Anyone ever tried to get a government grant?

[TrueRock&Roll]

My cousin and I are getting into real-estate.  I know that the government gives out grants to invest in it.  Just wondering if anyone has ever tried this before.  Written a business proposal and all that stuff. 

[Cornell]

That's what I do with faculty everyday - research grants.

[SLCPUNK]

My cousin and I are getting into real-estate.  I know that the government gives out grants to invest in it.  Just wondering if anyone has ever tried this before.  Written a business proposal and all that stuff. 

What are you going to do with the money?

[TrueRock&Roll]

I'm wanting to try getting into buying forclosures most likely.

[Cornell]

Why would the gov't give you money for that?

[TrueRock&Roll]

I've just been reading they do the real estate investing grants, just don't know what area of real estate you have to work with to get a grant.

[SLCPUNK]

What are you going to do with the foreclosures once you get them? Hold or flip?

Too many people are buying foreclosures today, and often they end up selling close to market. You really want to try and get them 30 percent under market to make good money. I wish I lived in Texas man, I'd be buying everything I could get my hands on for long term holds. The RE is friggin' cheap! There are tons of homes on the market and it is important to get the homes at great prices in order to make money.

My buddy made well over 100k a year flipping homes in one of the worst RE markets in Utah, during a lousy state wide recession. He made that money because he got the homes cheap, but then was able to turn around and sell them 10-20k under market. He made his money when he bought the house really, not when he sold it. But he also had a lot of wiggle room in case he could not move it right away. Wiggle room is so important, you do not want to buy a liability/money pit you can not get rid of. I've seen guys renting homes out they could not sell, and paying another 400 bucks a month for the privilege (since the rent did not cover the note.) That is ugly man..............and that is before factoring in vacancies and repairs.

My last two homes I got well under market (the last one more than 30 % under) and were not foreclosures. I got them before they even got to that point. The market has slowed a lot here now, but I am doing the same thing my buddy did in Utah. Selling way way under market, with plenty of wiggle room after that.

PM me if you would like to talk and I'll give you a link to a great investor forum I belong to, TONS of great information.

[Krispy Kreme]

I have applied for many research grants from the Feds. A couple of big ones (750K from NSF) never came through, but I have gotten numerous smaller type grants, from $3,000-5,000; and two bigger  grants for 45K and 60K.

I support 100% what SLCPUNK says about the housing market today. I would not be taking out loans in my name to buy foreclosed  properties today.  I think the trend in the housing market is still downward and we have not reached bottom yet.

In general, you should understand that federal grants are not "free money." Rather, they are highly competitive, and it is imperative that you follow the guidelines and do everything that is required. It  is  very bureaucratic  process, but professional, and it also takes a long time. That is my 2 cents, for what it is worth (no pun intended).

[SLCPUNK]

I think that is all you would get from investors at this point: lowballs. They are looking for people who are desperate and need out.

It depends on a lot of personal factors really. How much you owe, how badly you need to get out of the house, ARM adjusting and you have to dump the house now, divorce? Etc etc.

If it was just a matter of selling the thing and still making money I would consider a lease option. They are always winners for the seller and a great way to make top dollar in lousy markets. Believe it or not there is a pool of "buyers" out there who have lousy credit, but cash in hand. Willing to pay you a large down payment for a Lease Option purchase.

Grab that money (as much as you can), charge more than market rent, and sell at full price when the contract comes to and end. If they fail to pay you evict them just like tenants, and keep the option money, and start again. What is great is that you can still write the house off since legally you are the owner. You could also do a triple net lease and have the "buyer" pay the property taxes while living in the property.

I will flip for a while, and then slowly build up a number of homes that I offer as Lease Options for that reason, full market price or better in slow markets, with tax benefits at the same time. Also I think that people who do lease options are more inclined to take care of the home because they see it as "their home." Right now I need the money more quickly though.

I read that they think the market has hit the bottom here in Florida. It is much slower than last year, but I can not believe the responses/showings I have been getting lately. Much more than I ever imagined in such a "horrible" market.  But this area is much different than other red hot areas that were really expensive. My friends dad is getting burned hard in one of those markets in Jacksonville. Trying to sell a home for 900k, that they bought for 750k or so. Nobody will look at it. After repairs, upgrades, real estate agents, and eventually dropping the price they will lose money. If the bank doesn't take it back first.

[TrueRock&Roll]

I was also interested in buying condos in buildings in downtown houston, and then renting them out.  I know the values of these properties goes up pretty fast from what I've heard. What do you think about this idea SLCPunk?

[SLCPUNK]

Best to do your homework for the particular area. In Tampa for a while, condos were all the rage. Mainly because they were appreciating so fast. People were buying them pre construction and then selling them the day they were finished and making an easy 50k. Those days are long gone, in most cities.

Some condos are strict about renting vs. owner occupied for starters. The main thing you have to consider about condos is that you have competition all around you, literally. Say you bought your condo 100 percent financed. And the guy next to you bought his cash, he can lower his rent with no problem to fill a vacancy, but you can not, or you won't break even. Also more than likely you will not break even anyway after HOA, and taxes. You have to put a large chunk of money down to create positive cash flow on a property.

I see this with new condos in South Tampa right now. Same complex, same sq ft bed/baths and totally different prices. One guy is asking 1500 a month and the condo right next to his is asking 1100 month. Which is completely creaming the first guy. KILLING him. Nobody in their right mind is going to rent the same place for a higher amount. See what I mean? So now, what is the first guy going to do? He is forced by the market to lower his rental price or face paying the note for a unit to stay empty.

Those are some of the things to keep in mind.

Negative cash flow is usually frowned on (owing money after the renter pays) but I have done it before. When a market is swinging up fast (like we saw the last few years) and you get out at the right time it can pay off. But like all things that come to an end (dotcom crash etc) somebody is going to get stuck holding the bag. And trust me, there are tons of people holding the bag right now. People (regardless of income levels and price range of home) who thought these homes would continue to go up forever, and everybody would be rich. Individuals who paid full market price for homes, accepting the negative cash flow (in some cases huge negative cash flow) for the payoff at the end of rental contract. But the RE market came to a halt and they are now stuck with a property that is worth the same or less, with a renter, that just so happens to hemorrhage money at the same time. Talk about a reality check.

Again, all areas are different, but if you are buying something with the hopes you can make an easy 20-50k in appreciation in a year, I doubt it is going to happen at this point. I would advise against it. Unless of course you can snag a pre-foreclosure condo for 30 percent under market or more, than rent it for a year or flip it. Even with that I?d be very careful, because some markets are dropping prices significantly, so catching something for ?30 percent under market? may not mean shit, if the prices are going down. I don?t know much about Houston other than it seems cheaper and has not been totally outrageous compared to other cities in the country.

My main advise would be: BE CAREFUL, don?t panic buy, and ask lots of questions.

[TrueRock&Roll]

can you send me a link to those forums you were talking about.  And do you have yahoo messenger or anything like that?

[SLCPUNK]

can you send me a link to those forums you were talking about.  And do you have yahoo messenger or anything like that?

PM sent.

[SLCPUNK]

Existing Home Sales Rise, Prices Fall

WASHINGTON

Sales of existing homes posted a tiny increase in October, the first gain in eight months, but the median price of homes sold last month fell by a record amount.

The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday that existing home sales edged up 0.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.24 million. It marked the first sales increase since February. However, the median, or midpoint, price for a home sold dropped to $221,000 in October, a decline of 3.5 percent from a year ago. That was the biggest year-over-year price decline on record. It marked the third straight month that home prices have fallen compared to the same period a year ago, the longest stretch of such declines on record.

[Krispy Kreme]

I was also interested in buying condos in buildings in downtown houston, and then renting them out.? I know the values of these properties goes up pretty fast from what I've heard. What do you think about this idea SLCPunk?

Condos are much harder to sell, or to flip, than single  family homes. Plus the profit  margin is less, unless you are buying and selling luxury condos.

[SLCPUNK]

I was also interested in buying condos in buildings in downtown houston, and then renting them out.  I know the values of these properties goes up pretty fast from what I've heard. What do you think about this idea SLCPunk?

Condos are much harder to sell, or to flip, than single  family homes. Plus the profit  margin is less, unless you are buying and selling luxury condos.

The article I read about RE in Fla yesterday was very interesting. It said that the home prices had not fallen in Tampa (while other FL Cities had.) Condos on the other hand had gone down and sales of those condos were down 50 percent!

[TrueRock&Roll]

I was also interested in buying condos in buildings in downtown houston, and then renting them out.  I know the values of these properties goes up pretty fast from what I've heard. What do you think about this idea SLCPunk?

Condos are much harder to sell, or to flip, than single  family homes. Plus the profit  margin is less, unless you are buying and selling luxury condos.

The article I read about RE in Fla yesterday was very interesting. It said that the home prices had not fallen in Tampa (while other FL Cities had.) Condos on the other hand had gone down and sales of those condos were down 50 percent!

WOW. that's a crazy loss of value.  What the hell would cause them to go down 50 percent?

[SLCPUNK]

They were overpriced.

[TrueRock&Roll]

They are definately high as hell.  I know a guy who lives in one in Fort Worth, Texas.  It's 800 sq feet 1 bed 1 bath and it's $210,000.  and that's obviously not a luxury condo.  Very very expensive for what you're actually getting.