Questions to Ask Potential Real Estate Agents

If you're buying a house, chances are you'll be employing the aid of a real estate agent to guide you through the process. The important thing to remember is that you are technically their boss. They should be working for you, whether you're buying or selling a home. That's why it's so necessary to interview several real estate agents before settling on one. Here are some helpful questions to narrow down the candidate field.

1. How many years have you been working in real estate?

Although some agents may be newly licensed, they may have been working on other areas of real estate that will be helpful to you. Any previous experience working with home buying and selling will make an agent a valuable asset. Many times realty is a second or third career. If your realtor was a mortgage lender before switching to the housing world, they might be even more helpful than someone who has been in the business since the word go.

2. How many homes do you sell yearly?

Numbers count, but be aware that small numbers aren't always bad. An agent may only sell a handful of properties each year, but if they're worth millions, that's all they needed to. That's why it's important to ask not only how many they sell, but the price range that the homes fall into. If you're buying a house, this will help you gauge which houses the agent has access to and is more experienced with selling. If you want to sell your home, this will be a good indicator of whether or not the realtor is going to successfully market your property.

3. What is your area of expertise?

If you want to buy a condo, don't hire a realtor who sells mansions. If you want to buy a family home, don't hire anyone who specializes in two-person town houses. Finding niche agents will open more doors during your house hunt or sale. Buyers will be shown more properties matching their requirements, while seller's homes have a better chance of being marketed more effectively.

4. How many other clients are you currently working with?

Translation: How much time can you devote to my needs? Some realtors won't turn down a client, even if their plate is already overflowing. Ask for the numbers. If the phone is ringing off the hook during your meeting and papers are flying, you may want to look elsewhere for an agent who can devote a good chunk of time to you. Explain to them your typical schedule and what times you'd you would be available to view houses or have meetings. If they can't be flexible, move on.

5. Do you have a list or client references?

Nothing says more about the professionalism and worth work ethic of a realtor than their ability to provide you with a list of client references. Just producing a list on the spot is a good sign that the agent is prepared and wants your business. If there is none available immediately, or the agent sputters out some excuses, take it as a sign to head elsewhere.

The Real Estate Agent Income Crisis - There is a Way Out

Many real estate agents are suffering financially. Possibly this is you. It is unfortunate but houses are selling much below their value and are staying on the market for months. There are more sellers than buyers and there is no relief to be seen in the very near future.

People are struggling; struggling to pay bills to pay debts. The real estate industry is a tough market to be in right now. Possibly you have been wanting to find a way to get you through.

One of the best solutions is to start a home business. There are many tax advantages and you have the benefit of writing off many of your household expenses at tax time. It is also flexible. Something you can do while still being a real estate agent. Maybe something to tide you over until the economic situation improves or maybe something that permanently creates an income for you. The key is to find the right business. One that is recession proof.

We have chosen to build a recession proof business and are helping others to do the same. When searching for any home business there are some critical evaluating tools you need.
Want to Work from Home? Have you considered These Crucial Evaluating Tools?

So you have decided that you would like to work from home. Maybe you want to stay home with your children, maybe you want money for that extra special something or maybe you want to create financial freedom. Maybe you just need to pay your bills and pay off debt. So you know your reasons why. This is a great start but now what?

It is easy to want to jump into the first thing that comes along. Something may sound good on the surface, so you should jump right in, right? Wrong.

There are several key factors that anyone and everyone should consider when deciding on what business would be right for them. Ensuring you have thoroughly researched the opportunity can save you a lot of money, a lot of time, and more importantly, a lot of heartache. I have heard too many stories of people going broke trying to find the right one. I even know someone who has tried 23 opportunities before finding the right one. Can you imagine?

The first key in researching a business is knowing what features you should be looking for in a company. You will definitely need to know the following:

- Is there an established track record?

You want the company to be at least seven years old - successful home-based business companies experience a surge of growth in their first 3-5 years, but most cannot support the increased capital and organizational needs this growth demands to continue their success. Be wary the person who says "this is a ground floor opportunity" or you need to "catch the wave".

- Is the company financially sound?

You should be able to get access to this information. Another great way to know if a company is legit, is trustworthy and has integrity is if they will let you see their previous years' income statistics. If they're not willing to share what their business people make, do you really think they're doing that well. And I don't just mean the top earners, find out what the "little guy" is making.

- Do they have a strong management team and company credentials?

Beware! There are some companies out there who are "touting" scientists behind their products that have received their degree by mail order over the internet. Do your research! What is the history of the management? What awards have they received? What does the Better Business Bureau have to say about them?

- Does this company have unique, consumable products that are guaranteed?

There are companies that have only one product. How many of that one product do you think you have to sell to make any money? If this is a luxury item, you most likely won't get repeat sales from the same person which creates much more work for you. If it's a hobby, you are looking at the same thing. The product should be something that a person goes through and needs again fairly soon, preferably monthly. These products should also have a 100% guarantee.

- Does this company require that you keep inventory or 'front end load'?

This is a very fast way to the poor house. I know lots of folks who have garages full of products. You may think it will be easy to 'unload' it but it's not. Make sure the company does not require you to have stock or inventory.

- Is there a low personal production requirement?

Essentially, this means how much of their product do you need to order to stay in business? If they are asking you to order more than you would use, then you guessed it? Straight to the poor house for you.

- Is there a high customer re-order rate?

Some companies have a re-order rate of only 5%. Does this tell you how hard you will have to work to win customers and keep them? Again, if the company won't give you this information then they have something to hide!

- Is there low initial investment?

You should be able to get started in any business for $500 or less. In addition, any investment should be guaranteed. Any more than that and the risk sky rockets.

- Is there low attrition?

If more than 10% of the people are leaving every month, what does that tell you?

- Is there breakaways?

No breakaways!!! What that means is that you work really hard and then when you reach a desired level, they have the rest of your team "break away" from you and you start all over. Does that sound like what you are looking for? Know the compensation plan. You should be able to earn an income from each person you offer your product or service to. No breakaways, no balancing sides.

- Does the company have any risk?

Risk is a 4 letter word. It has its place but not in your business. This is your life. There should be no risk. You should only be using products you would use anyway, and there should be a full guarantee on everything. If this is the case, there is no risk!

Alright, so now that you know what is important to look for in the company, what product concept makes the most sense, you ask?

REPEAT Consumables (necessity items) and I can't stress this enough. This is a 200 billion dollar industry. People must already want or need to buy the products. It is much easier to interest people in something that is better or less expensive than their current brand than it is to get them to buy something new that they hadn't considered before. The concept of "switching stores" works best because people spend "no new money", they just switch brands. Durable goods won't generate residual income because people won't buy each month.

The products should always be competitively priced (have a low cost per use). No matter how well people like something, they won't stay customers forever if the product costs more than the store bought equivalent. Since commissions depend on customer purchases, the longer they stay, the more RELIABLE your income. The products must also be unique and exclusive to the company. It is of benefit if there are patented products that have been scientifically developed. The re-order rate should be above 90% and it has to make sense to just be a customer, continuing to buy the products without being a business builder.

Lastly there are a few more things that you may want to consider. Does the company manufacture its own products? Does the business offer a system that you can duplicate for success? Does the organization provide you with free training and support? Do you have to leave your home to build the business? Do you need experience in sales or business to be successful? Can you make enough to replace your income? What are the tax advantages to owning a home-based business?

I know this seems like a lot of work, but the end result will make for a happier, wealthier you. Good luck in your search!

Focus Your Way to Real Estate Wealth

Last night, as our dog Bram was drooling over Dave eating crackers and cheese, my Mom said:

If we all could focus on making money like dogs focus on food we would all be millionaires by the time we turned five.

Ok, five years old is a stretch but my Mom is definitely onto something. When you make something your focus, even just for an hour, how much do you accomplish? In this day and age of blackberries and iPhones, very few people focus on any one thing for long. So, think of the power of actually giving your biggest goal one hour of 100% attention every day. What if you focused an hour a day on building real estate wealth?

This means that you would spend one complete hour every single day with the sole goal of building your real estate wealth. What would you do with that hour if you are just starting out? Here are some ideas:

• Before you do anything - figure out what your goals are! How can you focus your way to real estate wealth if you haven't defined what that wealth is, or how you want to achieve it?
• Read a book about real estate investing. There are some great books out there that will help you learn the basics. If you are Canadian, I highly recommend you read Making Money in Real Estate by Douglas Grey.
• Research property values in your target area (and if you don't have a target area, then you should be researching potential areas looking for places where there is going to be some positive changes to the economy or the housing market).
• Research real estate agents and property managers for your target area, and start making calls to find people that you would be comfortable working with.
• Speak to a mortgage broker to get a handle on your financial situation, and what you can qualify for in an investment.
• Visit open houses in your target area.
• Start researching rental rates in your target area by reading newspapers, checking craigslist and other rental websites.

I am sure you can think of so many more things to do to move yourself towards your goal! With an hour a day, you will be surprised and impressed with how far you've come after just one month. But how to find that hour a day?

Here are some of my favourite blog posts along the lines of this subject. Search for them in google and read them for inspiration and motivation!

• Tim Ferriss - one of my favourite blogs - specifically read 4 Hour Work Week Blog: 9 Habits to Stop Now: Once you read this I am pretty sure you will find several ways to get an hour out of your day. For me, it's checking my email MUCH less!
• Rock Your Day - Lots of posts on getting up really early to rock your day. Always great content in this blog. Read: Rock Your Day: Catch Yourself Making Excuses and then do Something About it.
• Early to Rise - Daily newsletter which I have been reading for over four years now. Early to Rise is FULL of great ideas for making money, being healthy and maximizing your potential in whatever you want to do. Read: Early to Rise: 3 Steps to Success.

  Anyway - it's now time for me to focus my way to Real Estate Wealth. Or, is it time to take Bram for a walk? I think Bram is telling me it is walk time... well I will focus after I walk the dog...

The Real Estate Market Crash of 2008 - How Did We Get Here?

Before the real estate market crash of 2008, there were the prophets. They spoke of a real estate balloon that was bound to burst and take down the real estate market as well as the economy. Even with all of this prophesying, many were taken by surprise when the once lucrative real estate market began to crumble.

So, what caused the collapse? The main culprit was the subprime lending market. When this market crashed, a large amount of companies faced foreclosure. Even the companies that did not foreclose suffered losses that amounted to billions of dollars.

You may have already heard news reports about the subprime market crash. If you are like most, however, you may not know what the crash meant to individual property owners. You may even have questions regarding how we got in this situation to begin with.

Over the past few years, subprime mortgages were the biggest trend in real estate lending. Buyers who were unable to qualify for conventional mortgages could obtain financing via a subprime mortgage. People who obtained these loans often had to pay high interest rates.

Lenders obtained the money to pay for these mortgages from a variety of sources. Many companies secured loans at low interest rates and then loaned that money out to buyers at a higher rate. Some of the money was borrowed from central banks.

While the housing market remained relatively stable, the ill consequences of these loans could not be seen clearly. In fact, the market was experiencing a surge in value that was unprecedented. This surge resulted in an unrealistic expectation of the future real estate market which in turn caused lenders to put even more money into funding mortgages that new homeowners could ill afford.

In 2005 and 2006, the last real boom was occurring in the real estate market. During this time, it was extremely easy to get a loan. Lenders thought that they would be able to make money from buyers even if they did not pay for the mortgage through the high interest rates they were charging and the ever-increasing value of real estate. But when interest rates started to rise, people stopped buying homes. Additionally, homeowners started failing to make payments due to the interest rate spike.

It became harder and harder for lenders to obtain funds to invest into mortgages. Buyers, now unable to qualify for a loan easily, began to stop looking for a home to purchase. Investors became wary, and underwriters started increasing the requirements to qualify for a loan. People who had adjustable rate mortgages sought desperately to decrease their skyrocketing monthly payments. But they could not qualify for a new, fixed loan under the strict guidelines. This only caused the number of foreclosures to rise dramatically resulting in the real estate market crash of 2008

House Swapping Trend in Real Estate

Now is the best time to acquire homes as the house prices are still practically less. However, the prevailing financial and credit crunch is limiting the cash reserves and liquidity. Thus, many homebuyers would need to first dispose or sell their existing homes so that they can have the money to buy the homes they like. The problem is, it is logically harder to sell homes these days.

Homebuyers are raving about a revolutionary and innovative concept in home selling and buying. To ease the troubles, why not resort to house swapping? With the advent of new and non-traditional media and communications, swapping is becoming a popular trading scheme. It has been in use for trading just any product or item bought and sold across the market. You can easily trade your 3G mobile phone with an iPod. Somewhere in the market, there surely is an individual who wants to trade his or her iPod for a 3G phone. You should meet.

That is also the basic framework in home swapping. Your home can be traded or swapped with the home of another homeowner. To get into the process, you should first determine your likes and preferences. What do you like in a house? Where do you want to own a residential unit? What design and theme do you prefer? If you have set your preferences and requirements, it is time you search around for houses that match your standards.

In the process, you should also assess your home. How aesthetic and appealing is it? What is the prevailing design and where is it located? You should post these data into the market so that prospective seekers can be reached. There are many online and conventional firms operating to facilitate house swapping. These companies are aiming to match you and your dream house and then find someone who wants your home. In the end, you will have to surrender ownership of your home to be able to secure and get ownership of another one, probably your preferred and dream type.

Craigslists are good online materials that can facilitate house swapping. You can also post your ads in the classifieds or in other sources. There are trading firms that seek homeowners like you so better open your eyes and senses when they roam around. Viral marketing can also be effective as well as peer recommendations and feedbacks.

House swapping transactions are basically most recommended for young growing families, empty nesters and vacation home owners who want to swap vacation assets. Homeowners who are relocating are also the most common house swappers. Some owners who just itch to get and own a new house are also much delighted and satisfied with house swapping transactions facilitated in the market.

As for the quality of homes swapped, there is no need to fret. Traders and mediators make it a standard to inspect homes for swapping. You can as well inspect the home you are eyeing very carefully and thoroughly before the swapping transaction is started and closed.