Starting Real Estate

Tarragon, I was wrong

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 22:36:21 +0000

With over a year to it, I was way off on the Tarragon. A lot has happened since last year. RE markets are way down and it looks like they haven’t hit bottom just yet.

Tarragon Corporation

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 10:44:25 +0000

Anyone noticed the stock drop? Within a month it fell from the $8 range to the $1 range. Fell from the $10 range if you look over three months.

I have a feeling, even with all its problems, TARR is going to return, however it could just as easily keep falling. I thought it was done dropping at $4, but I was wrong. Everything went down.

There is definitely room to grow. It was just there, eight times over.

Would be great if it started making more money than it lost =D

Flip This House - Casting Call

Fri, 13 Jul 2007 10:03:09 +0000

Flip This House is looking for house flippers! Are you the next Real Estate star?

Here’s the scoop:

Flip This House, A&E’s #1 rated lifestyle show, has been to Charleston, Atlanta, San Antonio, and New Haven. Which city will be next?!!

813 Casting and Departure Films are conducting a nationwide search for the new cast of characters who will be featured on the upcoming season of Flip This House! Will it be your team?

We’re looking for confident, charismatic, motivated and opinionated people who “flip” residential properties for a living. We want real-estate adrenaline junkies who love the high risk, high reward nature of their jobs and who are devoted to doing a great job!
If you would like your team to be featured on the upcoming season of Flip This House, send an email to fth@813casting.com. Include your contact info, bios on you and your team, and some reasons why your team should be the next to be featured on Flip This House! Teams should consist of four or more people.

Web Site: www.aetv.com/flipthishouse/
Schedule an interview with Casting Director Steve Grant. Email fth@813casting.com

If you know someone who might be able to do it, they have a $500 finder’s fee as well (maybe I shouldn’t share that, but why not… just cc me in the email if you’re the aspiring house flipper)

Find the next cast of Flip This House and Find Yourself $500 richer!

Did you know that Than Merrill and the New Haven team were found through a referral? If you think you know someone who would be GREAT on Flip This House - tell us about them! If they get cast, you’ll get a $500 finder’s fee (and a cool story!) Email us at fth@813casting.com. Make sure to provide all necessary contact info.

Home For Sale by Owner

Sun, 06 May 2007 01:39:47 +0000

A friend of mine keeps up his financial IQ by browsing For Sale by Owner listings and calculating if it’s a worthy investment. Last week he found a gem in Texas. The house had three tenants paying rent, enough to cover mortgage, utilities, insurance and taxes, and leave a couple hundred on the side.

He made some calls, got a realtor. We were both super excited. Even calculating for having tenants move, it just seemed like a no way to lose situation.

It was a good thing he got a realtor though, and got good pics of the house. Turns out there’s something wrong with the foundation. The house is leaning over, and will eventually fall over unless work is done.

While it still may make a little money, my friend decided to pass on this one considering quite a few miles states away (in California).

Robert Kiyosaki and Casey Serin

Sun, 04 Feb 2007 09:44:44 +0000

Casey Serin of iamfacingforeclosure.com appears with Robert Kiyosaki (richdad.com) and tells his story of flipping houses, leverage, and debt. This guy bought eight houses in eight months, with no money down. While it didn’t end well yet, I have to say, this guy’s got guts… and an very interesting blog to go with it. In the clip Kiyosaki mentions Buckminster Fuller. He’s the one who said, “Mistakes are only sins when not admitted.” His name is the newest addition to my reading list (books I want to read.. not people reading my writings). I have a feeling that Casey’s book, when published, is going to bring in more income, and passive income, than all those houses could have, even if flipped without any problems.

Here’s the link to the video: iamfacingforeclosure.com/116/mistakes-are-only-sins-when-not-admitted-robert-kiyosaki/

Real Estate Finance Class

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 04:37:09 +0000

Real Estate Finance, here I come again. After almost a year–I’m signing up again. This time, I’ll just be taking this one class. It’s the same teacher as last time.

Glengarry Glen Ross

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 06:41:56 +0000

Glengarry Glen Ross really captures what goes on inside a sales office. In this case its a real estate office, but minus the threats and robberies it really reminds me of my bullpen. Learn from the talk tracks and how these guys struggle with no leads. Also notice, the guy on top is actually working while the other guys are whining. There’s a dialogue where the Machine talks about his cold calling success. Well–why doesn’t he cold call now? I’ve been working on my cold calling more now and it is quite a challenge, but quite an adventure. Walking inside a place you’ve never been in before and starting up a conversation. Anyways, a guy at my office recommended this movie, and I loved it. I bet if I was selling properties, I’d love it even more.

Choices

Thu, 02 Nov 2006 08:54:28 +0000

Sales Lesson: Strange as it seems, but a lot of my customers don’t want choices. They come to me because I’m an expert and it’s my job to help them find what suits their needs. Complicating their lives with a million options when I know the ones best for them, would be wasting their time. A lot of people appreciate a fast, easy, and simple solution.

The Cycle

Wed, 06 Sep 2006 07:38:55 +0000

Almost a year back, my cousin started getting really hardcore with his prospecting. The cycle finally started coming back and now people are contacting him. Technology, particularly craigslist, is helping out a lot. It’s interesting how some things take a lot of time to build, but when they come about it’s beautiful.

Citibank

Tue, 04 Jul 2006 11:46:01 +0000

Citibank has had some amazing offers lately. I wish they had some kind of affiliate program, because I’d hop over a fence to join it, but here’s the deal. I got a Citibank Divident card, which gives me five percent back on gas and groceries and gave me 0 percent for almost my entire first year. Plus it doesn’t pay silly reward points, I ordered a check and got it within a few days without any problems. Raising the credit line is super simple too, just make payments on time, and every few months you can automatically raise the credit line online. No applications and no inquiries, just one click. If for some reason it’s not there, quick service on the phone explains why. I have no complaints at all.

Now Citibank has a new e-savings account which pays 5 percent with no hidden fees. That’s more than most banks’ CD’s. I just got the account so I have yet to fully review it, but at five percent almost everyone I know who hears about it and has money losing value in a no pay savings account is happy to transfer. Of course there are securities that pay a lot more, but for a completely liquid and safe savings account five percent is a wonderful deal.