Dennis Norman Musings

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

I personally have only done a couple of 1031 exchanges and it has been several years since the last one, but I will admit I did not do any due diligence when selecting the qualified intermediary.    Like many people, I went with the company that was recommended to me by the title company I was doing business with.

I was in a rush to get the paper work all completed before the sale of my investment property closed so everything was handled via email and fax.  I never met the person I was dealing with at the firm nor did I do any due diligence on him or his company.  It wasn’t until after the sale closed and the (my) proceeds were given to the intermediary that it finally hit me that I was giving this company a lot of cash to “hold for me” until I found another Read more…

By: James R. MacCrate, MAI, CRE, ASA

In the current unstable real estate market, we hear reports from the National Association of Realtors and many economists that the real estate residential housing market is stabilizing.  This is based on several factors including recent price increases in several metropolitan markets, an increase in pending contracts of sale, and increase in overall residential market activity.  This may very well be a temporary illusion that has been caused by an increase in incentives, concessions, and the federal tax credit.  The Wall Street Journal reported that Toll Brothers, Hovnanian Enterprises and Lennar Corporation have provided below market financing and other incentives to increase the number of sales.  If adjustments are made to the transaction prices for these incentives, concessions and federal tax credit, one would clearly see that the market value as defined by the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice has not really increased at all.

The typical definition of market value as defined in appraisal reports for federally regulated institutions is summarized as follows: Read more…

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

When we speak of discrimination in housing it seems many people think of it only in terms of discrimination based upon race.  However, landlords and other property owners need to remember that the Federal Fair Housing Laws that make it illegal to discriminate in housing based upon race also make it illegal to discriminate against people based upon religion, sex, familial status or disability.

Recently I have noticed several cases involving discrimination in housing based upon a persons disability.  This area of the Fair Housing laws may be the most difficult for property owners to understand what is necessary on their part in order to comply.  The other forms of discrimination are a little more apparent; you cannot refuse to rent to someone based upon their race or color, sex, etc.  While this applies to people with disabilities as well, the laws also require that, in the case of persons with disabilities, you make reasonable accommodations to make your property accessible to them.  This is where many property owners seem to have problems. Read more…

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Monday and Tuesday I did part one and two of my series on the National Fix and Flip Network and today will finish this series with the conclusion of my E-View ^TM with Eric Dale, the Vice President of National Fix and Flip network.

Dennis-Eric, you have touched on some of the resources your network provides for investors.  Can you please give me more information as to all the benefits an investor will receive from your network and also whether there is a cost to be a part of this network?

Eric-Our web site is completely free to join and it provides a plethora of useful information.  We provide education through our articles and videos.  We display important daily real estate news covering the topics of real estate changes/information, lending and government policies regarding real estate.

In addition, we provide access to thousands of property listings including foreclosures.  We provide access to thousand of real estate agents, contractors, appraisers, lenders, etc, nationwide.  We also allow members to post/advertise their information on our web site to get in front of our extensive membership.

The web site is geo-targeted so you can pinpoint any area in the United States and find all the resources you need in that particular area.  We are targeting any real estate investor or consumer who is interesting in becoming an educated investor or homeowner looking to improve their overall home-ownership/property experience and save time and money in the process.  We are also targeting real estate agents, lenders, contractors, appraisers, home inspectors, etc that would like to promote their services on our site. 

To take advantage of our network an investor or consumer simply needs to go to www.nfafn.com, join for free and start using our extensive and helpful resources.

Dennis-I noticed on your website a logo and link for Rebuilding Together.  Can you please tell me about this organization and your relationship to it?

Eric-We have a partnership with Rebuilding Together, a wonderful charity that fixes over 10,000 homes a year nationwide for those in need, the elderly and veterans.  We chose this charity as it was a natural fit for us.  Not only could we provide them help monetarily, but by bringing awareness of their cause to our members; our members could lend a hand using their skills to help those in need.  After all, most real estate investors know how to hold a hammer!  This year, we traveled to Tampa for the Superbowl as a corporate sponsor of Rebuilding Together’s “Kickoff to Rebuild” event.  We brought the Denver Bronco Cheerleaders with us and helped to revitalize an inner city Tampa neighborhood in desperate need of attention.

Dennis-Eric, I am impressed that even though your company is a new that you are committed to “giving back” through your support of Rebuilding Together. 

I want to thank Eric Dale for taking the time to share this information with us and think that investors will find the site very useful.  Below is contact information for Eric:

National Fix and Flip Network, Inc.
500 W. Silver Spring Drive – Ste K-200
Glendale, WI  53217
(414) 962-9600

Eric@nfafn.org

www.nfafn.com

To read part one of this series please click here.
To read part two of this series please click here.

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Yesterday I did part one of my series on the National Fix and Flip Network and today will continue this series with the beginning of my E-View ^TM with Eric Dale, the Vice President of National Fix & Flip network.

Dennis-Eric, from talking with you I know your background is real estate and in fact it is from this experience that you saw a “void” that you set out to fill by creating the National Fix & Flip Network.  Please tell us more about your background and how your experience led you to where you are today. Read more…

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

I recently received a press release from ServiceLive.Com announcing their company had joined forces with National Fix and Flip Network to help real estate investors that are buying homes to “Fix and Flip save time and money on home repairs and improvements”. 

I was not familiar with either of these companies but I was intrigued by what I was reading.  For starters, the idea of a national network to provide services to real estate investors sounded like a great idea and something that investors could benefit from.  Then, the idea of a company that could help investors easily find quality, competitive contractors in their local market sounded great as well especially since the rehab part of the transactions appears to present some of the largest challenges to many investors.

However, if you have been reading my blog posts for a while you have probably figured out that I am somewhat of a skeptic though in many ways, particularly when I read a press release from a company touting it’s own product or services.  Therefore I decided to dig into this a little…I went to the website for National Fix and Flip Network and spent some time checking it out.  I have to say, I was immediately impressed. Read more…

By Shae Bynes

As a newbie investor it is easy to be overwhelmed as you’re getting started.  You’re trying to determine what type of investing you’re going to focus on, trying to get some cash saved up to use as earnest money deposits or for marketing, and trying not to be distracted by weekly real estate investing webinars selling you a new dream, another course, another service, another mentoring program.

I understand.

Having a vision of what you’re looking to accomplish with your real estate investing is key, and hopefully you have already put together a 90-day action plan to build your business.  A key part of that action plan is networking.  It’s been noted by top success and achievement experts that working together with others and establishing relationship is vital to reaching your goals – it’s hard to be successful operating in a vacuum.  Networking with others is going to help you move faster, smarter, and plus it can be fun to meet new people.  So like  James Brown famously sang “Get up off of that thing!”…. and network!

So who should you be networking with as a newbie investor?

At some point you will have an extensive network of people: other investors, realtors (brokers and agents), real estate attorneys, mortgage brokers, escrow (title company) officers, general contractors, accountants, property managers.

As a newbie investor, I suggest you immediately start with other investors and realtors (brokers and agents).  Through these contacts you will begin to extend your network further as needed. For example, another investor can tell you which title company to use to do simultaneous closings if you’re a wholesaler.

8 great ways to get started networking Read more…

By: Dennis Norman

The FBI has issued a consumer alert warning of phony online rental ads.  According to the alert, the scam goes like this:

You can’t believe your good fortune-you find a rental home in a nice area through a Craigslist classified ad at an unbelievably low rate.  The landlord-who had to leave the country and travel to Nigeria-asks that you wire him two months worth of rent.  You arrive at the home on the agreed-upon date, but there is just one small problem- the house is not actually for rent and its owners know nothing about your agreement.

This latest scam is being perpetrated by Nigerian criminals located halfway aroudn the world and has been seen in a number of U.S. states, perhaps in response to the current housing market- with fewer people buying, more people are renting. 

The FBI offers these tips to avoid being victimized:

• Only deal with landlords or renters who are local
• Be suspicious if you’re asked to only use a wire transfer service
• Beware of email correspondence from the “landlord” that is written in poor or broken English
• Research the average rental rates in that area and be suspicious if the rate is significantly lower
• Don’t give out personal information, like social security, bank account, or credit card numbers.

By: Dennis Norman

The FBI has issued a consumer alert warning of phony online rental ads. According to the alert, the scam goes like this:

 A prospective tenant can’t believe their good fortune-they find a rental home in a nice area through a Craigslist classified ad at an unbelievably low rate. The landlord-who had to leave the country and travel to Nigeria-asks the tenant to wire him two months worth of rent. The tenant arrives at the home on the agreed-upon date, but there is just one small problem- the house is not actually for rent and its owners know nothing about the tenants agreement.

This latest scam is being perpetrated by Nigerian criminals located halfway aroudn the world and has been seen in a number of U.S. states, perhaps in response to the current housing market- with fewer people buying, more people are renting.

The criminals behind this search websites that list homes for sale.  They take the information in those ads-lock, stock and barrel-and post it, with their own e-mail address.  In an ad on Craigslist (without Craiglist’s consent or knowledge) under the housing rental category.  To sweeten the pot the houses are almost always listed with below-market rental rates. 

So beware and keep an eye on your vacant homes….unbeknownst to you, they could be used in the scam.

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Today the National Association of REALTORS(R) released its existing home sales report for June showing an increase in sales for the 3rd month in a row and rising prices for the month in all regions of the U.S.

Existing home sales, including single-family, town-homes, condominiums and co-ops increased 3.6% in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.89 million units. This rate is almost identical to last years sales at the same time which is a first in a quite a while. May’s rate was down 3.6% from a year ago and June is down just 0.2% from a year ago.

Also for the first time in a while, all four regions of the U.S. had an increase in sales for the month with the West leading the pack with a 6.4% increase followed by the South at 4.9%, Northeast at 2.5% and the Midwest a 0.9%. Read more…