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Buying real estate in Brisbane? How to see the good ones first

Article by Pat Cranshaw

Hello, I’m Pat Cranshaw. Over the past 20 years, I’ve assisted hundreds of people including first time buyers, professionals, investors and small business owners to get the best line that suits them and we make it easy and hassle free. But one of the biggest questions that I get all the time when people are looking to buy a home is, why is it that all the good properties are gone before I even get to see them.

Look, almost every person, even remotely thinking about buying a home today worries about how they get to see the best times first and I guess because you found me, you use the internet, which is great, so does everybody else shopping for homes these days, they are on the web as well. So you need to be a bit smarter.

So what I suggest you do is go to realestate.com.au and click on register, which I think is in the top right hand corner at the moment and provide your email address. You can input on some of the parameters all you want that you’re looking for as in what sort of postcode or suburb you’re looking for, how many beds you’re after, the land size perhaps, whether it has a swimming pool and of course what sort of price band you guys are particularly looking for. You’ll then get to sent regular information that fits your wants directly into your inbox. Then when you receive the email from them – you just need to get back to the real estate agent as soon as possible to make sure that you get to see it first.

Working with real estate agents daily, I know that they’re very busy people, and while there are some who get back to buyers, many are focused on the sellers and listings as this is where they get paid. So I suggest you log into realestate.com.au or something similar. Get yourself registered. It’s a powerful tool that really works.

Another thing to think about is, I recently had a client who is able to get on to a home before it was even listed on realestate.com. He’s on a list at a local real estate agency and whenever they list a new property, they send it out to their subscribers first. He got the email at his work at, say nine o’clock in the morning, he saw the home that afternoon and had a contract on it before it had even hit the internet.

Good real estate agents tell their sellers that they have the special list of keen buyers who like to grab a bargain and they also have a system whereby buyers are logged into this email list and it get sent out. You might have visited an open home or maybe even just walked into an office. They get your data from there and they send that information directly to your inbox. I suggest you go ask a question of the real estate businesses in your area and see what they do to assist buyers.

Now look, if you like this video, there are another 19 tips even better than this one to make sure that you do not choose the wrong home. Get your free eBook on the 20 things that you must know before you choose the wrong home by going to www.northbrisbanehomeloans.com.au/20things and I’ll see you there.

About the Author

Copyright © 2010 North Brisbane Home Loans. Pat Cranshaw has more than 23 years experience in the finance industry. He helps hundreds of clients every year find the best home and investment loans in the Australian market. An award winning and professionally accredited mortgage broker who is not afraid to tell it how it is.

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Real Estate Values – Where To Now?

Article by Steve Gillman

As I write this (mid 2009) home prices appear to be falling still and, of course, recent experience shows us that they do not always rise from year to year. But not even the most pessimistic analysts think they can keep dropping for too many years. So were are real estate values headed this year and next?

That is a difficult question. For those who paid attention during the “bubble years” it was easy to see that a fall was coming. In fact, in a book I wrote in 2006, I mentioned, “By the time you read this prices of homes are likely going down.” But notice that I said “likely.” It is one thing to see that something is over-valued or that prices are rising at unsustainable rates, but predicting the precise timing of corrections is next to impossible.

That’s true now as well. What we can look at for a clue, though, is the factors that affect the prices. Then, as these change we will be able to see the bottom – and the appreciation that follows – coming.

One of the key factors is the rate of foreclosures. So far it just keeps climbing. And when banks take back those houses, they can’t sit on them. They need to sell quickly due to regulations regarding their capital requirements. That means they sell cheap, which helps drive down prices in general. So watch for the rate of foreclosures to decline before prices can stabilize or rise.

Another factor is the supply of houses out there. I was recently reading that at the height of the housing boom a large proportion of the homes bought were bought as speculative investments and second homes. People are more likely to be selling second homes than buying them now that the economy is worse. In other words, there may be too many homes available still, which holds down prices. New housing starts are down, so if the population grows the excess supply will start to be used up.

Population growth is another important factor. Few people realize how much demand for housing was affected by immigrants, legal or illegal. Many illegal immigrants were able to get home mortgages, which has become harder. Even as renters they created demand for houses, of course. Now, with the worsening economy, many who are here illegally are returning to their home countries, and fewer are trying to come here. That may negatively impact demand for a while. A return to higher levels of immigration may help stabilize real estate values.

Unemployment is another factor. As long as the rate keeps growing it is going to mean fewer people able to buy a home. When you see employment levels rise, there might be more hope for real estate values to rise with them due to increasing demand.

Interest rates are a big factor, and a “wild card” in the whole equation. If they were to go from the current 5% to 9%, for example, tens of millions of people who now qualify for an average mortgage loan would no longer qualify. That would have to have a dampening effect on any real estate recovery. It is not clear how high rates will rise in the near future, but the massive government borrowing going on will have to push them higher.

Keep an eye on the factors outlined here. As they change in the right direction real estate values should start to stabilize, and then – hopefully soon – start to rise again. Meanwhile, look at the current slump as a big sale, with prices up to 40% in places.

About the Author

Copyright Steve Gillman. To see a photo of the house we bought for ,500, get a free ebook on how to buy Cheap Homes, and a free real estate investing course, visit: http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com

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Real Estate Careers – Work From Home As a Tax Sale Overage Recovery Professional

Article by Maggie Dawson

Those interested in real estate careers should jump all over a golden opportunity that is currently sizzling hot – recovering tax sale overages. There’s no telling how long this opportunity will be around, but the next couple of years are key for making serious money in the real estate industry without owning or selling property. Other real estate careers just can’t measure up.

If you’ve never even remotely heard of a tax sale overage recovery specialist, you’re in the majority – and this is why there’s so much potential income to be made. Most people, including former owners of tax sale properties, aren’t even aware that tax sale overages exist. These are the funds that are bid over the amount of taxes that are owed on a delinquent property, when the county finally gets around to auctioning it off.

These funds are frequently held for their non-paying owners to collect (it is their equity, after all). Most don’t realize it, for whatever reason – they’ve moved on, or just wanted to distance themselves as much as possible from the whole tax sale ordeal and assumed the government kept all the cash. What that means for people looking for real estate careers is that there is a TON of money to be made in finder’s fees for reconnecting these owners with their money.

Not only that, but these funds (and many other types of funds as well!) aren’t governed by state law, since they are usually created locally. That means no finder’s fee caps in most places, whereas state-held funds, like the ones you’d find on treasure hunt state websites, usually limit finder’s fees to around 10%. That means you can charge any finder’s fee you like (40-50% is pretty standard for the few folks who do this as a living).

As you can probably imagine, with foreclosures skyrocketing still to this day, and overages running into the tens of thousands of dollars, as far as real estate careers go, the earning potential here is pretty much unbeatable. 40% of a ,000 overage is a nice ,000 payday for the grand total of 8-10 hours of work most cases require. Now’s the time to get into this field, before the laws change.

About the Author

So where to find records of these funds, and how to find their owners? Read the *free* Hooked On Overages “Insider’s Guide.” Visit http://Tax-Sale-Overages.com now.

Or, take the *free* 5-day Video Training! Visit http://Overages-Training.com now.Distributed by ContentCrooner.com