Posts Tagged ‘Real Estate Investment’

Real estate is in full bloom in India and with each passing more and more foreign players and companies are pouring in. Prior beginning with your real estate investment it is wise to do extensive research and this is when real estate business magazine in India bails you out. Due to the real estate boom there are various companies and websites who have started providing magazines pertaining to Indian real estate. But in this whole lot only few are able to make a mark and Realty Plus is one of them.

Realty Plus is the leading real estate business magazine in India which provides latest news and information related to Indian properties and real estate. It gives a deep insight into the Indian property market so that they can provide best information. Many people who look for opt to the best and attractive property deals in India simply grab the latest edition of any real estate business magazine in India. Majority of the real estate magazines in India make sure that they provide the best and updated information to the people so that they can decide what and how to proceed.

According to many real estate experts, this real estate business magazine in India has solved a lot of queries and questions which pop up in the minds of not only the investors but also of the property sellers. In short this real estate magazine is one stop shop solution for all those people who are either selling or buying properties in India. These real estate business magazines in India tend to influence not only buyers but also sellers and also show them the right way and direction. In short span of time real estate business magazine in India have gained a lot of popularity and importance.

Realty Plus is the best real estate business magazine in India, which carries not only information and news related to Indian real estate but also carries interview of those personalities who have recently made a mark in this field. In short this magazine believes in knowledge sharing and dispersing. That’s why this real estate business magazine in India has outshined its competitors so soon. Thus, if you wish to ride higher in the Indian real estate then simply grab the copy of the best real estate business magazine in India now.

For more information on real estate business magazine India, real estate property listings India and property investments India please visit www.realtyplusmag.com .

Real Estate Investing is no longer the special past time of wealthy businessmen. In today’s world real estate has become a common financial motion for people from all walks of life. This trend will likely to continue to perform will into the predictable future. This change is due to elimination and concentration on company pension plans. Personal investing guide has replaced these plans as the preferred way to plan for retirement

Real estate investing book increases the knowledge and information in the real estate field. People who speak in real estate market are the people with experience in real estate industry. A real estate book which is introduced in electronic format is called as Real estate E-book.

A real estate investing book is a collection of paper, parchment or other material, bound together along one edge within covers that contain information about real estate investment business. A real estate book is also a real estate literary work or a main division of such a work.

A real estate investing book could be studied by real estate course students in the form of a book report. This book may also be read by a real estate professional or real estate business man who would like get more knowledge about some topic related to real estate. There are several recommended real estate investing books available for increasing your real estate investing knowledge and improving your real estate business.

Real estate investing book is one of the least risky types of investments books you can read. Rather than investing in hit or miss stocks that are sometimes unpredictable, real estate investing is a much more stable market. If you make a wise real estate investing book purchase, you will be able to increase your investment’s worth over time even if you put little or no knowledge or basic ideas into it.

The purpose of the Investing book is to supply all the necessary information so that you can obtain new skills and educate more yourself in real estate investing field, in order to get proven profitable results from your investments in the stock market! The Investing book intends to not only provide advice on investments for beginners, but also aims to offer fresh ideas for experienced investors. The Investing book also offers a list of investing terms and important phrases that the investors would need to be well-known with upon their embarkation into investments.

Real estate has always been known as the safest of investments.

In fact, real estate investment completed after proper research into and evaluation of the property (to determine actual and future value), can lead to tremendous profit.

This is one reason many people choose real estate investment as their full time job.

Discussions about real estate tend to focus on residential real estate; commercial real estate, except to seasoned investors, is often overlooked.

However, commercial real estate presents a great option for investing in real estate.

Commercial real estate includes a large variety of property types.

To a majority of people, commercial real estate is only office buildings or factories or industrial units.

However, that is not all of commercial real estate. There is far more to commercial real estate.

Strip malls, health care centers, retail units and warehouse are all good examples of commercial real estate as is vacant land.

Even residential properties like apartments (or any property that consists of more than four residential units) are considered commercial real estate. In fact, such commercial real estate is very much in demand.

So, is commercial real estate really profitable?

Absolutely, in fact if it were not profitable I would not be writing about commercial real estate at all!!

However, with commercial real estate recognizing the opportunity is a bit more difficult when compared to residential real estate.

But commercial real estate profits can be huge in fact, often much bigger than you might realize from a residential real estate transaction of the same size.

There are many reasons to delve into commercial real estate investment.

For example you might purchase to resell after a certain appreciation level has occured or to generate a substantial income by leasing the property out to retailers or other business types or both.

In fact, commercial real estate development is treated as a preliminary indicator of the impending growth of the residential real estate market.

Therefore, once you recognize the probability of significant commercial growth within a region (whatever the reason i.e. municipal tax concessions), you should begin to evaluate the potential for appreciation in commercial real estate prices and implement your investment strategy quickly.

Regarding commercial real estate investment strategies it is important that you identify and set investment goals (i.e. immediate income through rental vs later investment income through resale) and that you know what you can afford and how you will effect the purchase.

It would be wise to determine your goals then meet with your banker (or financier) prior to viewing and selecting your commercial real estate.

Also remain open minded and understand that should the right (perfect) opportunity present itself, your investment strategy might need to be revisited and altered, sometimes considerably.

For example: If you find a commercial real estate property too expensive for you to buy alone but represents tremendous opportunity, you could look at forming a small investor group (i.e. with friends or family) and buy it together (splitting the profits later).

Or in another case (i.e. when a retail boom is expected in a region), though your commercial real estate investment strategy was devised around purchasing vacant land, you might find it more profitable to buy a property such as a strip mall or small plaza that you can lease to retailers or a property that you can convert into a warehouse for the purpose of renting to small businesses.

In a nutshell, commercial real estate presents a huge variety of and tremendous investing opportunities, you just need to recognize them and go for it.

Many of us are like the man going off in search of diamonds. We waste time, money, and energy in endless moneymaking schemes while the greatest source of wealth is lying at our feet – real estate, everybody knows that one of the smartest ways to make serious money is in Real Estate Investment.(Winning Big in Real Estate – Written by Robert G. Allen in the Book Titled Multiple Streams of Income). I have researched and gattered the top contenders that teaches and gives you every piece of information you need about real estate investment and reviewed them for your convenience.

1. Governmentauctions.org® — Government Auctions & Bank Foreclosures — All In One!

key- government auctions,online government auctions,real estate investing,no money down,real estate advice,foreclosure training This site has a Comprehensive database listing thousands of live and online government auctions in the US. and Canada by state/territory. With them you can buy all types of seized and surplus items for rock-bottom prices. real estate, autos, electronics, jewelry, art, antiques, and more. Their Annual membership is only $39.95 you will Learn what it takes to genuinely be successful buying seized, surplus, and abandoned property at all types of government auctions. They have the Absolute Best Guide to Government Auctions & Foreclosures! If you wish to buy Foreclosures or Seized and Surplus items from the Government at discounted prices, you simply can’t afford NOT to be a member of GovernmentAuctions.org®.

2. The Real Estate Under Ground In this site you will discover how to use these real estate investing underground secrets to create large chunks of cash even if you have bad credit, no credit, and no experience. Who Else Wants The Complete, Step by Step, No Brainer Formula For Successfully Investing In Real Estate…Even If You Have Horrible Credit, No Credit, No Experience and Very Little Money? Revealed: Here’s The True Story of How they Bought Real Estate Without Using Any of their Own Credit, Without The Use of Any Bank, and Without Begging Anyone for a Loan to Make Enormous, Rock Solid Piles of Cash To Escape the J-O-B! If you’re looking for proven methods to buying real estate without using any of your own credit or without tying up a lot of cash, then this site is highly recommended

3. Real Estate Foreclosures- Home69 This is another Proven real estate investing course specializing in foreclosures and pre-foreclosures. When I “Followed Jeff’s real estate advice, I made $4,000 in one transaction that took less than one hour.” The information that is shared in this course is priceless. Most real estate agents and mortgage brokers don’t even know this formula they show you how To Build Massive Wealth In Real Estate Foreclosures! A simple, yet powerful and proven formula that will grab you by the hand and walk you step by step to your real estate fortunes!

4. Foreclosures – Real Estate Investing – Short Sales. I Learnt about foreclosures and real estate investing techniques like short sales and subject to financing. I Discovered a proven, time-tested, sure-fire system for generating income, creating wealth & securing my financial future! Imagine a system that requires no credit checks or income verifications and it’s virtually Risk Free. $2,890 profit in just a few weeks I applied the methods in the book almost directly without a lot of additional research and study. Also described were procedures that I know to be used in at least six other states that I have researched, so I can guess that they are fairly a global concept and could be applied anywhere. They also have estimate sheets and other forms included. After reading their Foreclosures and Flippers e-book I became an informed expert in foreclosure techniques.

Marcus Rolland writes informative articles and recommends http://tunemarconlinemall.blogspot.com for more information

about Real Estates Investments

Many of us are like the man going off in search of diamonds. We waste time, money, and energy in endless moneymaking schemes while the greatest source of wealth is lying at our feet – real estate, everybody knows that one of the smartest ways to make serious money is in Real Estate Investment.(Winning Big in Real Estate – Written by Robert G. Allen in the Book Titled Multiple Streams of Income). I have researched and gattered the top contenders that teaches and gives you every piece of information you need about real estate investment and reviewed them for your convenience.

1. Governmentauctions.org® — Government Auctions & Bank Foreclosures — All In One!

key- government auctions,online government auctions,real estate investing,no money down,real estate advice,foreclosure training This site has a Comprehensive database listing thousands of live and online government auctions in the US. and Canada by state/territory. With them you can buy all types of seized and surplus items for rock-bottom prices. real estate, autos, electronics, jewelry, art, antiques, and more. Their Annual membership is only $39.95 you will Learn what it takes to genuinely be successful buying seized, surplus, and abandoned property at all types of government auctions. They have the Absolute Best Guide to Government Auctions & Foreclosures! If you wish to buy Foreclosures or Seized and Surplus items from the Government at discounted prices, you simply can’t afford NOT to be a member of GovernmentAuctions.org®.

2. The Real Estate Under Ground In this site you will discover how to use these real estate investing underground secrets to create large chunks of cash even if you have bad credit, no credit, and no experience. Who Else Wants The Complete, Step by Step, No Brainer Formula For Successfully Investing In Real Estate…Even If You Have Horrible Credit, No Credit, No Experience and Very Little Money? Revealed: Here’s The True Story of How they Bought Real Estate Without Using Any of their Own Credit, Without The Use of Any Bank, and Without Begging Anyone for a Loan to Make Enormous, Rock Solid Piles of Cash To Escape the J-O-B! If you’re looking for proven methods to buying real estate without using any of your own credit or without tying up a lot of cash, then this site is highly recommended

3. Real Estate Foreclosures- Home69 This is another Proven real estate investing course specializing in foreclosures and pre-foreclosures. When I “Followed Jeff’s real estate advice, I made $4,000 in one transaction that took less than one hour.” The information that is shared in this course is priceless. Most real estate agents and mortgage brokers don’t even know this formula they show you how To Build Massive Wealth In Real Estate Foreclosures! A simple, yet powerful and proven formula that will grab you by the hand and walk you step by step to your real estate fortunes!

4. Foreclosures – Real Estate Investing – Short Sales. I Learnt about foreclosures and real estate investing techniques like short sales and subject to financing. I Discovered a proven, time-tested, sure-fire system for generating income, creating wealth & securing my financial future! Imagine a system that requires no credit checks or income verifications and it’s virtually Risk Free. $2,890 profit in just a few weeks I applied the methods in the book almost directly without a lot of additional research and study. Also described were procedures that I know to be used in at least six other states that I have researched, so I can guess that they are fairly a global concept and could be applied anywhere. They also have estimate sheets and other forms included. After reading their Foreclosures and Flippers e-book I became an informed expert in foreclosure techniques.

Marcus Rolland writes informative articles and recommends http://tunemarconlinemall.blogspot.com for more information

about Real Estates Investments

A profitable area for real estate investment in Central America today is Costa Rica. With the upsurge of tourism in the country, Costa Rica is experiencing a strong and balanced economic boom. Throughout the county, there is an increase in the amount of real estate in Costa Rica including high class residential condominium projects, exclusive beachfront villas, and mushrooming serene upper class communities which are results of a stable and rapidly growing real estate market. Those who believed and invested their money particularly in the Costa Rica real estate market see constant yields and enormous profits.

One area that has grown immensely in Costa Rica’s real estate market is the province of Guanacaste. As a rising commercial hub, it represents some of the biggest real estate investments in all of Costa Rica. This increase is in result of a growth in tourism over recent years. A huge capital infused by hotel tycoons for the construction of a first class hotel edifice within the vicinity propelled the economic boosts for the province. Since this project was completed, the tourism and real estate property activity have become very active therefore creating a trend of new opportunities and giving confidence to other investors to place their money in the real estate market in this part of Costa Rica. The province had the largest gains in real estate investments in 2006.

With the increasing number of residential and commercial projects in this area of Costa Rica comes the creation of new services and enterprises in the country. Constructions of commercial centers, corporate business offices including law and accounting offices, real estate agencies, commercial banks, just to mention a few are some of the business and real estate investment opportunities born out of the continued growth of tourism in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica real estate is an excellent option for people seeking to invest in property or a retirement home due to the rising cost of real estate in Europe and North America. In comparison to European markets and particularly in the U.S., Costa Rica on the average is cheaper by 70% and recently, real estate values have been tripling in the last few years. Lately real estate investment advisors in Costa Rica disclosed that as more and more people discover Costa Rica, the potential for growth is tremendous.

With the signs of Costa Rica’s growing economy, stable real estate market, promising yields and absolute return of your investments, where you place your investments in Costa Rica should be the least of your worries. To capitalize on Costa Rica’s real estate investment opportunities, timing is now of the essence. By delaying any longer, you will feel like you are losing out on positive real estate investment opportunities.

For more resources about Costa Rica real estate or even about real estate Costa Rica and even about Canas Dulces Costa Rica real estate please review these links.

Real estate investment can hardly be called a common transaction. Even to those who do it regularly, real estate investing can still be a complex commercial transaction, especially considering how profitable such a venture can be. Everyone who has ever been involved in real estate investment knows that it can come with considerable risks, but, more often than not, the potential rewards are worth taking those risks. Each investor should set some clear investment goals and be consistent with them, staying aware of the risks engaged in real estate investment.

What real estate investing comes down to is purchasing real estate with the definite purpose of making profit. Although there are many people out there who claim that losing money over real estate investment is virtually impossible, things are not exactly that black and white. However, real estate investing does come with a series of advantages, of which the most notable one has to be the fact that the profit potential is proportional with the amount of money involved in each transaction, and real estate is definitely not what you would call an inexpensive product. Another important advantage of real estate investment is generated by real estate being considerable easier to finance than most other products. Therefore, the value of the property that an investor is about to buy is an excellent basis for obtaining a loan. The down payment required in real estate investing is normally under twenty percent of the value of the property in question, unlike many other products, whose purchase requires full payment immediately. In conclusion, real estate investment is more widely available, in spite of the huge amounts of money that it usually engages.

The most notable disadvantage related to real estate investing is the prospect of losses when the property is resold, as a consequence of the unforeseeable fluctuations of this market.

Fortunately, real estate investors can now benefit from online tools that can assist them in this complex process of investing in real estate. Signing up on a web site where your business can be promoted and where you can share your successes and failures and learn from those of other people is now possible. Useful online tools, such as videos and articles about real estate investing, real estate contracts, the basics of investing in real estate, etc, are now only one click away. All you have to do is make the most of everything you have at your disposal, so that you can become a truly successful real estate investor.

Everything you need to know about real estate investment is available online. From financing and property valuation to credit services and business formation, all the resources necessary for your success in real estate investing are available online. You can even find resources for home improvement, such as contractor search, finishings, or watch do-it-yourself videos.

All in all, these new online tools will definitely come in handy to beginner and expert investors alike, because the real estate market has so many twists and turns that no one can really master it.

For more resources about Real estate investment or especially about real estate investing please review this link http://www.realestateinvestor.com

“If you are interested in becoming involved with real estate investment, joining a real estate investment club can be a great first step. Although you will likely be expected to pay membership fees and may have to pay additional dues into the club, there are many advantages to joining a real estate club.

Get Educated by a Real Estate Investment Club

One of the biggest benefits associated with joining a real estate investment club is the fact that you can learn a great deal about real estate through your membership. You won’t sit around and read books together at these clubs. Rather, you can get real life education by talking with other members and learning from their experiences. As a result, you can implement some of the same steps they took to find success in real estate. At the same time, you can avoid some of the mistakes they had to endure.

By talking with other investors that are members of the real estate investment club, you can get meaningful advice that is specific to your needs. These tips and tidbits if information can prove to be invaluable down the road.

Make Connections with a Real Estate Investment Club

Another perk to being a member of a real estate investment club is the fact that it allows you to network with other professionals. This can lead to finding better deals and can also help you avoid scams. In addition, other members can suggest specific people for you to do business with. For example, you might learn through your real estate investment club that there are one or two inspectors or property managers in your area that are particularly good to work with.

Find Partners within a Real Estate Investment Club

When you join a real estate investment club, you will also find yourself surrounded by like-minded individuals. As such, you might find one or more members that are interested in partnering with you so you can both get rich off of real estate investment. By combining your resources, you may be able to achieve a level of success that you could not have achieved on your own.

Save Money on Your Investments

Since many of the other members of the real estate investment club most likely own one or more investment properties, you might also be able to get a good deal on a piece of real estate. Often times, the members of these clubs bypass working with a realtor and sell their real estate directly to other members of the clubs. This helps the other member avoid paying a commission and helps you purchase a property for less. It is a win-win situation for everyone involved.

Grow Your Business by Joining a Real Estate Investment Club

Even if you are not interested in investing in real estate, you still might be interested in joining a real estate investment club. If you have a business that is related to real estate in any way, such as a landscaping business or a contractor business, you might want to consider joining one of these clubs. After all, many of the members are purchasing “fixer uppers” as an investment and will need someone to help improve the value of the property for resale.

There are many reasons to join a real estate investment club, even if you are not interested in investing in property. If you are looking to make money from property in any way, joining one of these clubs is a very good idea.”

Investment Property – How to determine After Repair Value (ARV) in real estate investing that the banks accept.

The chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) M Damodaran on Wednesday said the regulator was considering proposals to allow real estate investment trusts (REIT) in India.

Speaking at a conference on capital markets organised by the CII, the Sebi chief also said the rules on listing and trading of securitised debt market instruments will be finalised by December.

The regulator had put out a consultative paper on securitised debt in June this year. The draft regulations proposed a system of registration of special purpose distinct entities which were planning to offer securitised debt instruments to the public or seeking the listing of such instruments issued earlier. Damodaran further said that select companies could opt for fast track issuances.

According to the fast track share issuance programme allowed by Sebi in August this year, companies with a 3-year track record on NSE and BSE, and with free-float market capitalization of at least Rs 10,000 crore, can raise funds through rights and follow-on issues, without having to wait for the market regulator’s clearance.

Sebi, at its board meeting in June 2006, had approved guidelines making it mandatory for REMFs (real-estate mutual funds) to be listed on the stock exchanges. But the absence of valuation norms delayed the introduction of REMFs in the country.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) was looking into the valuation issue and once it clears the norms, Sebi will be ready with the rules, M Damodaran said.

“It is not going to be a REIT versus REMF issue. Consultations with people who have a better understanding of these products have commenced and we will shortly write the first set of proposals,” said Damodaran. REIT is a better product, but we will ensure that both products are introduced over time, he added.

The Sebi move comes amid plans by a clutch of companies to raise funds from the Indian market for listing REIT-like vehicles on the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX).

The Bangalore-based developer Embassy group, Ascendas, provider of business space in Asia and the Delhi-based DLF and Unitech have announced plans to list their fund structures, mainly REITs, on the SGX, banking on its recent easing of norms.

REMFs will be close-ended funds and will invest directly in real estate properties in India, mortgage (housing lease) backed securities, equity shares/bonds/debentures of listed/unlisted companies which deal in properties and undertake property development, and in other securities.

Following the curbs on participatory notes (P-notes), Sebi has received a large number of applications from overseas investors seeking FII registrations, Damodaran said, without providing figures.

The regulator is planning to launch a nationwide campaign for investor education in 2008 and encourages the market participants to take their role as self-regulatory organisations (SRO) seriously.

Nimesh Kampani, Chairman, CII National Committee on Capital Markets and the head of JM Financial Group also stressed on the need to develop SROs for financial intermediaries.

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November 21, 2007

Fortis Invest eyes Japan pension funds

Filed under: India Real Estate News Updates, Real Estate Funds, New Development — Administrator @ 3:05 am

TOKYO, Nov 21 (Reuters) – Fortis Investments, the global assets management arm of the Fortis group, is eyeing Japan’s multi-billion dollar pension funds as key investors for its two new investment funds next year worth a combined $745 million, its real estate chief said on Wednesday.

Fortis Investments, which has about 130 billion euros ($190 billion) in assets under management, will launch two new “funds of funds” — funds that hold a portfolio of other investment funds — focused on European and Asian property.

“We were very Europe-specific when we started two years ago but have diversified outside of Europe since,” Bart Coenraads, chief investment officer and head of real estate for Fortis Investments, told Reuters at the sidelines of a conference in Tokyo.

The firm currently has two Europe-focused fund-of-funds vehicles and a third invested in Asian assets.

Coenraads said he was particularly keen to attract Japanese pension fund investors as their allocations for real estate were minuscule relative to other asset classes.

“A lot of Japanese pension funds already invested in Japanese real estate now see opportunities in Asia ex-Japan,” he said, adding that Fortis Investments had already obtained a $40 million commitment from a Japanese pension fund investor for an existing fund of funds focused on Asia ex-Japan property.

Japan’s pension funds have traditionally parked their money in low-risk corporate and government bonds but are raising their investments in riskier assets such as equities and property to boost returns for the country’s ageing population. Fortis Investments has about 2.5 billion euros in global real estate exposure — 25 percent of which is run through its fund-of-funds vehicles. The remaining 75 percent of its property-related holdings are in publicly traded securities.

“Many pension funds don’t have the internal capabilities to get the sort of exposure that they can get by buying into a fund of funds,” Coenraads said.Coenraads plans to raise about $300 million for the new Asian fund of funds, about half of which will be invested in Japanese funds. The remaining portfolio will be invested in China, Malaysia, Vietnam, India and Singapore assets.

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Omaxe may tap West Asia as Indian real estate market cools

Filed under: India Real Estate News Updates, Commercial, Residential, New Development — Administrator @ 1:26 am

Source: http://www.livemint.com/2007/11/21005026/Omaxe-may-tap-West-Asia-as-Ind.html

New Delhi: Real estate company Omaxe Ltd has decided to develop properties overseas in places such as Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the real estate market in India starts to cool and profits get squeezed.The developer plans to build commercial and residential properties in Dubai.

“Last year was very bad for developers,” Rohtas Goel, chairman and managing director, Omaxe, said. “Prices declined by 10% and even by 30% in some locations, which has forced developers to look at overseas markets for expansion,” he added.

The company has decided to enter the Dubai real estate market as the average yearly return on an investment in Dubai is slightly better than in India, Goel said. “It is also easier to do real estate business in Dubai compared to India,” he added.

Omaxe will float an offshore development company to enter the Dubai market. Goel declined to say how much money Omaxe had earmarked for overseas development.

The company will develop real estate through joint ventures with a local real estate developer. Omaxe has to find a local developer to market property in Dubai in keeping with regulations of the UAE government. “We can acquire the land on our own, but to market the property we need a local partner,” Goel said.

Omaxe is in talks with several developers from Dubai for a possible tie-up. But nothing has been finalized yet, Goel said. In the last seven to eight months, the real estate market in New Delhi and its suburbs has seen a decline in demand mostly because of the high interest rates on home loans, which are at a five-year high. The interest rates have increased to 12%, compared with 9% just a year ago. That, coupled with the rising value of land, is making homes more expensive and less affordable—keeping buyers at bay.

“A few developers might be looking at overseas markets because of the high cost of land in India,” said Ganesh Raj, head, real estate practice at audit and consulting firm Ernst & Young India. “As return is a function of price of land, given the present cost of land, developers probably feel that returns in the overseas markets will be better. However, very few developers have actually started real estate development in offshore markets,” Raj added.

Omaxe’s plans to go global comes in the wake of similar efforts by other developers. Parsvnath Developers Ltd has decided to venture into real estate development in the UK, Singapore, UAE, Muscat and Mauritius. DLF Ltd is looking at international acquisitions, and Ansal API Ltd has a partnership with Malaysia’s UEM Group to bid for government projects in Malaysia.Investors are not willing to buy residential properties any more as the interest rates have shot up and it is costlier to buy homes on borrowed money.

Investors are gradually exiting the real estate market, say developers. While investors constituted 70% of the buyers last year, it is now the reverse, Goel said. “Now the actual end-users constitute 70% of the buyers,” he added. Omaxe is present in 30 cities and nine states in India. The company operates across residential, commercial and retail verticals. Omaxe made an initial public offering of shares in July and raised around Rs600 crore.

Not all real estate property types may be appropriate for new real estate investors. There are many factors to consider when making the decision to add real estate to an investment portfolio.

When deciding on a residential real estate investment strategy, some options for new investors to consider include:

Rental units

Rental units can be considered both long term and short term investments. Types of properties that may be considered for this category would include:

* Detached single family homes

* Attached single family homes

* Multi-Unit properties

* Condos/Townhomes

Being a Landlord

Not everyone has either the desire or inclination to be a landlord. Dealing with tenant and property issues can be very stressful and time consuming. One way to minimize the impact of being a landlord is to hire a professional property management company.

Hiring a professional property management company has several advantages:

* Allows owners of rental properties to be ‘shielded’ from dealing with tenant and property issues directly.

* Provides a buffer allowing the owners to maintain a hands off approach to managing their properties.

* May provide a less stressful experience

* Offers the ability to purchase real estate investments not immediately local to the investor.

* Provides a single contact point for all issues regarding the investment property.

Professional property managers are well versed and prepared to manage tenant and property issues as they arise. They will typically take care of all issues relating to the property.

Many offer their services at reasonable prices and rates while others can be quite expensive depending on additional services being offered. You may expect property managers to provide the following services:

* Advertise properties available

* Receive applications for tenancy

* Perform Credit and Background checks for applicants

* Recommend rental pricing

* Pay maintenance and/or repair bills for the owner

* Send monthly statements and rental income (Less any outstanding bills.

Typically these are deducted and itemized from the rental income and will appear on monthly statements)

Flipping or The Bane of New Investors

Often times, new investors in real estate are overly anxious to ‘flip’ properties and make a significant profit. Rumors of how friends or acquaintances have made allot of money is often the incentive for ‘flipping’.

The real estate market fluctuates greatly. Yesterdays great ‘flipping’ market may be (recent market trends as an example) tomorrows ‘Hold on to it’ market. While this is certainly a desirable quality of an investment property, it is and should not be the primary consideration for new real estate investors. The competition for this type of real estate investment is fierce and occupied by seasoned, experienced professional builders and investors

Property Types

Let’s discuss the various property type which may be considered by new real estate investors.

The selectionof the type of real estate property for investment purposes may be based on several factors.

These factors include:

* Financial considerations – How much can you afford?

* Availability of properties – What types of properties are available?

* Location – You’ve heard this one a thousand times – Location…Location…Location…

* Income potential – Does the property in question match your real estate investment strategy?

Detached and attached single family homes Single family homes whether attached or detached are often the first real estate property type new investors seek. In many areas, they offer the most availability of any property type.

Prices obviously vary greatly with these property types as well.

Multifamily Properties

Apartment units such as duplexes and triplexes should be considered as a viable option for new real estate investors.

Many investors and real estate professionals use apartment buildings as a point of entry to a portfolio of commercial real estate holdings and to build their equity before moving on to larger commercial real estate investments.

Duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes are two, three and four-unit buildings that may or may not be owner occupied.

Summary

Selecting an appropriate type of real estate property in which to invest is a primary consideration for all serious real estate investors.

Real estate investment strategies include the decision of whether or not to become actively involved in the management of the property. Professional property managers offer alternatives to assist in a “hands off” approach to owning residential income property.

Knowing there are options on the various types of properties to purchase as investment may provide new real estate investors the information needed to make that final decision to become a real estate investor.

End of Part 2

© Copyright 2008 Jennifer MacKay. All Rights Reserved.

Real estate is often termed as the safest investment avenue. In fact, real estate investments done with proper evaluation of the property (and its true value), can lead to good profits. This is one reason why some people pursue real estate investment as their full time job. The talks of real estate are generally focussed towards residential real estate; commercial real estate seems to take a back seat. However, commercial real estate too is a good option for investing in real estate.

Commercial real estate includes a lot of different kinds of properties. Most people relate commercial real estate with only office complexes or factories/ industrial units. However, that is not all of commercial real estate. There is more to commercial real estate. Health care centers, retail structures and warehouse are all good examples of commercial real estate. Even residential properties like apartments (or any property that consists of more than four residential units) are considered commercial real estate. In fact, such commercial real estate is much in demand.

So, is commercial real estate really profitable? Well, if it were not profitable I would not have been writing about commercial real estate at all. So, commercial real estate is profitable for sure. The only thing with commercial real estate is that recognising the opportunity is a bit difficult as compared to residential real estate. But commercial real estate profits can be real big (in fact, much bigger than you would expect from residential real estate of the same proportion). You could take up commercial real estate for either reselling after appreciation or for renting out to, say, retailers. The commercial real estate development is in fact treated as the first sign for growth of residential real estate. Once you know of the possibility of significant commercial growth in the region (either due to tax breaks or whatever), you should start evaluating the potential for appreciation in the prices of commercial real estate and then go for it quickly (as soon as you find a good deal). And you must really work towards getting a good deal. If you find that commercial real estate, e.g. land, is available in big chunks which are too expensive for you to buy, you could look at forming a small investor group (with your friends) and buy it together (and split the profits later). In some cases e.g. when a retail boom is expected in a region, you might find it profitable to buy a property that you can convert into a warehouse for the purpose of renting to small businesses.

So commercial real estate presents a whole plethora of investing opportunities, you just need to grab it.

Real estate is a big business and everyone seems to want to invest in real estate. You keep hearing a lot of stories about how people made a quick buck by investing in real estate. There are stories about people who made $50000 in a fortnight by making the right kind of investment in real estate. Every now and then, newspapers keep coming up with statistics about the appreciation in the real estate prices. There seems a mad rush for investing in real estate (and this gets even bigger when the mortgage interest rates are falling). However, not everyone has the time, money and expertise to be able to profitably invest in real estate. So what does one do? Is there any other option?

Yes, there is another way of investing in real estate and that is through Real Estate Investment Trust. Real Estate Investment Trust is an organisation that invests in real estate as a full fledged business. By investing in a Real Estate Investment Trust, you can become part of the real estate investment party and enjoy profits (of course, the assumption here is that the Real Estate Investment Trust is good and professionally managed).

Investing in Real Estate Investment Trust is very easy too. You can just buy Real Estate Investment Trust shares which trade on all major exchanges. There are certain laws governing the Real Estate Investment Trusts that help them avoiding the tax at corporate levels e.g. it is mandated that Real Estate Investment Trust’s portfolio has 75 percent of investment in real estate. Moreover, 75% of the income of Real Estate Investment Trust must be from rents or mortgage interest. There are various types of Real Estate Investment Trusts. Some Real Estate Investment Trusts own properties themselves and hence feed on the rental income from those properties. Some others indulge in providing only mortgage loans or go for mortgage backed securities. Then there are Real Estate Investment Trusts which do both i.e. rental focussed investments and mortgage based investments.

There are a number of Real Estate Investment Trusts operating in the market and a lot of these Real Estate Investment Trusts are doing good business. By investing in Real Estate Investment Trust you are basically investing in real estate without actually buying a property yourself. This is one easy way of investing in real estate (and much safer too). You must surely evaluate this option for your real estate investments.

Real estate investment software is one of the best tools real estate investors and professionals have at their disposal to analyze and evaluate rental property. Hands down.

Good real estate investment software provides user-friendly forms, makes every computation, and generates professional-style reports. With a good real estate software solution any user (novice or advanced) can create professional-quality rental income property reports for personal decision-making or as presentations to buyers, sellers, colleagues, partners, or to lenders within minutes.

Moreover, real estate investing is all about the numbers. Hence, successful real estate investors concentrate on (nay, make the investment decision based upon) the bottom line when considering real estate investment opportunities. Real estate investment software therefore becomes an essential tool for people who seriously work with investment real estate because it provides quick and concise cash flow and rate of return numbers.

There are, of course, options other than investing in third-party real estate investment software. You can, for instance, simply scratch out the numbers with a pad and pencil, perhaps make a hasty rule-of-thumb calculation off the top of your head, or maybe listen to someone’s advice. But it should be obvious that these approaches, although useful in limited cases, are fraught with weaknesses. They clearly do not provide a deep enough property analysis required for such an important investment decision, nor do they represent the data adequately enough to sway the opinion of any other person, entity, or institution.

Of course, you can develop your own real estate investment software solution on a spreadsheet program like Excel. The problem here is time. It takes loads and loads of time to embed the computations properly and to format the forms and reports. Given the affordability of some software solutions, successful real estate professionals do not waste time or effort reinventing the wheel and rely on real estate software, preferring rather to spend their time generating moneymaking deals.

But I digress. So let’s get back on topic and consider 10 things you should expect to find in good real estate investment software.

1. Easy to learn and use – You want simply to enter the values and have the software do the rest. You never want to look and wonder, “What do I do next?”

2. Unlimited units – You want the ability to analyze one unit or a thousand units, or even more units if necessary.

3. Loan amortization – You want lots of control over the financing assumptions for the property. Therefore you want the ability to enter multiple loans (e.g., a first, second, and third loan), the flexibility to enter the loan either as a loan assumption or as a new loan, and either at a fixed-rate or interest-only rate.

4. Crucial rates of return – You want the real estate investment software to calculate returns for cash flow such as cap rate, gross rent multiplier, cash on cash, operating expense ratio; and loan analysis ratios like debt coverage, loan-to-value, break-even, profitability index.

5. Concise, top-quality reports – You want a wide-range of printable reports to include comprehensive data with eye-catching appeal. Remember, you might be trying to influence the opinion of a buyer, seller, colleague, or lender regarding this property. At the very least, you would expect superior software to create an APOD, proforma income statement, rent roll, acquisition report, and sales proceeds report. If you’re pragmatic, you can also find software with sensitivity and scenario reports, a comparable sales report, a marketing package (executive summary), amortization tables, and charts.

6. Upgradeable versions – In the event that you purchase their less-than-platinum-grade-version without “time value of money” and “tax shelter” consideration, you want the ability to upgrade to it later if you choose. This is crucial. For you will discover over time that time value of money and taxes are extremely important to real estate investors and you will want the software to compute them.

7. Technical support – You want to have easy access to tech support in the event of a problem, e.g., your computer crashes and you need to re-download the real estate investment software. Email and telephone support (preferably with the developer) is recommended. Exercise caution if the company or developer appears overly allusive or lacking in experience.

8. Affordability – The good news is that there is very good real estate investment software available on the web for under $300. Be sure to examine the website carefully, however. Remember, the same software company that’s wanting you to purchase their software publishes the website. Unless it’s well organized and informative, or if its lack-luster and confusing, the software might not be worth the price regardless how affordable.

9. Customer satisfaction – Customers freely willing to write and submit a testimonial about the software should not be taken for granted or lightly regarded. Look for names, professions, and titles. If you can relate, then you’re on the right track.

10. Lots of special features – You should expect good real estate investment software to provide at least these benefits: Seamless printing, picture function, branding and name-rider integration, email capability, help file, and Vista compatibility. In some cases, there could be even more features that are special, so spend time on each website looking around to be sure you don’t miss something.

Continuing your education in real estate investing is of the utmost importance for your success as a real estate investor in today’s market. Why? The old saying, “knowledge is power”, holds true in basically every aspect of your life, including real estate investing. Whether you are a beginner or seasoned real estate investor, there is always something new you can learn to further your career.

With our current market situation, the changes in the availability of money, what you learned a few years ago may not be effective for today’s real estate investor. Continuing education for Real estate investors is crucial to their success.

Many real estate investors are recognizing the importance of continuing their education and are benefiting immensely from what they are learning.

New ideas and techniques have been developed to help real estate investors enhance their knowledge, so they can apply what they learn to increase their real estate empire.

There are many different methods you can use to continue your education. It depends on how far you have already come in your real estate investing career. You may choose to take advantage of the free online webinars to find out about new and innovative real estate systems or simply “read up” on areas of investing where you may lack knowledge.

Different methods to consider for continuing your real estate investing education are:

. Free Online Webinars

. Join a real estate investment club

. Enroll in a coaching program

. Purchase a real estate investing course

. Read books

. Mentoring

. Training classes

. Seminars

Other areas to consider continuing education for success in real estate investing:

. Real Estate Investor Marketing – Real estate investor marketing is essential to your success. Even if you have already learned real estate investor marketing strategies, new techniques have been developed to increase awareness of the services you provide. There are many different online resources available to purchase or to learn about real estate investing marketing.

. Personal Growth – Not only can you advance your career through learning more about real estate investing, but you can also further your career by investing in yourself through personal growth. Determine what could be holding you back in your real estate investing career. If you are feeling lost or unmotivated, you might consider attending a free online webinar. Or maybe you have issues in organization; they now have real estate systems for the Investor that can be set up for you at a very reasonable cost. Getting organized will help keep you on track.

. Join Forums – Communicate with other investors to find out what they have learned. Find a forum where you can exchange information and interact with others who may be experiencing similar frustrations and fears, as well as successes. Forums can actually be a way to motivate you and give you different ideas to move forward in your real estate investing career.

Continuing your education in real estate investing is essential to your success. There are many different methods and depths to which you can increase your knowledge in advancing your real estate investing career. The important thing to remember is you should never stop learning. Changing procedures, laws and strategies make it critical that you keep updated on these changes. Your success will be based on your knowledge in how to implement these changes into your real estate investing business plans.