Mexico Beach has been blessed once again and has avoided nature's fury!
Amazingly Hurricane Gustav brought us very little rain, perhaps some 30 mph gusts, and a little storm surge!
The surfers are out in full force today enjoying some wave action! We have surfers come from everywhere, Georgia, Alabama, Texas to catch a wave! Check out the video I took this morning on my website!!!
I pray that Louisiana fares okay and am grateful that most residents evacuated. It is times like these that possessions seem trivial. It is family and friends that are "priceless" and although it is frustrating and difficult to evacuate, one must remember what is important!!! Always better to err on the side of safety!
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My email has been filled with websites that advertise "make millions buying foreclosures". The companies that sell the books and videos and classes teaching people how to buy foreclosures are the ones making millions!!! I do think that people can and do make good money buying and fixing up and reselling foreclosures! However, it is not as easy as these companies make it out to be! You have to do your homework first and foremost! You have to know the area, you have to have money (no matter what the videos and books say) and you have to know what you are doing!
In this market, and I am talking our local market not the national market, even if you buy a foreclosure or any property at a really good price, please be prepared to hang on to it for at least a year or two.
I truly believe this is where a lot of people go wrong. They buy and believe and count on "flipping" it in a few weeks. You need to have the ability to carry the property's expenses for a year---you may not have to----but at least be prepared to. This will make your life and flipping experience much less stressful and productive!!!!
My husband and I have purchased several properties for investment always with the intent of hanging on to it for several years. Several times we have sold those properties much quicker than we had anticipated just because we were presented with an offer we could not turn down!!!
That is always a nice turn of events, but my point being, we had planned and were able to carry the property for several years!
I have gotten onto a tangent though. My focus was the websites that promote foreclosures.
There are several websites, of which I will not name specifically, that give you information about properties that are in pre-foreclosure or already foreclosed on. Please be aware these websites are not always accurate! For example: They still list a property as a pre-foreclosure when the property has already been foreclosed on AND re-sold! They have a property listed as a pre-foreclosure when THERE IS NO MORTGAGE on the property. They have an incorrect address for a pre-foreclosure. They also give just the first mortgage as the loan amount, there may be a 2nd mortgage or tax liens on the property.
I'm certainly not saying that all information is incorrect, just please be aware that you must still do your homework and do not rely solely on these public foreclosure websites.
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I will be sending out my newsletter with August's real estate stats by the end of the week. If you are not on my email database for the newsletter, please sign up and I'll send it to you.
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Don't forget to check out my website for past blogs, my new buttons of FAQ's and VIDEOS!!!!
You can search just my listings or all properties on the market as well!
Have a great week!
Mary
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