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Swooping In at the Lower Prices

Posted Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Even while the rest of the country is suffering under the deflated economy and woeful real estate market situation, there will always be those individuals who can afford to purchase. And now, with the rock bottom home prices, the time to buy real estate has never been better. Real estate investors are being wooed to purchase more and more properties at a fraction of the cost they would have held during the booming years.

One example of the lure of deflated real estate costs can be found in South Florida. Here, home prices have dropped almost 27% in just the last 12 months alone, making the properties in this region an ideal purchase for any savvy real estate investor. With more and more people trying to get out from under their large mortgage bills to avoid foreclosure, these motivated sellers are putting their homes on the market for less, and closing on them for even lower.

Bargain hunting for properties in this area and other similar real estate markets where the prices have plummeted has never been easier. Better still, the smart investor knows that they can rent out the properties while the market is in its poor state. Once the market rebounds, these properties will be able to sell for a far greater price than they were bought, especially in areas like South Florida where the temperate climate is always one of the biggest selling points.

But what if you do not want to hold a bunch of real estate properties in your portfolio? The smart investor knows that they can purchase a house at a large discount, make a few upgrades and flip the house for a modest profit, should the need to diversify your portfolio arise. If the cash is needed right now, the real estate investor can make some simple upgrades to change the home, sell it quicker and still gain a profit, while holding on to the other properties that might yield a larger profit once the market rebounds.

Other investors are buying in bulk, just as though they were shopping at one of the bulk grocery outlets. Some buyers are purchasing bank owned homes and reselling them with little changes to gain a profit. Homes can be bought up to 50 properties at a time without ever stepping foot on the property. Once owned, these investors make only the necessary changes so the homes sell fast to turn a profit. Of course, this concept has been around for decades and the need to flip the house quickly is what will bring the investor the cash needed. But with the real estate market as low as it is now, those investors with the cash and knowledge to purchase properties can come out ahead as motivated sellers and buyers are anxious to capture a new home at a deeply discounted rate.

Who really reaps the rewards when suffering properties are purchased? The local neighbors and communities are the ones who are seeing the best results from these purchases. Empty homes are welcome signs for vagrants and drug dealers, while these purchased homes help to keep the neighborhood up and keep prices from falling any further.