Real Estate Articles

On October 22, 2004, President Bush signed tax legislation that contained a provision affecting Internal Revenue Code section 1031 (the like-kind tax-free exchange rules). Under this new provision a taxpayer who exchanges under Internal Revenue Code...

If you're thinking about buying a home but have declared bankruptcy in the past, don't give up hope. There are still ways for you to be able to find a loan, even if your credit history is less than sterling. Lenders make various kinds of home loans, ...

Whether you are a real estate investor looking for a steady and 'safe' investment in a proven market or a real estate speculator willing to gamble on the unknown and undiscovered in the hopes of gaining a significant ROI (return on investment), this ...

When examining the different asset classes, real estate is generally far less volatile than shares and real estate tends to be the haven that investors flock to when other asset classes are suffering. It is true to say that investment properties can ...

One of the things that distresses us about our industry is the amount of wrong or incomplete information available to investors. Some myths block what otherwise would be a great deal, while others would have you believe that a bad deal is actually gr...

If you've read my first article, BUDGETING YOUR LOG HOME: Where do you start?, you've got a very basic overview of the process. However, there are still a number of questions I'd like to address. Again, many of these questions will come up if you bu...

They say that the whole process of selling up, buying new and moving on is one of the most stressful series of events any of us goes through in a lifetime: and yet with careful planning, attention to detail and a clear focus, the whole process can be...

Here is a step by step guide for buyers looking to buy a condo in any area. These are important tactics to make a solid and accurate judgement on the property you're looking to purchase. - When purchasing a condominium make sure that you ask for the...

The Rental Experience in South Florida Readers: This is based on a true experience -- only slightly exaggerated -- part of my life of adventure. If I had read my own book, Making the Big Move, and followed my own advice, none of this would have happe...

If you've just bought a house, you may be able to relate to a fascinating essay in Maya Angelou's book, Even the Stars Look Lonesome. When Ms. Angelou moved into a designer house in California, she says, nothing worked. Her pictures didn't look right...

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house Not a creature was stirring, just the Mac and the mouse, When all of a sudden a wail filled the air As the burglar alarm detected a hair. I ran to the keypad, pushed down on the code Hoping ne...

A new report by the independent Demos group has revealed what may not be a surprise to many people - corruption is rampant in the home appraisal industry. The bust in the dot-com market of some five years ago has left would-be lenders with a surplus...

Satisfying and lucrative real estate investment depends upon your correct assessment of profit potential, of course, but your ultimate success depends on your ability to transform a fixer into a dollhouse. The renovation process involves physical wor...

Given the current interest (dare I say hysteria) associated with investing in dirt and buildings, I thought it might be interesting for our readers to have a quick, dirty manual on real estate valuation. My perspective comes from years in the industr...

Did you know that you can save tens of thousands of dollars on the purchase of your home by investing in a foreclosure or preforeclosure property? When you are trying to purchase a home for the first time, and you have limited resources and limited f...

I really believe in getting an education in real estate investing, especially before launching a real estate investing career. I have been investing in real estate for 25 years, but I still spend thousands of dollars each year to learn more about rea...

Welcome to the second portion of a two-part series on investment property. In the first installment, "How Not to Become a Slumlord", we discussed a little of what it takes to own and operate a property as well as some of the do's and don'ts of the p...

It is no secret that sellers want to sell high and buyers want to buy low. But they often arrive at the negotiating table with very different ideas on price. A fair and objective property valuation can help buyers and sellers find common ground and ...

You don't get what you deserve - you get what you negotiate for. If you've spent some time on homekeys.net, you probably noticed we generally don't carry a torch for tradition or conventional wisdom. Having said that, the well-worn cliché above stil...

Real estate investing begins when you move to the starting point. Get ready. Get set. GO... Are you ready to begin a real estate investing career? Or, are you already investing in real estate some, and want to expand your holdings? Or, are you invest...

Sue and Chuck DeFiore have the perfect solution for you - Lease Purchasing your home! What is Lease Purchasing? A Lease Purchase is a process that combines a basic rental lease with an agreement to purchase, or with an option to purchase the propert...

There's something you should know about PMI! Private mortgage insurance is commonly referred to as PMI. If a buyer makes a down payment of less than 20% of a home's value the lender will insist that a premium for PMI be added to every monthly paymen...

It's not uncommon for an investor to sell a house and have the buyer request the right to rent and occupy the property while the closing is being completed. You're a bad guy if you refuse and often in hot water of you agree. Here are the potential p...

What if two people pooled their resources and began investing in real estate. Like many partnerships things progress smoothly for a while and then a dispute arises. Now they seldom can stand to talk to one another and then only through clenched teet...

Real estate investing professionals look for all possible tax deductions because of the generous profits derived from real estate investing. For example, real estate investors are concerned whether the sale of their real estate is subject to capital ...

In the 9 years that I grieved taxes professionally, I was asked many of the same questions over and over again. I would like to take a few minutes to go over some of this information in order to dispel some myths about lowering property taxes. The mo...

Today's residential real estate market for investors has become very competitive in most major markets. The vast majority of real estate investing seminars and clubs are encouraging you to search out desperate home owners or distressed properties to ...

Real estate investing is not in any list of high school electives. You can't get an accredited degree in real estate investing. You won't find a high school or college guidance counselor who recommends a career in real estate investing (if the guidan...

Are you ready for the lesson that will put you ahead of 99% of all real estate investors? Here it is in a nutshell … USE AS LITTLE CASH AS POSSIBLE! The days of mortgage burning parties are long over. But you will still meet people who believe th...

Many would-be real estate investing professionals face discouragement because of the assumption that acquisitions require deep-pockets. Some even believe the myth that nothing-down purchases are impossible. The early 1980s era in real estate investin...