STEPPING UP TO DOWN MARKETS!

Remember the ancient curse, “May you live in interesting times”?  While many are indeed cursing the current real estate climate, others see opportunities.  In a “soft” market, the short-term options dwindle, but seasoned investors in for the long haul are positioned to take advantage.

(more…)

Entrepreneurial business is growing in many parts of the country with 495,000 new businesses per month started in 2007, according to the Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity.

The study, which is sponsored by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, found that some areas encouraged far more entrepreneurial activity than others.

The 10 states with the highest entrepreneurial activity rates were:

1. Idaho
2. District of Columbia
3. Arizona
4. Tennessee
5. Louisiana
6. Wyoming
7. Vermont
(more…)

Two newly released studies suggest that green buildings outperform their conventional counterparts in energy savings, sale prices, rental rates, and occupancy rates.

(more…)

When you purchase an automobile, what’s the first thing you take care of before driving around town? You’ve got to get insurance, of course. It’s no different when you’re ready to buy a home, but you have some more options.

(more…)

As you prepare to sell your home, you must begin by making a choice: to seek the services of a professional or to proceed without representation. You realize that your home is probably your biggest financial investment, with a value that could be hundreds of thousands of dollars.

(more…)

RE/MAX Maple Leaf Realty has joined The Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM).

(more…)

Have you been hearing that it’s a buyer’s market?  Take a look at local home prices.  Have you been told that there’s no time like the present to plan your retirement?  Again, take a look at those prices, and then think about investing for your future.

(more…)

You’ve undoubtedly been hearing and reading about the “subprime lending crisis” hitting the real estate industry.  The bottom line for buyers is that it may be more difficult to secure a mortgage in this atmosphere.  It then follows that demand for rentals may increase.

(more…)

Let’s plant two “money trees” and watch their growth. We’ll plant the first by placing $20,000 in a savings account earning 5% interest, and leave it there for five years. After five years, we’ll withdraw our initial investment ($20,000) plus the interest ($5,525). We invested $20,000 and received back $25,525, a 5% yield.Now, let’s plant the second tree. We’ll buy a home for $100,000 and invest $20,000 (as the down payment). For the sake of argument, we’ll assume that the home appreciates at 5% each year, just as the savings account earned 5% interest. At the end of five years, the home will be worth about $128,335, a $28,335 gain (that’s at an annual rate of 5%).

(more…)

We all know that homes in many markets across the country experienced substantial gains in appreciation over the last few years of heated real estate activity. While sale prices are currently leveling out, you may have experienced “sticker shock” if you recently got a property tax assessment that shot way up. (more…)