Low Cost Home

You plan to build a home but aren’t sure this is the best moment? What should you take into consideration? Are there any indicators that this is an opportune moment for building a house? Larry Angell offers some helpful tips in his article, “Build A Home Now - Are You Crazy?” 

Have you considered building a home lately? Many people believe that a stagnating housing market points to rough financial times ahead so they tighten their belts and put their wallets away.

What most people don’t know is that a cooling market means cheaper building materials, cheaper labor, and faster construction times.

Housing for low-income wage earners is more affordable than it was just a few months ago. The prices for most kinds of building materials are falling which is great news for owner builders.

The housing market is taking a huge down turn. While that is bad news for the economy in general, it does create an advantage for those with low income who wish to build a home. That means that the prices for lumber, cement, and everything else is going down.

Wafer board has already dropped by about four dollars a sheet in the last few months. I predict it will reach a low of around ten dollars in the spring unless the housing market turns sharply around. It’s a fantastic time to be building your own home. The housing boom has been healthy for the economy, but not very good for those of us wanting to buy materials for a home.

Now it’s good for us and it will get even better.

As a rule of thumb, I always consider the price of wafer board to be a good indicator of the over all price of building materials. It is used for many different things in home construction.

For those people who don’t want to try to build their own home, the opportunity is still there because as the housing market slows down, there will be many contractors willing to work for less money. The availability of experienced contractors will increase in the months ahead.

So if you’ve been waiting for that perfect time to build a home and not break the bank, now is the time.

Larry Angell is the author of Sweat Equity, building a house at half cost. He is actively involved in helping people build homes that are high in equity. He teaches people with low income how to build homes without the help of contractors. Visit his site http://www.make-my-own-house.com

While buying a fixer upper home can save you a lot of money, that is only true if you know how to choose one. Following are some tips to help you find the right house to invest in.

Look for a Big Return on a Small Investment

A fixer upper is not a run-down home that needs a major overhaul. The best choice is one that needs only small repairs and improvements to significantly increase the property value. Do some research on curb appeal to discover what items to look for that can be easily fixed for little money.

Stay Under Your Budget

If you have ever done any remodeling, you know that there are always unforseen costs involved. Once you start tearing down and ripping up, you may find hidden problems that will require extra cost. By choosing a fixer upper whose initial cost and repair estimations are under your budget, you will come out ahead.

Write Down Everything That Needs to be Fixed

There are four areas that you want to consider - remodeling, renovating, refurbishing and repairs. Be as detailed as possible. Once your list is complete, groups them into those that must be done, those that might need to be done and those that can wait. Finally, rewrite the list in the order that you plan to accomplish them.

Get an Expert Opinion

Unless you’re a real estate expert yourself, it’s better to hire a qualified professional to investigate the house for needed repairs and renovations. Walk through the property with this person and ask questions as you go along. Have them provide you with a written list. Be sure to check the structure since problems are not always evident and reparis can be rather costly. You might even want to hire several professionals, each one for a specific aspect of the home.

Take Photos of the House

You can never be too sure that you haven’t overlooked anything about the house. And since you can’t bring your investment home, the next best thing to do is take as many photos as you can of each room of the house. Take at least four photos for every room (one for each side).  Remember to set the size of photos to its maximum capability. Take an extra memory card just in case you run out of memory. This way, you’ll be able to study each photo in detail at a later time. Get a friend to look over the photos with you. We often overlook things we ar accustomed to seeing. A new set of eyes may spot things you missed.

As you can tell, investing in a fixer upper home requires great caution. Thorough research and investigation are necessary to guarantee your investment brings you the highest return and provides you with a sound, comfortable home you can enjoy for many years.

Get your FREE copy of “The Eight Power Profit Secrets To Making More
Money With Less Risk In Today’s Real Estate Market” Fixer Upper Fortunes.

Pre-foreclosure sales allow the mortgagor in default to dispose of the property and, also, to use proceeds from the sale to pay off the mortgage debt, even if the proceeds may be less than the outstanding amount.

Often, it is best to buy pre-foreclosure properties from private homeowners as it allows the owner to get out from the mortgage without spoiling his or her credit rating and you, the buyer, may get below-the-market prices on the home.

It is important that you find up-to-date pre-foreclosure information and, then, act quickly. There are plenty of pre-foreclosure listings available. In addition, you need to check out several properties at the same time. It is highly probable that other people will be interested in the same home and may be able to offer a better deal.

To help you stay organized, create a system for keeping track of the many properties of interest to you. This can be as simple as a small notebook or an Excel document. Each time you find a home that interests you, note the address, location, owner’s name and telephone number, lender, title company and observations about the property. Also, keep record of any contact you have with the present owner.

Once you locate a property in pre-foreclosure, it makes sense to physically inspect the condition as well as check out the neighborhood and get a feel of how it is perceived by neighbors. As you draw nearer to closing a deal, you will want to hire a professional inspector. It does you no good to save a lot of money on the purchase of a house only to have to invest thousands in unforeseen repairs.

On a property entering pre-foreclosure, an owner has a couple of months in which to reinstate the property by paying up the outstanding amounts. Such a reinstatement prevents the foreclosure process; so, it makes sense to check whether the foreclosure property is reinstated or not, and this may be accomplished through a call to the trustee or attorney in charge of the foreclosure.

When approaching a homeowner who is being foreclosed on, remain humble and sensitive to the difficult time he or she is going through. Arrogance can only infuriate and cause them not to want to do business with you. Make them aware that you sincerly want to help them.

Pre-foreclosures are ideal for those wishing to buy a low cost home. It is really a win-win-win situation. The homeowner facing foreclosure is freed from his debt, the lender avoids a big expenses and a significant loss and you get a house at price well below the market.