Real Estate Market Showings Signs of a Slowdown?

t is always important to understand one’s local market within the broader context of the U.S. housing market on a whole.
I’m going to take a look at the county I reside in specifically as some data caught my eye and, well it doesn’t look all that reassuring.
Sales and Prices Down from a Year Ago
Looking at the infographic below a few things jumped out at me fast.

The number of closed sales is down almost 10% for single family homes compared to February 2018.
Median sales price is actually down 1.4%, something we have not seen much of in recent years
Days to contract

Real Estate Market Showings Signs of a Slowdown?

t is always important to understand one’s local market within the broader context of the U.S. housing market on a whole.
I’m going to take a look at the county I reside in specifically as some data caught my eye and, well it doesn’t look all that reassuring.
Sales and Prices Down from a Year Ago
Looking at the infographic below a few things jumped out at me fast.

The number of closed sales is down almost 10% for single family homes compared to February 2018.
Median sales price is actually down 1.4%, something we have not seen much of in recent years
Days to contract

Home Renovation Realities

Here’s the thing – a home renovation will always end up being more work than you plan when getting started on it.
Yes, I’ll just break that reality to you right now.  The amount of that extra work is probably linked to how much of a perfectionist you are, but more often than not there will be items you did not plan for from the jump start.
The Little Things Add Up
In all the renovations that have been done on my properties it actually wasn’t any big thing that threw a large amount of extra work on us.  For that I am

The Case for a Two Month Security Deposit

Just because something is the standard doesn’t always mean it is the best option.  I’m starting to think this holds true when it comes to rents & deposits in the real estate industry.
First, Last and Security
This has been the standard for a tenant to get into a property since I can remember.  Yes, there are some variations, especially with large apartment complexes having move-in specials and what not, but in the end first, last and one month security is the default.
Is it time for a change?
I know a handful of investors that have taken a different route in recent years. 

Five Things to Remember Before You Buy Your First Rental

If there is one thing any investor can do, whether new or experienced it’s being prepared before taking action.  It not only saves time and effort, but also puts you in a position to make a better decision.

Let’s talk about some things to already have decided before buying a rental.

Five Things to Remember Before You Buy Your First Rental

1.) Focus in on a few neighborhoods

If you are searching too large an area it can be difficult to recognize if a property is a good deal.  Sales and rental prices can vary from one town to the next.

Focusing in on a

Dumb Mistakes Rental Property Investors Make

Often times we make things harder on ourselves than they should be.  This is no different in rental property investing when you do the mistakes listed below.
Dumb Mistakes Rental Property Investors Make

Forgetting that Rental Property Investing is a Business

It may be called investing, but make no mistake this is a business.  Rental properties offer many more ways to make money compared to just holding stocks.  However, they also require some work and care as opposed to just buying and holding.
For your rental property to be profitable you need to make sure that your rent is being collected and the property

Four Types of Real Estate Leads for Investors

When it comes to real estate investing finding deals is an ever present need.  This guest post from DealCollab shows us proven ways to find leads to solid real estate deals.
Four Types of Real Estate Leads for Investors
Every real estate deal starts with a lead whether it be from word of mouth or by generated leads as the ones offered by DealCollab. Having multiple sources of leads can greatly impact the success of your real estate investing and provide the results you are looking for.
Alternately you can still have a lot of success by choosing one source and develop a working process to

Real Estate Investing: Property Types

When it comes to investing in residential real estate it may seem like there are dozens of different types of properties out there.
While it may look that way in the end it really boils down to single-family residential and multi-family residential.

As you can see in the image above there isn’t a ton to know about property types in the residential space.
However, you should be aware of the ins and out of these two types.  Some of those details are listed in the image.
What’s that method? KISS (keep it simple stupid)

How to Mitigate a Potential Real Estate Market Down Turn

Let’s face it, this real estate market cycle is getting a little long in the tooth.  It doesn’t necessarily mean the market is going to crash, but the odds of us being in the late innings of a growth cycle are ever increasing.
How to Mitigate a Potential Market Down Turn
There are a few things I’d like to point out that may make sense to do in our current market so you don’t get caught with your pants down when the tide goes out to sea.
Mind Your Leverage
There are times to be aggressive and lever up and times to play it

Investment Returns on Everything

Okay, maybe not everything but definitely the returns on Real Estate and Stocks.  Often people debate over which is a better investment.
Luckily, I came across an economic study that analyzes a bunch of investments over the last 145 years!   Let me share what I found from it about real estate and stocks.
Real Estate vs. Stocks as an Investment
There are several key metrics to keep an eye on when investing, a couple of which I’m going to discuss below.
Investment return always seems to be the headliner when analyzing investment options so I will start with that one. It’s worth pointing out risk exposure