The Investor Insights » Random Observations

Hater, Hater Bo Bater Banana Fana Fo Fater

lassiter — Wed, 19 May 2010 20:06:27 +0000

I love me some Tim Ferris. The 4 Hour Work Week is one of my favorite business books and although I personally don’t think that outsourcing my entire life is the best course of action for me, I have incorporated some of his strategies to

Gimme a Sign

lassiter — Tue, 18 May 2010 23:19:46 +0000

The following is a true story. If you are easily offended, please click away now. OK, don’t say I didn’t warn you… Earlier this week, a friend of mine, Shae Bynes, told me that she was finally quitting her day job

My Mentor is in Prison

lassiter — Mon, 03 May 2010 18:13:15 +0000

I’ve always had a voracious appetite for learning. Back in the early ‘90’s I started researching stock trading and real estate investing. I read everything I could get my hands on and eventually settled on one mentor who taught BOTH real estate investing and stock investing.

Benefits of Investing in Mobile Home Parks and Mobile Homes

lassiter — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 18:29:18 +0000

Right now the single family home real estate market is over saturated with investors and buyers. If you have not looked into mobile home parks and mobile home investing, now is a great time to do so. Here are just a few good reasons why you should invest in mobile

Investment Property Flood Insurance and Tax Deductions Update

lassiter — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 18:38:55 +0000

On April 15, 2010, President Obama signed legislation passed by Congress to renew the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through May 31, 2010. The Plan expired on March 28, 2010. As a result of the lapse of coverage, many real estate transactions were delayed or canceled. The law requires that any real property located in a 100 year floodplain must have flood insurance. Flood insurance is required by all lenders. The Senate is working on a similar bill as well. Since natural disasters cost communities, real estate owners and insurers considerable amounts of money, insurers have responded by raising premiums or declining coverage. The government needs to play a role in property insurance to help homeowners and buyers/investors who need to obtain flood and disaster relief coverage when it’s not available in certain areas or is cost prohibitive to them. The NFIP provides this coverage to property owners who are ineligible or cannot afford the coverage. Without this assistance, there are many real estate buyers/investors who will not be able to get mortgages to buy homes and investment rental properties. The NFIP also updates the Flood Insurance Maps that are used to designate which areas are located in floodplains. You need to do your due diligence to find out if your investment property is located in a floodplain or other natural hazards area. Then you can make a decision by checking rates of different insurers to decide which policy you are going to purchase. It’s important to buy the right coverage to protect your investments. We all know too well the effects of floods. They can happen anywhere anytime from heavy rainfall, hurricanes, snow melting, dams and levees breaking or drainage that is inadequate. Floods are more common than any other natural disaster. Statistics show that most property owners do not carry adequate coverage to replace the damage that floods cause. Emergency Preparedness Check your investment rental property for leaks and make repairs. This can save

H.R. 2454 The American Clean Energy and Security Act

lassiter — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 16:34:14 +0000

There has been a lot of confusion about H.R. 2454, The American Clean Energy and Security Act. In fact some of the biggest “names” in real estate investing were announcing a few weeks ago that it was pretty much the end of the world as we know it. The original bill has improved a bit and credit should be given to the National Association of Realtors who were instrumental in making positive changes to excluding existing real estate from the bill. Changes to the House approved bill include: * The bill does not create a federal energy audit requirement for real property; * Existing homes and buildings are exempt under the federal guidelines for new construction energy efficiency information labels. * No labeling may be done during a sales transaction. * States can decide if they want to require energy audits, disclosures, etc. * Property owners can take advantage of significant financial incentives such as matching grants to make energy improvements to their property and reduce their energy bills; * The EPA is prohibited from regulating residential and commercial real estate under the Clean Air Act; * Eliminated a provision allowing individuals to sue over minor climate risks under the Clean Air Act; and * Establishes green building incentives for HUD housing which includes grants, loan and credits for renewable energy upgrades. What’s in Store? This bill has been passed in the House. The bill now goes on to be voted on in the Senate. Once the Senate passes the bill, then the House-Senate conference committee will meet to reconcile the differences so the law can be enacted.

Paulson and Soros Get a Bail Out

lassiter — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:31:21 +0000

Have you ever wondered why loan modifications are so hard to get? This video might shed some light on the true motivation for banks NOT to do loan modifications. You’ll see how One West Bank (the bank that “bought” the assets of Indy Mac Bank) makes a guaranteed profit on every short sale courtesy of the FDIC.

Two interesting things: