| Here's a good real estate investing tip. Sales trends | | | | apartments or rental houses? What types of units |
| and rental trends are leading indicators of rising or | | | | rent the quickest, i.e., one or two bedrooms, one or |
| falling investment property prices. | | | | two baths, with or without covered parking or |
| It would be a good idea, therefore, to create a | | | | community center? How do vacancy rates differ |
| system for tracking and recording trend data such as | | | | among various neighborhoods and communities? Do |
| the number of listings, new housing starts, selling | | | | some types of buildings or units enjoy waiting lists? If |
| prices, time on market, rent levels, and vacancy | | | | so, what are their features and locations? |
| rates when you begin real estate investing. | | | | What about rents, are rents steady or increasing? |
| You might be surprised. As you watch these sales | | | | What about rent concessions, are property owners |
| and rental trends, you will be able to detect market | | | | giving concessions to attract tenants, and if so, what |
| changes as they occur and might make a profitable | | | | are they giving away? |
| short-term gain. | | | | Watch for foreclosures in your area. Homeowners |
| Sales Trends | | | | who lose their homes become renters, in turn causing |
| Watch for the time properties are sitting on the | | | | a shortage of apartment units that results in |
| market. In slow markets, properties can sit | | | | increased rents; thus, higher property prices. |
| unsold for months, and the result could mean price | | | | What about interest rates, bear in mind that low |
| decreases. Likewise, as the average time on the | | | | interest rates means that many tenants who are one |
| market falls, say, from 270 days to 180 days to 120 | | | | pay check away from buying a home vacate the |
| days, prices are about to go up. | | | | rentals, and vice versa. Of course, in our current |
| Watch for the number of properties for sale. Real | | | | economy, with lenders tightening their loan |
| estate prices result from supply and demand. As the | | | | qualifications, this rise and fall in interest rates might |
| number of "for sale" properties increases, thereby | | | | be less telling. Nonetheless, interest rates should be |
| inventory increases, and the result could mean sellers | | | | monitored. |
| lower their prices to attract buyers. Similarly, a | | | | It's all just a barometer. But it's a smart real estate |
| minimal number of "for sale" properties signal a lesser | | | | investing procedure to watch and record real estate |
| inventory and points the way to what could be rapid | | | | sales and rental trends as an indicator or rental |
| advances in property prices. | | | | property prices. Whether you're a rental property |
| Rental Market Trends | | | | investor or current owner, understanding how sales |
| Watch for and review these four important rental | | | | and rental trends affect property prices and |
| market trends for the past 12 to 24 months: | | | | positioning yourself to react quickly can mean you |
| Okay, now ask yourself. Are vacancy rates falling or | | | | score big. |
| increasing? How long does it take to fill vacant | | | | Here's to your real estate investing success. |