Investing

There is a way to defer the taxes on the "sale" of a property being used or held for investment purposes or trade. Its referred to as a Tax Deferred Exchange. You may also hear it called a "Deferred Like-Kind Exchange" or a "Section 1031 Exchange" or a variety of other terms; we're going to stick to tax deferred exchange or TDE. First, let me say that you must use, by law, what is called a "qualified intermediary" to complete a TDE. Its also highly recommended that you have an attorney that can explain the legal aspects of the exchange.

In simple terms…you can defer (postpone), and in some cases, eliminate the capital gains tax on an investment property you're selling. The catch? You have to be purchasing a "like-kind property" to "replace" the one…

Real Estate Investment Opportunities in Metro Atlanta

To better serve the needs of real estate investors throughout the Metro Atlanta market, I recently earned the Certified Investor Agent Specialist™ (CIAS) Designation. With the CIAS, I have the training, tools and calculations to effectively serve the five investor types: First-Time Investor, Move-Up Investor, Portfolio Investor, Performance Investor, and Rehab and Resell Investor.

Real estate represents a consistent and stable way to build wealth, brings liquidity to our housing market, and stimulates our local economy. In fact, in the past year, investment and second-home properties represented approximately 27% of all residential sales. It’s also worth noting that nationwide, 43% of real estate…

Or will you bag groceries at Publix?

Have you ever been in the check out line at your local grocery store and noticed a Senior Citizen bagging your groceries? I have. And it breaks my heart everytime.

Do you think that old man checking receipts at the exit of Wal-Mart dreamed of a day when he'd use a yellow highlighter and a polite nod to earn some extra cash to help pay the bills?

Can you picture him in his 20’s, 30’s, 40’s or 50’s just waiting for the day when he can retire with dignity at the end of a check out lane in an apron asking whether you prefer paper or plastic?

Of course, I'm being funny ... but there's something serious for us to all consider. We're here enduring the worst economy since the Great Depression.  Millions have lost…

I've recently read a ton of news articles and heard a number of folks on news shows talking about why it may not be a good idea for you to buy a home right now. I say FALSE, and so do many who understand not just the financial gain found in home ownership but the quality of life and pride that can be gained as well. A recent article written by Ron Lieber in the NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/28/your-money/mortgages/28money.html) mentions a few reasons why buying is still a great idea. I'll touch on his thoughts and then share a few of my own. Its worth noting that I bought my first home in March, 2010 at the age of 26.

Record Low prices combined with Record Low Interest Rates

Have you heard that is a buyers market? If you have a stable…

It's a testament to the quality of 60 Minutes that nearly 2 years after it was first recorded in December of 2008 this 12 minute prediction of what will come to pass has ... well ... come to pass.

We're entering the 4th quarter of 2010 and we are, without a doubt, heading right into the second wave of the Atlanta Foreclosure crisis.

In addition to residential sales, my team is heavily involved in helping investors profit by investing in foreclosure properties. Mainly by purchasing small single family homes in Atlanta foreclosure market at 60% to 70% of future value, rehabbing them, and quickly reselling them for a healthy profit. Most of these properties are in blue collar neighborhoods that we resell to first time buyers using FHA insured financing. Most of the foreclosed properties we purchase were also financed by FHA insured mortgages.

The one wrinkle in this buy, rehab, and resell process was the arcane Housing and Urban Development anti-flipping 90 day rule 24CCFR 203.37a(b)(2). This rule "provide that a rehabbed property would not be eligible for another FHA insured loan if…

I urge you to read, watch and take action.

The Case-Shiller data for October was released today.

Good news first: seasonally adjusted data shows a 5th consecutive increase for nationwide home prices.  

Now the bad news: continued weakness in the Atlanta market with -.2% month over month; -8.1% for the year and a whopping -19.6% since the peak of the market in April of 2007.

The good, the bad and the ugly news: depending on whether you're a buyer/investor (good), seller (bad) or lender (ugly) we have seen prices this low since May of 2001.

According to the most recent report from Equity Depot (an Alpharetta based firm), the Atlanta real estate market had a record setting 117,107 foreclosures notices filed in 2009.  That's a near 50 percent increase over the previous record in 2008.

The report goes on to disclose a 10 percent increase in foreclosures compared to November (month over month) and ... get this ... a whopping 77 percent increase over December 2008 (year over year).

Gwinnett county led the pack with 2,074 foreclosure notices, close behind sits Fulton county at 2,006 notices.  Dekalb county figures came in at 1,568, Cobb at 1,203 and Clayton lagging behind major metro counties with 866.

Fulton county ended the year with 24,609 total foreclosures.

Unbelievable. 

Why the…

It's worth taking a look at this recent Wall Street Journal interview with Real Estate expert John L. Burns.

Mr. Burns confirms a lot of what I've been predicting for months now for the 2010-2011 Atlanta real estate market.

In the video he explains why FHA loans and migth contribute to a prolonged recovery.

Here are a few reasons why 2010 will not be the year of recovery:

**We are likely to see what economists refer to as a ‘W’ shaped recovery…recent news and the surrounding economic environment supports us being in the first leg of the "W"… going up (only to come back down in 2010)

**FHA, with it's monstor growth (2% of the market in 2007 to over 23% right now), has become the new ’sub-prime’

**Without continued government intervention (tax…