Aug
13
Create a Commercial Real Estate Empire by Specializing in One of These Commercial Properties
Posted By: Ramon Rivas on August 13, 2010 at 10:22 amThere are many types of commercial properties available to those who work in the commercial real estate industry. Many people like to work in a specific area by working with only one or two types of commercial properties. They do this because they have expertise with that specific type of property.
Commercial properties differ more than in just their appearance and use. How you purchase, sell, operate, manage, evaluate, and price each property can be very different. Although there are some similarities, being an expert in one or two properties can greatly increase your ability to analyze good deals and maximize your profit potential. When you know the inside and out of the processes that take place with a certain type of property, know what hidden things to look for, and what mistakes to avoid, you are less likely to run into problems, and will generate positive, long lasting results.
The first are office buildings, or office parks. The term office can be used to refer to floors, parts of floors, an entire building, or an entire office park with multiple buildings positioned in a community type setting. Office space is used for a variety of reasons. It can be used for actual offices for companies, or it can be used for places of business operations, or to meet a tenant’s specific functional and technical needs. An example of this would be an office building for medical purposes.
Office buildings can be segmented into three basic levels. The first is low rise, which has fewer than 7 stories above ground. A mid-rise has between 7 and 25 stories above ground. A high-rise has more than 25 stories above ground. These buildings are often rented by the square foot according to the total usable square feet available to the tenant.
The next type of commercial property is retail property. These are places of business where products and services are provided. There are many types of retail properties which include big boxes, outlet centers, strip centers, regional centers and power centers. Each of these has distinct characteristics that differentiate one from another. Business owners can better choose where they want to lease by identifying their product position, where the best location is, and the type of retail center that will best sell their products and services.
A big box is a large, free-standing building that is often much like a huge warehouse. They can often be found near major shopping centers and along major corridors. Companies such as Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Target are all example of big boxes.
Outlet centers are usually located in tourist or rural locations, and the businesses there offer their products and services at a discount. Strip centers are consecutive narrow parcels that have a variety of stores. They are often found along main roads and commercial corridors.
Regional centers are characterized by an enclosed, inward orientation of the stores. A walkway or common area connects the stores that offer a variety of products and services. There is usually a large, common parking lot found along the perimeter of the regional center.
Power centers are areas of business where large retailers, including large discount centers lease out the buildings. Category killers can also be found here. These are companies that offer a large selection at low prices. Ross, Mervyns, and Kohl’s can all be found in power centers. Think of the one stop place to shop retail center, and you have a power center.
Any of these types of retail centers can be chosen areas of specialization for an investor, developer or builder. This gives them a competitive advantage in the commercial real estate industry because it is the only thing in which they concentrate their efforts. You can bet there is not one thing that can pass by these people when it comes to retail centers, and they know exactly how to maximize their resources.
Industrial and warehouse properties are the next category of commercial property where you will find freestanding properties, research and development, large manufacturing, as well as industrial park properties.
Freestanding industrial properties can vary greatly in construction type, design, and overall function. They stand alone, and are usually occupied by an end user, so the building is specific to a special purpose.
A research and development property is characterized by having office space and manufacturing on the premises. You can find them most often near universities, and close to other locations of professionals.
Industrial parks are large, planned developments that can be used for special scientific and technological use, or sophisticated communications uses. They have many buildings for mixed-purpose or a single purpose that are scattered in an often functional way.
Industrial buildings and warehouses are crucial to a city’s economic development, and cities often provide tax incentives when jobs are provided and new companies are brought to a city, especially to one experiencing rapid growth.
Multi-family property is another type of commercial property in which you can specialize. They offer huge opportunities to create value. A multi-family property is not considered a commercial property unless it is greater than 5 units. Duplexes and fourplexes are not considered commercial properties, though they can be a great investment. The larger the apartment complex, for example more than 100 units, the more money you will be able to return on investment. These multi-family units have living space, appliances and amenities. Multi-family units can range from low-end to luxury type units.
The last type of commercial property is raw land. Raw land is characterized by untouched land with no improvements such as utilities and roads. It can be the most difficult property to involve yourself with; however, it can return the greatest results.
Whichever property you decide to specialize in, only begin a new project in a new area with a person who has lots of experience. You can learn a lot from someone by using this strategy. It will give you a solid foundation to do the next project on your own. This partner or associate will help you to gain the experience and insight that may otherwise take you years to learn.
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Aug
06You Mean Location, Location, Location Was a Lie?
Posted By: Ramon Rivas on August 6, 2010 at 9:41 pmMany people who hear about commercial real estate, but aren’t necessarily in the business, often use the expression “Location, location, location!” Many people associate this expression as the truth, that the three most important attributes about a property are “Location, location, location!”
I am here to tell you- this is absolutely not the case! Now, I am not going to say location is not important, but what if you have a beautiful location for a mountain resort, complete with snowy hills, a perfect location for a lodge, and beautiful mountain views? What you want to do to the property is improve it for a weekend getaway for romantic couples with a beautiful lodge, resort, luxury type housing, and perhaps some individual cottages overlooking the green forest. Sounds great, right?
The perfect location- you can’t beat it! But, you learn that the zoning for this property is residential, R1, to be exact. The use is only one single family residence per acre, and no commercial property allowed. What happened to your “Location, location, location?” It flew out the window!
The most important aspect of a property is the use. What is it intended for by designation of the city or county? It does not matter where the property is, if you cannot get the zoning that is in the realm of your intended use.
It is possible to get properties rezoned, especially as cities change and grow. Be sure to consult with the city or county to determine if these changes are even possible, because you do not want to buy a property that you cannot rezone, and be left with an unprofitable property on your hands.
Most people believe that commercial real estate is complicated and you need a special education or know how to succeed in the business. Many think that commercial real estate is filled with international finance, heavy and complicated math, complicated tax rules, and forms and applications that are just too complicated to understand correctly.
I am happy to tell you this misconception is the worst, because it puts a road block in front of many people’s aspirations to become a commercial real estate insider. Let me put this misconception to rest. There is math involved, and most of it is not at all complicated: simple ratios, adding, subtracting and multiplying. What is even better is you don’t have to do the math. There are others who can do that for you. The same is true with property management, inspecting the property, and doing the year-end tax report. In fact, commercial real estate is less complicated than residential real estate because you can focus your energies on a single deal that will be worth perhaps 10, 20, even 50 residential deals and more!
Let me put it into perspective for you. If you owned a business (many of you may), would you create strategies, keep the books, manage the many locations, sell on the front floor, and take out the trash after the day was over? I think not! Commercial real estate is made up of many people whom are there to help you with whatever you need. You must position yourself as a real estate insider, which is a leader in the business.
Another misconception is commercial real estate is management intensive, that you must manage every property you own. Let me tell you when you end up owning 10 or more properties, this is almost impossible to do! You do not have to actually manage your properties yourself, so you can concentrate on creating more deals. Hire a company or set a team in place to take care of this “day-to-day” business.
As you can see, what is passed around in dialogue about commercial real estate is not always true. Before you take everything to heart, be sure to get your facts straight. In fact, many people in this profession speak about commercial real estate as a business in which only the savvy and sophisticated can succeed. They often act this way because they want to keep people out of the market by differentiating themselves. If you were in this position, you would too!
Jun
14Best Cash Back Credit Card Means Money In Your Pocket
Posted By: Ramon Rivas on June 14, 2010 at 10:02 amMany people miss out on the opportunity of getting the best cash back credit card simply because they didn’t realize that getting that type of card was an option. In truth, these types of credit cards are fairly common, but they aren’t all the same. Each company will have it’s own specific benefits for their credit cards. To get the best deal for you and your situation, you will have to be willing to spend some time to find the best fit for you.
Here are a few things to keep in mind as you look for a card:
1. Find several banks that offer this type of credit card, most every bank will have some version so at this point just make note of the top 5 or 6 so it doesn’t get too overly complicated.
2. Next to each of the cards on your list make note of what the percentage of cash back you will receive as well as how many points need to be accumulated before you can get a cash back payment. Also make a note of any special restrictions each card has. Some cards will offer a higher reward for certain purchases. If this is the case consider how often you’re likely to make that particular type of purchase. If you only get a high percentage cash back on items you hardly ever buy, you might want to keep looking.
Also take into consideration whether or not there is an annual fee, what that fee is, and whether or not you feel comfortable paying a fee.
3. Once you’ve gotten a basic list than you can whittle it down by looking at which card pays the most cash back percentage and also has the least number of points required for a cash back payment.
4. What are the interest rates of all the cards on your list? If one or more of the cards are offering an introductory rate make sure you know when that rate will expire and what it will go up to at that point. If everything else is the same, it’s usually a good idea to go with the card that has the lowest interest rate.
5. Make sure you carefully read all the fine print with any card you are considering. It’s also important to note if the card has restrictions on what you can use your cash back for. If your purchases are limited to things that you don’t actually buy that often, it won’t do you much good.
When it comes to your finances there is no such thing as being too careful. You have a lot of choices when it comes to which type of credit card to get. Don’t rush this decision or sign up for whatever offer you happen to get in the mail. Instead take a little time and use the tips I’ve given you to find the absolute best cash back credit card for you, your goals, and your lifestyle. That way your credit card can be a helpful financial tool, not a heavy anchor.
With the slowdown of the economy, and the many people failing to protect their mortgages, it is becoming hard for the realtors to keep staying alive and kicking in the game. But that is expected in brokering real estate business, isn’t it?
Now, if you are not ready for that, it is a problem that will continue to pull you down. So before you get any lower than where you are now, start acting and doing the right things to keep that business still thriving. Move and get all bases covered so you don’t get lost the real estate market.
Online marketing can help a lot if you do it right. As with any marketing strategy, getting online to market your business must be done diligently for the success of your business.
Be updated with new standards in the business.
Learning newer, fresher ways for your business is the objective of online marketing. If you have been blocking the technology to boost your business, you are missing out a good deal out of it. In case you don’t know, it is the internet where a lot of people meet to socialize and to do business.
Design a website and make it a useful one.
In fact, it is the best place for you to meet potential clients. If you can make a website, you are even making it more sophisticated. Design it with an intuitive layout and make it a useful website.
Once you have your website, you can start gathering leads online. Although there are bogus leads in the internet, be careful when you address them as there are real ones who fall in the category of people interested in real estate business.
The fundamental part of making an online marketing a success is doing your website clean. It should possess elements that will not deter the central business away into insignificant ones. The contents you put in your website must be leading to the real estate business and not anywhere else.
The information or articles you write must be easily available so that the visitors will get engaged and not find themselves struggling at what they are really looking for. Once they like what they are reading, it will be easier for them to click at your main website, which contains your brokering real estate business.
Routinely check your website.
Just as you would with the real estate current competition and trend, routinely check your website and work on any shortcomings you find there. If it doesn’t have, add a resource section where you can attract potential clients. Letting in search engines focus on your website is one way. Use keywords that the engines like. Remember to update your contents as regularly as you can, in this case, you can consider blogging as a key way. Clients may see how active or lackadaisical you are based on how frequent your website is moving, so keep this in mind.
Blend with the changing medium.
The internet is constantly taking on a new ground high up. Be sure to keep updated. In Addition to the business websites and blogs, there are social networking sites to take advantage of, where you can promote your brokering real estate business. You may find it ridiculous, particularly if you though social network sites are for younger people, but it is in fact one of the best ways to promote and keep business thriving by attracting many people online and get potential clients out of them.
May
25Should You Worry When there is A Decline in Home Building
Posted By: Ramon Rivas on May 25, 2010 at 1:38 pmThere is no doubt that there is a decline in home building. This has been reported in the news by the various land developers but should you worry?
If you are looking at the big picture, yes because it has disastrous effects. The country’s GDP or gross domestic product will go down and so will consumer spending. People will be out of work and some businesses may even go bankrupt.
Should construction be your line of work and selling these materials is your business, yes you should also worry because construction firms will not buy the same volume of goods from you since there will not be many people who are willing to buy or build a house right now.
But what if you have a stable job in another industry and think it is time to build your home now? If that is the case, then there is nothing to worry about. If you have the money and want to move to a bigger home, now is the best time to find someone who can help you design, plan and make it come to life.
The reasons for these are simple. A decline in home building has it advantages mainly labor and materials are cheap so you can spend the same amount of money for more things. You won’t have a hard time finding a contractor because they will most likely give you a good deal rather than losing you to someone else which means they don’t have any business.
You should just tell them straight how much is your budget and add an allowance because there may be some unforeseen changes which have to be dealt with later on.
There are two types of unforeseen circumstances in construction. The first is customer generated which means you want something else done. The other is site generated which means there is something on the property that is creating the problem. In the event either of this happens, you have to be ready for it because in construction, everything looks good on paper but things change when people are actually working on it.
If you can’t afford to build a home, you can try to buy one right now because the price of real estate has slumped and this could go even lower. This means you can buy the house of your choice right now because there are a lot of unoccupied homes and people have to move in to them first before construction companies decide to build new ones.
Don’t forget a large number of them that have been foreclosed so there could also be a good bargain over there.
You won’t even consider building a home during a decline in home building or any other time if you did not have excess cash lying around and since that is not a problem, you can now go out there and find a contractor who can do this for you at a reasonable price.
So should you worry when there is a decline in home building? No if you are financially stable but if you are not, then it is time to tighten that belt because if you don’t, you could end up being one of hundreds of people who have lost their homes since last year.
