San Francisco Bay Area sales up sharply, median price at $400,000
"It's not exactly a stampede," but San Francisco Bay Area home sales held at a six-year high last month as activity rose across the price spectrum, with the $500,000-plus market logging the biggest...
View ArticleAll-cash sales nosedive in Silicon Valley
In the past 30-days, ending July 26, all-cash sales represented 15 percent of purchases of all single-family and duplex homes in Santa Clara County. That's well off the March 25 percent share.
View ArticleFirst-time real estate investment strategy
With home ownership more tenuous now than in previous years, more and more Americans are living in rental properties, and that means investing in a rental property can be a lucrative venture. Before...
View ArticleReal estate investments struggle, fail without strong renters
MACK Companies, a large Midwest single-family investment properties owner, explains why most investors lose money on their real estate investments: the failure to nab and hold good tenants.
View ArticleInfographic: College town investments
It could be a better idea and a good investment to buy property in a town where your kid is going to school, instead of paying his or her rent. The mortgage could be cheaper and the returns longer....
View ArticleToo few homes, too many buyers stunting growth in Monterey County housing market
Low rates and home prices make it a good time to buy a home in Monterey County, CA, but investors are snatching up what's available and leaving more traditional buyers with the leftovers.
View ArticleDon’t judge a foreclosure by its price
Foreclosures are selling at deep discounts, but those discounts can come with some hidden factors that could cost you more than you bargain. You'll have to compete with investors, vie for "as-is"...
View ArticleReemerged vacation property investment market paying dividends
If you recently ventured into the vacation home investment market, there's a good chance your return is already shaping up.The summer peak season was a blast, occupancy rates are up and owners expect a...
View ArticleFlipping without flopping
The promise of turning a quick, hefty profit on house flipping can be irresistible, but it takes a certain investment savvy not to flop on the flip. Jim Lowenstern, Castles Unlimited, Newton, MA,...
View ArticleHow to wait out creeping home equity gain
Home equity gain is growing, but if your home lost 50 percent or more of its value, the current rate of gain may not restore your original purchase value for a decade or more. Think like an investor...
View ArticleFHA anti-flipping waiver now good through 2014
To help keep foreclosures moving through the home sales pipeline, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has, for the fourth time, extended a rule to make it easier for investors to “flip”...
View ArticleBurns’ upbeat 2013 forecast for home buyers could go over a fiscal cliff
John Burns recently based his rosy 2013 real estate forecast for buyers on Capital Hill's residents coming to an agreement that will prevent the economy from falling off a fiscal cliff. The forecast...
View ArticleRental property investments require cash, but much more valuable landlording...
Given the current housing recovery, the investment segment's price boosts, the still relatively low cost of investment rental homes and hot demand from housing consumers who can't buy, investment...
View ArticleFirst-timers, existing homeowners driving the housing recovery
Investors are officially no longer the big kids on the block as existing homeowners and first-timers whittle away at low housing inventories. The housing recovery also comes with homes that take less...
View ArticleDown payment shrinkage not due to eased credit squeeze
A new study says the down payment amount home buyers are paying to buy a home is down nearly 10 percent over the past two years, but that doesn't necessarily mean you can fritter away money you've been...
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