I know you can’t predict the future but have people been able to purchase homes through the bank after completing a short sale? Is a short sale credit suicide? I ask this because to qualify for one of these sale one must stop paying their mortgage for many months. Is this true?
Thanks!

Reports on how a short sale affects credit scores are all over the place. Some folks say 200-300 points and others say they have only taken a 85-100 point hit.

Lenders used to require that you be behind in payments before they would even consider a Short Sale, but this is not true anymore. Some lenders will consider a short sale even if you are current on your mortgage.

When you will qualify for another mortgage will depend on where your credit score ends up after the sale and the policies of the bank. The basic rule of thumb is it will be 2 years before any Fannie Mae lender will consider you again.

As housing prices have plummeted, now might be a good time to buy. For those who are in Real Estate Investment, can you advise what you should study and share how you made money in real estate for benefit of those contemplating real estate? I hear different opinions including MOST people should not invest in real estate.

Hello!

The following are some tips that should help you to get started.

Tip #1:
Decide how much you have that you can invest safely. Remember unless you are paying for the property totally that you are going to be investing in you are going to have carrying charges. You must be sure that if something unfortunate were to happen that you would not be under financial stress.

Tip #2:
Do some research into the different types of property investment that is available to you. There are many so what you may want to do is choose a few that interest you the most and narrow down your choices. As you learn how to start investing in real estate you can focus on those areas of interest.

Tip #3:
If you are going to be augmenting your investment by obtaining a investment loan then you really need to shop around. There are many lending institutions and they are not all the same. Some of them have more demands than others. Then there are those who only specialize in specific types of property investments. Finally there are those that have higher interest rates as opposed to others. So as you can see you are going to have to be fairly knowledgeable in this area as well.

Tip #4:
Don’t rush into anything. Often when you are first learning how to start investing in real estate the tendency is not to want to miss out on what you think might be a good deal. Its not worth taking the risk of losing your investment because you did not have enough time to fully research the pros and cons of the deal. There are always good deals to be had in property investment and if you have lost one there is another one waiting.

Tip #5:
Don’t be embarrassed to ask for opinions from the professionals. When you are first learning how to start investing in real estate there will be a multitude of questions that you need to seek out the answers for. You want answers that are correct and valid, therefore the experts are the best ones to approach.

I followed these rules and now am a success full person in this field.

Hope my suggestion helps you!!

Im looking to invest in real estate,my question is will the bank loan me money?I just started a new job a month ago,my credit score is fair(Im really working to improve this),and I have 20% to give down.
Thanks in advance.

Normally banks are not the best place to look for investment properties. Banks lend funds based on the value of the property, not the future value of the property.

In order to have knowledge about real estate investments you should invest a few dollars into a couple of books about the subject of Real Estate Investing. There are many excellent books on the subject. You might then make a decision as to which area of real estate investing you would want to get involved in.

There are also methods in which you would find techniques that would explain how to find ways of funding your investments. Normally real estate investors invest for leverage, appreciation and possible tax advantages. This is done by putting as little of your funds into a transaction or project as possible. There are times when you would have to add funds from your pocket, but you should take these on a case by case basis.

Your first couple of investments might be all your funds, but successful investors eventually find those that are willing to assist them in their Real Estate Investments.

You should also seek a local real estate investors group or club to obtain the local practices and things you would need to know about the local investment scene. These groups normally charge a annual or semi-annual fee to join.

You might also find a mentor among the membership, someone that is willing to help you get on your feet and prevent rookie mistakes or errors in judgment. This person would also be able to assist with vendors and tradesmen that would do much of the work you would not be able to do on your own.

I hope this has been of some benefit to you, good luck.

"FIGHT ON"

Okay, so basically if you buy a foreclosure, you buy it for what the previous owner owed on it? How does it work? Also, why is it so difficult to get foreclosure listings? Do you HAVE to pay for a list or can I just can a realtor just email me some. Is it true that Foreclosures are not a good idea? I just need the down-low on this. Help please?

These are different in each state. Also people often refer to properties that have been foreclosed and are now owned by the bank as a foreclosure.

If my home is posted for foreclosure in Texas they take it to the county courthouse steps and a trustee stands somewhere on the steps and holds an auction- but he often speaks in a very low voice and only people standing near him hear what he says. The bank is willing to bid up to the mortgage amount and usually no one else is willing to bid that high- so the bank almost always buys the house at the courthouse steps. This is the legal process used to transfer the property into the lenders ownership.
Then the bank spends money and time legally making the title clear and clean so it can be resold. SO when you buy a house owned by the bank they are able to insure you a clear title- but if you buy it at the courthouse steps it may not be.

All the bank owned homes are put in the Realtors MLS so your buyer agent can get you a list for free.

Foreclosures may or may not be the best home for your money. I think it would be foolish to only look at foreclosures. Look instead at all the houses that meet your needs and pick the one that gives you the most for your money. Pay a lot of attention to location- it is the most important thing in long term value.

My roommate left the house and was not seen or heard from for 10 weeks. He then said that he would come and pay some of the back rent at an agreed time and never showed. All the while, he has left his property (abandoned it) at my place. He was a month-to-month tenant with no lease.

I have tried to contact him numerous times, leaving voice mails and sending text messages, about getting his things.

I was wondering how long I have to hold on to his junk before I can get rid of it?

It varies greatly state-to-state:

Some states declare you can toss/sell the Abandoned Property after a specific amount of time (30 days, 60 days, etc). Some declare you must place the abandoned property in a storage unit and charge the responsible party for the cost; they can be taken to small claims court if they don’t comply. Some states are very unclear about this, stating only that a "reasonable" time must have passed.

No one can guide you further without knpwing at least what state you are in.