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Here are some quick foreclosure stats I came across recently:

• Every three months, 250,000 new families go into foreclosure.
• Foreclosure filings were reported on 234,685 properties nationwide during March, a 57% increase from March 2007.
• One in every 538 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing during March.
• One out of every 200 homes will be foreclosed upon. For a city like Washington, that translates to 3,000 Washingtonians losing their homes to foreclosure each year.
• One child in every classroom in America is at risk of losing his/her home because their parents are unable to pay their mortgage.
• More than 6 in 10 homeowners delinquent in their mortgage payments are not aware of services that mortgage lenders can offer to individuals having trouble with their mortgage.
• Foreclosure filings were reported on 64,711 California properties in March, the most of any state for the 15th consecutive month.
• California foreclosure activity increased nearly 21 percent from the previous month and almost 106 percent from March 2007.
• One in every 204 California households received a foreclosure filing in March - 2.6 times the national average.
• According to Realtytrac.com, a source for foreclosure listings:
  • There are currently 2,934,626 US foreclosure listings.
  • The top 5 foreclosure States are:
    • California leading with 303,777 listings.
    • Florida - 191,706 foreclosure listings.
    • Ohio - 105,880 foreclosure listings.
    • Texas - 79,683 foreclosure listings.
    • Georgia - 52,210 foreclosure listings.

It can be scary to invest in anything during a recession. We all carry visions of the great depression and bread lines and people selling apples. The idea of putting your money into anything other than your mattress can be frightening for some. However, real estate should never be looked upon as an ordinary investment.

Real estate is one of the few investments that we actually use and need. Everyone needs a place to live and call home. And real estate has systematically and quantifiably proven to have risen in value over the decades. Continue reading »

With falling prices and rising inventories, investors are finding themselves in the best buying position in almost a decade.

A recent polls by Reuters/Zogby tells us that it’s a good time to buy. And another poll by Associated Press and AOL also reveals that it’s a good time to buy but 60% of those polled won’t buy any real estate within the next two years.

The disparity is probably due to economic fears which are causing consumers to tighten their purse strings. The Reuters/Zogby poll said that nearly 75% of American’s believe the economy is in a recession right now, and almost 50% rated their personal financial situation as negative.

The AP/AOL poll said that nearly 14% of mortgage holders fear they will miss a mortgage payment soon. And 30% said they are concerned their home’s value will decrease within the next two years.

The important thing to remember is that you should stay focused on your local neighborhood and those of your real estate investments. Remember that real estate is primarily driven by local economic factors such as jobs, housing inventory, and supply and demand.

Real estate investment isn’t like any other kind of investment. Yes, at the core of all investments there’s money and risk involved. But the major difference is that in real estate investing, you are responsible for the work required to make a return on your investment.

If you want to be successful in real estate investing, there are some key pieces of information you need to know. This information holds true no matter what area of investing you get involved with. Continue reading »

Forbes recently released their list of the ten worst selling housing markets with very few surprises.  Topping the list was Miami, Florida where the glut of inventory continues to linger.

Of the 40 largest metropolitan markets analysed, not one market showed any sign of price appreciation.  With slow sales and dropping prices the aggressive investor may be able to pick off some very good deals in these markets.  Research, patience and a sharpened sense for value can land you a great investment.

Here are the ten worst markets according for Forbes: Continue reading »

There is no human invention more complex than the tax codes, and among the most complicated are the laws surrounding real estate investing.  So, what follows is NOT to be considered legal advice — consult your attorney or tax accountant before making any decisions.

Well, now that the rear is covered, what considerations should the real estate investor keep in mind?  Since laws vary between countries, and between states within the U.S., any general advice would be worthless.  But here are some particulars that apply in many areas. Continue reading »

There are literally thousands of books on real estate investing.  I myself have one of the largest collections of them known to mankind!  But seriously now, I do own a rather large bookshelf jammed full of real estate books, tapes, CDs and DVDs.

So I thought I would share my top 10 real estate investing books with you.  That’s not to say that I only have 10 favorites, becasue I could easily add another 10.  But for those of you looking for some good book recommendations, here they are:

• Investing in Real Estate, 5th Edition (Andrew James McLean)
• The Millionaire Real Estate Investor (Gary Keller)
• How to Make Millions in Real Estate in Three Years (T. Hicks)
• Real Estate Advantages (Sharon L. Lechter)
• Making Big Money Investing in Real Estate (Peter Conti)
• IRA Wealth (Patrick Rice)
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad (Robert T. Kiyosaki)
• Rich Dad’s Guide to Investing (Robert T. Kiyosaki)
• The Complete Guide to Real Estate Finance for Investment Properties (Steve Berges)
• What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know about Cash Flow (Frank Gallinelli)

I invite you to comment on my selection and add some of your favorites.

Happy reading!

Interestingly, the National Association of Realtors predicts a gradual recovery during the second half of 2008 as the mortgage situation improves.

I’m sure we would all love to see a recovery before the end of the year. But that remains to be seen given the current mortgage climate where more than 120 mortgage lenders have either filed bankruptcy or closed their doors all together.

We have seen home prices drop in most major markets with sales activity at its lowest level since at least the late 1980’s – around the same time the Savings and Loan Fraud Crisis hit its peak. Continue reading »

Roughly 20 percent of all U.S. home sales in March were “short sales” according to a real estate industry survey conducted by Washington-based Campbell Communications. According to their research, two-thirds of short sales are initiated by homeowners and one-third are launched by mortgage lenders (as a foreclosure alternative).

In a typical home transaction the seller gets final say on which buyer gets the home, but in a short sale the lender weighs in on that decision, since it’s the lender who won’t recoup 100 percent of the seller’s mortgage balance as in a “normal” home transaction.

Buying a Short Sale Can Be A Time-Consuming Process

It is important to know where the seller is in terms of discussions with the lender. The lender can drag the short-sale process on for a very long time. An offer may take anywhere from four to six weeks to get a response. But if the buyer is in the market to purchase a short-sale, then patience is going to be vital in order to pick up that good deal.

Reports of suspected mortgage fraud rose 42 percent last year as banks became more leery of lies on loan applications.

The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network said Thursday that there were 52,868 reports for mortgage fraud in 2007, up from 37,313 a year earlier. Mortgage fraud reports were the third-most common type of suspicious activity.

The most common type of mortgage fraud was misrepresentation of income or assets, followed by forged documents, misrepresentation of a borrowers’ intent to occupy a property as a primary residence occupancy fraud and inflated appraisals.

The Mortgage Bankers Association has called for more than $31 million over the next five years in new funding for the FBI and Justice Department to fight mortgage fraud, money that would go to new investigators and prosecutors.

This is just one of the reasons why most lenders today have pulled their stated-income loan programs, while others have raised the credit requirements to qualify for such loans.