Author View (Gary Eldred)

If you have been reading the financial headlines, you could reasonably think that nearly all lenders are going broke, nearly all mortgages are in default, and that no homebuyer or real estate investor stands a chance of getting a new loan or refinancing an existing mortgage.  Unfortunately  -  and as is often the case - journalists have distorted this story. True, some investment banks and some primary lenders have suffered larger-than-expected losses on their subprime/underqualified borrower loans and the corresponding mortgage-backed securities. However, for the great majority of credible homebuyers and investors, the mortgage market is improving - not falling apart. Here's the Real Story First, contrary to the dominant news stories, it's a promising time more...

If you buy into an organized co-op, condo, townhouse or subdivision development, a homeowners' association (HOA) will require you to live under its regulations and rules. Don't take a casual glimpse at these associations and move ahead with your purchase under the assumption that membership is just a formality. Because the fact is, these associations can and will fine you for violations of rules, assess monthly dues that they can raise at whim, demand that you pay for improvements that you don't really care about - and otherwise make your homeowner's experience feel a lot like living in a socialist state.  Here are more...

When pricing properties, sellers, sales agents, and appraisers frequently use price per square foot comparisons. For example, a 1,500-square-foot property listed at $350,000 would figure out at $233 per square foot. The agent or seller then might toss in a statement like, "We got this house bargain priced at less than $235 a square foot. Nothing else in this neighborhood has sold for anything under $275 per square foot."  Okay, sounds good so far. But before you bite, check the facts. Watch Out for Errors of Measurement Appraisers, sales agents, sellers, and property tax assessors mismeasure properties all the time. In fact, sellers or realty agents often more...

"Erase bad credit," the credit repair ads say. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says something quite different . . . "Don't be misled by credit repair ads ... Promises to repair or clean up a bad credit file can almost never be kept." How do these firms get away with making false promises? They just operate until the government shuts them down; then they open shop again under a new name. In fact, many of the tactics used by these firms can land their victims in jail. For example, one trick they pull is to get you a new credit file under a different (false) Social more...

The recent foreclosure crisis has caused some experts to say that this is a very bad time to invest in residential properties. The market is flat, they say, and sure to remain so for the foreseeable future. Don't listen to them. Since World War II, home prices have frequently jumped by 10 or 20 percent a year. It is true that on occasion, prices have held steady for as long as three to five years. There have also been times when certain cities have experienced severe downturns in their local economies, causing prices to fall temporarily. During the early 1970s, for example, more...

“When I started out, I spent a lot of time researching very detail pertinent to the deal. I still do the same today.”  - Gary W. Eldred, PhD  Savvy entrepreneurs search beyond conventional wisdom, “facts,” opinions and fanciful dodges or assertions. They know that quality facts provide the ingredients for quality decisions. As you move forward in real estate (and life), use multiple data points and sources of information. Interpret, think, analyze, and verify. Avoid a rush to judgment. The world overflows with GIGO (garbage in, garbage out) decision making. But with verified facts on your side, you can outperform the crowd. Say more...

When I first began buying rental houses and apartment buildings, I could easily find properties that offered net unleveraged rental yields* of 10 to 16 percent. In some areas of the country, such as the Midwest, you can still achieve such favorable results. More typically, today’s rental properties yield four to eight percent. You might tell me that four to eight percent doesn’t seem like a great rate of return. But relative to stocks and bonds, properties win hands down. Let me explain why. Why Rental Properties Outperform Stocks At present, the annual dividend (income) yield on the S&P 500 stock index barely reaches more...

Who are the ideal buyers for your properties? Who are the ideal renters? You may have heard other real estate investors divide their prospects into housing segments such as empty-nesters, yuppies, first-time home buyers, move-up buyers, the age 55+ market, and, more recently, the Hispanic market, the Asian market, and even the Islamic market. Although any or all of these labels might stimulate your thinking, never let them determine your market segmentation strategy. I learned that lesson during the 1990s while I was conducting my Stop Renting Now! Seminars throughout the country. My seminar attendees fit no specific demographic. Their ages ranged from 25 to more...

Affordable - Spacious - Stunning Mint condition 3BR, 2B, 1840 sq.ft. $6,000 d.p. $830/mo., romantic 3000 sq.ft. Master BR suite with fplc, open living area, flower garden views, light and bright kitchen, unlimited storage. $210,000 - compare at $275,000! 210 Pecan. Open Sat. & Sun. 12-5. Rare find, please call 000-555-1234. Would you be interested in that property? I know I would. If I were planning to go to some open houses on Sunday, it would be the first one on my list. I would get there at noon to make sure I saw it before anybody else did. Why does that ad more...

When you investigate properties to buy, look ahead. What will their neighborhoods look like in the years and decades to come? Take a close look at what needs improving, because the problems you see are opportunities. The more of them you can correct, the faster your property values will soar.  With the help of other property owners in the area, you can make improvements like these: Improve traffic patterns. Would a stoplight, a revised parking plan or a new arrangement of one-way streets be an improvement? Would closing off some streets or making them dead-ends make it harder for motorists to speed more...

We have a lot in common. We both started reading books about real estate when most of our fellow students were only thinking about buying cool cars.After we graduated college, we pursued our real estate dreams in different ways. Gary put his energy behind acquiring properties, while Donald gravitated toward development. But when we got together last year to work on the book Trump University Real Estate 101, we learned that we shared some common traits. In sum, they could be termed The Trump Mindset for Real Estate Success. It is a mindset that is explained in depth in that book.What more...

The world is full of well-intentioned people who are eager to offer you advice about investing in real estate. But do they know what they are talking about? Do they possess the experience, expertise and current information needed to advise you intelligently? If not, their advice can do a lot of harm.For example, if your lawyer sister hasn't seen a real estate contract since she took the Real Property 101 course in law school 10 years ago, she's not the person you need to review your purchase agreement.So how do you find the best advice? You hire the best lawyer, accountant more...

Every day seems to bring more doom-and-gloom news about the current real estate market. Just two days ago, I read an article on Reuters in which Robert Toll of Toll Brothers builders said that today's soft housing market reminds him of the awful sag of the 1980's. That slump was so dire, it took housing prices more than three years to recover.It sounds dismal, but as I explore in my book Trump University Real Estate 101, which I wrote with Donald J. Trump, there are many ways to make money in any kind of market, hard or soft. Of them all, more...

Radical wealth-creating advice from the Trump University classroom. If you've been watching the news and listening to your friends, you're probably convinced this is a terrible time for real estate investing. Interest rates are up, housing sales are down, properties are overvalued. The "bubble" is about to burst. Let me share this quote with you . . . "The prices of houses seem to have reached a plateau, and there is reasonable expectancy that prices will decline." That statement could have been written last week, but the fact is, it was written in Time Magazine on December 1, 1947. Too bad for the people who more...

Advice you need today from Trump University Real Estate 101 Because no one makes it alone in real estate, you need a network of professionals that includes: lenders' reps, real estate agents, title companies, property inspectors, lawyers, zoning/building regulators, handymen and handywomen, contractors and, of course, sellers, tenants and buyers. When should you begin to start to get to know these people and have them start to get to know you? Now! As Harvey Mackay puts it in his book Pushing the Envelope, "Dig your well before you're thirsty." Join your local real estate investment club. Go out and call on a variety more...