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Displaying blog entries 131-136 of 136

Let your lazy money buy you a house:

Tuesday, December 19, 2006
by Rob Levy, Prudential Northwest Properties
I just attended with one of my buyers, a great 1 day seminar about how you can make your
lazy, slow earning money, that is just sitting in your IRA,401K or SEP accounts, buy you your next great investment!

This type of investment is not new.  You have been able to direct your Retirement invest accounts since 1974.  But in the 1970's, when these first started, no one had enough money built up in them to buy any real estate, now, 30 years later, most all of us have enough in our accounts to buy some investment properties.
 
There are a number of rules and guidelines you need to follow, the biggest one is, you want to make sure you invest in the right market.  Portland Oregon is one of those perfect real estate investment markets.  You can still buy a great condition home (not needing a lot to be rented out at once) for well under $225,000.  If you put the correct amount down, buy in the right neighborhood, you can create a wonderful investment that is going up approximately 5-15% per year.  You also get to write off the interest rate and someone else is making all or most all of your mortgage payment.  Make sure to check with your CPA, Attorney or any other professional that you deal with about your finances.
 
There are also things you CAN NOT use your Retirement money to invest in.  For example,
 
Collectables:
work of art
rug or antique
metal or gem
stamp or coin
alcoholic beverages
 
Let me know if I can be of any further help with this concept. We are well versed in using your IRA funds to purchase investment real estate...
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Home Buying for Dummies!

Tuesday, December 19, 2006
by Rob Levy, Prudential Northwest Properties
Home Buying for Dummies is a great reference tool for upcoming home buyers.  The authors Eric Tyson and Ray Brown write in a style that makes the book useful as well as fun to read.
The book begins by discussing the many topics revolving around the decision to purchase a home, covering everything from the rent vs. buy question to tracking the real estate market.  By the end of the book the reader will understand terms like Escrow, ARM interest rate, inspection contingency and other phrases that can overwhelm the average home buyer.
 
My favorite three tips from their list of the Top 20 Hints for Homebuyers:
 
1) There are no absolutes in real estate negotiation:
Smart buyers realize that there are times when it's wise to make a lowball offer, and times when it's best to make your first offer the highest offer you can afford.  And remember that everything is negotiable.
 
2)  Don't let unexpected closing costs sabotage you: 
Ensure that you have enough cash to buy the house by estimating in advance all the costs you must pay at the time of closing, including moving expenses, insurance premiums, loan fees, and property taxes.
 
3)  The best time to think about selling your home is before you buy it:
Be sure that the home you buy has features other buyers will find desirable, or you won't be able to get a good price when you sell it.
Check out the book, and call us if you want to apply it's advice.  As Portland's top Prudential Real Estate Team, we'd be happy to share our two decades of experience with you.
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Appreciation is appreciation: Portland Oregon market is a proven winner

Tuesday, December 19, 2006
by Rob Levy, Prudential Northwest Properties
Whenever we invest our money we want it to grow for us.  Living in Portland Oregon and investing in real estate has always been a smart move.  I was talking with one of my neighbors last night at a neighborhood holiday get together that we have.  He asked me what I thought about the real estate market and that fact that is supposed to slow down?  I said, what do you mean?  He said that we are only suppose to be seeing 5-8% growth in real estate in Portland Oregon in 2007.  I asked him why he thinks that is "going down"?  He said, "well, last year homes were going up 10-18%!  I said, yes, you are correct.  But if your home goes up 10%, instead of 18%, how can you think or say, that the market is going down!? He agreed, appreciation, is, appreciation.
 
Many economists and real estate experts link the buying habits of "baby boomers" and investors, to the demand for homes in this country. They argue that the population will stabilize or decline as these potential buyers age and their children are grown.

What is left out of such a picture is that the emerging real estate market is made up of people who are immigrating to this country. It is also made up with investors wanting to try to establish and build their portfolios. When these newcomers have achieved a stable income, they look for the best living situation they can find, often preferring buying to renting.

Real estate continues to be an attractive investment opportunity. If you are sitting out the current market because you are afraid that the appreciation won't continue, you may want to re-think your decision. Today's market is providing opportunities for homeowners and smart investors from all over the globe.  Buy now and reap the benefits of appreciation .
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Rob Levy Attends National Association of Realtors Show in New Orleans, Louisiana

Wednesday, November 15, 2006
by Rob Levy, Prudential Northwest Properties

For the 18th year in a row, I just returned from the annual National Association of Realtors trade show, which this year was held in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The show which is huge - 30,000 plus attendees - can only be held where there are big convention centers along with lots of hotel rooms, so for the last several years this has limited us to Orlando, Las Vegas, New Orleans and San Francisco.

This was very interesting to me as a Realtor, and kudos to both our organization for not canceling the show after the hurricane, and to my peers who showed up in droves, and helped add to the economy of New Orleans.  While our show was centered around the Earnest Morial convention center, I also spent some time looking around and saw a lot of boarded up stores and restaurants indicating not all is well, even in that district.  But I think the most shocking thing to me was my room maid at the Marriott Hotel telling me that until very recently, she actually lived in my very room.  Apparently the Marriott had many families of their employees living there, kudos to Marriott ( and also for making all their hotels non-smoking, they have me as client for life).

Regarding the show itself, there were over 800 vendors with lots of new ideas and some rekindled old ones.  Being a techy myself, I focused on the technology tools I can use to better serve my clients and my team.  I think the better ones this year were making better use of wireless devices to work.  In particular the Sprint REV-A cellular modem which absolutely rocks.  I used this both in the hotel and in the convention center, and at the airport too.  It was like being on my home wireless network and faster than mid-day at my office !  The other was the database system I use now working on Blackberries and having a wireless sync so when Cathy on my team changes a persons phone number it instantly pushes to the phone.

As I do every year, I also spent all day Thursday with 49 other top selling Realtors and real estate speaker Bill Barrett ( www.billbarrett.com) where we spent the whole day sharing ideas.  I now have several ideas to add to help us sell homes faster and for more money.

As always, the food was fantastic, and I ate more than my share of Cajun shrimp.  I look forward to going next year to Las Vegas, but more so to seeing how New Orleans has changed when I go back again two years from now.

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Portland Oregon is a fun city

Wednesday, November 15, 2006
by Rob Levy, Prudential Northwest Properties
Bruce Hecht, a buyer specialist on our team wrote this article for our blog....
Last Saturday I was showing some out of town buyers that sold their home in California and are currently living in temporary living quarters, shopping for the perfect home.  We were looking for a  home really close to Forest Park, Washington Park and in the direction of Sauvie's Island. 
 
They turned to me and said, "you know, Portland Oregon is really a fun city"!  I said to them, what do you mean?  Well, many of the areas we have been looking, have everything we are looking for.  Close walk to grocery stores, parks, hiking trails, walking paths and library's.
 
They went on to tell me about what they have done since they moved to Portland Oregon.  They have joined a walking/hiking club.  This club does many different hike/walks.  Sometimes they go to Washington Park, sometimes they go to Forest Park, or they just walk through downtown Portland Oregon and see the sites and learn more about the city.
 
They also joined a group where they can learn more about more serious hikes and last month they hiked to the top of Mt. Hood.  Next Summer they plan to tackle one of the Three Sisters and also go white water river rafting.

I have lived in Portland Oregon all of my life.  I take great pleasure in showing buyers homes all over the city.  When I hear about the new "life changing" experiences my buyers take on, it stimulates me to learn even more about all of the different adventures are in the City of Roses.
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Map Based Property Search: A great tool for home buyers searching for homes in Portland Oregon!

Thursday, November 2, 2006
by Rob Levy, Prudential Northwest Properties

Wow, if only I had this service when I was searching for homes this spring. The Rob Levy Team has an amazing tool that allows buyers to search for homes by selecting neighborhoods on a map. It is so simple and useful and far exceeds other neighborhood searches. The difference between this neighborhood search and the numerous sites other agents offer is this: You can visually see on the Portland area map all the homes listed in the section you selected. Simply draw a box (you may have to draw more than one to narrow in your search to a street level view) over the map in the area you are interested in. If it is a broad section you will see little dots (more than 100 homes in the area you selected,) and as you zoom in on your selection, the homes are represented by little home icons. As you hover your mouse/cursor over the home icons a second information box pops up with basic details and pictures of the house your mouse/cursor is hovering over. You may then opt to click on the pop-up box for more details about the home or continue to peruse the map for additional listings. Most real estate websites offer maps that allow you to click on the neighborhood and add it to your search list, but they do not actually show the homes listed in relation to each other or their location on the map.

The best way to understand this Map-Based Property search is to try it out at http://allportlandlistings.com . An email address is necessary to log-in to the site, but once you are there it is easy to use. The website also has features that allow you to maximize your search by naming price range, number of bedrooms and additional categories. Once you find a home of interest and you click on the details box if will take you to an in-depth page with photos, features and public school information. There will also be options to register and save the search, make an appointment to view the property, or sign up to receive emails of listings as they come on the market. This Map-Based Property search is the best tool for buyers searching for properties in specific locations!

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Displaying blog entries 131-136 of 136

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