Atlanta Real Estate Investing 
Atlanta real estate investing advice, market insights, economic evaluation and Atlanta Real Estate for short term speculators and long term "buy and hold" strategies for Atlanta investment Property.
There are currently 40 blog entries related to this category.
Selling Service One House At A TIme
Sunday, June 8th, 2008 at 7:28am. 251 Views, 0 Comments.
A lot of folks get confused about what I do as a real estate agent...they have this misconception that I sell houses. It's not their fault. After all, there's a sign in the front yard with my number on it. Oh and there's a flyer with my picture on it with some details of the house too. I think anyone looking at the message being delivered has the potential to get confused about what I sell and what I don't.
Here's the truth...I sell a marketing service...NOT houses. Sure, the sale of a house is the end goal - but it's not what I sell.
Saying a real estate agent sells houses is a lot like saying a tax accountant sells a tax refund.
The difference between $1000 and $7.29
Saturday, June 7th, 2008 at 8:40pm. 253 Views, 0 Comments.
Most buyers think by saving $1,000 off the asking price, they're actually saving $1,000.
This isn't entirely true.
As a buyer you're most likely financing between 70% and 80% of the purchase price. At an 8% interest rate you only take $7.29 out of your pocket per month for every $1000 you add to your mortgage. That means it would take 137 months or 11.43 years for you to take $1,000 out of your pocket. Most people don't own their homes for 11.43 years.
Now, as a Seller, for every $1,000 you come down in price it's exactly $1,000 out of your pocket.
The difference between $1000 and $7.29 is the single most misunderstood concept of real estate negotiations.
3 "If's" for Today's Market
Sunday, June 1st, 2008 at 12:02pm. 282 Views, 0 Comments.
If you purchased your home 8 years ago, you'll be able to sell it for more than you paid.
If you bought it within the last 2 to 3 years, unfortunately the market has softened and you'll not be able to sell it for as much as you paid.
If you bought it 5 years ago, you'll be selling it for the same amount you paid.
Sell Low, Buy Lower - The New Economy of Real Estate
Saturday, May 31st, 2008 at 10:04am. 306 Views, 0 Comments.
Most Sellers in today's market are holding out for their price - waiting for the market to bring them what they need so they have enough of equity to put a hefty down payment on the more expensive home they've been dreaming of.
The harsh reality is this: If you do wait until the market goes up so you have enough equity to move to a higher priced property, unfortunately the price of the higher property has appreciated as well and you'll be faced with the same situation.
Here's an idea...
Sell your home today at the best price the market will bring and then go out and get a great deal on that higher priced home of your dreams.
I call this the "Sell Low, Buy Lower" model of real estate.
$38,596.23 - A Lesson on Home Inspections
Sunday, May 18th, 2008 at 7:58am. 460 Views, 0 Comments.
When I bought my first home I was clueless. So clueless, in fact, that on the advice of my Real Estate Agent, I hired a cabinet maker (long story) to inspect my home. HIs report consisted of one page with a few checkboxes and a "notes" section at the bottom with 3 lines. On the top line he wrote: "This home is in fine shape."
That's it.
A year later I got my real estate license and was approached by a young home inspector who, in attempting to network and build business, offered me a free home inspection on my personal home so I could see how he operates. His report was 35 pages long - there were checkboxes, of course and a notes section at the bottom of every page. The result was not as forgiving as the first go 'round.
$38,596.23 later…
Who Wants to be a Millionaire Real Estate Investor?
Saturday, March 29th, 2008 at 9:42am. 529 Views, 0 Comments.
Investing in Atlanta Real Estate?
Where should you put your money? Stocks? Bonds? Real Estate? Of course, the answer to that question will vary - depending on your individual resources, your threshold for risk and how many years you might be from your target retirement date. Few traditional models of low risk investment portfolio's mention the benefits of real estate investing - especialy for those of you that still have some gas left in the tank before retirement age.Investing in the Bottom Line:
Over the long run...the Stock Market has always been a fairly "low-risk" investment with a good return. In fact, from 1987 to 2007 the S&P 500 has appreciated at an average rate of almost 10% annually. The NASDAQ, just over 11%. Home prices over…Here are some investments that PAY...
Sunday, February 3rd, 2008 at 7:31am. 489 Views, 0 Comments.
Here are some investments in your home’s exterior that I’ve found through firsthand experience can have a huge ROI (return on investment):
Paint
It should come as no surprise that surveys show that painting the exterior of your home results in the greatest return on time and money invested when compared to other improvements done for selling purposes. An investment of $1,000-$2,000 can mean adding $3,000-$4,000 to your asking price. And if you can do a good job yourself, your profit is even greater. Even if your home doesn’t need the full treatment, check the trim around windows and doorways for cracking or peeling, and do any necessary touch-up work. Many buyers form their first, and
often strongest, opinions before they step out of the car.
Who wants to be a Millionaire Real Estate Investor?
Saturday, December 15th, 2007 at 4:53pm. 412 Views, 0 Comments.
For years we have all heard the stories of people making a fortune speculating in real estate. But what precisely is speculating? Is it just a fancy word for investing? Not quite. Speculating generally refers to the practice of flipping properties before they are even complete. Now, that being said; it also needs to be pointed out that speculating comes with a great deal of risk and only works at specific times in specific locations. The kind of locations where speculating works are areas that suddenly have a huge drawing power like trendy vacation spots, new ski resorts and new construction areas that are close to famous attractions. Great examples of areas like this were Florida and Las Vegas in the early 2000's.
Now, speculating is really not for…
Select Home Improvements That Pay...
Saturday, June 23rd, 2007 at 5:15am. 395 Views, 0 Comments.
Generally speaking, there are two ways to go about home improvements. You’re either going to splurge on your home because it’s your palace and you simply want a beautiful place to live, OR, you’re going to take a more logical, pragmatic approach designed to increase your home’s value.
It takes saavy and experience to achieve both. Many homeowners expose themselves to the very problems they’re trying to avoid in the process of home fix-ups.
Take Tom and Carol Jenkins, who four years ago purchased a 3 bedroom 1 bath home in Oakhurst for $190,000. Since buying their home, they’ve spent over $120,000 renovating it, adding a master suite, updating the kitchen and baths and making it the “perfect” place to live. A few months ago, they put the home on…
The Foundation of Successful Sales...
Wednesday, June 6th, 2007 at 5:26am. 435 Views, 0 Comments.
Over at Bloodhoundblog Cathleen tells of a great experience around the importance of cleanliness in the sale-abilty of a home and the dismay over agents who fail to realize this simple fact.
Even if the sellers insist on shooting themselves in the foot, why would a listing agent join them in self-destruction? Taking a listing takes time and money. Why do something with half the effort when you know that anything less than full effort is doomed to failure?
Great question Cathleen...penetrating, really...and some of the best advice conducive to listing and selling real estate that I've heard. And because I work in a market where many of the homes I sell are 60 to 80 years old, plagued with "paint-can" renovations and hack-job remodels, often times…
Real Source Blog
That's me (Joshua) on the left. Ok ... a little about me in an extremely limited series of words: Thinker of thoughts. Writer of words. Consulant of Real Estate. Seller of homes. Obsessed with systems and marketing. One-fourth of "TeamRSB". This is our blog (aka "web log"). You can check us out here too:
