Posted on August 30, 2010 @ 7:54 pm - Written by BawldGuy
Today I thought it’d be cool to post a buncha pics showing one of the premier Texas developments I’ve been using as stellar examples of what’s possible. Though the pics are smallish, you can click on ‘em and get full screen views.
This is located in the North Dallas area. Each side has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. You can see the garages. 20% down will yield, give or take, about 6-9.5% cash on cash — given today’s interest rates. Most are in such demand — Investors and tenants — that they frequently sell before they’re even built. They’re just as frequently rented before the dust clears after escrow closes. Sweet, eh? Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on August 26, 2010 @ 7:09 pm - Written by BawldGuy
So far this month there’s been a renewal of callers wishing to talk about locations offering appreciation in value. They couch it in amorphous language, but when the smoke clears, long term or not, they’re wanting to buy properties that’ll go up in value.
I wanna be a 23 years old major league pitcher with an indestructible right arm capable of throwing 140 pitches every fifth day at roughly 97 mph. Oh, and I wanna be able to have pinpoint control with not only my fastball, but my killer curve, and my virtually un-hitable sinking change-up.
I know, I’m bein’ a first degree smart-aleck. But you get the gist, right? Nobody — well, almost nobody, is sayin’ that appreciation can’t or won’t ever become reality again. But there are a couple lines here that’ll need to cross. The line that stretches down the road year after year ’till appreciation returns — and the line dictating when you shuffle off this mortal coil. 
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on August 24, 2010 @ 9:46 am - Written by BawldGuy
If you’re in your late 40’s or older, ensuring that time and your comfort zone play well together is easier said than done. I tend to be a stickler on comfort zone, as, like you, being anxious isn’t something for which I strive. In fact, along with the Sominex Account (cash reserves for newish readers), a real estate investor’s comfort zone resides at the top of the A-List of ‘must haves’.
The friction, of course, is caused by the practical need to get things rollin’ with a sense of urgency, while keepin’ at least one foot firmly entrenched in the Zone of Comfort. Frequently this results in the investor takin’ a step back to define exactly which comfort level they’re gonna salute, cuz there’s a couple, not just one — and their demands are often in conflict with each other — irritatingly so. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on August 17, 2010 @ 6:27 pm - Written by BawldGuy
Back in the day my mentors would regale me with real estate investment stories about the early 1950’s. Having been born in the summer of ‘51 I was all ears. I heard a common thread in most of their tales, until that is, we hit the end of 1975 or so. The ‘way it always was’ began to change — radically. They began to notice not so subtle changes in the local market, and they didn’t like it one bit. No siree.
Prices started rising in what would be the first of a long cycle of up a bunch, down a bit, up a bunch more, etc. I’m not sure it was indeed a paradigm shift as a matter of fact, but to them that’s exactly what it was. One of ‘em was so put out by what he saw through the rest of the 70’s he retired earlier than planned, headin’ back home to Wyoming. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on August 10, 2010 @ 8:36 pm - Written by BawldGuy
There are times when real estate investors must realize it makes sense to take a bullet in today’s battle, in order to win the long term war. This is especially true in formerly uber-high appreciation markets like San Diego — the west coast in general? Now you’re wonderin’ what I mean by takin’ a bullet, right?
It means — for the most part — takin’ less money for your current units than you might think they’re worth. But, if you think you’re takin’ thousands less than you should, but are gonna increase your benefits big time in the future, why are you sweatin’ it? Relax — breathe deep the gathering…hugely increased retirement income. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on August 5, 2010 @ 7:32 pm - Written by BawldGuy
This week has been informative to say the least. I’ve heard from several (4) income property owners in markets much like San Diego, including one actually in my town. Though their situations varied a bit here and there, there was a common thread when it came to the reason they contacted me.
They all said one of two things — one of ‘em said both.
“As one of your posts challenged us to do, we looked all over our local market for something into which we could exchange our equity(s). It’s been ‘X’ months (fill in the blank) and there’s just nothing worth trading for.”
OR
“Your post askin’ us if we’d now buy the units we’ve owned for quite some time, even for what they’re worth after this market correction? No! As in, not in this or any other lifetime.” Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on August 4, 2010 @ 6:43 pm - Written by BawldGuy
So much of what concerns you as an investor (Captain Obvious alert!) is return on your capital. Everyone’s lookin’ for the property. You know the one — double digit cap rate, highest quality tenants, location to die for, blah blah. What happens next is the learning curve, right? We all found out where the extra high cap rates hang out — bring yer bodyguard. It swiftly evolves into two intersecting lines. One is a return with which you’d be happy — the other the level of risk it takes to produce said return — one with which you’d be comfortable.
And there’s the rub.
Lip service is given to the intimate relationship between risk and return, but often not much else. What’s worse, both risk and return are just as often misjudged by the investor as a result of their analysis of a given property. Though I used to believe risk was more routinely misunderstood, I’ve come to believe it’s probably the return side of the equation. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted on July 27, 2010 @ 6:09 pm - Written by BawldGuy
So much of what concerns you as an investor (Captain Obvious alert!) is return on your capital. Everyone’s lookin’ for THE property. You know the one — double digit cap rate, highest quality tenants, location to die for, yadda yadda. What happens next is the learning curve? Right, we all found out where the extra high cap rates hang out — bring yer bodyguard. It rapidly evolves into two lines intersecting. One is a return with which you’d be happy — the other the level of risk it takes to produce said return — one with which you’d be — comfortable.
And there’s the rub. Read the rest of this entry »
