real estate investing. (And,

MSN Money - Nothing quick about getting rich with 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 Recent articles by MP Dunleavey: • How to invest when you've got just $500 , 1/15/2004 • Your 3 worst debt consolidation moves , 1/11/2004 • Feel guilty if youre not shopping? , 1/4/2004 More... Related Sites Robert Allen Institute Millionaire Hall of Fame National Association of Realtors John T. Reeds Web site John T. Reeds reviews of the real estate gurus Carleton Sheets Web site Joe Crumps Real Estate Moneymaker.com The Basics Nothing quick about getting rich with real estate advertisement A real estate seminar promoter promised to create 1,000 new millionaires, but so far none are in sight. See what happened to his believers. By MP Dunleavey Like a lot of people these days, Marjorie Stark wouldnt mind making a little extra cash -- or even a lot of it. So when she attended an information session for Robert Allens Creating Wealth Through Real Estate seminar in New York, she was more than willing to pay $2,495 for Allens intensive three-day course on real estate investment strategies. Concerned about not having enough to retire on and wanting to pass along some wealth to her kids some day, the 62-year-old New York City educator said to me then: I am convinced that real estate is the way to go. I was there that night, too, and I could scarcely resist the mouth-watering idea that those three days could make me rich. As the guy leading the session announced: We are on a mission to create 1,000 new millionaires in 12 months! A year later, Stark isnt any closer to being a millionaire. She hasnt bought any new property nor made any money on real estate -- except for the rental property she owned before and bought the hard way (with cash and bank loans). She even admitted that when she saw Robert Allens newest venture was in vitamin sales, I thought I was going to puke. I was very disillusioned. But Stark is undaunted and still believes there are fortunes to be made in real estate. She just enrolled in another seminar at a local college on how to buy distressed and foreclosed properties, she says. With a full-time job, Im not sure how I can do it, but, boy, am I itching to go! Start investing with $100. Explore our new ETF center. Theres something about real estate Stark is not alone. The National Association of Realtors doesnt track independent real estate investment seminars or how many people attend them, but their allure springs eternal like the get-rich hopes of those who sign up for these courses. The odds of winning are not high. Robert Allens 1,000 new millionaires never materialized in the last year, for example. Allen operates whats called The Enlightened Millionaire Institute. Its Millionaire Hall of Fame Web site lists only 50 millionaires (defined as having generated gains averaging $2.6 million). A spokesman admits not all of them exclusively used the Allen method of real estate investing. (And, in a disclaimer, the site notes, No information has been verified or authenticated. Results vary. All successes are subject to one's own knowledge and effort.) Despite all that, the Robert Allen Institute still conducts two or three seminars a week in different cities and says it reaches about 1,200 people each month. (Thats 1,200 x $2,495 = $2.99 million a month, in case you left your calculator home.) Allen is just one of dozens of artful salesmen who preach fancy financing, no money down, flipping properties quickly and numerous other strategies to get rich buying and selling real estate. And the question all this preaching raises is, do these investment techniques, systems and strategies really work? Can they actually make you rich? After all, would people keep trying it if it couldnt be done? Or are hundreds of thousands of people simply seduced by expert sales pitches and swindled out of hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars? Weighing the evidence Like so many things in life, it depends on whom you talk to. Or whose Web site you believe. John T. Reed is a real estate investment coach himself, based in Alamo, Calif. Hes also a self-appointed watchdog for this industry. He keeps the most exhaustive list I could find of dozens of so-called gurus, along with reviews of their techniques, books and other products. Although Reeds Web site , where you also can buy his various books for $29.95, reads a bit like he has a chip -- a very big chip -- on his shoulder, he was recommended by the National Association of Realtors as a serious investigator in the industry. Not that hes against real estate investment, or some of the reputable folks who teach their own hard-won wisdom. But those have been degraded by "the endless parade of B.S. artists coming into the real-estate-investment-advice field. It is an embarrassment to the good people in the business." And many people believe his grousing is justified. Norm Bour is the host of The Real Estate and Finance Hour on KLSX in Los Angeles, a top talk radio station. Hes worked in real estate as a mortgage lender and describes the proliferation of real estate seminars, workshops and scams as a major pet peeve. Case in point: foreclosures, he begins. Real estate in California has gone berserk in the last few years so people are looking for foreclosures to buy. The idea being you can buy a foreclosure more cheaply than other property and potentially gain a windfall when you sell it. But, as Bour notes, You can count on one hand how many actual foreclosure properties there are (for sale). Yet theres no lacking of people who are offering real estate foreclosure lists. One might pay $35 for a list, but it may be peppered with properties in other states. Its not fraudulent, but its certainly deceptive. The shady gray area Well-known personalities like Robert Allen or Carleton Sheets , who have extensive marketing organizations, are a little different, Bour says. They offer some very solid basics, but the number of people who can do what they propose is very small -- because they make it sound so much easier than it is. Thats what Josh Kelinson, a freelance advertising consultant in New York, found when he and two friends tried to follow the Sheets method. The three pals pooled their resources to master what Sheets preached, which is similar to the Allen method: buying property with no money down (or some other creative financing method) and flipping later on for a profit. One of his pals took the seminar, another bought the 8-CD set, etc. Thus inspired and determined, they tried to buy a building suitable for five apartments in Massachusetts, not far from where theyd all grown up. Kelinson says the actual experience of trying to buy an income property proved eye-opening. We spent a ton -- and I mean a ton -- of time on it. There was the approval process, the paperwork, getting lawyers. It took two to three hours a day, not including weekend travel time and unexpected snafus. I found it impossible to do with a full-time job. Ultimately, the project bogged down because of a major zoning problem. The building was in an area zoned for three apartments, and the building had been illegally converted into five apartments. The zoning authorities refused to grant an exception to the rules. Then, the building owner refused to return their deposit. The three were out $35,000. Still, Kelinson doesnt feel misled or duped by the Sheets method, and he and his friends are sure they can make it work with their next deal. There are a lot of other things out there that are scams, but this definitely can be done, he says. But investing in real estate is not nearly as easy as it looks, he says. Make sure you have the time to do it, he advises wannabe investors. If you dont allocate the time, it probably wont work. We want the system to work so much And therein lies the fundamental appeal, and ultimate trouble, of get-rich-quick (GRQ) strategies. Its the jackpot mentality, says psychologist Patricia Farrell, author of How to Be Your Own Therapist . Just like the schmoe who buys a winning lottery ticket -- every once in a while, someone, somewhere really does use these edgy real estate investment techniques to make millions. Its not the principles that are flawed, says Bour. Its the simplicity and ease that are overstated. Most of these courses are so seductive, Farrell says, because they operate according to a tried-and-true principle of behavioral psychology called the variable ratio reinforcement schedule. Basically, people (and rats) will persist in doing something, even with little or no return, if they are given the tiniest bit of hope of a coming reward. So the fact that some people do succeed at no money down strategies acts like a financial aphrodisiac for all those watching, waiting, hoping. So could the Starks and Kelinsons of the world be next? Is it just a matter of reapplying the Robert Allen/Carleton Sheets techniques until they work? Mark Wilson, one of the millionaires created by the Robert Allen Institute, would say yes. The president of Southeastern Housing Partners in Hickory, N.C., Wilson started investing in real estate in the late 1980s. We were doing OK, but nothing to write home about. Then in 2002, after hearing Robert Allen speak, Wilson paid $5,000 to join a one-year intensive coaching course. It changed his life, his business and, above all, his cash flow, he says. Although hed read Allen's No Money Down in college, the seminar focused more on another Allen signature strategy: developing multiple streams of income (from rentals, rehabs, buying foreclosed properties, commercial properties, etc.). Now, Wilson says, hes about to close a deal that will put his net worth at $8.5 million. He believes anyone can make big bucks from real estate if he or she is willing to take action -- not just sit on the sofa listening to tapes. Before you sign up, count to a million Of course, Wilson admits that it was easier for him to take the Robert Allen techniques and run with them. He had a lot of experience in real estate already. Most people, Bour points out, dont have those skills. And few people have the time or the diligence to acquire them. (Some skill sets you need to have -- and the course cant teach it to you, agrees Kelinson.) Bob Underwood of Stafford, Va., is one person who can testify to the fact that investing in real estate is not for those steeped in fantasy. Underwood bought an e-book from yet another author and teacher by the name of Joe Crump . Crump, who hails from Indianapolis, teaches a no-money-down technique, but he told me that he does it legally and ethically. Underwood, 43, has a wife and family and a full-time job -- and no time to muck about in real estate with no return. He paid Crump about $500 for one-on-one coaching in 2002 and, after a rocky start, has managed to buy three properties in the last two years. Hes sold one of them, made about $10,000, after taxes, in the process and is hoping to rehab and sell another this year. One deal Underwood did alone, the next was with a partner. He says theres no cookie-cutter method that works. What works, he says, is getting out into the market, investing the time to learn about the business, not neglecting your wife and kids (or day job), learning from your mistakes, making friends and getting advice from others as you move forward. Slowly, steadily and not particularly wealthily. Remember, you have to pay capital gains (taxes) on the profits, he says, so its not a lot of money in the end. But that, of course, isnt what people want to hear. People are lead to believe that all you need is the right plan and youll make a million, that if you use this system youll be rewarded, says psychologist Farrell. They dont realize that the possibility of getting that big reward is so remote. Editors' choice Don't get scammed by your mover Safeguard your Social Security number 5 ways to tap into the onshore drilling boom Your checkbook just became obsolete Turn $1 a day into $67,815 Readers' choice Ratings Top 5 Articles 9.30 Zombie debt collectors dig up your old mistakes 9.24 Keep thieves out of your bank account 9.22 Credit reports now free for entire U.S. 9.19 10 ways to avoid outrageous hospital overcharges 9.17 Tax breaks for Katrina victims -- and all of us View all top rated articles More Resources · E-mail us your comments on this article · Post on the Your Money message board · Get a daily dose of market news S earch MSN Money tips advertisement Sponsored Links 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

Buy Property

BBC - Homes - Property - Buying abroad Home TV Radio Talk Where I Live A-Z Index 29 December 2005 Accessibility help Text only BBC Homepage Lifestyle Homes Property Buying Buying at auction Viewing checklist How to rescue an empty property Buying checklist Money matters checklist Buying a property Buying abroad Auction glossary TV and radio Talk Newsletter Contact Us Like this page? Send it to a friend! Buying a property abroad Buying property abroad is more popular than ever, with increasing numbers of people following their dream in purchasing a holiday home, a buy-to-let, or moving lock, stock and barrel to the sun. If you're planning such a move, read our guide before you buy. In this article Location checklist Professional advice Costs Making an offer Buying in Spain Buying outside Europe Location checklist Before you start looking for a property, it's worth asking yourself a few basic questions, which should save you time and money in the long run: Do you prefer the town or country? Do you want to be inland or on the coast? Do you want to be isolated or in the thick of it? (Most people prefer to be within about an hour's travel time of a town.) How much outside space do you want? How close do you want to be to your neighbours? How close do you want to be to shops, bars and restaurants? Where's the nearest public transport, how often does it run, what time does it end? How far is the beach? How close are you to the nearest airport? How far is it to sports facilities, golf, tennis, swimming, and so on? How good are the local health and social services? Arts and entertainment - what's available in the area? Neighbours - what are they like and how often do you want to see them? If you're relocating abroad, take a look at the Practicalities checklist from Fresh Start to help you get organised for the big move. Professional advice Use qualified professionals to protect your interests and make the purchase of your new home a stress-free experience. Estate agents are a good source of advice. Only negotiate with ones that are officially registered and hold a licence. Ensure you have a good lawyer with an excellent command of English and the native tongue, to deal with the endless stream of rules and regulations. For instance, did you know that if you're buying in Spain you'll need to make out a will in Spanish before buying, or that you can inherit debts from a previous vendor? Costs Research all legal issues and costs involved. Your solicitor/lawyer will advise and assist you. Before you have decided on a property it's important to be fully aware of the legal process and costs involved in your puchase. Obtain professional advice and check your finances, taking account of these additional costs. Be well prepared with your finances; taxes can be high when buying. Set up a direct debit from a native bank account to pay for bills. Be careful not to miss payments and read those red letters; foreign banks are not lenient with those who don't pay up in time. If you're considering renting out the property when it's empty, bear in mind that advertising in the UK for a property abroad could result in tax demands from both the English and foreign authorities. Making an offer Make your offer in writing if possible (of course, subject to contract), and include not only the price, but also the amount of deposit, when you're prepared to pay it, when you're prepared to complete, what you understand to be included in the price (for example furniture and fittings if applicable) and, an often neglected point, that all machinery equipment and installations are in normal working order. For more information about buying abroad, the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has a number of leaflets available. In Lifestyle DIY Living the dream Fresh Start Working abroad Holiday Uncharted Territory Elsewhere on bbc.co.uk Weather Business Languages Elsewhere on the web Buying property abroad The BBC is not responsible for content on external websites About the BBC | Help | Terms of Use | Privacy & Cookies Policy

Buy Home

Zone Labs: Zone Labs, Internet security products, online safety, software, protection Global Sites: -- Search Site Global Sites Deutschland - Deutsch España - Español European Union - English France - Français Italia - Italiano Japan - Japanese United Kingdom - English United States - English Thursday, December 29, 2005 Home Search Site Map Privacy Policy Terms of Use Contact Us -- Special Offers NEW Tell us your story! NEW What's New in ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite 6 Free ZoneAlarm and Trials Quick Comparison Chart Which Product is Right for Me? -- NEW Which Product is Right for Me? NEW Free Online Spyware Scanner Introducing DigiSecret® File Encryption -- Security and Product Info NEW Zone Labs Commitment to ZoneAlarm Customers NEW How to Update Your ZoneAlarm Product Virus Information Center Free ZoneAlarm Users: Important Security Update NEW Free ZoneAlarm Support Center NEW Why You Need a PC Firewall How to Renew Your ZoneAlarm Subscription Zone Labs Offers 40% Off ZoneAlarm Pro Firewall to Consumers Seeking Refuge from Industry Consolidation Learn More ZoneAlarm Proactively Protects Consumers from New SOBER.W Internet Worm Learn More ZoneAlarm Customers Protected from Sony Rootkit Trojan Learn More Zone Labs Announces Worldwide Availability of the First Firewall-Based Dedicated Anti-Spyware Solution Learn More New Survey Reveals Ninety-Four Percent of Consumers Believe the Internet Poses a Threat to Children Learn More Zone Labs Launches Media Campaign to Help Internet Users Defend the Net Learn More Zone Labs Wins PC Magazine's Editors' Choice Award for Best Security Suite Learn More ZoneAlarm Subscribers Automatically Protected From New Internet Worm Attacks Learn More Zone Labs Wins Prestigious CNet Editors' Choice Award Learn More Zone Labs Cracks Spyware Prevention Barrier - New OSFirewall Thwarts Cybercriminals with Behavior-Based PC Protection Learn More ZoneAlarm Security Products Now Available Click for more information: ZoneAlarm® Internet Security Suite ZoneAlarm® Pro ZoneAlarm® Antivirus ZoneAlarm® Anti-Spyware IMsecure® Pro New Check Point Integrity Solution Offers Industry's Best Endpoint Security, Manageability and Integration Learn More What Does the Microsoft Windows Firewall Mean to You? Learn More Check Point Software Completes Zone Labs Acquisition Learn More More news in the Zone Labs Press Room NEW Microsoft Internet Explorer COM Objects Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Learn More NEW Microsoft Internet Explorer File Download Dialog Box Manipulation Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Learn More NEW Microsoft Internet Explorer Mismatched Document Object Model Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Learn More NEW Win32.sober.W Learn More Microsoft Graphics Rendering Engine Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Learn More Microsoft Internet Explorer Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Learn More Microsoft COM+ Local Privilege Elevation Vulnerability Learn More Microsoft MSDTC Remote Code Execution and Local Privilege Elevation Vulnerability Learn More Microsoft DirectShow Remote Code Execution Vulnerability Learn More Win32.Sober.P Learn More Security Advisory Archive Chat online with a Zone Labs Virtual Technical Support Agent Click here for our current job openings Home Home/Office Products Download & Buy Enterprise Solutions Service & Support Partner Programs About Zone Labs ©1999-2005 Zone Labs, L.L.C., A Check Point Software Technologies Company. All rights reserved. The TRUSTe program covers only information that is collected through this Web site, and does not cover information that may be collected through software downloaded from the site.

Home Equity Community Lending

Fremont Bank - Home Equity Locations Contact Us Fraud Prevention Help Site Map Apply For A Loan Search For Rates Loan Calculator Check Application Status Mortgages Home Equity Community Lending Resource Center Home Equity Need extra cash for remodeling, education or other expenses? Use your home's equity to get more out of life. You can save money and time by consolidating debt such as high interest rate credit cards and installment loans into one lower monthly payment. Through Fremont Bank, you can take advantage of loans with very attractive options, so you can fit your payments to your budget. And our loans offer No Closing Cost options. Home Equity Loans Home Equity Loans are a great way to use the equity in your home for a one-time major purchase. With a home equity loan, you will receive the entire amount of the loan upfront and your interest and payments will be fixed. For more information, please call (866) 359-0168. More Information Home Equity Lines of Credit The PrimeMinus home equity line of credit is like revolving credit where your house is collateral. It allows you to use the equity in your home for debt consolidation, remodeling, or a major purchase at rates lower than most credit cards. More Information Call us at: (866) 997-7359 or Email Us today. Apply Online Ready to apply for a home loan? Applying online is fast and easy. Apply Now PrimeMinus With our PrimeMinus Home Equity Line of Credit, you have access to cash when you need it. Rates always below Prime! More Information PrimeMinus 1st Get more options with our PrimeMinus 1st home equity line of credit - up to 1 1/2% below Prime More Information Home Privacy & Security Terms of Use Locations Contact Us 2005 Fremont Bank. All rights reserved.

Buy Home

Starry Night Store: The World's Most Realistic Astronomy Products Home | Products | Upgrade | Cart | Support | Contact | Educators Year in Space 2006 Calendar on Sale Only $9.95 PRODUCT FINDER Gift Certificates EXPERTS: Starry Night Pro Starry Night Pro Plus MaxIm DL/CCD version 4 Lunar Map Pro Celestial Explorer: Mars Starry Night AstroPhoto Suite Starry Night BlueStar Telescope Adapter NEW TO ASTRONOMY: Screensaver Constellation Adventure Complete Space & Astronomy Pack Starry Night Digital Download Starry Night Enthusiast EDUCATORS: Starry Night EDU Starry Night Middle School Starry Night High School Atlas of the Sky Classroom Ed. Comet Hunters Classroom Ed. Danger Solar Storm Classroom Ed. Eyes on Mars DVD Classroom Ed. Searching for SuperStars Classroom Ed. Wheels on Mars DVD Classroom Ed. DVDs: Starry Night 4-DVD Gift Set Atlas of the Sky DVD Eyes on Mars DVD Wheels on Mars DVD OTHER GREAT PRODUCTS: AdAstra Magazine Subscription Orchestral Encounters CD Under a Starry Night Book Year in Space Calendar EARTH & WEATHER Earthball Eye of the Storm WeatherBug Plus Weather Station Which product is for you NEW TO ASTRONOMY EXPERTS EDUCATORS Product Comparison Chart Reviews and Awards Product Support International Night Sky @ SPACE.com Astronomy Glossary Starry Night Newsletter Newsletter Sign-up December 2005 October/November 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 Store Locator Shipping Information Contact Us Upgrade Wizard Sign up now! -- -- Starry Night 4-DVD Set with Free Eyes on Mars NEW! SpaceStationSim BlueStar Telescope Adapter - Sky & Telescope Hot Product 2006 Eyes on Mars DVD Wheels on Mars DVD RITI's Celestial Explorer: Mars Starry Night Pro Plus 5 with Free Update to 5.7 Starry Night Complete Space and Astronomy Pack Starry Night Digital Download 5.7 - Build Your Own NightSky Universal Sky Tour: Mars SPACE.com Astronomers Determine Trigger of Massive Star Formation Live Science Shop for Cool Gifts, Gadgets and Gear at the new LiveScienceStore! NightSky 10 Years of Planet Hunting: Amazing Variety Out There Star Pattern SPACE.com Doorstep Astronomy: See Saturn and Jupiter Now! Live Science Scientists Clueless over Sun's Effect on Earth -- Dealer Support Affiliate Link About Starry Night ™ -- All prices are quoted in USD. All offers not valid on previous purchases. Free Eyes on Mars DVD with purchase of Starry Night 4-DVD set offer is valid starting December 23, 2005 and expires January 31, 2006 11:59 pm EST. Additional shipping & handling charges for the free item may apply. Free Earthball with purchase of Starry Night Classroom Edition DVD offer is only valid with new purchases of Starry Night Classroom Edition DVDs for $49.95 each from www.StarryNight.com Offer expires Friday, December 30, 2005 at 11:59PM EST. Limit 1 Earthball per 1 purchase of Starry Night Classroom Edition DVD. Home | Products  | Upgrade | Cart | Support | Contact | Educators © 1999-2005 Imaginova Corp. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. All other logos, names and third party references property of their respective owners.