing. A crucial step to becoming a wise real estate investor is getting to know your local market, and learning to put a value on the properties within your target neighborhoods.

Beginning real estate investing involves learning a new set of skills, one of the most important of which is valuing property. For the limited scope of this article, we?ll limit our discussion to residential single-family and duplex homes.

When you are just beginning real estate investing, it?s helpful to set a goal for yourself to become the market value expert in one or two select neighborhoods. When choosing these neighborhoods, look for locations close to your home with a good selection of homes in the lower-middle to middle price range for your market. This is where you?ll find the best combination of working-class homeowners and what I call ?aspirational? renters- those renters who aspire to homeownership. These will become your best customers.

Once you?ve found one or two of these neighborhoods, start driving through at least twice a week, looking for all real estate activity, including listed sales, For Sale By Owner, auctions, estate sales, vacant property, even moving van activity. As someone who is beginning real estate investing you should get tuned in to the pulse of the neighborhood.

Look for and get to know the local Realtors. Stop in to the Realty offices and introduce yourself. Find out who the most active listing agents are, who sells the most houses, who deals with the most foreclosures, and who works with the investors. These are the best Realtors to work with as you are beginning real estate investing.

Also, beginning real estate investing means getting to know local service people, especially contractors. Talk to as many of these as you can, and find the ones that do a lot of work in your target neighborhood, especially plumbers. Ask them what kinds of recurring problems they see. They will provide you a wealth of information.

Give yourself a timetable to learn property values in your target neighborhood. Three to six months is probably realistic. When you are just beginning real estate investing you will need to work closely with a Realtor. Ask for all the listings in your target neighborhood, and try to see them all. Ask also for the listings of comparable sales (Comps) so you can see what similar properties have sold for recently.

Build a spreadsheet, database, or even just a handwritten notebook so you can refer back to it from time to time. This will become a valuable resource for you as you progress beyond beginning real estate investing. Slowly but surely you will become an expert on property values in your target neighborhoods. You will be able to look at most any property and know, within a few hundred dollars, exactly what it?s market value is. This knowledge will serve you very well as you progress in your real estate investing activities.

For more in-depth information, visit my website and read more about beginning real estate investing.

Now, go make more offers!

How Does Real Estate Investing Work - The Will To Win

In October 1941 Winston Churchill visited Harrow School (his alma mater) and spoke to the students. Included in that speech is one of the most famous quotations in history. Churchill said, ?Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never–in nothing, great or small, large or petty–never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense.? If you?re wondering to yourself, ?How does real estate investing work?? you could do worse than to start by memorizing those immortal words.

As in most other worthwhile endeavors, real estate investing requires one thing above all else? perseverance. Otherwise known as the will to win, perseverance is the quality I find in the shortest supply among those I run into who are asking the question, ?How does real estate investing work??

There?s plenty of strong starters? lots of folks come out of the gate and sprint well.

There?s no shortage of brilliant strategies? creative acquisition and finance techniques abound.

There?s a plethora of aggressive and clever marketing? witness all the ?We Buy Houses? signs and ads in your town.

There?s even a host of investment clubs and forums? people are partnering and working joint ventures in record numbers.

Unfortunately, there?s a lack of consistency. The investors I meet today are often not the investors I was meeting at this time three years ago, or two, or even last year. Why? I can only conclude that many investors are woefully ill prepared for market conditions as they truly are, and therefore are all too quick to exit the game when the going invariably gets rough.

Many of the failed investors I?ve spoken to had a ?pie in the sky? mentality when it came to the realities of real estate investing, especially regarding market values and lending criteria. As a result, they just couldn?t stick it out. They gave in.

How can you avoid becoming one of these disillusioned ?former investors??

One simple answer? enter in to the investing game with both eyes wide open, and a willingness to look at things the way they truly are, not as you would wish them to be. If you do that, you will position yourself to be one of the winners, consistently, over the long haul.

Winston Churchill had a funny habit of telling the truth. He told it to pretty much everyone he met. He didn?t sugarcoat reality, even with himself. Especially with himself.

Make sure, when answering the question, ?How does real estate investing work?? that you do the same.

I?ve got more on the question, “How does real estate investing work?”

Now, go make more offers.

Beginning Real Estate Investing - Understanding Market Values

Another in a series of articles on beginning real estate investing. A crucial step to becoming a wise real estate investor is getting to know your local market, and learning to put a value on the properties within your target neighborhoods.

Beginning real estate investing involves learning a new set of skills, one of the most important of which is valuing property. For the limited scope of this article, we?ll limit our discussion to residential single-family and duplex homes.

When you are just beginning real estate investing, it?s helpful to set a goal for yourself to become the market value expert in one or two select neighborhoods. When choosing these neighborhoods, look for locations close to your home with a good selection of homes in the lower-middle to middle price range for your market. This is where you?ll find the best combination of working-class homeowners and what I call ?aspirational? renters- those renters who aspire to homeownership. These will become your best customers.

Once you?ve found one or two of these neighborhoods, start driving through at least twice a week, looking for all real estate activity, including listed sales, For Sale By Owner, auctions, estate sales, vacant property, even moving van activity. As someone who is beginning real estate investing you should get tuned in to the pulse of the neighborhood.

Look for and get to know the local Realtors. Stop in to the Realty offices and introduce yourself. Find out who the most active listing agents are, who sells the most houses, who deals with the most foreclosures, and who works with the investors. These are the best Realtors to work with as you are beginning real estate investing.

Also, beginning real estate investing means getting to know local service people, especially contractors. Talk to as many of these as you can, and find the ones that do a lot of work in your target neighborhood, especially plumbers. Ask them what kinds of recurring problems they see. They will provide you a wealth of information.

Give yourself a timetable to learn property values in your target neighborhood. Three to six months is probably realistic. When you are just beginning real estate investing you will need to work closely with a Realtor. Ask for all the listings in your target neighborhood, and try to see them all. Ask also for the listings of comparable sales (Comps) so you can see what similar properties have sold for recently.

Build a spreadsheet, database, or even just a handwritten notebook so you can refer back to it from time to time. This will become a valuable resource for you as you progress beyond beginning real estate investing. Slowly but surely you will become an expert on property values in your target neighborhoods. You will be able to look at most any property and know, within a few hundred dollars, exactly what it?s market value is. This knowledge will serve you very well as you progress in your real estate investing activities.

For more in-depth information, visit my website and read more about beginning real estate investing.

Now, go make more offers!

How Does Real Estate Investing Work - The Will To Win

In October 1941 Winston Churchill visited Harrow School (his alma mater) and spoke to the students. Included in that speech is one of the most famous quotations in history. Churchill said, ?Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never–in nothing, great or small, large or petty–never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense.? If you?re wondering to yourself, ?How does real estate investing work?? you could do worse than to start by memorizing those immortal words.

As in most other worthwhile endeavors, real estate investing requires one thing above all else? perseverance. Otherwise known as the will to win, perseverance is the quality I find in the shortest supply among those I run into who are asking the question, ?How does real estate investing work??

There?s plenty of strong starters? lots of folks come out of the gate and sprint well.

There?s no shortage of brilliant strategies? creative acquisition and finance techniques abound.

There?s a plethora of aggressive and clever marketing? witness all the ?We Buy Houses? signs and ads in your town.

There?s even a host of investment clubs and forums? people are partnering and working joint ventures in record numbers.

Unfortunately, there?s a lack of consistency. The investors I meet today are often not the investors I was meeting at this time three years ago, or two, or even last year. Why? I can only conclude that many investors are woefully ill prepared for market conditions as they truly are, and therefore are all too quick to exit the game when the going invariably gets rough.

Many of the failed investors I?ve spoken to had a ?pie in the sky? mentality when it came to the realities of real estate investing, especially regarding market values and lending criteria. As a result, they just couldn?t stick it out. They gave in.

How can you avoid becoming one of these disillusioned ?former investors??

One simple answer? enter in to the investing game with both eyes wide open, and a willingness to look at things the way they truly are, not as you would wish them to be. If you do that, you will position yourself to be one of the winners, consistently, over the long haul.

Winston Churchill had a funny habit of telling the truth. He told it to pretty much everyone he met. He didn?t sugarcoat reality, even with himself. Especially with himself.

Make sure, when answering the question, ?How does real estate investing work?? that you do the same.

I?ve got more on the question, “How does real estate investing work?”

Now, go make more offers.

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