Finding Investment Properties

 Finding investment properties is not as hard as it may seem. There are
many avenues to choose from when trying to locate a good investment
property. With thousands of houses on the market, it is actually easy
finding investment properties. One of the first sources would be the
Multiple Listing Service (MLS) listings of your local real estate
agent. The multiple listing book has every property for sale in the
local area. This usually means the entire county. Some MLS books have
more than one county listed. Agents who live or work close to a county
line may cover portions of another county. The agent is licensed to
work in the state, not just the county.

When you search through the book, you can also generate some other
interesting facts about an area. You can tell what the market is
doing. This is one reason every good investor has a real estate agent
he or she works with. The wealth of information gleaned from a
knowledgeable agent is worth more than you can imagine.

Another great place to find investment property at superb prices often
below the market value is at property auctions. Property auctions
usually feature many home owners, who, due to financial misfortune or
other compelling circumstances, have turned to selling their
investment property to the highest bidder in an auction. There are
many reasons why good investment properties might appear in an auction
of this nature; lenders such as mortgage providers might have re-
possessed a property, the property might be dilapidated to such an
extent that the owner does not have the time or money to re-develop
it, or a whole host of other reasons. Local estate agents will be able
to advise potential investors of the location of auctions in their
area.

Another good source for finding investment properties is to view local
tax lists. This allows you to know what properties are in distress.
Many times someone who can not pay their taxes can not pay the
mortgage either. In some cases the taxes are included in the mortgage.
If this is the case you know for a fact the property is headed for
foreclosure. When the mortgage is not being paid there is no money for
the taxes to be paid. There are some areas where it is mandatory for a
finance company to put foreclosure proceedings in the local paper. For
someone who is interested in pre-foreclosures, this is a good way to
find investment properties. The listings lately have been very long.
It is estimated that over one million homes will face foreclosure in
the next year.

The government agencies like the Veteran’s Administration (VA) and
Housing and Urban Development (HUD) both list their repossessions on
the Internet. The investor who is dealing with foreclosures can find
many investment properties this way. There are some financial
institutions which list the Real Estate Owned (REO’) properties on
their web sites as well. These are properties which the mortgage has
been foreclosed on. Many good deals can be made on these properties by
the savvy investor.

No matter where you look for an investment property there are some
basic rules to remember. Never buy at full market value. You want to
have at least 20% equity in the property for it to be a good
investment. Know your market. If you do not know what is selling and
what is not, there is no sense in even trying to invest in real
estate. Have a marketing plan of action. You need to know what you are
going to do with the properties you want to buy. Make sure there is a
backup plan in case the first one does not pan out. Set up a real
estate team to help you with any of your real estate needs. This means
working with a real estate agent, an inspector, an appraiser, and even
a loan officer. The more people you know who know real estate, the
better off you are.

extract in http://www.myinvestmentadvice.info

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