Prosper Newsletter: June 2006 > Real Estate

You understand that the following information is educational in nature and is not intended to be legal, accounting, or tax advice. You are responsible for your own financial decisions and should consult your own legal, accounting, and tax advisors before making your financial decisions.

California Woman Turns No Job, Real Estate Skill To Well Over $1.7 Million Net Worth!

I sold out all of my land on short term cap gains and made some great money. I never built a home with the builder because the land appreciated so fast that I didn't need to take the risk. I sold the larger parcel (20 acres) for a profit of $70,000 in one month! And I bought 100 acres in the same area for $367,000 which is now listed for sale at the long term capital gains rate (15%) of $779,000. I hope to sell it this summer. My net worth went from under $300,000 to over $1,700,000 as one big huge gain, and I sold my personal residence a condo and bought a over a million dollar house.

I also used my contacts in real estate to join a financing company and am now the Executive Vice President of Commercial Lending for a boutique financing company in Beverly Hills. I have closed $26,000,000 in commercial loans to date and intent on closing with my business partner here, $100,000,000 in the next 12 months.

BTW-when I first started I had no job, no 'marketable skills' and for sure was hanging on by a thread in the old bank account.

Blessings, let me know if I can do anything else for you. I am a big huge fan of Prosper.

Thanks,

- Georgia R.
Los Angeles, CA


Tip of the Month

Beware pro forma statements about what rents "could be" when buying rental property to hold for cash flow. It's very common for sellers of rental property to say that the rents are low and could be raised or to speculate on other expenses. They then try to charge a price based on their speculation instead of one based on the current reality. We want to buy at a price that's based on what is … and not on what could be. We may in fact be able to raise rents now or in the future and that rent raise will benefit us and will potentially add to our equity position in the property. When you buy a property based on pie in the sky pro forma projections, you gamble on the accuracy of their often aggressive predictions.

In addition to basing value on past and current performance rather than projected future performance, you need to verify the numbers and other information they give you about current and past performance. You can do that by asking to see copies of tax returns that show expenses and profits of the building (their own schedule E or the relevant portion of their entity's tax return. You may also want to view and verify utility bills and property tax statements to make sure the numbers are accurate and to look for upcoming changes noted on statements that may affect you as the new owner. Be sure to review every lease that is currently in place. If you buy the property you will be bound by the terms in the old agreement as long as that agreement remains in force. It may also be a good idea to get Estoppel Certificates (or something similar) to certify things like tenants, rent rates, any concessions or allowances being offered etc. so such surprises are minimized after we purchase the property.

Rental property can be very financially rewarding for those that learn the ropes and approach it carefully. It can also be a quick ticket to financial hardship and management headaches for those that shoot from the hip and follow the "ready … fire … aim" approach to finding and buying rental property. Remember that doing a little homework on the front end of a deal can save thousands of dollars and many sleepless nights down the road!

e-Property Office

One Location For A Complete Marketing Program.

When we get asked what exactly is included with eProperty Office we often respond with "how long do you have?"

eProperty Office is literally a single source for everything you will need to market your real estate investing business. It is a complete center for creating, launching and managing your marketing efforts both on and offline, including a web site administration area, contact management, access to complimentary marketing materials, creation of your personal brand and marketing resources.

What eProperty Office includes - the short version:

The program is truly feature packed - for the long version, click here and you will be able to view a complete list of features.

eProperty Office is simple!

You're busy finding and doing deals. You know you need to market yourself more effectively, but you're not sure exactly how. You're afraid of wasting huge amounts of money and time to create marketing strategies that may or may not work and you keep putting it off because you want to focus on deals. Don't worry about it. We've made it SO easy and fast to be off and running with your marketing campaign. We know you'll love it and we know you'll thank us, like all our satisfied customers have.

eProperty Office's online strategies actually work!

If you are not online, you are missing out on almost 80% of potential deals! It's that simple. According to a recent study conducted by the National Association of Realtors, nearly 78% of people buying OR selling begin their search for property online. That means that if you don't have a website, you are ignoring more than three-quarters of the market!

You simply cannot afford to not be online!

But just throwing a website online isn't enough to ensure your success. There is an art and a science to effective web sites. Fortunately for you, we've cracked the code and know EXACTLY what it takes to create a successful and powerful web site for real estate investors and we're passing those secrets on to you through your own professional web site.

Our sites give you instant credibility and have everything you need for a successful Internet strategy, including:

For more info