Invest In Real Estate - But Where?

Where should you invest in real estate? If you know an area well, and have enough experience investing in real estate, you can make money almost anywhere. However, there are always places that are better or worse for real estate investments - places that have a better demand/supply ratio. Use the questions below to find them.

Demand Questions

1. Is the population growing fast? Check the US Census figures online, or ask the local government if they have the statistics. Stay away from areas that have little growth.

2. Is job growth decent? Again, ask local authorities or use the census information. You want to see job growth equal to or exceeding population growth. The people have to have money to pay for housing.

3. Decent quality of life? This is subjective, but important. Are there theaters and bookstores? Count coffee shops and cafes. Trendy areas usually have increasing demand for housing. It's also a good indication of a high quality-of-life if people are willing to take lower-paying jobs just to live there.

4. Wealth in the area? It is always a good sign when there is some degree of wealth in a town. Count rich homes. Wealth means everything doesn't die when the economy slows.

Supply Questions

1. How much new construction? The census figures can tell you what's happened over the last ten years. Then check with the local authorities to see if the the number of housing units they've issued permits for is more or less than the expected population growth.

2. How many homes for sale? A lower supply of homes for sale means upward pressure on prices. This indirectly drives up rents as well, which makes for better investing.

3. Rent and vacancy levels? Are rents high enough to justify investing? Are vacancies low? When we first came to Tucson, every building had vacancies, and we saw a man holding a sign that read, "Apartment - $250 Per Month." Great place for renters, but not a great place to invest in real estate.

4. Available land that is buildable? Less is better for future appreciation. When the land runs out, the prices start accelerating upwards.

Use these questions to compare various towns and cities, and you'll see the differences more clearly. You'll see how housing demand compares to supply in each. Finally, you'll see where it is better to invest in real estate.

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

MORE RESOURCES:

Leading Real Estate Company Announces Over $1 Billion in New ... - MarketWatch

Realtors Say Foreigners Hold Key to Real Estate Revival - FOXNews

Real Estate Market Slumps, Showhomes Soars - MarketWatch

Investment Regimes for Indian Real Estate Sector Explored - MarketWatch

Moody#39;s: Commercial real estate prices rise - CNNMoney.com

Winston amp; Strawn Continues Growth; Adds 19 Litigation, Corporate ... - MarketWatch

Architects see drop in real estate design contracts - Los Angeles Times

Target shareholder revises real estate proposal - The Associated Press

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Commercial Real Estate Debt Index Plummets - Wall Street Journal

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-0fd=Rurl=http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122703851606838297.html%3Fmod%3Dgooglenews_wsjcid=1271977795ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNHZjqD51AsNKckaQuFyYyGFb5FuuACommercial bReal Estate/b Debt Index Plummets/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fWall Street Journalnbsp;-/font nobrNov 18, 2008/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1By PRABHA NATARAJAN WASHINGTON -- A commercial breal estate/b debt index plummeted Tuesday after a Credit Suisse research report warned that two loans included b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-1fd=Rurl=http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSN1933428520081119cid=1271977795ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNGWnc_8-c19Hy10s8oO1r_-xG9mYwUPDATE 1-Economy, TARP conspire against commercial mortgages/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrReuters/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-2fd=Rurl=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news%3Fpid%3D20601087%26sid%3Da7v3wNC8x9WA%26refer%3Dhomecid=1271977795ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNE5zr_vuM2fPdp-77y21_aQk95umwWestin, Promenade Commercial Mortgages Near Default (Update2)/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrBloomberg/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-3fd=Rurl=http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN1826572220081118cid=1271977795ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNENeDu1L94PqZ80ZYBDwqR1RM9-nwUPDATE 1-Big CMBS loans seen near default, index yields soar/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrReuters/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-4fd=Rurl=http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122703851606838297.html%3Fmod%3Dspecial_page_campaign2008_mostpopcid=1271977795ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNFL1vijsI4HfqALmKOBz6Vqj1E_2AnobrWall Street Journal/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-5fd=Rurl=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news%3Fpid%3D20601087%26sid%3Da0GR3cE_UyEE%26refer%3Dhomecid=1271977795ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNEte43DpxziM2SDXO2WKf04fNJLYwnobrBloomberg/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1271977795hl=ennobrall 31 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Artis Real Estate Investment Trust announces monthly cash distribution - FOXBusiness

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-0fd=Rurl=http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/industries/finance/artis-real-estate-investment-trust-announces-monthly-cash-distribution-319904495/cid=1272287796ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNFYb-vZtsY9XaPnqk5YP3amSgSXvwArtis bReal Estate/b Investment Trust announces monthly cash distribution/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fFOXBusinessnbsp;-/font nobr8 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Artis is a growth-oriented breal estate/b investment trust focused exclusively on commercial properties located in primary and growing secondary markets in b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-1fd=Rurl=http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D2192:amid-global-economic-slowdown-investors-are-well-advised-to-train-their-sights-on-real-estate-%26catid%3D47:propertiescid=1272287796ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNFdqMUi5sess6BkkNuKvque4eehlg‘Amid global economic slowdown, investors are well-advised to b.../b/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrBusiness Mirror/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-2fd=Rurl=http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/November2008/19/c2246.htmlcid=1272287796ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNG3C4_pDtIVDuJ-wz9ukzmXQkUcUQCrombie REIT announces monthly distribution/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrCanada NewsWire (press release)/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-3fd=Rurl=http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/industries/finance/investors-real-estate-trust-announces-increase-regular-quarterly-common-share-1154743513/cid=1272287796ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNEHELpEZhNXq3y_NaVaWbxVlsiouAInvestors bReal Estate/b Trust Announces Increase in Regular b.../b/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrFOXBusiness/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-4fd=Rurl=http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/industries/finance/holloway-lodging-real-estate-investment-trust-announces-monthly-distribution-1482787386/cid=1272287796ei=OGQlSemiOZ_S9QScn6G0AQusg=AFQjCNH_XBQPBOgfBDX3jhzi8t5l1sQKTAnobrFOXBusiness/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1272287796hl=ennobrall 24 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Real-Estate - Google News

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