A development team has doubled the number of apartments previously slated for a new performing arts complex on Jersey City’s west side.
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Before you buy rental property in another state, check to see if that state requires a real estate license to manage the real estate of another person or entity.
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Q: Gerald, my wife and I are looking at buying a home–we haven’t decided whether we want to live in it or rent it out but thought we’d ask if there are any red flags we should look for to avoid? Kendrick, Columbia, MD A: Great question, Kendrick. There are a few red flags that I use to disqualify properties to buy–here are 3 of them: 1. Property with leaking or compromised oil tank (expensive environmental hazard) 2. Property located next to gas station (expensive environmental hazard) 3. Property located next to dry cleaners (expensive environmental hazard) If you have experience resolving these kinds of issues, these conditions may present an opportunity for you as an investor–for example, I met […]
continue reading Real estate negotiations don’t necessarily end when you sign a purchase contract. Savvy buyers can use repair items that arise from a home inspection to try to renegotiate.
continue reading If you want real estate deals, you must make offers, it’s that simple–no offers, no deals.
continue reading The national median existing single-family home price increased 4.8% annually in the third quarter.
continue reading Familiarize yourself with the risks associated with buying foreclosed property at an auction or sheriff sale before you bid or buy.
continue reading Before you bid at a real estate auction, do thorough due diligence on every property you intend to bid on and decide the maximum price you are willing to pay for each of those properties before you go so you don’t get excited during the auction and overpay.
continue reading Q: Are home sales increasing everywhere nationally? Kelly, Cleveland, OH A: All residential real estate is local, so it’s important to take headlines with a grain of salt. While home sales may be generally trending up in many metropolitan areas nationally, there are always areas where sales are trending down–normally due to local economic conditions because jobs and income more than anything else drive home sales and home prices. Furthermore, even in areas where home sales are increasing, they aren’t necessarily increasing for all homes. Case in point, home prices and sales of luxury homes are falling. Home buyers just don’t have the appetite for big luxury homes and mcmansions that they once did. Trends don’t last forever and more […]
continue reading Existing home sales fell .6% in June from the previous month and declined 2.2% from a year earlier.
continue reading Home Prices In 80% Of US Cities Grew 2x Faster Than Wages.
continue readingSales of previously owned U.S. homes declined in May for the 2nd consecutive month.
continue reading Q: Are home prices rising everywhere nationally? Sarah, Brooklyn, NY A: The Case-Shiller Index condo price index in New York City fell in April from March, down 0.5%. A one month dip does not a trend make, nevertheless it is remarkable that the one major city where prices have dipped is in the Big Apple where real estate prices have been on fire for some time. Incidentally, rents have also come down a little recently in Manhattan as well. In general, prices cannot continue to go up forever in any place which is why it’s so important that you track and monitor your local real estate market. Thanks for your question, Sarah. For more real estate information and tips visit my […]
continue reading Avoid working with real estate attorneys that are not responsive. If they’re not available to assist you, they’re not going to do much good for you regardless of their level of competence or experience.
continue reading Avoid overly unique properties because they tend to be harder to value, harder to finance and they generate lower demand and appeal to a smaller percentage of potential buyers.
continue reading Today’s unsold housing inventory equates to just 3.7 months of sales, which is lower than one year ago, when it was 4.2 months.
continue reading When you evaluate a local realtor, examine the average number of days on market (DOM) it took them to sell the last 10 listings they had-low DOMs indicates a realtor is good at accurately pricing properties to sell.
continue reading After home sales recorded a 6% retraction in March, New Jersey recorded more than 11,000 purchase contracts during the month of April equating to a 7% increase compared to the same month last year.
continue reading Q: We’re buying our first investment property. What are the most important factors you think we should consider? Dave, Bayonne, NJ A: There are many factors, both quantitative and qualitative that you should consider before you even make an offer to buy an investment property, Dave. I’m going to give you 3 quantitative factors that you should consider before you buy investment property: 1. The 1st and most important quantitative factor is property market value. The safest way to determine property market value is to get an appraisal. The 2nd best way to determine property market value for smaller residential property is to get a comparative market analysis from a licensed realtor who is active in the area where the […]
continue reading Q: We’re buying our first investment property. What are the most important factors you think we should consider? Dave, Bayonne, NJ A: There are many factors, both quantitative and qualitative that you should analyze before you even make an offer to buy an investment property, Dave. I’m going to give you 3 qualitative factors that you should analyze and consider before you buy investment property: 1) The first qualitative factor is the local perception of the character of the neighborhood where property is located (i.e. is it family-friendly, quality of local schools, crime prevalence, proximity and access to transportation etc.). 2) The 2nd qualitative factors is the attractiveness of property to buyers and renters. All economic activity is driven by […]
continue reading Get an appraisal or Comparative Market Analysis from a realtor to value your home rather than use Zillow or Trulia whose property value algorithms are not consistently accurate.
continue reading Q: Gerald, you said that more than two thirds of NJ households are childless. What does this trend mean for residential real estate? Henry, Montvale, NJ A: Interesting question, Henry. More childless households means that space requirements for home buyers and renters are smaller, which means lower demand for McMansions and increased demand for condos, town houses and smaller homes. Unfortunately, builders in NJ are not building a lot of small or starter homes because the cost of land and labor are high and because land use laws in NJ make it harder to build. In addition, the length of time it takes to build a home in NJ has increased which increases the cost to builders making it less […]
continue reading When you value a residential home for purchase, make sure the sales comparables you use all have similar style, layout, number of bedrooms and bathrooms.
continue reading Visit 3 similar homes already for sale in the same neighborhood before you put your home on the market to sell so you have a frame of reference for pricing.
continue reading Nearly two-thirds of U.S. housing markets have recently seen home prices hit all-time highs.
continue reading U.S. homeownership rate rose in 2017 for the 1st time in 13 years, but remained below the long term average of about 65%.
continue reading Average property tax rates in NJ rose by the smallest amount in four years, up just 1.6 percent to $8,690.
continue reading The number of single family homes in NJ fell 18.8% in 2017 to 33,887 from 41,736 from a year earlier in 2016.
continue reading Buying property in a separate legal entity rather than in your own name provides anonymity and additional liability protection.
continue reading Provide multiple comparable sales, with photos, addresses and detailed information when you present a real estate deal to an investor, lender or JV partner.
continue reading Q: Gerald, I spent the last few months trying to buy and close on a probate real estate deal. Just as I thought we were about to close another heir showed up making demands that were outside of what had been agreed upon. How do I avoid this kind of problem on the next deal? Kerry, Union, NJ A: Great question, Kerry. A home is sold in probate court when someone dies without a will or without bequeathing the property they own. When this happens, the state takes over and administers the property’s sale. The court normally then appoints an executor of the estate. It sounds like you were negotiating with someone who had some interest in or connection to […]
continue reading Currently, all of New Jersey’s 21 counties have less than 8.0 months of supply, which is a balance point for home prices.
continue reading Q: Gerald, I’m building my real estate team of professionals. I already have a good real estate attorney, a general contractor and a good realtor. Who else do you think I need? Eddie, Sparta, NJ A: Good question, Eddie. First of all, it’s a good idea to have more than one of the power team members you’ve already chosen so that you are not too dependent on any one person. Many investors, particularly in places like north jersey where attorneys do the lion share of closings often overlook one specific key player on any serious investor’s real estate power team—that’s a reliable title company. That’s a mistake, because good title companies (plural because it’s never a good idea to have […]
continue reading After declining by 7% in April, home purchase contracts in New Jersey have increased for four consecutive months. In August, the number of purchase contracts rose by 3% compared to the same month last year.
continue reading Q: Gerald, I want to start flipping properties, but I need to get some private lenders lined up first. Do you have any tips you can share with me? Valerie, San Diego, CA. A: The first thing that you – or any investor – needs to do is to identify a good, profitable real estate deal to invest in. As far as lining up private lenders first before you do anything, that’s unlikely. “Give me money!” is not a compelling pitch to a potential private lender. In general, there are two things you need to prove to a private lender before they’re going to lend you money. The first thing is that the deal you are investing in is secure. You really […]
continue reading When you value a property, consider highest and best use as well as sales comparables.
continue reading Rental supply in Toronto is down to two weeks, meaning it would take that long to rent everything in town, and average rents have hit an all-time high.
continue reading Investigate and correct mistakes on your credit report BEFORE you apply for a mortgage.
continue reading The best way to avoid paying too much for a property is to never offer too much.
continue reading The population of underwater homeowners with no home equity in the US has dropped by nearly 1 million borrowers since last year. This marks the first time the number of underwater homeowners has dropped below 2 million since 2006.
continue reading Nationwide, about a third of home and condo sales went to investors or other non-occupant buyers last year.
continue reading Q: Gerald, Since I’m planning to buy a home, I took your advice and got copies of my credit report from all three credit reporting agencies and went through them to look for mistakes that may hurt my mortgage application. Is there anything else that could affect my mortgage application? Glen, Bristol, PA. A: In addition to verifying the accuracy of what’s in your credit reports, you should also take a look at the CLUE report on the home that you want to by. CLUE stands for Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange and it’s a database that insurance companies use to evaluate risk and to decide premium rates. And, if there’s a CLUE report on the home you want to buy, it […]
continue reading If you allow the seller to stay in a property you are buying after the closing, make sure you have an airtight occupancy agreement that clearly spells out the dates of occupancy and the consequences for failure to abide by those dates.
continue reading When you buy a property, make sure that ALL current property owners sign the purchase contract.
continue reading If you find an abandoned property, check the local tax records or enlist a skip-tracing service to locate the owner.
continue reading Neighborhood social network Nextdoor launched a real estate listing service that now competes with Zillow, Trulia, realtor.com, Redfin, and other online real estate listing sites.
continue reading The average time someone stays in their home has risen to 8.5 years, the highest they’ve seen since data began in 2008.
continue reading In Manhattan, the average unit price on condos approved for market has been steadily trending down over the past two years.
continue reading Q: Gerald, my wife and I are in the market for a home. Should we go to our credit union or a bank to get our loan? Kenny, Raleigh, NC. A: Credit unions are chartered to benefit their membership base so they’re more customer oriented than banks and they typically have lower mortgage interest rates than banks, but often take longer due to slower underwriting processes. Credit unions often keep their mortgages on their books whereas banks often sell off their mortgages—hence the better customer service at credit unions. You can normally get a mortgage loan faster at a regular bank than a credit union because banks are more likely to have automated underwriting processes and regular banks also tend […]
continue reading Q: Gerald. I went to the real estate auction for the first time—seeing all the confident investors bidding really intimidated me. Do you have any tips to getting a winning bid at a real estate auction? Karen, Hartford, Ct. A: Let’s start by defining what a win at a real estate auction is. For an investor trying to maximize returns, winning means buying property cheap enough to achieve their desired return. Winning doesn’t mean winning the auction bid—anyone can win an auction bid by paying too much—that’s a Pyrrhic victory. You win by buying at as low a price as you can. So, here is how you really win as an investor at a real estate auction—or at least how […]
continue reading Never let a real estate attorney make a business decision for you. Attorneys exist to review and advise, not to make business decisions. Tell your attorney to stay in his lane and focus on the law.
continue reading Existing home sales rose 1.4% in the first quarter 2017 and reached their fastest pace in 10 years, but fell 11.4% in April.
continue reading Q: Why are home prices rising so fast in US cities? Cheryl, Austin, Tx A: As more people prefer living in urban areas, builders are running out of lots to build on in places that people want to live. Also, zoning rules tend to permit high density construction in cities more so than in the suburbs and more rural areas. This pushes up the price of land in urban areas. With land more costly, developers try to compensate for higher land prices by building high-end more expensive condos and apartments that are more profitable which continues to feed the cycle. At the end of the day, real estate pricing ultimately boils down to supply and demand. So, what’s the fix […]
continue reading Look at real estate markets and trends locally, not nationally, every local real estate market is different.
continue reading Q: I’m selling my property, the buyer just did an inspection and I got the inspection report with a ton of items they want me to repair. What should I do? Henry, San Diego, CA A: Real estate negotiations don’t necessarily end when you sign a purchase contract. Most real estate contracts contain an inspection clause that allows buyers the right to have the home they’re buying inspected for soundness. That way, if the inspection reveals a serious issue, you and the buyer can address it through renegotiations. After the inspections are complete, you have to decide if any problems found are worth renegotiating. Here’s the risk and opportunity to you as the seller: you are not obligated to address […]
continue reading Buy property that is consistent with other property in the neighborhood. It’s smarter to buy the cheapest rather than the most expensive house in an acceptable neighborhood – this increases the odds that your property value will increase and often makes it easier for you to sell.
continue reading The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced it suspended the reduction of Mortgage Insurance Premiums, effective immediately.
continue reading When you pay for an oil tank scan on a property you are going to buy, have the company you hire determine whether the tank is actively in use. If the tank has been taken out of service, you should request all documents relating to the tank closure including town permits and contractor reports. These documents will prove the tank was closed properly according to regulatory guidelines.
continue reading Always pay for a tank scan to check for underground oil tanks during your purchase contract’s inspection period when you buy property.
continue reading If you sign a contract to buy property in a rising real estate market, you’ve already made money by the time you close.
continue reading Q: Gerald, I’m a new investor having trouble getting started and finding good real estate deals. What should I be focusing on? Caleb, Babylon, NY A: That’s a great question, Caleb. Real estate investors have to do lots of different things to be successful–we buy, sell, negotiate and manage property just to name a few things, but we can’t do any of those things until we locate actual real estate deals, which is why one of the most important and most overlooked role we play as real estate investors is the role of marketer to find real estate deals in the first place. All the other roles as buyer, seller, negotiator and property manager are obviously essential but until you […]
continue reading Q: Why Are So Few Houses For Sale Now? Stacy, Orange, NJ A: That’s a great question, Stacy. The very low housing inventory levels we’re seeing now are due primarily to the fact that despite the fact that housing prices have steadily increased in recent years, there are still quite a few homeowners who purchased or refinanced property at the height of the last real estate market bubble and as a result have very little or no home equity–what this in turn means is that for these homeowners to be able to sell their property, they would have to reach into their pockets to pay off their mortgage debt which effectively traps them and prevents them from being able to […]
continue reading Q: Gerald, I’m trying to stay on top of the real estate market, how do I know when prices will start moving in the other direction? Stan, Utica, NY A: Good question, Stan. You are correct to monitor your local real estate market so you can stay ahead of the game and ahead of your competition. I’m going to give you 3 indicators that telegraph a possible inflection point resulting in real estate price changes: 1) Housing Inventory Levels: Home sale activity is the best leading indicator of real estate price trends–this is because buyers create the demand for housing that is directly linked with price movement. Housing inventory levels (# months required to sell the homes for sale in […]
continue reading Before you make offers to buy property, look at as many similar properties in that area as possible so you’ll have a solid frame of reference to make a reasonable bid.
continue readingMake clear to your home inspector that you’d never hire him to do repair work on your property. Otherwise, he may try to inflate or invent problems with your property in his inspection report and then try to get you to hire him to do the repair work.
continue readingBe careful when you make offers to purchase bank-owned property, also known as REOs, because there is no previous owner compelled to disclose problems like a leaky roof or oil tank. You must do your own homework which includes a property inspection–the bank will only give you clear title to the property.
continue readingMake sure any contract you sign to buy a house has an inspection contingency that provides you more than enough time to get a thorough property inspection.
continue readingHome prices are rising twice as fast as inflation according to Case-Shiller Home Prices Indices.
continue readingDo a thorough title search before you buy a property to make sure that you get clear title free of outstanding liens or other encumbrances.
continue readingBefore you sign the closing documents for a mortgage, compare the settlement statement with the Good Faith Estimate to make sure there are no errors–these errors coincidentally favor the lender in most cases. Caveat Emptor.
continue readingGet a thorough home inspection before you buy real estate and get one before you pay for an appraisal just in case the inspection reveals something so major you decide against buying the property.
continue readingAlways ask to see any existing leases for any rental property you are considering for purchase. If you buy the property, you will be subject to the terms of those leases. Make sure the leases match the seller’s representations.
continue readingMost of the best real estate deals will involve properties that are in need of repair. In order to capitalize on these rehab deals, you or someone you work with will need to know how much time and money are required to renovate these properties.
continue readingQ: I’m about to go into contract to buy an investment property. The last rental property I bought turned out to be a disaster. I want things to work out better this time, do you have any advice for me? Carlos, Woodbridge, NJ A: Good question, Carlos. What you don’t know about a property or any asset that you buy can hurt you, so you definitely should always do all your homework BEFORE you buy. Most investors, when researching an investment property before they buy focus their attention solely on financial information (i.e. rental income and expenses)–obviously finances are critically important but are only part of the overall picture of a rental property. At the end of the day, to […]
continue readingBuy property that is consistent with other property in the neighborhood. It’s smarter to buy the cheapest rather than the most expensive house in an acceptable neighborhood-this increases the odds that your property value will increase and often makes it easier for you to sell.
continue readingNever fall in love with a property. Adhere to my 2nd Real Estate Commandment: Thou Shalt Use Logic And Never Let Emotions Affect Real Estate Decisions.
continue readingQ: I am looking into buying a duplex. I would be getting a loan but I would still like to put a downpayment of 10%-20% which I would like to find a private lender to pay for. Vicente, Pomona, California A: Vicente, traditional lenders often require borrowers to ‘source’ the money they contribute to the purchase of property and a lender may refuse to approve a loan where the entire down payment comes from even a gift or if the gift is not from a close family member. Generally, lenders want to know who else their borrowers are borrowing from and ultimately, your ability to borrow a down payment depends on the requirements of the primary lender you’re borrowing from. […]
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