Pending home sales index shows surprising gain in June, suggesting more deals to buy houses are in pipeline to close.

By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney.com senior writer
August 1 2007: 10:48 AM EDT

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Home sales could see an increase in the coming months, as the latest reading on the state of the battered U.S. real estate market from an industry trade group showed surprising strength.

The National Association of Realtors' pending home sales index jumped 5 percent to 102.4 in June, the group announced Wednesday. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast the index would slip 0.6 percent after a revised 3.7 percent drop in the May report.

It was the biggest increase in the index in three years. But that is up from a May reading that matches the second lowest on record. Only September 2001, the month of the terrorist attack, had a weaker pending home sales reading than May.

And even with the increase, the June reading is 8.6 percent below the June 2006 level, showing that there is still weakness in the market.

The index was created in 2001 to be a more forward-looking reading on home sales than the group's existing home sales report, which charts sales at the time of closing. The pending home sales index tracks when a sales agreement is signed, generally a month or two ahead of closing.
Even the Realtors weren't willing to state that the housing market has turned around, although it did say the pickup in the index is good news.

"It is too early to say if home sales have already passed bottom," said Lawrence Yun, the senior economist for the group in the report. "Still, major declines in home sales are likely to have occurred already and further declines, if any, are likely to be modest given the accumulating pent-up demand."

The report is a rare island of good news in a sea of other reports showing weakness in the housing market. Tuesday, Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Index showed further declines in home prices and values, and Wednesday, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that applications for new mortgages fell to a five-month low. Other recent reports have shown declines in both existing and new home sales.

Still, the report was good news for worried U.S. financial markets, which have been tumbling for much of the past week on worries about housing and rising mortgage delinquencies and defaults. U.S. stocks, which had been lower before the pending home sales report, turned higher immediately after its release, but then quickly gave up those gains.

Home Prices Expected to Rebound in 2008

Sorry I haven't posted as much the last week or so. Been kind of busy working on real estate deals. But this article came by my desk and thought it was worth passing on.

By Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The prices of existing and new homes are expected to bounce back next year after a dreary 2007, a real estate trade group said Wednesday.

The National Association of Realtors also said it expects existing-home sales to rise to nearly 6.4 million in 2008, up from the 2007 estimate of more than 6.1 million. Nearly 6.5 million existing homes were sold in 2006, the association said.

As for new homes, sales are projected at 865,000 in 2007 and 878,000 next year, but the 2008 projection would still be down more than 20 percent compared with the nearly 1.1 million new homes sold in 2006.

More than 1.4 million housing starts, including multifamily units, are forecast this year and in 2008, but that is down from 1.8 million last year.

Existing-home prices are expected to gain 1.8 percent to a median of $222,700 in 2008 after a 1.4 percent decline this year to $218,800, the according said. The median new-home price should rise 2.2 percent to $222,700 next year after a 2.6 percent drop to $240,100 in 2007.

"Markets that sharply reduce new construction in 2007 will generally experience respectable price increases in 2008," Lawrence Yun, NAR senior economist, said in a release. "Buyers now have an overwhelming advantage given the wide selection of homes available in many markets. But with profit margins coming under pressure, homebuilders will limit new construction well into 2008."

John Panico is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Keywords: motivated sellers, real estate investing, real estate marketing

The rich: Still bullish on real estate

Unlike many Americans, the wealthy still think their homes are great investments.NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The very rich are different from you and me: they don't seem to be too worried about the current housing slump. At least that's what a new study released Monday found.

More than half of affluent homeowners expect their property value to appreciate at least somewhat during the next year, according to the Coldwell Banker Previews International Luxury Survey. A tenth of them expect significant gains.

The study polled 301 homeowners with million-dollar homes (two million dollars in California) and more than a million dollars in investable assets.

"These are very successful people and they still think that real estate is a good investment," said Jim Gillespie, Coldwell Banker's chief executive.

Overheated housing markets have cooled down

The results run counter to most industry watchers' predictions for a continued slump in the overall market. Some forecasts see home prices dropping about 8 percent for the two-year period through the end of 2008.

Part of wealthy home owners' optimism, according to Gillespie, is that the luxury market has held up nationwide during the recent slump.

It may also confirm a basic contrarian investing impulse found among many of the wealthy: the best time to buy is when others are selling. 40 percent polled say they may buy a second home this year.

Looking ahead, 36 percent of the affluent expect the price of their homes to increase significantly over the next five years and 58 percent expect at least some gain, according to the survey.

Women are even more optimistic, with 61 percent expecting some price increase during the next 12 months compared with 50 percent for men.The wealthy also appear to want more space; 61 percent of those moving this year plan to buy a bigger house.

Gillespie pointed out, with some amazement, that almost half want to make the move because of the way their space is designed. "They're living in multi-million-dollar homes and they don't like their floor plans?" he asked.

Their new spaces are likely to include many features that were once very rare in American homes.

"What constitutes a luxury amenity is evolving," said Gillespie. "High-end kitchens and entertainment rooms now are givens."

Rate woes: the latest hit to home values

The survey found that 72 percent of the rich already have designer kitchens, 63 percent maintain formal landscaped gardens and 34 percent have wine cellars. Some 72 percent of their houses boast rooms devoted to entertainment. 30 percent of those report having rooms with theater-type seating.

The number one next must-have amenity, according to the study, is heated floors. 23 percent of wealthy homeowners already have them, and another 21 percent are considering their addition.

Other desirable add-ons include tennis courts (19 percent), kitchens in the master suites (16 percent) and putting greens or small golf courses on the property (16 percent).Many of the arriviste amenities - boat docks, gyms, indoor pools - have to do with sports activities and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Retiring in style

The survey also questioned the wealthy about they want to spend their retirement. Chief among them were travel with 87 percent of females and 84 percent of males wanting to indulge in foreign travel and 77 percent and 71 percent planning on domestic trips.

Spending time with families was big for both sexes (64 percent men and 63 percent women) and the majority hoped to remain physically active pursuing sports (65 percent of men and 76 percent of women).

A significant proportion can't seem to picture themselves out of harness: 19 percent of men and 16 percent of women plan to start a new business after they retire.

Some 54 percent of men and 67 percent of women said their main activity in retirement is to just enjoy life.

With the luxurious homes they already own, that shouldn't prove too difficult.

Can You Take A Minute and Explain What Motivated Sellers Are?

You here it from all of the gurus…”Find motivated sellers and they will give you their house.” You say: “That’s great! Now what is a motivated seller again? And once I find one, then what???”

Motivated sellers are the best kind to deal with, because helping them solve their issues only leads to your success. Don’t let the fact that you are currently experiencing some issues with money (or lack thereof) deter you from going after these sellers. Your primary concern is negotiating creatively (isn’t necessity the mother of invention?) and positive thinking.

Be a problem solver! Work on a “win/win” basis!

People often hear me say this is NOT a transactional business. Yes, the numbers have to ultimately work for you but this business is about problem solving plain and simple. A “motivated seller” is experiencing some sort of pain from their property. I tell people who work with me that individuals who come to us either have a “people problem” (divorce, job loss, etc) or are experiencing a “house problem” (inherited the house, house is such disrepair that they can’t afford to fix it or don’t know where to start).

Creative negotiating is king!

Your only job is to find a creative solution that will benefit both sides! You do that by working in a manner that will help them solve their problem, knowing that at the end, you are probably (but not always) their best option. Listen to what their needs are and find a way to get them that. Can you do that every time? No. Just remember that, negotiations must be two sided in order for you to be successful. Also keep in mind that price isn’t the only thing that is negotiable. Terms may be important. Perhaps they need help moving or finding a place for their pets. Listen and when you want to talk, listen some more.

Find out what the seller wants!

Some homeowners just want out. Their payments have overwhelmed them. Other sellers will want a steady income and don’t need front money in the form of a down payment. Most buyers never consider asking a seller what they want! Find out what the seller really wants! How? By asking and listening!

So now I know what the seller wants. Now how do I present that?

If you listened to the seller and found out what their needs are, there is no end to the creativity of what you can offer them. Some buying options might include any one or combination of the following:

1. It could be as simple as simply taking over their current mortgage.
2. Giving some up front cash and taking over existing mortgage.
3. Seller financing.
4. Cash down with seller providing you with a second mortgage (which might represent their profit.
5. Lease with option to purchase.
   

There simply is no end to creativity. I have several homeowners who actually PAY ME TO OWN THEIR HOUSE! Yes, you heard me right. I receive anywhere from $250 - $450 a month from the owner for me to own their house! Why would they do that? Because I heard what they needed and provided a solution that may not eliminate all of their pain, but substantially “dulled” it.

That is why I said earlier your lack of money is not an issue. Your ability to solve their problem is. And once you have it under contract, if the deal is good, the money will be there. If you don’t have it, contact me.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Keywords: motivated sellers, real estate investing

Can You Take A Minute and Tell Me How To Build A Buyer's List?

I got some emails regarding my "Tell Me About Wholesaling" article. Most people got the concept. But they wanted to know how to build a "buyers list"

A buyers list is comprised of real estate investors you can contact when you have a deal that you want to sell. It may be an assignment of contract or it may be a house you own and for a variety of reasons want to sell.

How many people should be on your buyers list?

Let me just say you can never have too many!

Different investors have different appetites for buying from you. Rehabbers for example may only buy 3-4 houses a year. In the interim, they are busy doing the work, anticipating their profit. Other investors may be just adding a house here and there to their portfolio. When you take into consideration other criteria such as price range, area, single family vs. multi-family and you can see why your list needs to be constantly growing. You want your list large enough to sell any house you put out to the list to be under contract within 7-10 days. If your list isn’t performing that well, keep building your list.

What Type of Buyers Will Appear on My Buyers List?

1. Owner Occupants - You will make your largest profit per deal but keep in mind that you will only be selling them one house. So keep building your list!
2. Investor/Rehabbers – As mentioned above, they will buy, rehab and sell. They need you because they know and understand what they do best, and doing the marketing to find houses usually isn’t their strong suit.
3. Investor/Landlords - You will make the easiest and most money with these people. They are looking for the cash flow and long-term appreciation, not the quick profit.
   

Of the above, I will do what I can for Landlord Investor. If they want a property rehabbed with tenants already in there paying, then I will accommodate them. In return, I will get paid well for my efforts

So, you understand you need to either build or expand your buyers list. The big question I get all the time is how do you do that? This list is certainly not all inclusive, but the sources here have all been fruitful to me:

• Your local real estate investment group – fellow investors congregated in the same area are a great source of potential buyers. Talk with the local group administrator about getting a table before 1 of the meetings. Show your target marketing areas and types of houses that you acquire regularly. I usually create a list by taking a business card and offering up a drawing with a prize like an iPod. Depending on the size of your group, it may take just 3-6 meetings to build a list of 500-750.
• We Buy House signs – These folks are always looking for product. If you have a good deal, most investors don’t mind that you make some money for your efforts. Call them and find out their criteria.
• Search in the local newspapers for the "We Buy Houses" ads.
• Look for billboards or signs around town that say "We Buy Houses." Homevestors and Buy Kwik advertise heavily where they have franchisees on billboards.
• You will see bandit signs on telephone poles and other places, call them all, and get info on them.
• There are many traditional landlords looking for good deals on properties and happy to buy your great deal. Look in For Rent Section of your local newspaper. Collect names and information about investors who buy houses.
• Go to real estate auctions, not to bid, but to meet the investors that are bidding. Some investors prefer to buy at the foreclosure auction as they don’t like to deal with owners. At most auctions, the property must be paid for with cash or a cashier's check within hours of the sale so you know these buyers can close very quickly, so it is a great place for you to meet cash buyers for your houses. Keep good telephone logs. Once word gets around that you find good deals, you will get weekly phone calls from investors checking if you have anything. Keep record of who calls; these are the first investors you need to contact when you have a deal.
• I have run newspaper ads and also posted in places like Craig’s List letting folks know that I have properties available at a great price. I always get a response and add it to my list.
  

Keep good telephone logs. Once word gets around that you find good deals, you will get weekly phone calls from investors checking if you have anything. Keep record of who calls; these are the first investors you need to contact when you have a deal.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Keywords: buyers list, rehabers, real estate investing

Can You Take A Minute and Tell Me About Wholesaling Real Estate?

Wholesaling real estate is a great way to make more than just a good living. For a variety of reasons, many real estate investors do not purchase properties directly from the former homeowner. I think you would be surprised by how many real estate investors that actually buy their properties through the wholesale process. At the very least wholesaling should be a part of every real estate investor’s arsenal. Don’t let a deal that you have worked hard to get pass you by profit wise because it doesn’t fit your criteria. Make money by wholesaling regularly.

The act or art (depending on who you talk to) of doing a wholesale real estate deal comes in two different flavors. But before we dive into that, let’s make sure we are all talking the same language. If you have heard or used expressions such as flipping, selling to investors, assigning a contract, rehab buyers, purchasers of fixers, etc., you are essentially talking about wholesaling a property. Simply put, wholesaling occurs when someone either buys or puts a property under contract and then sells it to another investor. The best profit opportunities come when a wholesaler puts a property under contract and then sells that contract to another investor before they actually have to come out of pocket with their own money or through the necessity of actually closing the transaction themselves.

Wholesalers generate their real estate income opportunities by finding motivated sellers, fixer-uppers, pre-foreclosures, bank owned properties and usually put it under contract (flavor 1). In some cases, they actually will purchase the property (flavor 2) because they have purchased the property for such a large discount, that the end investor won’t be making as much as the wholesaler. They then contact their “buyers list” of investors and sell them the rights to that contract by assigning the original contract to the investor.

Don’t get caught up in what the gurus tell you, finding properties from motivated sellers takes work. And they are compensated well for their efforts. Wholesalers typically make $5,000 - $10,000 per transaction. I have seen that figure go much higher though. Wholesalers deal in volume! Instead of making big profits from the sale of one house, a good wholesaler is willing to make moderate profits from many properties. They know and understand that the investor that is purchasing the property from them is likely to make more money, but they also don’t have the same risk level and so the compensation is reasonable to them.

A wholesaler’s ability to know market conditions in and around his or her area is critical. And they should also have some understanding of negotiating. Remember you aren’t just negotiating a great deal for yourself. You have to remember to insure that their will be adequate profit for the investor purchasing the property from you. Most rehabbers will want to earn at least a dollar of profit for every dollar they invest.

Among some real estate investors, wholesaling is viewed right next to used car salesman. That is because some wholesalers inflate ARV’s, underestimate rehab costs and take advantage of new investors in the market place. Let’s be clear there is no place for these types of individuals. And for the most part, those folks aren’t in the business that long. Real estate agents can also take an adversarial position because wholesalers act in the same manner as they do, but with far fewer constraints.

That being said, a reputable real estate wholesaler always has a steady supply of customers. Why such a different view? Great wholesalers develop a reputation for their approach for the comps they use (within a half a mile), repair estimates (legitimate, but not all knowing because you never know what you might uncover) and profit opportunity being close to reality.

You can find more information regarding wholesale real estate through your local real estate investment group, or find out the word on the internet by accessing one of the many real estate investment blogs.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Is This A Flipper Gone Bad?

If you haven't been keeping up with the Atlanta local real estate investing news, there has been much discussion on one Sam Leccima. You may be aware of Sam from A&E's "Flip This House" television show.

If what they say is true and evidence is mounting, Sam is the exact reason why real estate investors can have as bad an image as a used car salesman. We definitely do not need this type of exposure and if true, this type of investor in our community...no matter how far you live from Atlanta.

Find out more about it here

I like to hear comments about any of my posts. But I would really be interested to hear from what others think about this situation.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Keywords: real estate investing, Sam Leccima, Flip This House, A&E

Need A Cool Rental Rate Guideline?

If you are new (and for some who aren't), trying to determine what rent rate to charge is a hit and miss proposition.

Every residential tenant and landlord will find rentometer.com a very simple yet insightful web tool to use to determine market rents in the area.

Tenants curious if they are getting deal on the rent or paying too much? Landlords not sure where to set the rent rate to attract Tenants? Investors curious about the going rents in a given zip code?

All of these answers can be found quickly and easily by using rentometer.com.

I put in several locations where I want to start marketing to find out if I could really support the mortgage through rents.

Awesome!

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Bird Dogging - What Is It And Can I Get Rich From It?

If you are reading this article, I am sure you have heard of and want to get a piece of the wealth that can be made in real estate investing. But if you don’t have any cash, can you be a successful real estate investor? Real estate investing can be a “Catch 22” type scenario…(You need money to invest, but don’t have substantial money at your fingertips currently). But does it have to be that way?

And even if you have money, how do you develop the expertise to make the big money you hear about? Until now, if you didn't have experience or cash it would be very unlikely that you'd be. New real estate investors or those interested may not have wanted to take on a risky venture without understanding how real estate investing works.In other words, how can you learn about real estate investing yourself without having to take on the risk and especially if you don’t have any money?

The buzzword among investors for those making a start in this field is "bird-dogging". This is something that some investors go into to learn the business and never leave.

What is Bird-Dogging?

Bird-dogging is a system which allows those who are interested in real estate investing to gain experience AND income with no risk.Bird-dogging combines the enthusiasm of the new investor with the money and experience of successful investors. Bird-dogs search out properties that are abandoned, lacking attention or are in disrepair and attempt to contact the owners about their interest in selling. The idea is to find home owners who are anxious to sell. This may also include owners with foreclosures, divorces or a death in the family.Depending on the investor, bird-dogs then either show the property to the investor or tell the investor about the particulars and let them go from there. For their efforts, the bird-dog gets a finder’s fee or referral fee for every property the investor closes on.

How do I become a bird-dog?

If you currently don’t know any real estate investors, find one. That can be accomplished by calling any of those “We Buy Houses” signs on the side of the road or those that advertise in your local newspaper. Investors like me are always looking for another set of eyes/ears on potential properties.

You will need to understand what their criteria is for buying investment properties. The criteria would include areas, price range and condition of homes they purchase. They may be a company that specializes in fixer uppers or they may work exclusively with pre-foreclosures, etc. The point is you don’t want to be looking at and possibly bringing potential deals that the investor will have no interest in.

Through that process, you will get the understanding of what your investor(s) are looking at over time. Be patient here. You can easily get discouraged because you will bring what you think is a deal only to have the investor shoot you down because it doesn’t meet their criteria. Remember, this is your time to learn the business with your only cost being time and gas. Depending on how hard you go at this, the learning curve can be as short as a few weeks or as long as a few months.

Ok, ok. But how much can a bird dog make?

Finder’s/referral fees paid range from $500 to $5000. The amount of the fee is dependent on how much info and how involved you were in the deal. When someone just gives me a lead with a name, phone, house info and we close, we generally give $500. I would have done the calling to see if the homeowner was truly interested and closing the deal myself. That is more of a numbers game. If a bird dog brings me the deal and all I have to do is put up the money, sign the deal, etc, the fee is obviously much higher. This is an area where you may need to negotiate based on number of deals, longevity of bringing deals to an investor, etc. We have some bird-dogs we give $1,000 to who give me a name, phone, house info. The thing is, I know we will close a higher percentage of their deals because they understand my criteria and their leads ALWAYS fit it.

Whether part time or full time bird-dogs can definitely make living. But while the pay is pretty good, most bird-dogs come into the business with an idea to learn it and become investors themselves. Good bird-dogs that have been at it for awhile can make excellent investors because they have a definite understanding of what makes a deal or not.

If bird-dogging for you? It can be if you are wanting to learn about real estate investing and don’t have the cash or the expertise yet. Bird-dogging provides an excellent, no-risk way of understanding real estate investing.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.


Keywords: learn about real estate investing, r,al estate investing, bird dogs, bird dogging,

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Is There Help In Preventing Foreclosure?

It is one of the most feared words in any homeowner’s vocabulary: foreclosure. And because of subprime mortgage loans, you are hearing about it more and more.

Foreclosure occurs when you have missed a set amount of mortgage payments, which can happen to anyone who doesn’t have help preventing foreclosure. These missed payments allows the bank or mortgage company to start taking complete ownership of your home, which means that they get to sell it, and you have to leave it, losing all of your equity that you may have built. Once the ball has started rolling on foreclosure, it is often hard to stop, but there is some home foreclosure help out there. You just need to look in the right places.

One of the best ways with help preventing foreclosure is to contact your bank or Mortgage Company as soon as you know that there might be a problem. If you lose your job, or some other catastrophe occurs, you will probably have a difficult time making your mortgage payments. If you contact your lender, there might be a few ways that they can find for you to help stop foreclosure free of charge.

Forbearance is one of the most popular ways to help stop foreclosure foreclosure. Free advice regarding forbearance can be given to you if you call your lender before your mortgage is a problem. Forbearance is when the mortgage company or bank allows you to put off your payments for a certain amount of time. Most of the time you will still be responsible for paying your interest, as well as your taxes and insurance, but having to pay a less than your normal amount may be enough to get you through the rough patch. When looking for help preventing foreclosure, this may be the best option for you.

A repayment plan is also a popular way to find help preventing foreclosure before it occurs. With a payment plan, you make a deal with your mortgage carrier to repay the amount of money that is due within a specific amount of time. A lot of carriers will have you plop down a large lump sum, and then will add a few hundred dollars to your monthly payment until everything is paid off. This is a good way to get home foreclosure help if you are only behind a month or two.

If, however, you do not anticipate having a large amount of money deposited into your bank in a short amount of time, and you have gotten past the point of getting a forbearance or repayment plan, there is only one thing you can do: sell. This is the best home foreclosure help you can get, because it is a win-win situation for you and your lender. If you can sell your home quickly enough, you will not have to deal with the foreclosure, or the pesky problem of bad credit that follows you around after the foreclosure. Selling your home on the open market can take months, so it is best, if you get to this point, to contact a company who purchases and resells homes as a business.

You might not get the same amount of money for your home as you would if you sold it through a realtor, but selling quickly will give you help preventing foreclosure and will allow a fair value for your home. When a company specializes in home foreclosure help, you can rest assured that you are in good hands. Help stop foreclosure free of charge and without throwing away your good credit and home ownership dreams by selling.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Keywords: "home foreclosure help", "help preventing foreclosure", and "help stop foreclosure free"

Need Help To Save Your Home From Foreclosure?

Mortgage lenders and banks are in the game for one reason: money. If you think that they are lending you a huge amount of money in the form of a mortgage just because they want to see you happily settled down, you had better think again. This is why, if you have a mortgage and have missed several payments, the lender starts to get testy. Missing one or two mortgage payments is bad enough, but when you miss enough payments that your lender is intending to foreclose on your home, things can get scary. Fortunately there is help to save your home from foreclosure, before it even gets to that point.

While there is no one specific foreclosure help program, stop that irritating lender in their tracks by actually sitting down and calling them. Often, if you have only missed a few payments, there are ways that you can get yourself back on track. First of all, your mortgage lender may be willing to refinance your home. Refinancing is basically when they pay off your current mortgage and issue you a new one. There are fees involved in this, however, and if they are not willing to add these fees onto your new mortgage, you may still need foreclosure help. Preventative steps take time, and if your mortgage lender is unwilling to refinance, you might need to try something else.

To help save your home from foreclosure, ask for a forbearance. Forbearance is one sort of foreclosure help program. Stop that large sum of money you owe by breaking it up into smaller pieces. Specifically, a forebearance is when the lender agrees to give you a specific amount of time to regroup yourself in order to start paying your mortgage regularly again. Often, college students get a forbearance when they are first entering the work place so that they can establish themselves first, before they have to start paying off their mountainous debts. It is basically the same principle. The only difference in a mortgage forbearance is that often you will be required to still pay the interest fees, as well as your insurance and taxes.

If all else fails, and there is no way to use a foreclosure help program, stop that train of thought and start thinking outside the box. If there is no way you can pay your mortgage lender the amount of money they want, in the time frame that they want, then it is best to sell your home as quickly as you can. By selling the home, you can pay the lender their money and hopefully salvage your credit in the mean time.

Selling your home through a realtor is a long process. Often now, realtors expect home owners to “spiff” up their home as much as possible before they will even think of taking on the home to sell. They may ask you to paint the home, or re-floor a room. Things like this take time and money, which you may not have enough of. Add to that the amount of time it takes to fully sell and house and you will start to realize that selling your home through a realtor is not the best way to help to save your home from foreclosure.

There are businesses that purchase homes, though, just the way they are. Businesses, or investors, that will give you a fair market value for your home in its current condition in order to help to save your home from foreclosure. This option allows you to pay off the lender in one lump sum. Frequently, when home owners have built up equity, these investors are able to give them enough money for their homes that they have a little bit left over with, after the mortgage has been paid off, to use as a nest egg on their next home.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

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How Can A We Buy Houses Company Help Me?

This was an article that I was asked to write for our local real estate investment group.

Real estate can be a real drag for a lot of people, especially if you are trying to sell your home quickly and without a great deal of fuss. For a lot of people, the price that you get for your home is not what you feel the home is worth, and even if you get your asking price, the buyer might make additional demands on you that require time, effort, and extra money. A sign that says “We buy houses in any condition and will buy your ugly home fast” may attract you, but often times, once you talk to the actual buyer, you will realize that the company is being unfair or dishonest. If you are not willing to deal with these hassles, it is important to turn to an honest real estate buyer to sell your home as is, right now, for cash.

You might be worried about scams and real estate fraud, and that is good, it pays to be cautious. Local Guys, LLC is not a real estate agency. They are simply a few guys who have banded together to form a real estate investment company, which means that they buy houses from people like you for profit. Signing up is easy and it costs you nothing to sell your house or ugly home as is for cash.

All you have to do is fill out the informational page about your house, and a representative from Local Guys will contact you to set up a meeting. They will want to look over the house, and can quickly put together a fair offer for you that is hopefully a win-win offer for all parties involved. If you do not like the offer, you are under no obligation to sell your house to Local Guys, and they will not pressure you to sell.

No matter what kind of house you are trying to unload, real estate investors like Local Guys have seen homes just like it and are willing to work with you. We buy houses in any condition and will buy your ugly home fast, while still giving you our full support and a price that works for all parties. Even if your home is in need of repairs, they will be able to make you a fair offer with the cost of the repairs deducted from the home values of the area and you can sell quickly and easily.

The threat of foreclosure may make it necessary to sell your house or ugly home as is for cash, and you may not have a lot of time to do it. Being in a hurry is not a problem. In certain cases, Local Guys can close the deal on a house and get you your cash within just a few days, freeing you up to do whatever you need to do. There are no judgments and no bad deals with Local Guys, just an investment company that wants to do what is best for their clients as well as for themselves. They make it easy to sell your house or ugly home as is for cash.

The best part about Local Guys is that it is totally free to you. You don’t have to worry about paying a real estate agent, dealing with fees, or any of the other common problems that drain money away from the seller of a home. Your house value will be determined, an offer made, and the decision to move forward or not can be taken from there if you are interested. Local Guys make the extra effort to make every deal a win-win deal for the seller. Contact us today; we buy houses in any condition and will buy your ugly home fast—and will do it honestly.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

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7 Marketing Mistakes Real Estate Investors Make

When you are new to real estate investing, you underestimate just how important marketing is. For those who have been at it awhile, you may not be marketing yourselves properly to get the results you want. Marketing challenges are quite common for businesses of all sizes and affect equally those who are new to real estate investing as well as established pros.

Most times you know if your marketing is getting the desired objective. Sometimes, you aren’t as sure. Take a moment to look at the 7 biggest mistakes that are made in relation to real estate marketing. Keep these in mind and learn how to avoid having these costly mistakes eat up all of your profits.

Mistake #1: Not Developing a Marketing Plan

Whether you know/understand it or not, “Those who fail to plan, plan to fail” is law. No matter what type of business you are in, a marketing plan is a critical component of your success. It makes you come to grips with SWOT (Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities,Threats). From there, you can design the objectives and tactics to further develop your marketing efforts in the future.

Mistake #2: Not Planning a Marketing Budget

This business can be done inexpensively. However, that doesn’t mean that you won’t spend anything either. You need to spend money to publicize, market, and advertise your business to make it successful. As a general rule of thumb, you may spend at least ten percent of your revenue on marketing efforts. No matter what size your company, you need to have a marketing budget. In the beginning, it isn’t the size of the budget, but the consistency. Better to spend $50 @ month over 6 months than to spend $300 in one month.

Mistake #3: Not Targeting a Specific Target Audience

Trying to appeal to everyone doesn't work. Gary Keller’s Millionaire Real Estate Investor talks to the idea of “know your criteria”. Essentially it means to know and understand the types of properties you want to invest in. You need to understand that your market doesn't include everyone or every price range of home. So decide your target demographic and use appropriate media outlets to reach that audience. For example, if you have a small, 2 bed/1 bath low end condo, advertising it in the family oriented newspapers is probably not going to get you the results you want.. Perhaps advertising at the local grocery store might be a better target for your marketing efforts.

Mistake #4: Not Developing a Clear and Consistent Marketing Message

All your marketing materials, advertisements, and promotions need to convey a consistent look and message. You want your customers to know what you do or sell no matter where they see your name. This is part of building your brand. Logo’s are a part of your brand and should be included to help set you apart from your competition.

Mistake #5: Houses Do Not Sell Themselves


Many investors (both beginning and experienced) make the mistake of thinking that their house (or website to sell their house) is so great and so different that they don't need to market it at all. However, no one will know how great your property is, or that it even exists, if you don't tell them. Word of mouth and referrals can only take you so far. No matter how great your product, you need to advertise and market to get it sold.

Mistake #6: Not Clearly Defining the Product Benefits

We live and work in a highly competitive marketplace that is constantly changing and offering customers more and more choices. Were Lease Options a typical sales option 10 years ago? Today, the paper is full of them. Put yourself in the potential buyers’ shoes. Something has to get your attention to make you choose one house over another. Be clear to let people know why your house is better.

Mistake #7: Not Diversifying Your Media Mix

There was a time that you could put your house on the MLS with the keywords, “needs TLC”, “Handyman Special” etc and your house would sell. Media today is very fragmented, so you need to reach your audience through more than one outlet. So, if you plan on relying on bandit signs alone (or any one media), you are limiting your opportunity for success. If you are doing signs, then add flyers, car wraps, pizza boxes, direct mail, and any other form that you can think of. Each form of media helps to reinforce your message from #6 above.

Avoiding Marketing Mistakes in the Future

If you have been able to answer the marketing challenges above, don’t think you can stop there. Marketing is one area where you can’t rest on your laurels. Once things are going well, there is a tendency to let good marketing practices slide at times. This can have a devastating effect on your business.

Marketing is not a light switch. It is something that builds over time and then gets momentum. Stop it and see how hard it is to get it going again.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

I Need Help With My Georgia Foreclosure

Purchasing a home in Georgia these days requires that you either have a few hundred thousand dollars just sitting in the bank, or that you get a mortgage. Mortgages are really the only way the average person can afford to own their dream home. The bad thing about mortgages is that if you do not pay your monthly balance, you end up looking for help with Georgia foreclosure problems. If you came here looking for foreclosure help, Georgia homeowners, you have come to the right place.

The first thing to try to do is to stay out of foreclosure in the first place. If you pay your monthly bills on time, you will build up equity in your home, and your credit will rise as well. The better your credit is, the better off you are for future loans or mortgages. Things happen, however, that we don’t expect, and you end up needing help with Georgia foreclosure proceedings.

Georgia is what is called a “title theory” state. This means that the lender that gives you your mortgage actually owns the deed until you have fully paid off the mortgage. In Georgia law, the mortgage lender must first make sure that you are notified, by certified mail, that they intend to foreclose on your home. The lender must then post, for four weeks, their intent to foreclose on your home. At this point, the only option you have for help with Georgia foreclosure, when it comes to dealing with the lender, is to give them your home, peacefully. You may end up with bad credit, and you definitely would have no money to show for it. The lender would then put your home up for sale and make a huge profit.

Once they have notified you of their desire to foreclose, you have very few options for foreclosure help, Georgia residents. If you have a huge sum of money in the bank, or are able to sell a vehicle or obtain a large sum of money by some other means, then you will probably be okay. You can just give the lender the amount they have requested, which is sure to include various fees and tons of interest.

Another option you have, if you are looking for help with Georgia foreclosure issues, is to sell your home. Selling your home the traditional way, through a “for sale” sign on your front yard, or through a realtor, can take a long time. People have had their homes for sale for months, even years sometimes, before they have even gotten a nibble. There are companies, however, that take that sort of hassle away. They purchase your home outright, which allows you to not have to worry about how long the sale will take. The company gives you fair market value for your home, which gives you the ability to pay off your mortgage, including the back amount owed, and exit the situation with your credit fairly intact. You can then take any of the leftover money from the mortgage and purchase another home, where, hopefully, you will not have to worry about foreclosure again.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

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I Need Help With My Foreclosure

Personally, I get nervous about almost anything large that I buy. Houses, in particular, tend to make most people nervous. However, most people, when they are searching for their dream homes, are quick to jump to action. They rush around, getting pre-approved for mortgages and looking at homes. They sign the dotted line on the mortgage and move in to their new home as fast as they can, decorating and renovating along the way. Often, new homeowners have no idea that they could soon lose their home if they aren’t careful. After a few months of mounting bills, you may start asking yourself, “Why did I buy?” House mortgages are a huge responsibility, and if you find that the pressure is too great, don’t worry—there is help.

If you purchase a home using a mortgage, as many of us have to in lieu of having a huge amount of ready cash in the bank, you are not only putting your credit on the line, you are putting your new home on the line as well. Why is it that new home owners are so quick to purchase, but are very slow to say “I need help with my foreclosure issues”, until it is too late?

Foreclosure is a very scary thing to a home owner. It means that your beautiful home can be taken away from you in a heartbeat. It means that the good credit you had going into the deal will be so bad that you possibly may not get another home loan. Most of the time, people who are facing foreclosure freeze up like a deer in the headlights of a car, when, at that point, saying, “I need help with my foreclosure” is a moot point. The truth is, though, that the best way to stop a foreclosure in its tracks is by doing something immediately.

“I need help with my foreclosure,” is one thing that most first-time homebuyers have a difficult time saying. The words get stuck in their throat as if they have failed. The truth is that they have not failed. Things happen that can not be predicted, and you might end up missing a few mortgage payments. Even missing just one mortgage payment can be difficult to catch up on.

There is a solution, even if you have gone so far down the foreclosure road that the mortgage company is unwilling, or unable, to work with you. You may have seen one of any of dozens of ads stating, “I buy houses.” These are investors that purchase homes and resell them, often at a much higher level. Some of these investors are only looking out for themselves. They do not care how much you loved your home, or what you have gone through to keep it. “I buy house mortgages” is another thing you may have seen. These are investors who purchase the mortgage from the original seller, only to turn around and charge you insane amounts in order for you to keep your home.

You can, however, find real estate investors who will care about you and your situation. Often, selling your house quickly and efficiently is the only way to get out of a foreclosure situation with both your dignity, and your credit, intact. The trick is to look at all of the investors who claim, “I buy houses”, and ask them exactly what they can do for you. Some home investors are even able to give you some money from the equity you have already built in your home, which will allow you to have a starting point for your next home purchase.

John Panico is the author of this article. John is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Why Your Home Isn't Selling

I get asked a lot of questions both from fellow real estate investors as well as potential private money lenders whose only familiairity with real estate investing is what they have heard on television. “Isn’t this a bad time to be investing in real estate? “ is a common question.

My response is always the same. "The market is the market. You have to sell and buy real estate in this market, not last year's market, and not the market you wish it would be."

I think what separates my company, Local Guys (along with other succesful real estate investors) from others is that we "get it" about what kind of market in which we find ourselves in. That alone gives us an advantage over most of the buyers and sellers who are trying to move from one property to another.

I would hope that your phones are ringing regulary (another subject entirely), but here are a few of the most common statements that seller's put forth when trying to convince Local Guys to purchase their property:

Some property owners will reply to the question of why there home hasn’t sold with “I have advised my agent to hold more open houses and to advertise more."

Do you know what your best advertising is? A property that is priced correctly for your market.

Some homeowners tell me something to the effect of: "If I don't get (they will spout a number), then I just won't sell."

The truth is: That is their ego talking. What this boils down to is they have their house overpriced and will die in it rather than drop the asking price."

I need "X" (number of dollars) from the sale of my house."

The reality of the situation is (however sobering it may be) that to a great extend, it really doesn't matter how much you "need."

While at the end of the day, I think of Local Guys more as “problem solvers” than a real estate transaction company, the bottom line is that the market determines the sales price of a house.

Just this week, I was visiting a person who had a beautiful house that he was 13 months behind on. Including his back payments, he owed $282,000. His home had been for sale with a realtor for over 6 months. The house was going to the auction steps in 2 weeks, but he insisted he still needed $380,000 for it. This seller doesn’t understand that his personal “need” isn’t going to get his house sold.

On the other hand, we have a property that we have recently reduced twice in the last 60 days. We really did “need” to make the profit from the original asking price (which was $20,000 lower than everything else in the neighborhood). However, if we want to sell the house and move it to preserve the greatest amount of profit, it is better to make less and move on.

Just like other real estate investors, our best opportunity is to deal with motivated sellers.

Some sellers will try to justify their price by saying, "I have a bigger lot."

My response is that is something that is akin to…”So what!

While the size of your lot will make the property more desirable (for some buyers), it doesn't necessarily mean it adds more value in a buyers market. Overall, prices are set by comparing houses that are similar to yours. They really don’t judge the value by similar lots. Otherwise, my lot that has a tear down on it would be worth substantially more than your house because it has a much bigger lot size. This fact is especially relevant in subdivisions where the lots are mostly created exactly alike.

Many times I have seen property owners let their home sit on the market for months thinking, "There's one special buyer out there … ."

That goes to the “next biggest sucker” theory. And in some cases, this may be true. Usually though, If you have priced the property correctly and the home is in good condition, there are typically several buyers for your property.

Overpricing a property and waiting for a stupid buyer ends up at the least of taking a lot of time to sell. When I get that comment, I will ask the property owner to consider the cost of making the mortgage payment each month, how their family feels about having their home on the market being a phone call away from showing it, and the reality of agents looking at the number of “days on the market” reasoning that there is something wrong with the home.

I also point out that while all this is going on, their is the cost of not being able to find the home you want to live in or their inability to get on with their lives.

There are three determining factors of the salability of a house: , price, condition and location.

Price is what most homeowners are battling in today's market. If a house looks great and is over priced it will not sell. Even some "fixer uppers" I've seen these days are overpriced. They may be asking for less than other homes in the community (which are also overpriced), but they're still not moving because there's a great looking house in the neighboring community that sold for the fixer upper price a week earlier.

Just because a house has more amenities than the competition, this doesn't automatically mean it's worth $30,000 more. In today's market, it may mean it's just going to sell faster.

The condition of a property is vital to the salability factor. I have taken to asking stubborn sellers to drive around with me to compare their house with those that are already on the market. When I have been able to coax the homeowner to do this, reality usually sets in (not always that day I might add) and their price comes down substantially.

Finally, in areas where commuting is an issue, location definitely makes the property more desirable than a house miles and miles away. Location may also mean the location in the desirable community. The former model home facing the four-lane highway may be in great condition and be in the right community, but the location on a busy road could adversely affect the salability of the house.

The bottom line to all this is that sellers who understand the current market and price accordingly are able to cash out and move on with their lives.

John Panico is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.

Getting Started in Real Estate Investing

Are you like me and have both watched and wondered about those real estate infomercials that are on television late at night?. You know the ones I am talking about. No money down and get a house? Get cash back at closing? Spend 15 minutes a week, make $150,000 a year? Because of my financial situation, (or more for fear of what my wife would say), I never bought any of those courses. But I can tell you I have spend the amount that those tv ad programs cost and more on books.

And while I will tell you that books on different aspects of real estate investing have broadened my horizons, no one book ever put it all together for me. I will give some credit for trying. They painted a picture of what should be done (buy off of motivated sellers, people that need to sell, but at a substantial discount as compared to the retail price of a home) but all of them left out the part on “how” to perform such a feat.

If you are just starting out in real estate and have cable, you can’t help having watched those “Flip this house”, “Curb Appeal”, and many other tv shows thinking, “Wow, even if I am just half as good as those folks, I am going to make a killing in real estate.” Then you start thinking, “You know I am vaguely familiar with what a hammer looks like, so why don’t I just quit my job and 6 months down the road, I will be rich. Taking vacations when I want, work when I want. In fact I am going to tell my boss today to take this job…” Well, you know the rest, because we have all had those thoughts at one time or another.

At the end of the day, I wish it were as simple as they make it seem. And sitting here a year later, people look at me like I am some kind of “wunderkind” of sorts. The things that seemed daunting to me when I began to invest are merely an afterthought at this point in time. Funny, how 25 homes will do that do you. My monthly marketing budget is more than some people make. To be sure, it wasn’t always that way.

Looking back over the last 15 months, I want to impart to others who either are in the same situation that I was or just want or need to a change how they are going about the business of real estate investing to become even more successful than I have been. To be clear, I am not here to toot my own horn. I was making good money at the job I had. But I was on the road 50 weeks a year to get it done. I missed important family functions both scheduled and unscheduled. No matter what amount of money you make, at some point, you want a different way of life. I knew I did.

But I would like to have some people after they have finished reading this article say, “Yea, I get it. I understand what he was talking about. This time is different. I am going to be a real estate investor starting….NOW!”

We all have the opportunity to be a real estate investor. But fear usually comes into play at some point for all of us when it comes to real estate investing. After all, the largest expenditure most people make is a home. Making a mistake there can seem catastrophic. Remember that same fearful wife who I took into consideration when contemplating buying some of those tv real estate programs? Well, she comes from a family that by and large needs the security of a regular paycheck coming in, a structured retirement program (she is going to start getting $150 a month next year on her program) and believes that health insurance needs to be partially funded by an employer. In her nicest of ways, she would tell me all of those benefits were too much to give up on to do real estate investing. This is kind of amusing to me because in one deal the profit I made was over 75% of what I earn from my job. And those type of deals aren’t a once in a lifetime experience. (Nor are they weekly either!)

So where do you start if you want to be a real estate investor?

• Be clear about the “why”. I have had several folks having seen my success want to jump on and learn. I don’t have a problem with that. There is enough business for everyone. But the question they have to answer before I take them on is: “Why real estate?” For some real estate investors were the stock day traders of a few years back. They are quick buck specialists. I am not saying you can’t make money quickly here. You can. But you also earn your money as well. So figure out for yourself why you want to do real estate. The answer may surprise you.

• What are your financial goals? People by and large get in this business to make money. I know that. But what type of money do you need currently? If you don’t have any cash, creating wealth isn’t as important to you. Determine where you are currently and where you want to be in six months. You can re-evaluate it then.
  

• How are you going to make money in this business? The above two answers will greatly drive this. This can be a moving target over time. But I would recommend sticking to a certain model until you get comfortable. If you need cash, then flipping or bird-dogging might be for you. If you are interested in additional cash flow, acquiring property might be a way for you to go. Analyze this fully. Do you have the temperament and the expertise to be a landlord (and yes if you have managed these for any period of time, there is an expertise to it)
  

• Review your SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) for your approach to the business. Find a partner if necessary to help you through the first few deals. Get educated always. The laws are constantly changing. Join a local real estate investment group.
  

When you have all that done. Write it down on paper and put it into a place you will see it. While a lot of days will be good, you will need to remind yourself WHY you are doing this business on some days.

That’s a good start. Obviously, there is much more to the business than that. But if you get the above done, I have found that you are way ahead of the competition.

John Panico is an active investor of properties throughout NE Georgia. He is the General Manager of Local Guys Equities, LLC, one of the fastest growing real estate investment companies in Georgia. John founded the NE GA Real Estate Buying & Investing Group and wholesales properties to real estate investors around the country. Feel free to contact John about selling your house or other information.