real estate investing isnt

MSN Money - The real risks of investing in real estate MSN Home Hotmail My MSN Sign In Money S earch MSN Money: Help Home News Banking Investing Planning Taxes My Money Portfolio Loans Insurance Investing Home Portfolio Markets Stocks Funds ETFs Commentary Brokers CNBC TV MSN Money Insight Jubak's Journal SuperModels Start Investing Strategy Lab Company Focus Mutual Funds Street Patrol Other Views Contrarian Chronicles TheStreet.com Resources Commentary Index Decision Centers Start Investing Mutual Funds Find Hot Stocks Simple Strategies Power Tools Investing For Income Real Estate Related Links Expert Picks Market Dispatches CNBC Stock Picks Message Boards Print-friendly version Send this to a friend Research any REIT Find top-performing mutual funds Sortable database of SEC filings Find stock winners with our screener Personal finance bookshelf Find It! Article Index Finance Q&A Tools Index Site Map The Basics The real risks of investing in real estate advertisement With prices soaring, real estate looks tantalizing -- but the margin of error is shrinking. Forget the get-rich-quick plans. Pay attention to the numbers. By Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine For Derrik Dyka, the biggest obstacle to successful real estate investing isnt a meltdown in property values or tenants who wreck an apartment or dont pay their rent. "Its overconfidence," says Dyka, a 34-year-old Minneapolis investor who turns old apartments into new condominiums. If youre expecting to cash in on the 21st centurys first gold rush without breaking a sweat, it would be wise to take Dykas words to heart. The margin of error for making money in real estate is closing fast. Its not surprising that real estate tempts so many Americans today. Over the past five years, home prices have soared and rags-to-riches tales abound. But so much real estate has become so expensive that Real Estate Research Corp. in Chicago reports that many real estate pros say now is a better time to sell than buy. As San Diego real estate investor Chuck Wise observes about the area where he operates, todays buyers are like "lambs being shorn." Start investing with $100. Explore our new ETF center. Of course, that doesnt mean that all deals are doomed to fail. But it does mean that its time for would-be investors to pay more attention to the perils of owning property, not just the potential profits. Watch your cash flow The most common entree into real estate investing is the single-family house. Investors bought almost one-fourth of all homes sold in 2004, according to the National Association of Realtors. If youre one of those buyers and your income from that property (after taxes) exceeds your expenses by $100 or $200 a month, youre in good shape. But because prices and property taxes are so high in many areas, and theres so much competition for attractive rental properties, its increasingly difficult to find deals that generate enough income to more than cover your expenses -- whats called positive cash flow. In areas such as the leafy suburbs of New York City and Boston, where a modest three-bedroom house can easily cost $600,000, theres no way you can collect enough rent to cover the steep property taxes and payments on a $500,000 mortgage. Figure monthly out-of-pocket expenses of more than $3,000, if not $4,000. The pool of renters who will pay that much is small. Related news and commentary on MSN Money • Nothing quick about getting rich with real estate • Do you have what it takes to be a landlord? • Don't bite off too much house • How to find a good investment property • 7 creative ways to buy your first house • Decision Center: Home financing So be ready to set your sights lower and get your hands dirty. Instead of a well-located home in pristine condition, look for a fixer-upper off the beaten track for maybe $150,000 that you can rent for $1,000 a month. The numbers work if youre willing to spend weekends, say, painting the walls and, if youre capable, making repairs that would otherwise require professional help. The hidden profit from home improvements is why "ugly real estate often makes more money than the nice stuff," says Kelley Pace, head of Louisiana State Universitys real-estate research institute. Mind the cap You can quickly figure out whether a house or condo is likely to generate positive cash flow. For more complex properties, such as a small office building or retail space, check the cap rate, a single number that can tell you if youre overpaying. The cap rate -- cap is short for capitalization -- is a propertys net operating income as a percentage of its price. The figure is real estates version of a bond yield. If a property sells for $500,000 and generates net income of $50,000 (rents minus expenses), the cap rate is 50,000 divided by 500,000, or 10%. The lower the cap rate, the more you pay for each dollar of annual income. In 2000, the average cap rate on commercial property in the U.S. was 10%. Since then, because of relentless price appreciation, the average cap rate has sunk to 8%. That alone suggests that wringing further gains out of commercial property is unlikely. If you want to invest in a commercial property, aim for a purchase price that results in a 10% cap rate. But remember that the cap rate also depends on how much you collect in rent. Ask the broker for details about the tenants leases, including how rents compare with those of other nearby properties and when the leases are up for renewal. The property should come with an information packet that is more like a stock prospectus than a real estate agents fact sheet on a single-family house. If necessary, hire a property inspector. Then take all the information to a lawyer who specializes in real estate. If you have any doubts about the property, walk away. Page 1 of 2 Story continues on next page Fund data provided by Morningstar, Inc. © 2005. All rights reserved. Quotes supplied by ComStock , an Interactive Data company. MSN Money's editorial goal is to provide a forum for personal finance and investment ideas. Our articles, columns, message board posts and other features should not be construed as investment advice, nor does their appearance imply an endorsement by Microsoft of any specific security or trading strategy. An investor's best course of action must be based on individual circumstances. © 2005 Microsoft MSN Privacy Legal Advertise Feedback Help

Home For Sale

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We will also add your listing to the rotation of Featured homes on our main pages seen by thousands of buyers. We advertise are website thru search engines, newspapers, affiliate websites, signs and many other publications. Our websites received over 70,000 visitors in one week and is continuously growing. Our websites are ranked very high at search engines when searching for homes in specific areas, which is probably how you found us. We specifically target areas where your property is located. We are continuously searching for new avenues of promoting our website and you can be certain that your listing will receive great exposure. Testimonials: Thanks so much for having such a great venue, and great pricing for selling my old car! Old cars are hard to sell. You have to have just the right buyer. I thought it would probably take a year.... BUT... I got lots of emails and within 2+ months I sold my car! To the PERFECT buyer! It was the exact car he had as his 1st car! Thanks again, Legwork I'm writing to say I sold my car!!! HOORAY! Thank you for having this site!! I got lots of interest from it. Thanks, Emye Thanks for the ad in carsposted sold it after a few short weeks, Thanks again. Alfred Warning: Beware of email scams It is highly recommended that you only deal with local buyers and sellers. Avoid dealing with buyers outside of the country especially those from Nigeria and those individuals who say that they represent a buyer from a foreign country. Click on the above link for more information. 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real estate investment management

Real Estate CU Home Libraries Home Search | Site Index | FAQ | Help Search Library Catalog: Title (start of title) Journal (start of title) Author (last, first) Keyword (and, or, not, "") Subject Go To CLIO Find Databases: Title Keywords Title (start of title) Keywords Go To Databases Find E-Journals: Title (start of title) Title Keywords Subject Keywords Go To E-Journals Search the Libraries Website: Go To Advanced Website Search Libraries & Collections About the Libraries Libraries Collections Digital Collections Special Collections -- Hours Directions to Columbia Map of Campus Libraries Locations & Contact Info More... Catalogs CLIO (Columbia's Online Catalog) Course Reserves Educat (Teachers College) Pegasus (Law) WorldCat More... E-Resources Citation Finder Databases E-Journals E-Books E-Data E-News E-Images DigitalCommons -- Subject Guides More... Report Problems Request It BorrowDirect Medical Center/Morningside In Process/Ordered Science Fast Track Interlibrary Loan Recommend Titles for Purchase More... Ask Us Contact a Reference Desk Email a Question Frequently Asked Questions Make a Suggestion Online Chat Service (Ask Us Now) Report an E-Resource Problem Schedule a Research Consultation Staff Contacts & Directories More... Using the Libraries My Library Account Borrow & Renew Computing, Laptops, Wireless Course Reserves Info Frequently Asked Questions Hours Library Access & Privileges Printing & Photocopying Workshops & Research Help More... Real Estate In addition to the resources found in the Business and Economics Library, Avery Library has an extensive real estate collection. These resources were selected for their authority, ease of use, and accessibility. If you need more assistance, speak to a reference librarian. See http://www.columbia.edu /cu/lweb/indiv/business/refservices.html for Reference Desk hours or email the reference librarians: business@libraries.cul.columbia.edu Additional resources can be found in CLIO , the library catalog. Contents: Directories Handbooks Periodicals Indexes, Abstracts and Full Text Internet Resources DIRECTORIES Crittenden Directory of Real Estate Financing. HG2040 .C7 (Reference) Alphabetical directory of real estate lenders (banks, REITs, pension funds, etc.) throughout the U.S. Includes type of financing, type of projects, and contact information. Cross-indexed by real estate sector (apartments, offices, industrial, etc.). Crittenden Directory of Real Estate Investors & Buyers HD1361.D57 (Reference) Directory of real estate investors. Manhattan Cooperative and Condominium Directory. AA50 M3 (Avery Reserves) Directory of cooperative and condominium apartment houses in Manhattan. Nelson's Directory of Institutional Real Estate. AA50 N33 (Avery Library Reference) Separate sections cover real estate investment management firms, real estate service firms, pension funds and foundations that invest in real estate, the 2,000 largest corporations with active real estate operations, and real estate investment trusts. Each entry includes an overview of the firm, names of key executives, and contact information. Searchable geographically and by type of service offered. Covers mainly the U.S., with some foreign entries. Back to the table of contents. HANDBOOKS Handbook of Real Estate Terms. HD1390 .D48 (Reference) Brief definitions of 2,700 terms and acronyms. McGraw-Hill Real Estate Handbook. HD1375 .M17 1993 (Reference) Has 31 chapters by various authors on aspects of the real estate business, financing, buying and selling, and taxation. Back to the table of contents. PERIODICALS National Real Estate Investor http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/cul/resolve?clio3327469.001 Also available in print: Slot N-254 (Current Periodicals) Forecast -- Conditions in Leasing, Financing, Construction and Investment Trends: published in February. Real Estate Alert http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/cul/resolve?clio3327945.002 Professional newsletter covering the industry. Real Estate Economics: Journal of the American Real estate and Urban Economics Association http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/cul/resolve?clio3430028.004 Also available in print: Slot R-200 (Current Periodicals) Scholarly journal covering various aspects of real estate markets. Real Estate Finance http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/cul/resolve?clio3430029.001 Also available in print: Slot AB R221 (Avery Library Reserves) "The quarterly review of commercial finance techniques." Published by Institutional Investor, Inc. Real Estate Finance and Investment http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/cul/resolve?clio4814204.002 Also available in print: KF5698.3.Z9 .R42 (Business Reserves) Professional newsletter covering the industry. Real Estate Forum http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/cul/resolve?clio3431203 Also available in print: Slot R-206 (Current Periodicals) Real Estate Issues http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/cul/resolve?clio3430030.001 Also available in print: Slot AB R224 (Avery Library) Real Estate Review Print: Slot R-220 (Current Periodicals) Covers real estate market trends, financing and investment opportunities. Back to the table of contents. DATABASES ABI/Inform on ProQuest Direct . http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/databases/4371876.html Online database which contains citations and abstracts of over 1700 business and economics journals with over 700 of these available full-text and/or imaged. Delivery options include email, downloading, and printing. Coverage: 1971 to present; Updates: Weekly Bloomberg. Business Electronic Resources (Library Use Only) Bloomberg is rich with information on Real Estate Investment Trusts, Real Estate Financing, and related data. Tye "REL" and hit the GO key for the real estate menu of equity analytics. Coverage: varies; updates: constant. Business Source Premier http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/databases/4784657.html Covers all disciplines of business, including marketing, management, accounting, finance, international business, econometrics and economics. Contains full text of the Harvard Business Review, California Management Review and other important journals. BSP also includes country reports from EIU and Global Insight as well as company reports from Datamonitor. Factiva http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/databases/3272677.html Factiva is an excellent resource for finding company and industry information. Factiva contains a database of nearly 8,000 publications, including: academic and trade publications, industry newsletters, international and regional newspapers, business magazines, and business newswires. The two sections of the database that are most commonly used for this assignment are the "Factiva Library" (which allows researchers to search the 8,000 sources) and the "Quick Company Search" (which contains company profiles - information about: finances, competitors, company history, etc.). LexisNexis Academic http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/databases/2100385.html Comprehensive online database which affords access to hundreds of information sources, including the full text of newspapers, magazines, wire services, newsletters, journals, and broadcast transcripts. Coverage: Varies by source; Updates: Varies by source ULI Development Case Studies http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/databases/4823442.html Access to more than 300 detailed case studies of completed projects ranging from low-income housing to mixed-use downtown developments to commercial and industrial projects. The case studies provide photographs and site plans, information on costs and rents, innovative features and strategies of the project, and an explanation of the entire development process. It covers projects from 1985 to the present. Thirty new case studies are added every year. Back to the table of contents. All electronic services are restricted to current students, staff, and faculty at Columbia University, Teachers College, and Barnard College with a valid CUNIX ID and logon. © Columbia University Libraries My Library Account | Hours | Contacts | Suggestions Last update: 2005-11-30

Texas Land

Texas Veterans Land Board In Texas, call us Toll Free:1-800-252-VETS (8387) Outside Texas? Call 1-512-463-5060 (long distance charges apply) (PDF) -- • State Veterans Home Resident Awarded Bronze Star (PDF) • VLB is accepting nominations for naming the Texas State Veterans Home being built in Amarillo. Read the Press Release (PDF) and the Policy for Naming Texas State Veterans Homes ( Word2000 ) ( PDF ) and complete the Nomination Form ( Word2000 ) ( PDF ) • Corpus Christi awarded next Texas State Veterans Cemetery (PDF) • The Results of the October 25, 2005, FLS are now available on-line (PDF) • Watch the archived edition of the October 25, 2005, FLS Web cast • First Texas State Veterans Cemetery dedicated in Killeen (PDF) • Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery Dedication Information • James Baker III to help dedicate first Texas State Veterans Cemetery (PDF) • Rio Grande Valley State Veterans Cemetery Groundbreaking Information • Work begins on Valley's first Texas State Veterans Cemetery (PDF) The October Type I Forfeited Land Sale Handbooks are now available online (PDF) -- • Chairman Patterson visits veterans in Iraq • VLB Board Member, Mike Ussery, passes away after attending the dedication of the Texas State Veterans Home in McAllen, scheduled to open July 1, 2005. (PDF) • "Where Honor Lives" • "Voices of Veterans" Oral History Program • "Defending Freedom" A new TV Announcement honoring Texas Veterans from 1836 to today. Play Video 60 seconds High | Low Play Video 30 seconds High | Low Broadcaster Information (PDF) • Texas Veterans Voice Fall 2005 Veterans Voice Newsletter (PDF) Archived Editions of the Veterans Voice Newsletter • Media and Press Releases • Financial help available for activated Texas Reservists and National Guard members (PDF) ATTENTION-Loan Program Changes!!! VLB Land Loan maximum now $60,000. Land Loan now available for one-acre tracts. VHAP Changes Effective March 4, 2005: New-Construction housing loans must meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star ® rating as an energy efficient home. The Greenbuilding and Troops to Teachers Programs will no longer be available. The interest rate discounts previously associated with these programs will be re-directed to reducing the overall base rate for the Housing and Home Improvement Programs. The veterans with Disabilities Program discount will be available only to veterans with a VA compensable disability rated at 50% or higher. • Federal legislation filed to end discrimination in veteran loan eligibility • Convert your semiannual land loan payments to monthly payments (PDF) Message from Chairman Patterson Chairman Jerry Patterson Speaks to Veterans About the Veterans Land Board. (run time: 10:15) Play Video High | Low Land Loan Account Status Free Public Seminars and Educational Events • For Veterans • For Lenders • For Real Estate Professionals--view our upcoming events . Contact your nearest Outreach office for training opportunities. Registration for Veterans, Real Estate Professionals, and VLB Participating Lenders • Registration for Veterans to receive VLB program updates • Registration for Real Estate Professionals to receive VLB program updates • Web listing updates for VLB Participating Lenders Veterans' Resources • The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) now accepting requests for some military records via the Internet • The Texas Veterans Commission (TVC) for information on VA benefits Laws and Rules • Laws and Rules PDF Files require the free Adobe Acrobat reader. Video media require the free Real Player . Privacy Policy Links/Accessibility Policy For our customers who are hearing impaired: The VLB TDD number is (512) 463-6367 or contact any of our program areas through Relay Texas at 1-800-735-2988. For more information, contact us .

Buy Property

Buying Property in Mexico: from The Peoples Guide to Mexico: People's Guide Homepage • Copper Canyon • Live & Retire • Carl's Mexico Notebooks • Letters • Favorite Books • Visit our Sponsors • Table of Contents • The Best of Mexico: Favorite Places • Search This Site Live & Retire in Mexico Buying Property in Mexico •Building in Puerto Vallarta "Could you tell me what one would would expect to pay for new construction per sq ft in Nuevo Vallarta today?..." .... ( more ) Q&A: Charles Sloan & Robert Foster • Buying Property in the Lake Chapala Area In the last decade or so, it is estimated that more than 10,000 foreigners have purchased property on the Northshore of Lake Chapala. Long prized as a weekend retreat by wealthy Guadalajarans, the villages from Lake Chapala to Jocotepec now boast an expatriate community said to be the largest in the world. Ajijic has become the prime location for foreigners because of its infrastructure of services, such as internet access, and the existence of the Lake Chapala Society, an English-speaking resource for newcomers and residents .... ( more ) by Tony Harries & Teresa A. Kendrick • Buying Restricted-Zone (Coastal and border zone) property First, as most folks are aware, Mexican residential property in the coastal or border zones can be legally purchased by foreigners, but only through the fideicomiso (bank trust) method set up expressly for this purpose by the federal government....( more ) by Robert Foster • Budget Living in Puerto Vallarta by Robert Foster (Jennings) • Dobie and Sergio are homesteading in a former coconut plantation on Mexico's Pacific Coast. Top of Page Homepage Table of Contents Site Map Write to us, Carl & Lorena http://www.peoplesguide.com ©1972-2004 by Carl Franz & Lorena Havens Copper Canyon • Live & Retire • Table of Contents • Book Reviews • Letters • Carl's Mexico Notebook • Search This Site