When you think “roof”, you probably think of a roof made of asphalt roofing shingles. If you don’t have asphalt shingle roofing, chances are the guys next door does. It is just about the most popular roofing material in America.

Formula For Success

Asphalt roofing shingles are so popular because they are easy to get a hold of, cheap, lightweight and do not require a degree in rocket science to install. Any competent roofer will know how to install and maintain a roof made of asphalt roofing shingles. Contrast this to slate roofing, which requires different skills in laying down, handling and cutting altogether.

Just like any other kind of roofing materials, there are different grades of asphalt roofing shingles. The higher the grade, the more expensive they will be. But it might be cheaper to shell out now rather than later. How tough are asphalt roofing shingles? Class IV is considered tough enough to withstand hail. And you are not stuck with just gray anymore. Asphalt roofing shingles now come in a variety of colors.

Asphalt roofing shingles are made of fiberglass and an organic composite material of felt, paper and asphalt. The organic ones are heavier, less likely to blow off but are more expensive. If you are seeking to live in your home and not sell it in a few years, consider the organic alternative.

Warranties

Many asphalt roofing shingles come with warranties lasting decades. You can have your contractor or roofer order any special brand name shingles, such as Elk or Eagle. Although asphalt roofing shingles are tough, they do need your help and at least a biannual checkup in order to do their job.

You need an annual or at least a biannual roof inspection to be sure there isn’t any small problems that can turn into big headaches. Tiles can be damaged or get loose. Because of their wide availability, getting replacements is easy for your roofer.

You also need to be sure your attic or upper crawlspace has adequate ventilation. The temperature outside of your home will often be a lot different than inside of your home. The roof is then hot on one side and cold on the other. This can stress asphalt roofing shingles, causing them to give up the ghost. But with a proper buffer zone between the roof and your home, the stress of the differing temperatures is lessened. If your attic or crawlspace has pools of water, mold, smells damp – you need to get it fixed.

Web feeds, or RSS, has exploded in popularity over the last few years. It's a powerful marketing tool that will have a major affect on real estate marketing. Millions of people use web feeds every day. Most users view feeds through Newsreaders, but many web browsers and future operating systems are incorporating this technology.

If you are looking for a house or a place to rent, use web feeds to keep up with the latest listings. You can use feeds to easily keep track of properties from a wide variety of sources. As new properties are added to the feeds, you are notified almost immediately. If you see something you like, you can go directly to that property's web page. This saves time over continually checking individual web sites for updates.

Many real estate websites offer the ability to subscribe to email updates. Unlike e-mail, web feeds have a 100% delivery rate and there is no risk of spam problems.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult these days to find real estate professionals offering web feeds, let alone feeds that are purely property-driven or contain news specific to a certain geographic area. A majority of feeds are offered through 'blogs' of various qualities. More savvy professionals break their web feeds into categories, such as commercial, rentals and residential properties. Even mortgage finance professionals can use web feeds to keep customers and potential customers aware of market changes.

As web feeds become more popular with the average user, expect more real estate professionals offering their listings via web feeds. If you aren't finding the feeds you want, ask for them!

S.R. Daley is the web developer for http://www.myrealtyfeed.com, a service that allows real estate professionals to maintain multiple RSS feeds with a simple web interface. Those who have real estate feeds can submit them to http://realtyfeedsearch.com — a free real estate feed directory.

http://www.midastouchhomes.com/
Originally Posted on 1/1/2006 3:56:09 PM
Content source: http://www.myrealtyfeed.com/link.php?lnk=87

Whether it's your first time buying a home or not, you should familiarize yourself with the whole mortgage process. Numerous mortgage lenders will assist you in the process of acquiring a pre-qualified and pre-approved home buying application. Of course, your mortgage qualifications will be required by your agent to strengthen your deal in finding and buying a home.

The followings are some things to consider when buying a home:

1. Money
First of all, before buying a home, consider your financial status. Check your credit situation by getting hold of your most recent credit report at the credit center. You should know exactly how much money you have and how much you can afford to spend on a home.

Read more Before Buying Home

Buying the house of your dreams can be a positive step in your life. It indicates that you are moving forward in life and expanding your horizons. However, even when the dream is there, it does not necessarily mean that your finances can accommodate it. Sometimes you have to settle for the home that is within your budget.

Not many people can afford to pay the required amount upfront for their dream home, which is why so many people have no option but to apply for a home loan. A home loan, or mortgage, is what is going to help making your dreams a reality and what enables you to buy a home unless you are rich in cash. The idea of using mortgages for home loans is something that has been around since the idea of lending itself but for some reason people will put off looking into home mortgages until after they have signed an offer to purchase.

Read more How To Finance Your Dream Home

Visit Mortgage Center Specialists

Everyone has their own objectives and aspirations when it comes to investing in real estate.

Here are 5 tips every budding real estate investor must know for a successful real estate investing venture:-

1. Always do comparisons on property values and rents.

Do not rely solely on statistics. The best way to gauge a property's market value is to check the sales prices of similar properties in the vicinity.

The same goes for the value of rents in the area. If the price is low, you can justify it with a decent rental value as tenants who can afford to pay high rent may well opt to purchase the property themselves.

Thus be reasonable on the rental prices.

2. Stay alert as tax laws may change

Don't bet on current tax laws for your tax investment. The tax code is always evolving and regardless of the tax code, a great investment will remain just that; a great investment.

As a real estate investor, you should look for the right property with the right financing.

3. Be a specialist

Begin in a market segment you are familiar with. You can focus on one of the following:-
Fix-uppers, foreclosures, low down-payment homes, starter properties, small apartment buildings, condominiums, etc.

By being a specialist in one of the market segments of real estate investing, you'll surely benefit from the experience.

This is important for a successful real estate investing.

4. Find out all the costs involved

You must know the financial statements very well for example, operating expenses, loan payments, vacancy costs, taxes, etc.

Do not forget the cash flow statement. You must do this before taking the plunge and investing.

5. Find out where your tenants come from and their plans for the future.

Your tenants may consider moving if you increase your rent recently. If your tenants are renting for a short-term, it could be that they are staying there to attract unsuspecting buyers.

Do not forget to collect at least 2 months deposit as a security measure.

In summary, taking action is key to a successful real estate investing…

Written by J. Fairplay

Real estate investing discussion boards are the number one best place to go if you want to ask questions and get answers from other people who have been in similar… more…

http://www.midastouchhomes.com/realtors.html

Content source: http://www.real-estate-investing-i.com/real-estate-investing-discussion-boards.html

You change how your seller prospects perceive you by creating a meaningful, relevant, benefit-driven and positive positioning for yourself.

How do you do this? You do this by creating a message that is clear, easily understood, and immediately interesting to your seller prospects and put it on everything that has anything to do with your business

If You Think Haven’t Positioned Your Business, You Really Have. You’ve Positioned Yourself to Be Undifferentiated And Part Of The "We Buy Houses" Blur!

And the message you create should answer the question: “Why should I do business with you over all other options I have, including what I’m doing right now, or doing nothing at all?”
Let’s do this right now. Right now, answer the question this question.

My seller prospects should do business with me over all other choices because:

The answer to this question is your USP? (Unique Selling Proposition). Your USP is what is unique about you offer your seller prospects, that sets your apart from anyone else you are competing with, and also other choices the seller has in the marketplace.

It may be difficult for many of your to answer the question above. However, if you want to succeed in the creative real estate business without the brain-deadening trial of cold-calling and talking to people who call you with properties you don’t want every day, you must find an answer!

You must decide how you will position yourself in your prospects minds with a USP that is benefit-focused, concise, and meaningful to the seller.

About the Author:
Ben Innes-Ker is a father, best-selling author, and real estate investing warrior. He has developed the Motivated Seller Magnet to help real estate entrepreneurs attract more motivated sellers with less effort and increase profits. To receive your 23 page special report that reveals a real estate investing course anyone can use to achieve this too, visit: http://www.motivatedsellermagnet.net

http://www.midastouchhomes.com/value/sell-a-house.html

First and foremost, this article is for investors. As an investor, you should not (must not) have any emotional ties to any of your properties. You are in this business to make a fair and honest profit, and you will sell your home(s) when it makes sense to do so. Your goals should be to buy low and sell high, generate a positive cash flow while you own the house and use as little of your own money as possible. OK, so now how should you go about buying a house for your rent to own inventory of homes?

Location: Stay in your comfort zone. If you are not familiar with the laws and regulations in other states, stay in your home state. If you must "touch and feel" (see) your properties, stay within a comfortable driving range. If you are not comfortable with certain types of neighborhoods, whether it be an urban blight area or upscale posh area, don't go there. There are plenty of opportunities in your comfort zone. All you have to do is find them and BE PATIENT.

Buy low: The best way to do this is to find a motivated seller. Here are some obvious (and some not so obvious) ways to find that seller:

1. Search the MLS listings in your preferred location(s) for properties that have been listed for more than 90 days.

2. Check public records for foreclosures and/or tax delinquencies.

3. Read the obituaries in your preferred location(s). There might be a house in the estate that must be sold.

4. Check public records for divorce filings. Many times a house must be sold to satisfy a Judgment.

5. Advertise in local newspapers and on the web (for example, place a free wanted ad on JSC Rent To Own Homes).

6. Look for a high growth area where builders are extremely active. You will discover there will be people who are unable to sell their home because the builder incentives are capturing all the qualified buyers. These neighborhoods are usually very desirable, and there are motivated sellers unable to sell. That sounds like an opportunity, doesn't it? Here is your advantage. The person that you will try to find to rent the house after you buy it probably is not a qualified buyer to the builder. Builders want bank qualified buyers. Typically, people who are seeking a rent to own opportunity do not qualify for a mortgage with a bank. All you have to do is have a good renter/buyer lined up to move in to that desirable neighborhood.

7. Let your good renter/buyers find their own rent to own home. If you have a good prospective renter/buyer that is asking for your help (and you will if you do your job properly), give them the opportunity to find their own rent to own home. You have to set the ground rules, and they will think you walk on water. It is strongly suggested you develop a relationship with a good realtor who will follow your ground rules, take your renter/buyers on showings (most homes are listed anyway) and save you the time of doing this yourself.

Bottom line - If you find a motivated seller, you should be able to buy the property below appraised value.

Sell high: In this scenario, sell high refers to the option price you will set with your renter/buyer. Keep this in mind - If your renter/buyer was able to qualify for a mortgage today, he/she would probably not be your renter/buyer. He/she would simply buy a house without your help. Furthermore, the renter/buyer is probably a frustrated renter who wants to be a buyer. In other words, you have a motivated prospect, and that prospect should understand that you are a business person who is entitled to a FAIR profit in exchange for the risk you will take to help them. Bottom line - your prospect is probably not very price sensitive, and he/she will probably accept any fair number. In my opinion, a fair option price should be the current appraised value (not necessarily what you paid for the property) plus an amount equal to the average annual rate of increase compounded annually for each year of the option term. Allow me to explain by way of example:

First, try to keep all of your option terms to one year. It's to the seller/landlord's advantage. So, assume you own a house with an appraised value of $150,000 and prices have been increasing an average of 8%. For a one year contract, you should set your purchase price at $162,000 ($150,000 + 8% of $150,000 or $12,000); a two year contract, $175,000 ($162,000 x 1.08 = $174,960).

Positive cash flow: Cash flow is defined as the amount of money you receive per month minus the amount of money you spend per month. Obviously you want that to be a positive number.

1. First let's look at how to minimize the amount of money you spend per month:

Your mortgage loan: You could put a large amount down to minimize your monthly payments, but that would not be wise. The best thing you can do is find a good lender who is willing to work with you. They are out there. A good lender will realize that you will bring in many deals, and most up front fees should be greatly reduced if not eliminated. Ideally you should be able to borrow up to 90% LTV amortized over 30 years without having to purchase mortgage insurance. You should avoid high interest fixed rate loans. You plan to sell the house in a short period of time so a 30 year variable rate loan with a fixed interest rate period of 3 or 5 years will be much better. In our example, we borrow $135,000 at 5% amortized over 30 years. That is approximately $725 per month (principle and interest) Furthermore we use an additional $300 per month for taxes and property insurance.

The lease: Your tenant is not just a lessor. Contractually he/she has the right to become the owner of the home. As such the tenant should develop a "pride of ownership" attitude and be responsible for most of the minor maintenance issues that arise with any home.

Ownership: Get a good real estate attorney and an accountant. They should be able to explain the advantages/disadvantages of personal versus LLC ownership including liability issues. This will help you determine the extent (and cost) of insurance you will want to have.

2. Now, let's look at how to increase the amount of money you receive every month:

Here's a little known fact - Over 90% of all people who enter into a rent to own agreement fail to exercise their option after one year! Do you remember I said to try to keep all of your contracts to one year? Besides maintaining better control of your investments, this little known fact can be hugely advantageous to you, the business person. Now, PLEASE keep this in mind; if you have a GOOD tenant who is unable to exercise his/her option, WORK WITH THEM. You should renegotiate a second year to your advantage, but not one that would force a good tenant to leave.

OK, here's what you should consider (by way of example).

Using the above example, a reasonable contract might stipulate an option consideration of $8,000 (to be fully applied toward the down payment upon exercising the option) and a monthly rent of $1,100 per month of which $100 will be applied toward the down payment providing that monthly rent payment was made on time. After one year, assuming all rent payments were made on time, the tenant/buyer will have accumulated $9,200 in credits ($8,000 plus $100 per month). One can view the actual monthly rent as $1,000 assuming the option is exercised. If the tenant/buyer fails to exercise the option for any reason, That $9,200 is forfeited by terms of the contract.

To increase your cash flow, offer the tenant/buyer greater credits in exchange for a higher monthly rent. For example, in exchange for $1,300 per month, offer the tenant a $400 rent credit for every on-time payment received. Now, it can be viewed as a monthly net rent cost of $900, and the total equity built would be $12,800. If you present this properly, you can let the tenant negotiate for higher rent payments! You will have a much better cash flow, and there will still be a nice profit if the option is exercised provided you properly purchase the house. If the option is not exercised (90%+ odds it won't be exercised), you keep all the rent monies paid. But, again, PLEASE keep this in mind; if you have a GOOD tenant who is unable to exercise his/her option, WORK WITH THEM. You should renegotiate a second year to your advantage, but not one that would force a good tenant to leave.

Use as little of your own money as possible: With diligence and patience, you will be able to buy a home for less than appraised value. Rather than buying the house at the reduced amount, pay the appraised value and take the difference as an allowance for, say, remodeling. Take this money in the form of a bank check. Using the above example, assume you are able to negotiate a purchase price of $140,000 (this is possible, in fact, doable if you do your homework). Tell the seller you will pay $150,000, and they must give you a bank check for $10,000.

Now you will finance 90% of the purchase price of $150,000 which equals $135,000. You need a down payment of $15,000. Your actual out of pocket cost is $5,000 because of the $10,000 allowance.

Summary: We will assume the tenant/buyer takes advantage of getting additional rent credits, makes all rent payments on time and the option is exercised after the first year. Using the above example (which is based on a composite of actual deals) and not accounting for miscellaneous costs (for simplicity purposes), here is the deal:

1. Cash spent - $17,300 ($5,000 out of pocket down payment plus $1,025/month P.I.T.I.)

2. Cash received - $23,600 ($8,000 option consideration plus $1,300/month rent)

3. mortgage obligation: $135,000

4. Received from sale - $149,200 ($162,000 minus $8,000 option consideration minus $4,800 rent credits)

Profit from cash flow = $6,300 ($23,600 minus $17,300)

Profit from sale = $14,200 ($149,200 minus $135,000)

Total profit = $20,500

$20,500 profit divided by $5,000 out of pocket = 410% RETURN IN ONE YEAR!!!

If the tenant does not exercise the option, it can only get better.

Are you looking for an Aspen Colorado real estate property? Or, do you have plans to sell or buy a real estate in Aspen Colorado? There are numerous Aspen Colorado real estate companies out there to help you tackle your real estate needs. These companies are even make their services available online knowing that more and more people around the world are looking for their help. So if you are currently seeking for their assistance, then this page is certainly right for you.

Real estate in Aspen Colorado and the whole country, for that matter, is experiencing a boom. Interest rates are relatively low compared to rates of past years and because of that, housing prices are at an all-time low. To get the best deal out of your real estate in Aspen Colorado, you need a plan – a good plan, that is.

Read more Aspen Colorado Real Estate

When buying or selling a home, one of the biggest decisions that you will make is deciding on a real estate agent. After all, this is a decision that you want to get right. If you strike up a relationship with a qualified and trustworthy agent, it is safe to say that you will be on the right track to success. On the other side of things, an agent who is only interested in the money could cause more bad than good.

The process for selecting a real estate agent depends on a number of different factors. First off, you need to choose an agent that you feel comfortable working with. This is not to say that you have to be best friends with the person, but you need to feel that communicating with them is second nature. If you are afraid to ask your real estate agent questions, you may end up losing out in more ways than one.

Once you know the names of a few real estate agents in your area, move onto calling them on the phone. From this point on you should be forming your opinion of the person. Do they like what you are saying? Are they kind and courteous when speaking with you? Do you feel comfortable asking them questions? As you call more and more agents, you will begin to formulate a list of questions that you can rely on.

The final selection process is not difficult if you do your homework in the first place. Once you speak with several real estate agents, when it comes time to choose one you will know what you are doing. The bottom line is that the only time you will find yourself in trouble is if you try to select an agent on a whim. When you take the time to learn about each agent and what they offer, you will know who is right for the job.

Overall, there is no reason to stress out over selecting a real estate agent. You will want to keep your stress level to a minimum when buying or selling a house. This will help to ensure that you get the best deal, and that you have fun doing so. Having a great real estate agent on your side is never a bad thing!