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Quotes

The Greatest Opportunity Ever Is Just About to Pass You By

How much louder can I say this? This moment is the greatest opportunity ever to be an American homebuyer. It is the best moment in history. We may never see opportunity this great in our lifetimes. Time's "a-wasting" actually... You're about to miss the best moment, if you don't get on it, right now. The "V" bottom (as I call it) – where you can get the very best prices – is passing you by as I type.

Dr. Steve Sjuggerud

Dr-Steve-SjuggerudDon’t miss today’s article by Dr. Steve Sjuggerud!  Go there and read it now.  Seriously!  Do it now.

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When the Prophet Says Buy — BUY!

John R. TalbottInvestors, if you are watching the market closely to determine if it’s time to buy: head’s up!  Here’s another killer post from our friends at The KCM Blog that is a must read:

“John R. Talbott, previously a Goldman Sachs investment banker, is a bestselling author and economic consultant. When it comes to the housing market he is also a prophet. When housing prices started to skyrocket in 2003, he published The Coming Crash in the Housing Market correctly warning us that a real estate bubble was forming. Then in January 2006, he called the absolute peak of home prices in the US by releasing a new book, Sell Now! The End of the Housing Bubble.

“Mr. Talbott, the person who accurately predicted the housing bubble and its bust, now has a new prediction – IT IS THE TIME TO BUY A HOME! In a recent article, Homes – Buy Now!, Talbott simply explains:

“I have been waiting for more than five years to offer this advice. It is now time in most cities across the country to buy a new home or refinance your existing home with thirty-year fixed rate mortgage debt.”

“He goes on to explain that his conclusion is based on four different metrics, all of which favor buying today:

  • Home Prices Relative to Peak Prices During the Bubble
  • Home Prices Relative to Construction Costs or Replacement Costs
  • Home Prices Relative to Incomes and Rents
  • Home Prices in Real Terms, Not US Dollar Terms

Bottom Line

“If the person who called the real estate bubble and its bust says now is the time to buy, we believe it is time to buy.”

 

Links

Investors: Heads-up! It’s Time to Buy

homes for saleJust in case you’re not paying close attention… It’s time to buy!

Here’s some evidence:

Steve Sjuggerud’s Daily Wealth:  Those Fools… The Housing Bust is OVER

“In America, the bursting of the housing bubble isn’t halfway over. It’s COMPLETELY over.”

Steve Sjuggerud’s Daily Wealth:  You Don’t Believe My Housing Argument? Here’s Proof…

“Right now is the moment to make your deal. The time for extraordinary deals like this will pass… quicker than you think.”

Wall Street Journal:  It’s Time to Buy That House

“[W]hen mortgage rates are taken into consideration, houses are the most affordable they have been in decades.”

MarketWatch.com:  Now Might Be the Best Time Ever to Buy a Home

“[R]ents remain sky-high in the U.S. right now, and in many markets it’s actually cheaper to buy a home than rent a two-bedroom apartment.”

AG Beat:  The state of long term real estate investing – the perfect storm is here

“If you have the wherewithal to invest now, do it. Do it wisely, but do it now.”

JP Morgan Market Insights:  Housing: A Time To Buy

“[T]he numbers tell us it is a time to buy.”

Best Articles:  The Housing Bust is Over

“You may be surprised to hear it, but thanks to lower mortgage rates and lower home prices, homes are affordable… They’re just as affordable now as they were right before they boomed in the 2000s.”

I’ll be out inspecting property and making offers on January 2nd.  Hope to run into you! 🙂

 

Images

Real Estate as a Longer Term Investment

Return on Investment Since 2000

Thanks to our friends at the KCM Blog for this great graphic!

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“For Landlords, This Could Be The Perfect Storm”

Josh Mettle & FamilyMy son and investment partner, Josh Mettle, publishes an exceptional Mortgage Blog as well as a print newsletter.  In the Spring issue of his print newsletter, he said something very important for landlords that I want to share here:

“…I should mention that rental properties are about as good a hedge against inflation as you can possibly get.  I’m personally getting pretty nervous about the money printing and inflationary actions of the Federal Reserve.  One of the first things that goes up in an inflationary environment is rent and, as a landlord, you have the benefit of making your fixed mortgage payment as you steadily keep raising rents to keep up with inflation. 

We also have a very unique and pro-landlord situation brewing today as many people’s credit has been damaged and many others have just been convinced by the media that it might just be better to rent.  I personally think that is a bad decision, but for landlords this could be the perfect storm. More…

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Ordinary Income vs. Capital Gains

money treeIt often pays to “venture” outside of your area of expertise and inspect the thoughts of other professionals.  Fred Wilson is an investor, venture capitalist and professional blogger living in NYC.  On May 2, 2011, he posted a blog about the difference between ordinary income vs. capital gains which is really worth reading for income property investors: 

“Today, I’d like to talk about ordinary income vs capital gains. This is not tax advice. I am not a tax lawyer or a tax accountant. I hope both tax lawyers and tax accountants show up in the comments as this is important and complicated stuff.

When you think about the various ways you can make money, two ways predominate. You can provide services to others and get paid for those services. That is ordinary income. And you can invest in something; shares of stock, a building, a domain, and then sell it later for more. That is a capital gain.

The distinction is important, at least in the US, because these two kinds of income are taxed differently. Ordinary income is taxed at the full federal, state, and local tax rates. We live in NYC and according to our accountants, we pay a marginal fully loaded tax rate of 47.62%. That means we keep about half of the ordinary income [my wife] and I generate.  More…

Articles

Entrepreneurs are Different (and so are Great Landlords)

We all instinctively sense that entrepreneurs are different.  But what is it that makes an entrepreneur tick?  What makes an entrepreneur successful?  What is the entrepreneurial mind-set?  Let’s explore the elements of the entrepreneurial DNA.

You may have a day job, but if you are an income property owner you are also an entrepreneur.  But be careful, if you use your employee brain to deal with your entrepreneurial endeavors, you could fall short as a landlord.  Here’s why:  More…