You may be surprised to know that taking advantage of current favorable interest rates on the purchase of a $300K home (30 years) after the tax incentive program was actually a great business decision.  Compare the monthly payments of the available rates earlier in 2010 at the annual rate of 5.125% to the more recent rates now of 4.75%.  The difference in the total payment over the life of the 30 year loan is $22,320.  At this price range we’ll utilize the smaller of the two tax credits since this buyer was not likely a first time buyer.  Missing the $6,500 government tax credit was a blessing in disguise.  You would have made $15,820.  This is one case where procrastination paid dividends.

Type:  Condo

Age:  Built in 2002

Location:  Near 96^th Street and Westfield Blvd.

 Neighborhood:  The Retreat is a condominium community that offers residents a clubhouse, exercise facility, business center, basketball court, outdoor pool, tennis court and private access to the Monon Trail.

Square footage: 1640 square feet

 Rooms:  This first floor end unit condo has three bedrooms, two full bathrooms, kitchen with quality cabinets and ceramic tile flooring, great room with a gas log fireplace, 9’ ceilings, neutral décor, crown molding and a two-car attached garage. 

Strengths:  The main floor end unit location is ideal for those searching for main floor living.  The community takes care of outside maintenance including snow removal, lawn care, and irrigation.  It is conveniently located with easy access to I-465. 

Challenges:  There all eleven condos for sale in the neighborhood, which puts price pressure on sellers.     

WHAT’S IT WORTH?    $165,000

There is now an opportunity to reach out to buyers anywhere in the world.  Our community borders have just opened.  Carmel and Fishers properties can be presented to qualified buyers through personal introduction in most places around the globe.  I utilize a new, structured real estate international marketing system linking the power and efficiency of worldwide professional agents who specialize in their respective areas to promote a property from our area.

The core of the concept is that your local professional has a common goal and business agreement with like-minded, United States and International agents to sell a Carmel or Fishers property.  This group of real estate agents is committed to introduce a Carmel property to their best clients.  There are more opportunities to sell a local property through a process that provides a personal introduction from a trusted advisor. 

We are able to package the city of Carmel along with the property showing our new cultural opportunities here such as the Performing Arts Center and Arts & Design District to promote the city along with the property.  There are not many places around that offer the quality of life at such a low price.  We have an incredibly inexpensive cost of living and unbelievably low property values compared to many other states and countries.   

One recent investor client from the Far East described to me that land values in her country as ten times higher than ours.  These, and many other investors are looking to purchase here for a great value.  A powerful package of the city along with the impact of relatively low property cost through a quality personal invitation opens more buyers to sell a luxury home, residential investment, or commercial property.  The process of linking outside buyers with local sellers generates increased activity in pockets where the market is soft.  More buyers is exactly what the sellers tell us we need right now.  This international system stimulates buyer activity and sales.

Type:  Duplex

Age:   Built in 1999

Location:   Greenfield, IN

Neighborhood:   Broadway Villages is a quiet community that offers attached duplexes with lawn care, onsite Property Manager, snow removal, and trash removal.

Square footage:  750 in the one-bedroom or 957 in the two-bedroom

Rooms:   The one and two bedroom duplexes offer a living room with vaulted ceilings open to a kitchen and dining area.  Each unit offers a personal driveway with an attached single car garage and a washer and dryer connection.

Strengths:  An investor can purchase well-maintained hassle-free units in a nice community with current tenants for quick cash flow.  The capitalization rate indicates that this is a good solid investment. 

Challenges:  This property is located 30-40 minutes from Hamilton County.  The $8000 first time home-buyer tax credit has recently lured several renters from this community but there is still an 80-90% occupancy.    

WHAT’S IT WORTH?    $73,000 for the one-bedroom unit, $86,000 for the two-bedroom unit.  Both sides are available for purchase for approximately double the price. 

The recent trend of tight credit has presented opportunities for good real estate investments.  Fewer investment property buyers with less competition increases pressure on those who need to sell.  One of two ways to look at investment real estate is how much will it pay you on a monthly basis compared to your monthly expense of holding the property.  If a fixed loan requires an outlay of $1500 per month and you bring in $2000 per month in rent, you are well on your way to making a continuous solid profit.  The renter pays the full loan payment and provides some extra cash while you are building equity and depreciating the asset. 

A second way of profiting in real estate is by purchasing a property and speculating on a dramatic increase in value due to an unusually discounted price or future changes that will benefit the property.  One example of this is the HWY 31 Major Moves expansion project.  Some of the property near interchanges zoned for residential property or agriculture will undoubtedly be utilized and rezoned for commercial use due to the proximity and access to the highway.  Commercial zoning will drive a higher selling price.  Another example of improved value in Carmel would be properties near the incredible Monon Center, also known as Central Park.  With the ponds, indoor/outdoor pools, workout center, Skateboard Park, and many community events, this is an unbelievable asset that people would prefer to live by.  Higher demand in this case has improved selling prices since the announcement of the 2007 facility.

The key to a successful real estate investment is finding a good property candidate (or finding someone who can) and calculating to the best of your ability how you will profit from the risk that you are taking.  If the upside provides immediate cash flow or good potential future value, real estate can be the best investment available.  If you find a property with both, do yourself a favor and jump on it before someone else does.

Type:  Investment, Mobile Home Park

Location:   Mt. Vernon, Indiana, 20 miles west of Evansville

Details:  This 59 lot mobile home park located on 10.5 acres.  Nine units are park-owned which brings in additional income.  Eleven lots are currently rented.  The individual units typically rent for $450-600 per month and individual lots rent for $145 per month.  The park currently produces approximately $55,000 in gross rent annually.  With the untapped income of the park and focus from a new owner, there is an opportunity to potentially double the cash flow from this property.  This type of property is a more sophisticated investment than your typical rental property and may offer an attractive cash flow compared to other real estate investments.  The park was recently converted to city water.    

Price:  $400,000

Type:  Traditional

Age:   Built in 1895

Location:   Muncie, near the Ball State Campus

Square footage:  2352 square feet

Rooms:   This home is separated into two units and has a one-car detached garage.  Unit A has four bedrooms and two baths on two levels.  Unit B has one bedroom and a full kitchen. 

Details:  This house is a Ball State University investment property typically rented to BSU students.  The owner can rent both units out for a total gross income of $1725 per month with an investment under $75,000.  It is located on Riverside which is a main road through Ball State University.  Due to the close proximity to the university, this home could add some stability to your investment portfolio.

Price:  $75,000