Sunday, November 05, 2006

Real Estate Info For Successful Deals

There is very wide variety of options when it comes to investments in real estate, and having all the required real estate information is vital to improve your business and to, ultimately, be successful in it. Investments within this area are quite numerous, from buying a property in which to spend your vacations, to a small place in which to live once you retire, every single piece of real estate information you gather may allow you to encounter the perfect client and the proper means to satisfy his or her needs.
First of all it is very important that you get acquainted with the current status of the marketplace. If you do so, you will be capable of providing your clients with not only great prices, but also you will be providing them with something every single client is looking for in a real estate agent, expertise and professionalism. Try telling your clients about different statistics of the market, be honest with them and observe their positive reactions.
Another very important piece of real estate info is to be aware of what surrounds the property you are trying to sell, most time people are more interested in the places they can find around the property than on the property itself. Places such as schools, restaurants, hotels, and social gathering places, are often key elements for closing a successful deal. So remember to keep your clients updated on the different places available for them around their new potential property.
But there is also an important part about real estate info that you should know about, always keep your clients happy. Now, I know it sounds obvious, but you would be amazed to know how many real estate agents do not follow this easy procedure, and it basically happens because some real estate agents try very hard to make a great first impression when they should actually be focusing on creating an everlasting impression. How to do it? Well, always remember that your clients do not want to feel as yet another client, they want to feel as if your life is only about them, so try to personalize every presentation you give, try to keep close contact with your clients, make them believe that they are the only thing in your life. Elements such as photos of their potential property included in the presentation along with their name in the title really helps them to visualize themselves living in the property and it also helps the agent to establish a closer relationship with every client.
Now, probably the most effective real estate info is to remember to be always, ALWAYS available. Many real estate deals are closed when the client is overexcited about the property, but if he can't find you it may be the factor that triggers a "cool-off", so try to be mobile all the time and keep contact with every single client. A great way to do this is to provide your clients with your mobile number and to acquire a device that allows you to connect to Internet and check your emails constantly, such as a Blackberry. With this real estate info I can guarantee you will see an improvement in your real state deals very soon.
Sachin Gupta is a very successful real estate agent who is in charge of maintaining people informed on the latest real estate informations available in the market. You can check his website at: http://real-estate-guide.all-the-info.net/ and learn more about closing successful real estate deals.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sachin_G

When is the Best Time to Choose a Fixed Rate Mortgage

A fixed rate mortgage is a normal loan with a fixed interest rate and fixed equal monthly payments for the entire period of the loan. The main appeal of a fixed rate mortgage is that you know exactly what your mortgage payment will be for the life of the loan and this type of loan is perfect for anyone who likes to budget monthly expenses and also plans to keep their home for many years. The fixed rate mortgage is the most common and they are usually for a 15 - 30 year term. They all use real estate as collateral.
The Pros & Cons
There are benefits and drawbacks to consider when deciding if a fixed rate mortgage is right for you. The disadvantages of a fixed rate mortgage is that interest rates are usually higher than a variable rate loan and if interest rates drop you will be tied into your set higher rate until the end of the agreement. An advantage of a fixed rate mortgage is a lower interest payment if the mortgage is taken out in a period of low interest rates. However, a fixed rate mortgage is not for everyone with its higher interest rates and therefore a reduction in your buying power.
Pick Your Time
The fixed rate mortgage is the most sought after loan option that is currently available. The monthly repayments are calculated based on the initial interest rate agreed and will not change during the life of the loan. The conventional wisdom is simple: When interest rates are low, homeowners should seek to lock into the bargain with a long-term, fixed-rate mortgage. They are also an excellent refinance option at such times. Also, in times when low long-term interest rates are forecast, refinancing to a fixed-rate mortgage can be a smart financial move. As a general rule, the longer the fixed term the higher the rate of interest will be.
Consumers mostly seem to prefer long term fixed rate mortgages compared to variable rate mortgages by a ratio of 82 to 18 percent with 30 years being the most common term. Short term variable rate mortgages seemingly have become less attractive for the majority of borrowers. At the start of a term for any fixed rate mortgage, you will repay mostly on the interest portion of your loan whereas towards the end of the loan, mostly principle is repaid
A fixed rate mortgage is very popular with those that want the peace of mind of fixed repayments for a specified period or for the life of the loan and is an extremely stable choice for property finance.
If you need more information or resources to help research for a planned mortgage or 2nd Mortgage, please visit http://www.2ndmortgage-info.com/.
Please click here to try our free mortgage calculator.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_J_Emslie

Tips on Buying a Home & Help in Preparing a Wish List for Your New Home

Pre-planning is a Must
In order to save money, time and energy, one of the best tips on buying a home involves the pre-planning process of house hunting. When you analyze what you want and need in a home purchase, you will be able to make better decisions that will stand the test of time. When you need help buying a home, you will be able to effectively direct yourself in the right direction. When you are unclear on what type of help you need when buying a home, your house-hunting process will take much longer than it should. You will be scrambling about an array of properties that could easily be eliminated if you have a focus on the kind of features you would like to have.
A nice tip on buying a home is to make a list of all of the things you want in a house. Do you prefer a deck or patio? Does the size of the yard matter to you? How many bathrooms would you like? Gas or electric stove? Once you have completed your list, you can better pinpoint additional tips on buying a home. Don’t be afraid to express all of the things you desire or need when buying a home. For some, this is the time to purchase the home of their dreams and focusing is the best way to go about it.
Think of All Possible Factors
Going beyond the inside or outside of a house will help when buying a home. There are additional variables to consider, including location and neighborhood. This may possibly be your dwelling for many years to come. Who do you want living around you? Will you be situated close to a grocery store, hospital, fire station, police station or park? Deciding on these factors will help with buying a home.
Do a Little Research!
When you need help buying a home, doing research will also make a difference. Even the slightest changes in district and towns could save you a couple of hundred dollars when it comes time to pay the taxes. You may also want to send your children to a specific school. What is the history of a potential house buy and are you willing to pay more for an older house? Where a house is located and how much the purchase price is will determine some of these factors.
Refer To and Revise Your List
When you need help buying a home, referring to the list will keep you on track when it comes time to weed out potential houses. Consider the following list of tips when buying a home. Remember that your list is not set in stone; you may encounter items and features you might have never imagined, you may change the rank of what is important to you in a house purchase or you may find a need to alter your budget. All of these tips on buying a home allow you to create a revisable list that becomes more helpful as you get deeper into the house-hunting process.
Tim Mai is the founder of Community Real Estate Investors Association, a network of real estate investors who advertise "We Buy Houses" across the nation. Visit our website at http://www.sellmyhomeforcash.com/ to sell your house quick for cash.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tim_Mai

International Real Estate

Real estate markets are in constant flux, moving up and down as the months and years progress. You've probably met some real estate investors who chase the "fast money." As a matter of fact, we guarantee you have. They talk about each deal as if it's the only deal, that it is the one that will make them fabulously rich. When you see them a year later, they're often no better off financially, and still talking about the next deal that will make them fabulously rich. You'll notice they often appear anxious and exhausted. They're really up-or really down.
Worse yet, they often bum the relationship bridges that are meant to sustain their investment systems; they use people until they are done with them and then move on. Recreating their investment systems and relationships as they go along, they never ride the momentum of market fundamentals. Instead, these get-rich-quick artists become very good salespeople, with great stories about how you can join them and become fabulously wealthy. Their stories can be very compelling, even hard to resist. But resist you must if you truly want to make a long-term financial difference in your life and your family's. These short-term investors give real estate a bad name.
At the other end of the spectrum are investors who learn to practise the art of patience. Focusing on fundamentals, not emotions, will soon lead to a much more enjoyable and profitable way of investing. Veteran real estate investors will tell you that it will take at least three years of real estate investing before you start to sec the real fruits of your labour. Make sure you are emotionally prepared for this investment timeline. Also, make sure your other partners, including your spouse, share your commitment to long-term wealth.
In an average market, it takes three years for a property to really start outperforming the market. In a hot market, your results will come more quickly. But the bottom line is simple: Don't quit your clay job thinking you'll be eating your real estate profits in the first few years.
During these first three years of owning a property, you are building a foundation for your investment business. As you build that foundation, based on systems, relationships and follow-through, you will learn what it really means to make real estate investment decisions based on emotion-free market fundamentals.
Hype sells. Your job as a sophisticated real estate investor is to pull back the curtain to see what's behind the hype. Sadly, the real estate market is often manipulated by two key emotions: hype and fear. These two emotions are commonly used to get investors to take action. Free seminars, late-night TV infomercials and syndicated shows that try to convince you a certain city or development is the place to buy into, are all good examples of bad real estate hype. The seminars are free only until the pitch is made to you to buy their products. The infomercials you see on television are typically based on the market realities in the United States.
In fairness, some of the pitches might be good investments. But you'll only know if you do your complete due diligence. Similarly, some of the packages sold at so-called free seminars may be helpfu1. Just don't get caught up in the "there are only nine packages available" baloney. There are always more where they came from, but the promoters are capitalizing on the fear of missing out.
Website owner.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mario_DErrico

Panama's Real Estate Boom

DONALD TRUMP can't be wrong, can he? Trump has fallen so much in love with Panama that he is building a $220 Million, 65 story (2.4 Million square foot) hotel/condo monoliths called the Trump Ocean Club International Hotel & Tower in a posh Panama City neighborhood. Trump will build 500 luxury condominium units along with a 312-room hotel. This complex will include a casino, private beach club and a marina. Groundbreaking is scheduled around this Christmas with a completion date in 2009.
Why is Trump doing this in Panama of all places? In an April 24, 2006 press conference in New York, Donald Trump said his interest in Panama was sparked three years ago when his "Miss Universe" pageant was held in Panama. He saw that Panama city was "beautiful" and vowed he would develop there if the right opportunity came up. His project was "easily funded", noting that as many as seven "major financial institutions were fighting to put up money." He agreed that "Americans are coming in droves to Panama," due to it's political stability, low cost of living, low interest rates, and being located outside of any hurricane path. "It's great for baby boomers." Trump said, although the project will be marketed worldwide. The condominium units will start at $180,000 with unobstructed ocean views.
Panama is just beginning to realize a real estate boom!
Besides Trump, many international real estate investors are also discovering Panama. For example:
Bigger Than Trump: An even taller skyscraper will be built near Trump's Tower. The Ice Tower will have over 100 floors making it the tallest building in all of Latin America, tied with the Empire State Building as the second-tallest in the Western hemisphere and 9th in the world when it is completed in 2010.
And Another! Even before Trump's Tower and The Ice Tower are completed, another skyscraper (93 floors) called El Palacio de la Bahia will be completed in 2009 costing over $160 Million. They've already sold several dozen condos mostly to Europeans because this is a totally European investor project.
I asked a Panama City real estate brokerage owner, Daniel Hanna (Panama Real Estate Group), what he thought about how the Ice Tower and Trump's Ocean Club will affect Panama's Real Estate prices? His response echoes most real estate agents in Panama: "As Panama continues to grow in many different industries, these projects will definitely set a new standard of living in Panama, thus increasing the prices around the entire country."
So, why are all of these real estate investors coming to Panama?
A little History will help explain these phenomena. Panama has always had a close relationship with the United States, which helped Panama to secede from Colombia in 1903 and was the first country to recognize the new Republic of Panama. The U.S. government built the Panama Canal starting in 1904. Only until the year 2000 did Panama actually take control of its Canal after the U.S. closed all of its military bases and left. People used to jokingly refer to Panama as the "United States of Panama" due to its close ties to the U.S. After the U.S. left, Panama's economy slumped. Then American retirees re-discovered Panama as a peaceful, safe, and cheap place to retire.
Economical Growth: In 2004, real estate construction activity sprang up in different parts of the country. Mostly retirement communities nestled amongst the many beautiful unoccupied beaches and mountain valleys. In 2005, construction permits rose by 90% while Panama's economy grew by a respectful 6.4%. The Panama Canal recorded its third consecutive year of double-digit growth in toll revenues. Tourism and financial services also made impressive growth gains.
Americans came back to Panama because of the excellent infrastructure built by the Americans, low crime, numerous English-speaking natives, great Immigration Visa programs; the currency has always been the U.S. Dollar, and great Tax incentives.
The Best Reason is that Panama is so cheap to live! Land, housing, local foods, transportation, leather goods, clothing, and local artisan wares are all far cheaper than anywhere in North America or Europe.
Don't Take My Word for it. Read what leading experts have to say about Panama's real estate opportunities.
The NY Times recently wrote: "Panama is increasingly lighting up the radar screens of those searching for an affordable alternative to the more traditional south-of-the-border retreats in Mexico, Costa Rica and the Caribbean, where escalating prices increasingly rival those along America's own beach fronts."
Forbes Magazine (July 11, 2005) praised Panama as a recommended "PARADISE FOUND: WHERE TO RETIRE ABROAD" where a U.S. couple "purchased a lot on a hill overlooking a golf course and have built a three-bedroom white-stucco house with a red-tile roof (total cost: about $250,000)." in Boquete. "You can hear the sound of rivers here," says Janet. "It's very peaceful."
National Association of Realtors: Tom Stevens, who is their current President, recently visited Panama and explained: "We're seriously thinking of investing here. It's a great opportunity. Prices are what it was like in the U.S. 20 to 25 years ago."
The London Financial Times wrote in its April 14, 2005 issue that Panama is now passing Costa Rica as the place to invest. "Like Costa Rica, Panama is loaded with exquisite beach towns, has inviting tax and ownership policies for foreigners and a long history of political stability. Moreover, Panama City is an urbane, safe city that has long had a military and civilian US presence because of the canal. A gated-community, three-bedroom luxury home on a golf course in the mountains can be had for $250,000 to $350,000, real estate experts say... Chuck Bedsole, who oversees Latin American real estate for PriceWaterhouseCoopers, thinks Panama is at an earlier stage in the real estate boom."
Conde Nast Traveler's October 2004 issue declared: "Panama is the new Central American bargain where the U.S. dollar - the market currency - goes a long way."
Is it Safe to Buy real estate in Panama? Buying Real Estate in Panama is safe and secure for foreigners. The U.S. State Dept. verifies this by stating: "Titled land, and the process of buying this, is similar in concept to that of the U.S., and land deeds are duly recorded with the Public Registry..."
How Long Will this Boom Last? It's just starting. Donald Trump hasn't even broken ground yet.
Daniel Hanna, the Panama City real estate broker, reiterates: "Invest in Panama real estate now before the Towers are completed. Panama will become a hot real estate market because it has so many attractions than just real estate construction. Soon, the world will know Panama for its natural beauty, healthy climates, and charismatic people. Living in this beautiful country is just a benefit!"
The National Geographic Traveler predicted in December of 2004: "Panama is now where Costa Rica was 10 years ago. Panama is getting ready to explode."
"Boom" I can hear the distant rumbling of a Big Boom yet to come!
Steven Rich, MBA is the Marketing Manager for Panama Offshore Legal Services at =>http://www.panama-offshore-services.com