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Buy
I Save You Time, Money and Risk - There are many subjective attributes that Realtors claim to possess. Usually its something like, "I’ve sold real estate for x years." Or, "No one knows Las Vegas real estate better." The reality is that real estate is a - (More...)
How I Find The Right Home For You - Step 1 - I Listen To You What you want in a home is a combination of of many things and if your Realtor don't listen and develop a profile of your needs and wants you will waste a lot of time seeing the wrong types of homes. The following are some - (More...)
My Information Advantage - Other Realtors are limited to what the MLS provides which are just simple pages like the one shown below on the right. And, if you want to look up information like the school’s accountability report, distance to the strip or even the general - (More...)
One Stop Service - Making a house a home is more than closing escrow. You will need a variety of services and I have referrals for most. Below are a few of the services that my clients regularly need: Accountant Accountant Air conditioning Appliances Appliance repair - (More...)
I Keep You Informed - Keeping you informed all along the way is important or deadlines and critical events can be missed. For example, there are a lot of tasks, milestones and documents between offer acceptance and close of escrow. In order to simplify the process for - (More...)
About Me - After graduating with a degree in engineering with a focus in numerical analysis, I was in marketing or sales for almost 25 years with companies like HP, IBM and Internet startups. I've successfully sold, both individually or driving sales teams: - (More...)
Buying a Home in Las Vegas - Buying a home in Las Vegas is a relatively simple process. It does not matter if you are a US citizen or whether you live in the US or not. I illustrated the steps below with explanations below for each image. 1) Based on the description you - (More...)
Nevada Energy Regulation - Untitled Document Starting January 1, 2011, Nevada has implemented a new law (NRS 113.115(1)) requiring that the seller of residential property provide the purchaser with an evaluation of the energy consumption of the home. Links to the form and - (More...)
Purchase Contract FAQ - This webpage coverers the most frequent questions I receive concerning the purchase contract and the purchase process. Purchase contract structure What agreement is used to purchase real estate in Las Vegas? What does "As Is" actually - (More...)
The Closing Process - Congratulations, your offer was accepted! So what happens next and when? While there are many tasks to be completed before you legally own the property ("getting the keys"), most will be handled by the title company, your lender, the - (More...)
HOA Disclosures - When you purchase a home in a community with an association (also called a Common Interest Community) you are agreeing to abide by the rules and regulations of the community. In order to know what you are agreeing to, by law you must receive a - (More...)
As-Is Properties - When you are buying a residence in Nevada you normally receive a document completed by the seller declaring the condition of the property. This document is named the Seller's Real Property Disclosure form. However, when buying a bank owned - (More...)
The Problem With Short Sales - If you are considering short selling your home, see this page First, a definition: "A short sale occurs when a property is sold and the lender agrees to accept a discounted payoff, meaning the lender will release the lien that is secured to - (More...)
Bank Owned Properties - Some of the best buys in Las Vegas are the bank owned (REO) properties. Banks need to move these properties and they are priced accordingly. OK, so what’s the downside? In my opinion the downside is small compared to the savings but there is - (More...)
On the Market a Long Time? - Sometimes you will see a property that has been on the market 200 days, 300 days, 400 days or even more. Based o the days on market (DOM) you might assume that either there must be something wrong with the property or that the seller must be - (More...)
Setting Up Services - Escrow has closed and you now own a home in Las Vegas. Congratulations! One of the most important steps now is setting up the services. I put this webpage together in the hope that it will make things easier. However, I find the utilities (no - (More...)
Homestead Law - Once you purchase a home, you will likely start receiving numerous mailers stating the importance of Filing a Homestead to protect their home. For the average homeowner, all this is foreign and there is a lot of misinformation out there. Below is - (More...)
Las Vegas Thoughts - Most people who visit Las Vegas only see the strip and the casinos. Once you leave this area, its just like any other major city except that its cleaner and newer. Below are my thoughts on relocating to Las Vegas from someone who has lived in other - (More...)
Things To Do In And Around Las Vegas - Because it is a great place to live and there is more to do here than almost anywhere else. Plus, no state taxes, business friendly corporate laws, low cost of living, well-paying jobs, reasonably priced homes, low pollution, 310+ days a year of - (More...)
Las Vegas - Gateway to Nature - When you read the title, you probably thought that it was some sort of a joke. It's not. I don't gamble, smoke an rarely drink. I love nature and and Las Vegas is a great place to live. Why? Within 200 miles of Las Vegas you will find a large - (More...)
Internationals - I have lived in other countries and many of my clients are internationals. I know many of the concerns internationals have and I can already address most of them. Below are the answers to the most frequent questions I receive. If you have concerns - (More...)
Canadian FAQ - Canada and the U.S. have enjoyed a close relationship for a long time. Because of this special relationship, Canadians enjoy many advantages such as special financing and more. I summarized the financing program below and in the FAQ answered many - (More...)
Estimating Real Estate Taxes - Property taxes are confusing, no doubt about it. Hopefully this message will clear up some of the confusion. To illustrate the process I will calculate the taxes the following home for the 2009-2010 tax year as an example: 10016 Floragold Ct. The - (More...)
Single Family vs. Town House - People frequently ask me which has a lower cost of ownership: townhouse or single family. The question is a good one and not an easy one to answer since it depends on the specific properties involved and your lifestyle. To show you how I would - (More...)
New or Resale? - I am frequently asked this question and my answer is always that it depends on what matters to you. Below I listed my thoughts as to the advantage of each. New Home Advantages Never Lived In Before - This is most frequent reason people tell me for - (More...)
Financial Advantages of Home Ownership - I am frequently asked by people who are currently renting, "What are the advantages of home ownership." Instead of a long explanation I will provide a simplified financial example that I hope will illustrate the financial advantage home - (More...)
Rent vs Own Calculator - Comparing the financial difference between renting vs. buying is not easy. I've looked at various "comparison calculators" and the one that I feel is the most impartial is one provided by Ginnie Mae, a government organization. The - (More...)
Simple Mortgage Calculator - The following is a simple mortgage payment rate calculator. Just enter the total price of the home (Purchase Price), the amount you intend to barrow, and change the interest rate (I assume 5.25% which is a reasonable rate) and term of the - (More...)
Market Update - The following graphs are updated monthly and reflect the current Las Vegas residential real estate market. The graphs are based on data from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors and other sources. I created this page since I could find no - (More...)
Sample Las Vegas Home Prices - When I move to a new area, I find it difficult get an understanding of what homes cost. I put the following set of homes together so that you could see a span of typical prices. Condo -$50,000 - 1 bedrooms, 1 bath, 1 car garage, 900 sqft. Condo - - (More...)
Clark County Foreclosure Radar Data - The following information is from www.foreclosureradar.com and provides details on forclosures in Las - (More...)
Sell
Marketing Your Home in an Internet World - The goal of real estate marketing is to get potential buyers to see your home. However, most of the marketing methods other Realtors use is targeted at an almost nonexistent buyer population. Hover your cursor over each of the images below for an - (More...)
About Me - Before entering real estate, I was in marketing or sales for almost 25 years for companies like HP, IBM and Internet startups. I've successfully sold, both individually or driving sales teams: products, services and intellectual property to - (More...)
My Guarantee - If you aren't satisfied with my services, I will cancel the listing agreement. The Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors listing contract includes no verbiage for terminating the contract so I add the following to all my listing agreements. - (More...)
Considering a Short Sale? - Can't afford your mortgage? You are not alone, thousands in Las Vegas are facing the same problem. One option which you may want to consider is a short sale. In this article I will provide basic information. However, before you read the following, - (More...)
Short Sale or Deed in Lieu? - Short sales, deed in lieu and foreclosures are complex processes and there are no standard answers since they are: state, lender, investor and individual mortgage specific so consult a lawyer and tax adviser before you make any decisions. The - (More...)
HAFA Changes Feb 16, 2011 - There have recently been significant changes to the HAFA program requirements. Below are the two major changes. This material came from this webpage. Changes To Monthly Gross Income Servicers are no longer required to verify a borrower’s - (More...)
Short Sale FAQ - Below are the most frequent questions I get on short sales. For information on the types of short sales and the process I follow, see this page. Q: What is a short sale? A: A short sale is where the lender agrees to accept a discounted payoff in - (More...)
The Right Listing Price - The maximum your home will sell for is the lessor of: What a buyer is willing to pay What a lender will finance The market value of your home is not a function of what I think, you think or what any one else thinks. Over-pricing will only result in - (More...)
Getting Your House Ready to Sell - As your Realtor, my job is to get qualified buyers to see your house through proactive marketing. But, no mater how effective my marketing efforts are, if the house does not present as well or better than its top competitors, it will not sell - (More...)
Nevada Energy Regulation - Untitled Document Starting January 1, 2011, Nevada has implemented a new law (NRS 113.115(1)) requiring that the seller of residential property provide the purchaser with an evaluation of the energy consumption of the home. Links to the form and - (More...)
Market Update - The following graphs are updated monthly and reflect the current Las Vegas residential real estate market. The graphs are based on data from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors and other sources. I created this page since I could find no - (More...)
Sample Las Vegas Home Prices - When I move to a new area, I find it difficult get an understanding of what homes cost. I put the following set of homes together so that you could see a span of typical prices. Condo -$50,000 - 1 bedrooms, 1 bath, 1 car garage, 900 sqft. Condo - - (More...)
Invest
How I Find Good Investment Properties - If you are looking for a good investment property, the problem will be finding the needle in the haystack since there are hundreds or thousands of bad or marginal deals for every good deal. If you have to do this on your own, you will end up - (More...)
One Stop Service - Considering real estate because you want a higher return and tax advantages but unwilling to get involved with repairs, collecting rent, evictions and such? Then you have come to the right place. None of my clients manage their own properties; even - (More...)
Investment Process - The difference between luck and consistent profit is a process. To change luck into a process takes a lot of experience, repetition and tuning. Few investors go through the investment process often enough and have sufficient resources to make real - (More...)
About Me - After graduating with a degree in engineering with a focus in numerical analysis, I was in marketing or sales for almost 25 years with companies like HP, IBM and Internet startups. I've successfully sold, both individually or driving sales teams: - (More...)
High Return - With inflation exceeding 1%, standard investments which return about 2% may not even keep pace. Interested in 9% or more? While no one can guarantee any specific return, some of my clients are getting returns exceeding 9%. If this sounds - (More...)
Low Risk - I have personally purchased stocks that become worthless paper but I have never experienced or heard of real estate that become worthless. Why else would banks be willing to lend money over a 30 year period? Real estate always has value, no matter - (More...)
Leverage - With stocks, if you have $100,000 to invest you can buy $100,000 in stocks. If you earn a 5% return per year, in 5 years the (compounded) value would be $128,000. However, putting 10% down and financing the balance you could purchase $500,000 in - (More...)
Tax Advantages - Real estate has tax advantages over any other form of investment I know of. Not only can you deduct expenses and losses ( there are limits) you can also depreciate the property. These are huge advantages. I will touch on each of the major tax - (More...)
1031 Exchanges - How would you like the ability to sell one investment and then buy others with no tax consequences? With real estate, you can. This is another unique advantage of real estate. Section 1031 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code allows investors to defer - (More...)
Land Shortage - This is one of multiple articles on why I choose to live and invest in Las Vegas. In this article I will discuss one of the reasons why I believe real estate investments in Las Vegas have a high potential for future appreciation. Below is a - (More...)
Construction & Landscaping - This is the first of multiple articles on why I choose to live and invest in Las Vegas. Note that in this article I will talk about single family homes. In another article I discussed why single family homes are currently the best type of - (More...)
Pro-Business Government - When Nevada revamped its business laws several years ago they virtually copied Delaware's. Delaware (or now Nevada) is were most US companies are incorporated due to the business laws. This is a very import to corporations. But it is not just - (More...)
Unique Aspects - Las Vegas is unique in the nation since it is the only major city that combines the attributes listed below. These factors are encouraging businesses and infrastructure providers to move their business to Las Vegas. Plus, Las Vegas is very - (More...)
Market Stability - I usually get chuckles in presentation when I show a slide with Market Stability in reference to Las Vegas. Well, I am not referring to past pricing stability; everyone knows what happened. I am referring to future price and rent stability which - (More...)
Now is the Time To Act - What do you call an opportunity when everyone agrees it is a good one and lots of people have reported making money on it? Too Late! Right now, all the market indicators that I can see point to this being the time to buy; especially the bank repos. - (More...)
Making an Offer - It is relatively easy to buy residential property in Las Vegas. All offers are written on standard Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtor (GLVAR) purchase agreement. See this page for specific details on the GLVAR purchase agreement and a copy of - (More...)
Purchase Contract FAQ - This webpage coverers the most frequent questions I receive concerning the purchase contract and the purchase process. Purchase contract structure What agreement is used to purchase real estate in Las Vegas? What does "As Is" actually - (More...)
The Closing Process - Congratulations, your offer was accepted! So what happens next and when? While there are many tasks to be completed before you legally own the property ("getting the keys"), most will be handled by the title company, your lender, the - (More...)
Work Backwards to Make Money - I've owned between 30 and 40 rental properties. Sadly, I lost a good bit of money on the first few properties. I made the mistake that most investors make: buying the property, rehab it and then trying to rent it to cover my costs. This rarely - (More...)
Rental Sweet Spot - In every market where I've purchased rental property I've looked for two things: what price range and what type of property rent best and with the greatest chance of appreciation. I will explain price range first. In every market in which I've - (More...)
Multi Unit Considerations - I've been getting questions on Multi unit properties (MUP) recently and decided to review the Las Vegas MUP situation. MUPs are quite different than single family homes for a few reasons: Buyers are only investors; there is no opportunity to sell - (More...)
Financial Calculations - I frequently get questions on basic calculations of investment property profitably so I put together this article. I choose an actual client's property and performed the two classic calculations of profitability: NOI and Cash/Cash. In addition, I - (More...)
Estimating Rehab Costs - One of the ways many inexperienced investors go wrong is improperly estimating the cost of rehabbing investment property or over spending on the rehab. In this article I will tell you how I estimate rehab costs. Before I get into the method I use I - (More...)
Properties to Avoid - I frequently find the best deals are properties with cosmetic damage. Holes in sheet rock, stained/torn carpet, paint, plumbing fixtures; these are not major costs. Even more important, these types of costs are relatively predictable. However, - (More...)
Comparing Properties - Suppose you are considering 10 potential properties and you would like to know which is likely to be the best performer. There are some standard performance factors that are used by many investors. The exact method these factors are calculated may - (More...)
Long Term Renters - Long term renters are the most profitable because they reduce rehab and vacancy costs. And, I believe that in every market there is a maximum monthly rental rate for long term renters. These are the people who will likely never buy a home for any - (More...)
Vacancy Rate Variation - Renting to the right tenant is critical to keep vacancy rate and repairs at a minimum. Below is an example showing the difference in annual income at 100%, 80% and 60% occupancy rate. Some additional costs not included in the model below includes - (More...)
Estimating Real Estate Taxes - Property taxes are confusing, no doubt about it. Hopefully this message will clear up some of the confusion. To illustrate the process I will calculate the taxes the following home for the 2009-2010 tax year as an example: 10016 Floragold Ct. The - (More...)
Estimating Rent - Knowing what a property will realistically rent for is critical. Without this, you don't know what the property is worth. So, how do you estimate rent? Simplistically, you find recently rented comparable units, calculate the rent/sqft for each, - (More...)
Homepath Properties - Properties owned by Fannie Mae are usually available for Homepath financing . Note that individual lenders may have minor variations on the following: Features: 10% down payment (as opposed to 25% which is typical). Financing is available for - (More...)
Simple Mortgage Calculator - The following is a simple mortgage payment rate calculator. Just enter the total price of the home (Purchase Price), the amount you intend to barrow, and change the interest rate (I assume 5.25% which is a reasonable rate) and term of the - (More...)
My Investment Blog Articles - I add articles to my investment blog in response to client's questions. Usually, the material will eventually make it into webpages or even videos but my blog is the place to find the latest information including market updates. Below is a list of - (More...)
House Flipping - The key to making money flipping is to finding the right property at the right price in the right area in a know condition and closely manage costs necessary to make the home sellable to a TYPICAL BUYER for this type of home. The best way to know - (More...)
The Problem with Short Sales - When clients search for homes on public websites like Realtor.com and others, they naturally select the best values which, unfortunately, frequently turn out to be short sales. Short sales can be problematic for buyers and in the article I will - (More...)
Condos vs. Single Family - One of the most frequent questions I get from investors is whether condos or single family homes are the best investment. My answer is that it depends on the numbers. Right now there is a glut of condos and apartments for rent in Las Vegas so the - (More...)
Investment Thoughts - Once you decide that real estate is the right investment vehicle for you, you need to find a Realtor that has experience with investment properties. Preferably owning them and not just selling them. Obviously, I hope that Realtor will be me. But, - (More...)
Multi-family or Single Family? - I was recently asked whether multi-family or single-family properties are better investments. An excellent question. The answer (as usual) is it depends on the specific market. While I could write several pages on this subject I will keep this - (More...)
Nevada Energy Regulation - Untitled Document Starting January 1, 2011, Nevada has implemented a new law (NRS 113.115(1)) requiring that the seller of residential property provide the purchaser with an evaluation of the energy consumption of the home. Links to the form and - (More...)
Setting Up Services - Escrow has closed and you now own a home in Las Vegas. Congratulations! One of the most important steps now is setting up the services. I put this webpage together in the hope that it will make things easier. However, I find the utilities (no - (More...)
Cash or Finance? - I had breakfast recently with a client (thanks again for the breakfast BM!). We talked about many aspects of real estate investment. One thing that he expressed surprise over was the difference between his return calculations and what I show in my - (More...)
Recording a Quit Claim Deed - I am often asked how to add someone to a deed or move a property into a company. Below are two services that will handle process for you. Their fees vary depending on your situation. If you want to save money and handle it yourself, the steps are - (More...)
Internationals - I have lived in other countries and many of my clients are internationals. I know many of the concerns internationals have and I can already address most of them. Below are the answers to the most frequent questions I receive. If you have concerns - (More...)
Canadian FAQ - Canada and the U.S. have enjoyed a close relationship for a long time. Because of this special relationship, Canadians enjoy many advantages such as special financing and more. I summarized the financing program below and in the FAQ answered many - (More...)
Market Update - The following graphs are updated monthly and reflect the current Las Vegas residential real estate market. The graphs are based on data from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors and other sources. I created this page since I could find no - (More...)
Sample Las Vegas Home Prices - When I move to a new area, I find it difficult get an understanding of what homes cost. I put the following set of homes together so that you could see a span of typical prices. Condo -$50,000 - 1 bedrooms, 1 bath, 1 car garage, 900 sqft. Condo - - (More...)
Clark County Foreclosure Radar Data - The following information is from www.foreclosureradar.com and provides details on forclosures in Las - (More...)
Contact me if you are considering buying or selling Las Vegas real estate. You will be glad you did.
...Eric
Eric Fernwood
RE/MAX CENTRAL
8400 W. Sahara Ave
Las Vegas NV 89117
Email: EricFernwood@gmail.com
Website: www.EricFernwood.com
Investment Blog: Blog
YouTube Channel: YouTube Channel
Cell: 702-358-8884
Fax: 702-202-2020
© 2010, 2011 Eric Fernwood. All rights reserved.