TheLadders: Find a Great Job Today!

Real Estate

10-Year Treasury Yields Under 2% – What to Do?

May 13, 2012

A quick look at the market shows something fascinating: stocks continue higher while the 10-year Treasury yield creeps back to below 2%. Last week, yields on the 10-year Treasury fell to 1.84%. We seem poised to return to 10-year yields consistent with yields during the worst of Greek debt crisis fears. So what’s up with [...]

Read the full article →

Real Estate Update: Tenants Breaking a Lease – Lawyer Says We’re Screwed

March 14, 2012

A few months ago, I highlighted the college real estate deal I did with a partner whereby I borrowed from my 401(k) to finance a decent-sized deal on 5 houses on a college campus.  At the time we bought, we had assurances (and signed leases) that the houses were all booked for the upcoming 2012-13 [...]

Read the full article →

Mortgage Activity Gone Wild Due Record Low Rates – Are You Taking Advantage?

January 19, 2012

Last week, there was a 20% surge in mortgage activity driven primarily by refinancing activity from record low rates.  The mortgage banker’s association said seasonally adjust refinances were up 26% while home purchase loan activity was up 10%.   Something’s Working   While I tend to be skeptical of reports indicating the economy is improving/growing [...]

Read the full article →

No Cost Refinance – A No-Lose Financial Move?

January 8, 2012

A no-cost refi is starting to make more sense to me now that I’ve read more about it, and I was especially surprised to see the number of no-cost refinance companies out there.  I’ve been contemplating a refi for some time now and had initially put it off due to the exorbitant fees involved in [...]

Read the full article →

Here’s What Happens When You Rent to College Kids

December 21, 2011

This picture pretty much says it all. Recently, I highlighted how AFTER we closed, the insurance company for our college rental properties came out and whipped up a bunch of costly repairs we would have to undertake or else we’d lose our coverage – which in turn would have the bank revoke our loan.  So, [...]

Read the full article →

Surprise! Here’s how the ROI on Your Real Estate Investment Can Crumble AFTER You Buy It

November 30, 2011

A few months back, I’d shared the details on a real estate investment I made with a partner where the overall deal seemed quite favorable.  The cash on cash return was estimated at ~15-20% conservatively, we had a good property manager staying on from the prior seller, the prospects in the area looked good for [...]

Read the full article →

Even at 3.25%, Refinancing Makes NO SENSE! Here’s Why

October 16, 2011

There’s an old rule of thumb that if you can refinance at an interest rate 1% or more below your current rate, it’s a good deal.  That advice is too broad and may not be true in many circumstances.  It doesn’t take into account so many factors like how far into the current loan you [...]

Read the full article →

My Foray into College Real Estate – Animal House 2011

August 28, 2011

I’ve mentioned a pending real estate deal a partner and I have been working on for a while.  I thought I’d give a quick update on how we came upon this opportunity, what we’ve done to date, what’s left to do to close the deal and all the lessons learned along the way.  To recap, [...]

Read the full article →

Renters Are Deluding Themselves – Here’s Why

August 16, 2011

It’s en vogue now to be “anti-homeownership” given the recent crash in home prices and all the shenanigans the mortgage companies, banks and Wall street firms pulled over the past several years.  People tend to use the recency effect and confirmation bias to formulate their opinions which dictate important lifestyle and financial decisions. Before you [...]

Read the full article →

I’m Borrowing $50,000 From My 401(k) – It’s My Best Option!

August 14, 2011

There are tons of articles out there waring about the dire consequences of borrowing from your 401(k) – you know, not earning money on the withdrawn amount, double taxation, early withdrawal penalties and having to repay immediately if separate from the company…I’m going to lay out why my particular situation and outline why none of [...]

Read the full article →

← Previous Entries