| |
| |
|
Real Estate Information |
|
|
Buying Rental Property - Avoid Sellers Tricks
Be careful when buying rental property. We stayed at a motel for a week one winter. The bill showed twice what it should have, but since I already paid the correct amount in cash, I thought nothing of it. When we noticed that the lobby and swimming pool were unheated, we thought it was frugality. Only a year later, when I read a news story about a new owner struggling to make the motel work, did I realize what was going on. The owner had been planning to sell. To prepare, she was using the two most basic ways to inflate the appraised value: decrease expenses and increase reported income. By stopping repairs and quietly adding $100 in income every day, she may have shown $45,000 more net income for the year. At a .08 capitalization rate, that means the appraisal would come in $562,000 higher than it should have. Oops! The poor guy who overpaid! Do you want to avoid a mistake like that when buying rental property? You need to watch for tricks like these. You also have to understand the basics of appraising income property. It starts with the capitalization rate, or "cap rate." If investors in an area expect a return of 8% on assets, the cap rate is .08. Net income before debt service is divided by this to arrive at the value of a property. I explain this further in another article, but the primary point here is to remember that every dollar of extra income shown will increase the appraised value by $12.50 with a cap rate of .08, or by $10, if the cap rate is .10. Sellers Dirty Tricks If sellers of rental properties increase the net by honest means, then the property should sell for more. Unfortunately, there are many dishonest ways, both legal and fraudulent, that are sometimes used. Unlike sellers of houses, who may cover foundation cracks with plaster, the tricks used by sellers of income properties aren't about appearance. They are about income and expenses. Income can be inflated by showing you the "pro forma," or projected income, instead of the actual rents collected. Ask for the actual figures, and check to see that none of the apartments listed as occupied are actually vacant. Also, be sure that none of the income is from one time events, like the sale of something. Income from vending machines is a gray area. Smart investors subtract this from the net income before applying the cap rate, then add back the value of the machines themselves. If laundry machines make $6,000, for example, that would add $75,000 to the appraised value (.08 cap rate), if included. Since they are easily replaceable, adding the $10,000 replacement cost instead makes more sense. Hiding expenses is the most common of seller's tricks. Paying for repairs off the books, or just avoiding necessary repairs for a year, can dramatically increase the net income. Demand an accounting of all expenditures. If a number in an expense category is suspicious, replace it with your own best guess. Analyse each of the following, verifying the figures as much as possible, and substituting your own guesses if they are too suspect: vacancy rates, advertising, cleaning, maintenance, repairs, management fees, supplies, taxes, insurance, utilities, commissions, legal fees and any other expenses. This is how you make buying rental property safe. Steve Gillman has invested real estate for years. To learn more, and to see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com
MORE RESOURCES: This RSS feed URL is deprecated, please update. New URLs can be found in the footers at https://news.google.com/news
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Find the Right Apartment Quickly and Easily Using an Apartment Locator Service You've probably seen the ads or heard about apartment locators. But what do they really do and why should you choose an apartment locator to help you find an apartment area?One of the biggest reasons to use an apartment locator is the fact that there are hundreds of apartments to choose from. Home Inspectors: 5 Tips to Choosing the Right One Choosing the wrong Home Inspector can cost you a lot more than the fee you paid. If you choose a home inspector solely on price alone, your headed down a dangerous highway. Is 100% Annual Return On Investments Possible With Low Risk Land Investments? In last week's article, we discussed how substantial profits could be made by investing where baby boomers may want to relocate or buy a second home. This seemed to confuse readers since they were thinking that our web site is about preconstruction and preconstruction to them means buying condos?? In this article, I hope to broaden your horizons considerably. Top Ten Suggestions for Selecting a Real Estate Agent In order to find a real estate broker or agent who meets your needs and makes your buying or selling experience a positive one, Century 21 Real Estate Corporation recommends you:DO NOT blindly walk into or call a neighborhood firm and ask for an agent at random.Ask friends and family for recommendations. Buying a Home in Westminster The city of Westminster is centrally located in the Denver metropolitan area. Its easy access to amenities in both Denver and Boulder really coax investors into buying a home in Westminster. Do You Need to Download a Landlord Inventory On-Line Today? Do you need to download a Landlord Inventory on-line now? Why is it so important to have a Landlord Inventory?Firstly, if you are a landlord, you need to be prepared. As much as we all like to think we can trust everyone, it is very important that buy to let landlords protect their investment property as thoroughly as possible. Investing in Real Estate for Your Retirement (and Now!) You've probably heard a lot of opposing information about Investing in Real Estate, which is completely annoying! The straight-forward fact about Real Estate is that it is probably the best and safest investment you'll ever make, especially if you live in it, and that you are far more likely to make money in this market than with any other type of investing. The chances are very slim that you'll wake up one morning and the housing market will have dropped by 40%. Buying Land Online In the old days people generally only bought land and improved Real Estate in the areas in which they lived or traveled often. Today, thanks to the blossoming of the Internet, one can purchase land all over the United States from the comfort of home. Fixing Houses for Resale: Three Beginning Steps to Increase Profits and Have Fun Real estate investors specializing in fixers make higher profits when they have a detailed work plan and know how to get around the future resale appraisal issues.Before you begin your fixer makeover, taking a few extra steps helps you make more money, avoid future appraisal pitfalls, and have more fun. Is It Wise to Take My Home Off the Market for the Holidays? Let's say you've had your home on the market for many months without a sale. The holidays are drawing near. How To Increase Your Homes Selling Price by $3,306.75 In The Next 33 Days According to the Federal Housing Finance Board:.. Dont Forget to Ask About Restrictive Covenants Homebuyers, especially first-timers, may not think of asking about restrictive covenants. But these clauses dictate what can and cannot be done to or on a property. Selling Houses with Curb Appeal and Design Psychology Curb appeal is the most important challenge you'll face when selling your home. You must make home shoppers feel like getting out of their car to see what's behind the front door. Real Estate Internet Marketing Is The Way To Go Real estate Internet marketing is a booming business, along with all other forms of Internet businesses. Now, it seems that very little can't be sold over the Internet. Content Ideas for Ads and Brochures When Selling Your Home Even in this hot real estate market, selling your home requires a bit of marketing effort. Ads and brochures are important and powerful tools. Choosing An Estate Agent With so many estate agencies vying for your business, choosing the right agency can be difficult. We have put together the following top ten tips to help you find and use the most appropriate estate agent to sell your house. Cheap Homes For Sale In Great Towns Good Homes Under $50,000? My wife Ana and I found cheap homes for sale all over the country during a seven-week drive, and we even bought one along the way. It was in a pretty little town in the mountains of western Montana, and it cost us $17,500. Are You Tired of Tenants, Toilets, and Trash? Wouldn't you rather go to Tahiti? Are you a landlord with rental property whose value has significantly appreciated? Are you ready to cash in those profits and take that trip to Tahiti?Before selling your property, check with your accountant whowill tell you that you will be paying $60,000 in CapitalGains Tax to Uncle Sam. Your accountant will also tell youthat adding another $20,000 to your income by that sale iscalled recaptured depreciation. Las Vegas Real Estate - Luxury Properties Las Vegas is known for it's over the top hotels and casinos, larger than life celebrities and jaw dropping shows.Over the past couple of years the Real Estate Market has taken center stage breaking national sales records in 2003 and 2004 with record appreciation rates as high as 52%. Purchase Your First Home with Confidence If you are making the transition from renter to homeowner, you're not alone. In 2004, 40 percent of homebuyers were purchasing for the first time, according to "The 2004 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 TIGER MEDIA |