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They’re sold on late-night TV, hawked at seminars, they sell in books, and, admit it, you’ve wondered about them–those programs that tell you that you can make a fortune investing in real estate with no money down. Is it true? The answer is, yes, but….

If you can find an undervalued property, use somebody else’s money, or do a sub2 deal (check your glossary at the website if you’re unsure about that term), it’s relatively easy. Undervalued properties are somewhat hard to come by in these overvalued days in most areas, unless you’re ready to do some serious rehab work or have a keen insight into market trends in a specific area.

And, most lenders want you vested in the deal with some significant cash–understandably. Why should they take all the risk? At the very least, they’ll want you to be able to show that you can maintain the property until it turns around or that you can turn it over quickly and profitably (which usually means selling it to somebody willing to pay a premium because of less-than-great credit).

BUT, don’t let this discourage you. Instead, let it sharpen your insight as to what makes for a good deal, understand how lenders view them, and think creatively about financing so that a good deal can be had by all. Here’s one way.

Find a motivated seller, and line up a partner who’s seeking a good return. Form an LLC with the buyer. Have the LLC buy the property at a discount from the market rate in your partner’s (the buyer’s) name–it’s his money, after all. Next, run a “for sale by owner” ad, stating that “poor or no credit is okay.” Your phone will ring. They’ll pay more to get in, but they’ll have to be able to pull together a decent (10% or more) down payment and have a solid job. Your investor partner gets that cash to get his investment back. Then, sell the property to the new buyer and split the monthly cash flow with your partner.

You can repeat this process a few times and have a significant monthly cash flow, all with no cash from your pocket. Your contribution will have been putting the deals together. So, yes, “no money down” can still work, if the right people are in the picture. Keep your eyes open for possibilities, your contact list current, and your ambition level high, and you can do it.

Future articles will cover a couple of additional strategies.

Lynn Stonebraker has been profiting from real estate since 1987. Get free weekly training in her newsletter, available at Real Estate Info.

[tags]real estate, real estate investing, no money down real estate[/tags]

Nothing down? Exactly why would a seller want to walk away from closing with nothing? The truth is, they normally wouldn’t, and that brings up the most important point about real estate investing with no downpayment: A seller almost always needs cash at closing, but it doesn’t have to be YOUR cash.

Nothing Down – A Few Ways

Sometimes sellers are able to offer terms and a low or no downpayment, but often you have to find a way to get at least 70% of the price to them in cash. This is not only so they can get some of their equity out, but also because they will probably need to pay off the existing loan. So to get in with nothing down, you need to think in terms of how to get a primary loan, then how to raise the money for the remainder. A couple examples follow.

A few banks still do “no doc” loans, meaning they don’t require any verification of income, source of downpayment, etc. Since they generally loan only 70% to 80% of the property value, you need a seller who is willing to take a second mortgage from you for the other 20% to 30%, to make it a nothing down deal. They get 70% or 80% in cash, and payments for years to come. Since you’ll have two payments, you need to be sure the numbers work.

Another way to buy with none of your own money is to borrow against your home or other property to come up with downpayment. You might borrow for a “vacation,” and leave whatever you don’t spend in your checking account for a while. In this way, you can use it without violating bankers rules about borrowing for a downpayment.

Most towns have a few “note buyers.” These investors buy land contracts, mortgage loans and other “notes” at a discount. When a seller takes a purchase money mortgage from you for $100,000, for example, a note buyer might pay him $85,000 for it. How does that help you or him? I’ll explain with an example.

Suppose a seller prices his property at $195,000, expecting to sell it for $180,000. You offer $205,000 in the form of a mortgage for $160,000, and another for $45,000. As part of the offer, you have arranged for the sale of the first mortgage at closing for $136,000 to a note buyer. The seller gets that cash now, plus payments from you on the second loan for $45,000. $136,000 plus the $45,000 adds up to $181,000, which is about what he expected to get out of the deal.

A Personal Example

At the moment, I’m selling a small rental property, and will recieve payments of $400 per month. The buyer has good credit, and the $5,000 downpayment covers the closing costs and even the legal cost of a foreclosure, if necessary. So at this point, I really don’t care where he gets the downpayment. Suppose he took a $6000 cash advance on a low-interest credit card? This would cost him about $135 per month, and give him enough for the downpayment and his closing costs.

The rent is around $600 per month in this case, so he would be okay. However, in some cases, that extra $135 might cause negative cash-flow. You have to be sure that however you do it, the numbers work. I should mention though, that I would have accepted payments of $350, if he had asked, because it’s the price and the interest rate that mattered to me.

Are ther other methods? You bet. Creative real estate investing is all about making the deal work for all parties. If you can find a way to get the seller what he wants, you can buy with nothing down.

Steve Gillman has invested in real estate for years. To learn more, get a free real estate investing course, and see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com

[tags]nothing down,real estate investing,real estate[/tags]

Are you considering putting your house up for sale, but not sure where to start? Afraid it will take too long to sell, or that you won’t get the price you want? Think about “staging” your home, or in other words, setting the scene for immediate buyer interest in your property.

To be really effective, you need to look at both the outside and the inside of your home. Here are 3 tips to get you started with the outside of your home:

1. Go stand on the street to see what clients see when driving up to the house. Be aware that any negative impressions they get outside the house (landscaping not maintained or non-existent, peeling paint, etc.) is just going to make them think that the house itself has not been well taken care of. So even if you have spent the time and money to fix up the interior, it would all be wasted if the clients get a bad first impression as they drive up to the house.

2. Next, step outside your front door and close the door; then stand on the stoop and look around for 5 minutes. While the realtor fumbles for keys and tries to figure out how to open the door, the clients are standing behind and looking around. So what are they seeing? Dead plants, old Halloween decorations in the middle of January, cobwebs? Again, not a good first impression!

It’s definitely worth it to take some time and clean it up. Want to go a step further? Try a new coat of paint or some new furniture or accessories.

3. Don’t forget the backyard. While that might not be part of the potential buyers’ first impression experience, you still should make sure it’s in the best condition possible. Pull up weeds, water plants, do some sweeping (if that’s applicable in your case) and maybe even purchase new furniture or accessories (plant pots, bird houses, etc.)

And the biggest tip of all? Imagine yourself as a potential buyer looking at your property for the very first time. What impressions are you getting? Would YOU buy your house? What would you like to see changed before you put an offer on your house?

And don’t worry about spending several thousand dollars to get your house ready to sell – you’ll get it all back when your house sells. Proper staging helps you sell your house in a shorter time and at the price you want.

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Kathleen Yamauchi is a long-time realtor located in Prescott, Arizona. For more free tips and resources on buying and selling your home and other real estate advice, visit her web site at http://www.kathleeny.com.

[tags]Prescott real estate, Prescott realtor, Arizona real estate, Arizona realtor, home selling tip, real[/tags]