What is Real Estate

Writen by Vince Barnes

In light of the Valencia Land Grab Law is the Valencia Region worth investing in?

Many have invested in previous years and have seen terrific returns on their money. For example a property bought 4 years ago has grown in value by some 300%. However in light of the recent coverage of LRAU – Valencia's land grab law – is Valencia a safe place to buy?

What is LRAU?

LRAU is a law ratified in 1994 to release land for development for social good. Initially the Law was drafted with good intentions. One of the fundamental powers it bestows is expropriation – compulsory purchase, of the property and it is this area where much of the abuse occurs.

LRAU ONLY applies Rustic Land (Suelo Rustico). If you live on urbano land you will not be affected.

Development in Valencia and the role LRAU plays.

The Valencian economy has thrived on Agriculture, textiles, ceramics, fishing and shipping. However, recent years have seen a dramatic reliance on tourism and construction. Fuelled primarily by foreigners seeking a "cheap" place in the Sun, a development boom has taken place to the detriment of these industries.

The textiles industry is facing stiff competition from cheap Chinese imports – witness recent reports of €70M worth of textile imports into Valencia and in Elche demonstrations held against the import of cheap Chinese shoes.

The Citrus industry is under threat from its own government by the introduction of the Golf Law and has been wholeheartedly welcomed by the Valencian Government – although the existence of such a law was emphatically denied by Rafael Blasco until his own office leaked a report to the press.

So what?

The introduction of this law and its association with LRAU brings the threat from the costal areas inland. Why – because there is little land left there to site a golf course by the coasts anymore. Where do the developers now look to build – Inland.

The basic premise of the law is that it gives carte blanche permission to build golf courses and adjoining urbanisations. But the building of these is likely to be the core of the next regional elections in order to maintain any sort of economic activity, since all other factors are in decline. The proposed golf law makes it possible to use rustic and even protected land, for this "high social purpose", which would be of interest to very few property owners, let alone the current population.

So what again?

Town halls have already proven largely incompetent of making decisions. Benissa is in debt to the tune of €33M, growing by around €3M annually. The Valencia region €10Bn and growing at €500M annually. These figures illustrate fiscal imprudence by those very offices who would be given more powers – perhaps to fill their ever decreasing coffers to landowners detriment.

More seriously – town halls have proven to be innately corrupt. For example, in Pego the former mayor has been in prison for such offences. The mayors of Javea and Fleix have been reported for reclassifying land on which they owned a substantial amount.

Conflict of interest? You bet there is.

Is it not somewhat worrying the very people who have previously shown such dereliction of duty are now being given even more power to abuse their electorate?

Where does LRAU fit in?

What is a "poor" town hall to do? Little money from Central Government, rising debts, declining tourism and industries dying rapidly. The previous solution of devaluing the Peseta is no longer an option.

The quick fix solution lies in re-classifying agricultural land and making it suitable for building. Once town halls apply for reclassification they expropriate land from the owners and ensure the development goes ahead.

Inland we're all right Jack – aren't we…?

Think so? Ask yourself this question

Where could you place a golf course?

Take a look at the greenery around that give so much pleasure. How long before you'll be looking onto the first tee from your new apartment you involuntarily swapped for your nice house and beautiful orchard?

Is it likely to happen?

There are plans to build a further 67 further golf courses in the Valencia region. Already 30+ are awaiting approval. Where are these golf courses going to go?

More worryingly, should the construction industry fail, then the Valencian Economy will falter. And this will have dire consequences.

So the Valencian government pushed by promoters and constructors have a vested interest, if not an absolute need, to promote development and overcome the resistance of owners who naturally, if naively, believe what they invested their live savings in, is actually theirs. Shouldn't landowners realise the benefit to the community as a whole and make their "social contribution", even if the community turns out to be developers and cash strapped town halls

Who are the main players and how do they benefit?

There are 4 main players
1. The Local Town Hall – Benefit short term from building licences long term, more local taxes
2. The Generalitat of Valencia – Building and sales tax
3. The Developer/Promoter – benefit from exceptional profits. The more landowners are charged the more profit, setting aside prime land and later selling this
4. The Land Owner – The increase in value after urbanisation compensates for lost land and fees paid – well it does if you believe the Hype. But what if the land owners wish to remain? – how do they benefit?

The Process – how it should be

• The Town Hall decide they need more land
• The Land Owners are informed about plans
• The Town Hall request permission from the Generalitat of Valencia
• The Generalitat of Valencia order a feasibility and Environmental impact study
• Once complete they grant permission to Reclassify
• The Town Hall inform The Owners and announce plans in local, regional, National press and the European Journal (in accordance with EU contract law for public service contracts) in order to ensure competitive tenders
• Once tenders submitted The Town Hall select winning Developer based on price, ability, financial solvency etc
• The plans are announced to The Owners who have an opportunity to respond
• The Owners can present an opposing plan
• The Owners are presented with the bill and how much land they will lose
• The urbanisation proceeds

What actually happens?

In most cases the above procedure is completely ignored - owners are told about the plans once approved and then have 18 days to respond. Many are absent or don't speak the language, so don't know until it's too late. Town Halls make no attempt to inform the owners - it isn't in their interests.

Environmental impact studies are seldom conducted leading to water shortages, immense traffic and parking problems, sewerage and rubbish. Most towns have a problem dealing with current rubbish let alone added future burden.

These studies are important for the rights of residents to basic services. Isn't this what living in a European Country grants us?

EU contract law is continually flouted. Town Halls DO NOT announce plans nor make them available for competitive tender. Where there is no competition the cost is highly inflated and questionable.

This impact on costs owners pay and the land they lose.

And where is the social benefit - the reason for enforcing LRAU – oh yes green areas, new shiny town offices, police stations – to deal with the influx of new residents, who've paid a tidy sum to developers who ultimately profit along with Town Halls.

And the landowners. Why should anyone care about them – weren't they stupid enough to buy a plot of rustic land and who cares if every law to protect them has been broken in the process.

Well actually we all should because by doing nothing we are helping to promote these abuses.

This article is continued read article "Land Grab Abuses - LRAU PT 2, or to see the article in its entirety visit http://www.spanishproperty-direct.co.uk/article_LRAU.htm

Vince Barnes is the owner of http://www.SpanishProperty-Direct.co.uk – a website aimed at informing buyers about the process of buying in Spain and keeping up to date with news and regulations affecting the Spanish Property Market. He has also just published the book – "The Insiders Secret Guide To Buying A Property In Spain – The Book Estate Agents Don't Want You To Read" – available at http://www.spanishproperty-direct.co.uk/book.htm.

Writen by Will Daly

All the problems that the insurance industry has experienced recently are now adversely affecting home owners. And I don't just mean in the way of higher insurance premiums. Because insurance companies have been hammered with claims they are now forced to look extra hard at which properties they will insure and they are denying coverage on more and more homes sometimes AFTER the homeowner has closed on the purchase of the home. When a soon to be new home owner applies for hazard insurance many companies are reviewing the home's history to learn what claims if any had been filed or paid in the past. These companies then base their decision as to whether or not they will insure that home on that history.

If you are in the market to buy a home, here is a quick list of things you should do to protect your interests:

1. Require the Seller to provide you with a written five-year premises claims history from their insurance company OR a Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) report (with any reference to date of birth or social security number obscured) as a condition to your purchasing the home. Require that this be provided during the home inspection period which is USUALLY the first ten days following acceptance of the sales contract between Buyer and Seller. Share the report with your insurance provider and discuss any findings.

2. Submit your insurance application as soon as possible, ask questions and obtain written confirmation of the availability and cost of homeowner's insurance for the premises.

3. Laws in some states allows an insurer to CANCEL a new insurance policy based upon the condition of the property after an inspection of that property. For this reason, confirm that the insurer conducts any inspections BEFORE the expiration of the home inspection period mentioned above. If you discover EARLY in the home purchase process that the insurer found conditions which warrant unusually high premiums or denial of coverage altogether then your Realtor will still have time to either get you out of the deal or negotiate that the Seller correct the conditions at his or her expense vs. yours.

4. Make sure that your Realtor negotiates that you may cancel the contract without penalty in the event that the claims history contains any adverse information that would prevent you from obtaining insurance.

By now you probably recognize that insurance issues alone can truly complicate a real estate transaction and potentially hurt you financially. Do yourself a favor and hire a seasoned and experienced Realtor.

Will Daly, a Realtor with RE/MAX Excalibur in Phoenix and owner of the marketing labels http://WeKnowUrban.com/, http://CondosPhx.com/, and http://WillDaly.com/, combines years of experience, a thorough understanding of current real estate markets, and cutting edge technology to provide his clients the best advice for proven results. He specializes in Loft and High Rise Development/Sales and Condo Conversions. You may reach him directly at (480) 510-8755 or by visiting one of his web sites.

Writen by Luigi Frascati

Predicting the future is always a risky business, often confused with prophecy.

But whether prophecy is in fact in a broad sense the prediction of future events, it often implies the involvement of supernatural phenomena, whether it is communication with a deity, the reading of magical signs, or astrology. Conversely, in a scientific context, a prediction is a rigorous, often quantitative statement forecasting what will happen under specific conditions. This is the reason why Economists generally speaking prefer to substitute the expression 'anticipatory forecast' to the term 'prediction'. Anticipatory forecasts enable Economists to make quantitative predictions on the basis of probability – and with no need to use a crystal ball. Economics is, afterall, the science concerned with the study of human activities involved in meeting needs and wants within the context of the equilibrium between scarcity and wealth. John Maynard Keynes (1883–1946) once remarked that "Economics is the science of thinking".

There are in the making at this very moment three socio-economic variables that are destined to forever change the way we think of residential real estate in North America. This is so because all these three events will profoundly impact consumers' demand for housing products. Ultimately, the basis for the real estate market is the demand by households, businesses, governments and institutions for space and shelter to conduct activities. Consequently, as demand changes in direct function of human activities and economic and demographic variables, conditions within the real estate market change. The variables that will affect demand for residential housing products in the next few years are:

[ ] Cost of energy.

[ ] Aging population.

[ ] Globalization.

[ ] Cost of Energy

Prices of gasoline are higher today anywhere from twenty to twenty-five percent than they were in 2004 and there is looming on the horizon the expectation that price of crude will top the $80 per barrel in the relatively near future. Researchers peg the cost per bbl at a staggering US $100 by 2010. If this condition will occur, the average consumer will pay $50 for a tank fill up in 2010 as opposed to $25 today. Additionally, the oil industry anticipates that the world global output will have peaked by the year 2015, which then is a sure sign that from then on the US $100 per bbl. price tag will be there to stay for a very long time. Those dramatic increases, former Feds Chairman Alan Greenspan declared almost a year ago, will create a significant drag on economic growth

The silver lining, added Greenspan, is that as oil gets more and more expensive other technologies that use less oil will become more and more competitive. And that seems to be exactly the case. Hydrogen fuel cells, ethanol from vegetable matters, solar cells, wind power, synthetic gasoline from coal – all could make a dent once they are available in sufficient quantities. But the real question is: are we moving fast enough? As consumers we need time to make adjustments – often very expensive ones – to the new technologies. Not everyone can afford to junk a two-year old SUV to buy a new hybrid.

Likewise, most people can't afford to abandon houses built in developments 100 miles out in the countryside at a time when oil was cheap. And although governments, energy and power companies are investing in new technologies, they can't create a massive new infrastructure overnight. The problem with the free market, as it has been always the case, is that while it may sort out things over the long run, people have to cope in the short run. As a direct and proximate consequence, therefore, the likelihood is high that we may have to endure a tremendous amount of economic and social hardship that could have been averted had we acted sooner.

In light of the foregoing, cities in North America, which are already energy inefficient, are destined to become even more and more so. It is going to cost too much to commute from one side of town, where you live, to the other side of town, where you work, even if you carpool or use public transit. It will become too expensive to heat and light 2,500 square foot homes when, in fact, most people can enjoy them only in their free time over the week-end. A recent study undertaken on behalf of the US Department of Energy details that home heating costs can be expected to skyrocket in the forthcoming years. For example, the Department of Energy predicts that homes heated with natural gas could see their fuel costs explode by as much as 48 percent by 2007. And the cost of home heating oil could surge by up to 32 percent.

It is the general consensus of those involved in economic anticipatory forecasting, therefore, that by the end of the decade consumers will mostly demand smaller living quarters, and more affordable.

[ ] Aging Population

Ever since the first baby of the post-Second World War generation arrived in the world, Baby-boomers have influenced every aspect of society and have pretty much had and done things their own way. But now the 'boomers' are getting old. In just five years' time 77-million Baby-boomers will start collecting Social Security benefits in the United States. In eight years they will start collecting Medicare benefits. By the time they are all retired the US will have doubled the size of its elderly population but increased by only 18 percent the number of workers able to pay for seniors' benefits. The implications of all this for the real estate industry are staggering. For one thing most Baby-boomers will have become empty nesters with children already out of the house and, as such, five-bedroom homes will no longer be neither wanted nor needed. Which in turn means that large, sprawling cities are once again destined to become outmoded, as vertical construction (also known as elevation construction) will take strong precedent.

In Canada, a report of the Urban Futures Institute outlines that the aging Canadian population will consistently dominate real estate markets just about everywhere in the country. Unlike previous generations who were more likely to move into smaller homes, eliminate mortgages and cash in their equity as retirement approached, the Freedom 55 generation, as it is sometimes called, is more likely to upgrade to more expensive properties, while assuming new mortgages. More expensive but not bigger properties. There is a trend identified by the Institute for the boomers to make their way out of the suburbs and back into the city. The Urban Futures Institute prognosticates that as retirement age approaches they will trade down their large mansions in the suburbs for high-class downtown condo living, thus driving prices upwards especially in the most expensive category. More and more the adult lifestyle component will be the major force impacting how condominium complexes will be conceived and built. It will impact developers, architects and contractors alike, not to mention real estate agents.

The Urban Futures Institute report concludes that it is going to be both a lifestyle and a financial choice for the Baby-boomers — closer to downtown means closer to established shopping, restaurants and entertainment and boomers are of the mind the location will offer more liquidity in the long-term.

[ ] Globalization

Globalization is unquestionably a democratic concept that puts all mankind on the same platform. In Economics we have a special phrase to describe this process of equalization: we call it 'Democratization of Wealth'. The distribution of wealth throughout all nations would be a flawless concept – in a perfect world, that is. But even at the risk of appearing a little too cynical, it must be said that a closer scrutiny reveals one great advantage as well as one great disadvantage associated with democratization of wealth. The great advantage is that as limited wealth resources are being democratically distributed throughout the planet, poorer nations become richer. The great disadvantage, on the other hand, is that as limited wealth resources are being democratically distributed throughout the planet, richer nations become poorer. Poorer and with aging populations too, it might be added, whereas developing countries all seem to be enjoying the benefits of the eternal fountain of youth.

There is a hidden cost to globalization that is beginning to manifest itself more and more in our daily lives. Increasing interest rates, which are now beginning to affect, first and foremost, the real estate market are possibly one of the best examples of it. The emergence of China and India as new players in the international economic arena comes with mixed blessings. China and India taken together represent close to 40 percent of the world's population. The end result of a supply of outputs created in China and India destined to quench the huge demand of the pre-eminently American consumerism has generated large trade imbalances. The flip side of these imbalances has been a sharp rise in the net foreign liability position of the United States and a massive accumulation of foreign exchange reserves by the Asian countries. China has amassed more than US $450 billion of reserves. India too has seen a marked rise in international reserves, to roughly US $150 billion. Even more striking, as of the end of 2004, all of Asia (including Japan) had accumulated US $2.1 trillion in foreign exchange reserves.

Subtracting this quantity of Dollars from the economic monetary cycles forces the U.S. Government to borrow more and the Federal Reserve System to print and lend more money with the deleterious effect of diminishing the purchasing power of the Greenback by weakening the strength of the currency. Think of a glass of wine where you keep on adding water. Higher international demand for American Dollars created by outsourcing, foreign savings, fixed exchange rates and a huge trade imbalance account for a large proportion of the refueling of domestic inflation and the consequent interest rate increases, the effect of which will be patently felt all over real estate markets in North America in the forthcoming years.

In conclusion, the combined effects of the foregoing three socio-economic events in the making will impact the real estate industry to the extent that demand for inner core, smaller housing units – typically condominiums - will in all likelihood appreciate to the detriment of the single-family dwellings of the suburbs, which are expected to be in lesser demand. And consumers, investors and otherwise real estate market participants can anticipate that interest rates will be on their way up, although gradually, but continuously in the forthcoming years.

Luigi Frascati

Luigi Frascati is a Real Estate Agent based in Vancouver, British Columbia. He holds a Bachelor Degree in Economics and maintains a weblog entitled the Real Estate Chronicle at http://wwwrealestatechronicle.blogspot.com where you can find the full collection of his articles. Luigi is associated with the Sutton Group, the largest real estate organization in Canada, and is based with Sutton-Centre Realty in Burnaby, BC.

Luigi is very proud to be an EzineArticles Platinum Expert Author. Your rating at the footer of this Article is very much appreciated. Thank you.

Writen by John Sabia

If you live in a real estate market such as Fort Lauderdale, Florida you are probably aware that it is not a sellers market right now. The tide has turned, and with it, many people believe that they can't afford to go with a full service broker. The fact is, when it's not a sellers market you can't afford not to go with a full service broker. When it's a buyers market you need all the marketing help and professionalism that you can get and for sale by owner and discount broker options just won't provide you with all the services you need to sell your house in a reasonable time frame at a fair price.

Full Service Real Estate Broker vs. For Sale By Owner

Many nervous homeowners believe that they'll take control of selling their home because they don't want to pay for a full service broker. This may be a good idea in theory, but in the long run attempting to sell your house on your own will end up costing you more time and money than a full service broker will cost. Selling your own home isn't as easy as putting a sign in the front yard. You need to market and full service brokers know where to market and when. A full service broker can take one look at your home and know who your target consumer is so that you can market to the right people at all the right times.

A full service real estate broker also knows how to show your home to accentuate all of its positive characteristics and really downplay its negative features. You won't have to worry about how well your house is shown, or whether the full service broker will show it at all. A full service broker doesn't care if your home has a high price tag or a low price tag; they just want to get it sold! Your full service real estate broker isn't afraid to spend too much time with you and can give you tips to help you sell your home sooner rather than later.

Working with a full service real estate broker just does not compare to trying to sell your home on your own. Yes, the commissions can look a bit steep when you first look at them, but a broker has the ability to expose your home to the maximum of potential buyers and can help you get your house sold sooner at a fair price, which will mean more money in your pocket in the long run.

Full Service Real Estate Broker vs. Discount Brokers

Right now in Fort Lauderdale many homeowners are finding discount brokers very attractive because their services are not as costly as full service real estate brokers. But, the time it may take for a discount broker to sell your home will likely be more costly than a full service broker. Discount brokers offer limited services meaning you may be responsible for portions of the marketing of your home. You will also find that discount brokers focus their attention on homes with the highest price tag, meaning your home may not be showed if there are other homes in the area with a larger price tag. Because your home may be ignored or not marketed enough, the length of time your home will be on the market will increase; costing you time and money that could have been saved with a full service broker.

If you don't want your house to sit on the market for a long period of time, it's best to work with a full service broker. A full service broker understands all your real estate needs and can help you get your house sold much more quickly, even when it's not a sellers market! It is important to remember that you should focus on making your profit at the closing table, not the listing table. The other way around may ultimately cost you many thousands of dollars at closing.

Visit my Fort Lauderdale Real Estate for:

Fort Lauderdale Real Estate

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Writen by Steve Link

When a realtor is listing or advertising real estate, we are hired by the current owner to sell that particular property. The current owner is considered our client, and any person inquiring about the real estate is considered a customer. This means unless a realtor signs a duel agent agreement, we are only representing the seller.

Keep in mind that if you have a realtor represent you as a buyer, the price of the property should not increase. How this typically works is the seller and her/his agent will determine a real estate commission during the listing agreement. When another agent contacts the seller's agent they negotiate receiving part of the predetermined commission for bringing a buyer to the transaction. Any realtor worth his weight should always offer to share the commission with a buyer's agent.

I would even suggest that a seller require your agent to set the buyers agent commission during the listing agreement. I have gotten into situations when calling other agents and they say, "I already have someone interested in that property so you will have to wait - If they don't buy then I will call you". That brings me to a saying from one of my real estate classes, "When it comes to $ for real estate - More is Better than Less and Sooner is Better than Later." That agent could have cost his client thousands of dollars just because he wanted to try and sell the property without splitting the commission. That real estate agent had no reason not to work with me and is doing his/her client a grave injustice. A truly good agent always looks out for their clients' best interest even if it means not earning as much commission.

Okay, back to representation. Why throw someone else into the equation? One simple answer. Money! Your agent should know the market and tell you if that price is inflated or if they can find a better property to meet your needs. There is not a seller's agent out there that is going to tell you that Bob at xyz agency has a better deal, you should go check them out. In fact, a seller's agent can't, they must look out for their client's best interest, which in this case is to present the facts and let the buyer decide if it is a good deal or not. Your agent will assist you in the analysis. Your agent wants your transaction to meet your goals and objectives so you buy another property through him/her. Your agent wants you to tell your friends and family about him/her so they hire him/her as an agent. Having agent representation will save you money and headaches.

Now that we have determined that having someone represent you will give you the loyalty that you deserve, who should you choose. Well, few real estate agents will admit this, but it is impossible to be an expert in "All" types of real estate. When searching for your agent, choose one based on the type of real estate you are looking for. If it is Farm Land for an investment, your agent should have experience in Farmland management. If it is hunting land that you are looking for, your agent should be hunters, (and Easter egg hunting doesn't count) or understands habitat and wildlife management. If it is an Apartment building you are looking for, your agent should have experience managing apartment buildings and know the vacancy rate, and if that trend is up or down from last year. Really it is pretty easy to find out what a real estate agent's expertise is. We have been self promoting our whole career so why would we stop now!

Just as important as learning your agent's expertise, is relating with that agent and trusting them. An agent could have all the knowledge in the world about your particular real estate interest but if you do not trust them that knowledge is worthless.

It is important that you understand who a real estate agent is representing. Having a knowledgeable agent represent you has the potential of not only making/saving you money; it can make your experience more enjoyable.

This article was written by Steve Link. He is an agent for Pifer-Swann Realty and is also a farmland manager. Steve will periodically submit articles for the benefit of Land20's readers. If you have any questions or comments you can email him at stlink@pifer-swan.com

Writen by Troy Fullwood

You don't have to be a sophisticated investor to sell a mortgage, although conventional thinking leads us to believe that only the most astute and risk taking investor will venture into this arena. The fact is that once you understand the process, selling notes is in many respects much simpler than marketing and closing on an actual property. And simplicity of transaction equals consolidation of dollars and reduction of your most precious commodity – time. Taken together, these factors often add up to a shorter path to a greater return on your investment.

Here are some of the things to consider when selling a mortgage note: 1) The note will be more valuable if the interest rate on the loan is higher than prevailing interest rates, because buyers will see it as an opportunity to generate higher returns. Sometimes, for instance, a owner/seller-financed home sale will involve a mortgage with a higher rate, because "owner financed" property sometimes sells to buyers who are otherwise not able to get a loan. This doesn't necessarily mean they are at a higher risk for default, however, and if you find a mortgage with a good payment history and a high interest rate, this can be a wonderful investment opportunity.

2) Balloon payment notes that are about to come due may seem like a great bargain, because you will get a huge payment soon if you own the loan. But often these loans are trouble in disguise, because if the debtor defaults, you can end up in foreclosure proceedings, and perhaps eligible for only a partial payment on the note. Selling this kind of note can sometimes be difficult unless you sell it for a discount, especially if the person paying on the mortgage has trouble making their payments on time.

3) The same can hold true for loans that don't mature for a long time – say for example, a conventional 30-year mortgage – because your potential buyer may want to "cash in" sooner. For that reason, a 5-10 year note will typically be more popular with those shopping around for mortgages to buy, and a 3-5 note may bring an even better price.

4) If you have ever applied for a loan to buy a home, you can apply – no pun intended – the lessons you learned from that process to your knowledge of selling a mortgage. The bank you borrowed from checked your credit rating, did an appraisal of the property, and evaluated your ability to produce enough income to make your monthly payments. When you decide to sell a mortgage, the same kinds of criteria will be involved in determining the value of your mortgage note. If you have lots of equity in the house, and the note as a long history of timely payments, for instance, it is probably a sound investment and will fetch a higher price when sold to an investor. If the property is in disrepair and the payment history is sketchy, investors will be hesitant to buy the mortgage, unless it is sold at a deep enough discount to help them offset any expensive problems. To learn more about selling mortgages – and about buying mortgages for resale – check with a company that specializes in real estate mortgage brokerage work. A skilled professional can answer your questions about selling mortgages, and can also help to introduce you to investment opportunities that meet your immediate needs and fit into your long term financial plan.

Troy Fullwood, self made millionaire, nationally known investor, real estate guru, speaker and coach; would like to share with you creative ways to building your own "Money Tree." In 1997, Troy founded a company called Pinnacle Investments. Back then, his main focus was primarily based on buying first lien performing and non-performing commercial and residential real estate notes. However, with the ever changing industry, Troy has begun to refocus his attention toward providing investors with the tools they need to build a successful real estate portfolio. For over eight years, Troy has been whole heartedly involved in the real estate industry. Troy is an investor himself, he has bought and rehabbed homes, purchased rental properties, purchased land, and is currently working on building custom homes and commercial office space.

Writen by Jeanette Joy Fisher

You've decided to prepare your home for sale. Whether you sell by owner or hire a real estate agent, you want to get as much money as possible without spending your profits. The real estate market normally slows down and most homes take longer to sell during fall and winter. Now is the time to apply new real estate marketing ideas to make sure your home sells quickly (and for full price, of course!)--without spending a lot of money or doing unnecessary work.

One of the most effective ways to enhance your home and attract buyers is to strategically add color. This article shares Design Psychology color secrets for marketing houses during cool and cold weather. (Watch for Part Two or email me if you need tips for selling your home in a warm climate or season.)

To prepare your home for sale, make yourself a Marketing Plan for selling your home. Include a Color Plan for attracting buyers during the cooler seasons. In the fall and winter months, you will want to emphasize warm colors such as reds, oranges, and yellows, to convey a welcoming warmth to buyers.

Next, make a list of colors you're stuck with -- those you won't be changing. Which warm colors do you have? How can you enhance these colors with more warm color to entice your buyer?

Look closely at your front door. If it is not gorgeous wood, paint it in a cheerful warm color. For first-time buyers, a cheerful primary red door excites the emotions. Upscale buyers will be attracted to more complex reds, like maroon or terra-cotta red.

Indoors, start with the colors already present and add the colors that attract your target buyers. Remove unnecessary furnishings and accessories with the wrong or clashing colors. (Under-furnished rooms allow the buyers to imagine their furnishings in the space.) To add significant color without repainting all surfaces, paint only one wall with a bold color. Or paint window trim and doors with a color specifically to warm your space.

How to Add Color without Spending a Lot of Time or Money

Besides painting, you can easily add elements of color through accessories. Place pillows, throws, and candles with your chosen color scheme throughout the home. Consider adding flowers, pots and containers in bright reds, oranges, or yellows. Don't overlook the opportunity to emphasize a chosen color psychology scheme through paintings, picture and mirror frames, vases, and lampshades.

When you complete your Color Plan, you will know what steps to take to prepare your home for a speedy sale--for top dollar!

Copyright © 2005 Jeanette J. Fisher. All rights reserved.

Jeanette Fisher, Design Psychology professor, is the author of "Sell Your Home for Top Dollar - FAST! Design Psychology for Redesign and Home Staging," "Joy to the Home," and "Doghouse to Dollhouse for Dollars." For more information on selling your home, and a complete Color Plan see http://sellfast.info