How to profit from real estate investments in a soft and declining real estate market January 21, 2009
Posted by Jeff Nabers in : real estate, Self Directed IRA Solo 401k , add a comment
Three years ago real estate investing was hot. Today, many people act as if the opportunity has passed. I contend that the opposite is true. In the past, as a mortgage banker focused on originating mortgages for investment properties, I started listening to and learning from my real estate investor clients and noticed two categories of real estate investors: real investors and blind investors.
Real Investors have the following in common:
- Profiting when they buy. Rather than believing an entire market is hot or cold, a real investor knows that the purchase price is what dictates the return on the investment. You can look in any real estate market to see property values and rental rates. Those are things the investor doesn’t control. The investor does control what he is willing to pay for a property, and that’s how a real investor knows what his return on investment will be before buying the property.
- Investing for income. Real investors buy assets because they produce income. What a property is selling for doesn’t even matter if (more…)
Consumer confidence falling & the $600 checks to save the day May 5, 2008
Posted by Jeff Nabers in : Money, Personal Enjoyment, real estate, Self Directed IRA Solo 401k , add a commentDid you get your $600 check yet? What will you do with it? Surveys are saying that most Americans will use their “Economic Stimulus” check to deal with gas, food, and catching up on bills. This doesn’t stimulate the economy.
Consumer spending stimulates the economy. In other words, the Department of Treasury sent out checks to us all totaling $150 billion in hopes that we would buy clothes, jewelry, and electronics. Let’s take a step back for a moment and assess how our system works:
Two thirds of our nation’s economic activity is coming from people spending money. When our economy is “going good” it is because people are spending money – often more than they make or have. When our economy is “doing badly” it is because people are saving money or living within their means.
Finances 101
This is America and everyone wants to be rich. How does one become rich?
Make more money than you spend.
Or spend less than you make… in case that hits closer to home for you.
A person following those rules is becoming wealthy, while a person who practices opposite rules is becoming poorer. Here’s where things start to look funny. Our economic system is booming when people are becoming (more…)


