10 worst real-estate markets for 2009

The housing market hasn't bottomed out yet. For the third quarter, the closely-watched S&P Case-Shiller national home-price index fell 16.6%, and experts are predicting further declines. Of the top 100 markets, here are 10 with the worst forecasts.

1. Los Angeles

2008 median house price: $375,340

2009 projected change: -24.9%

2010 projected change: -5.1%

The median home price in the L.A.-Long Beach-Glendale metro area is projected to fall nearly 25% in 2009 - the biggest drop in the country.

2. Stockton, Calif.

2008 median house price: $248,050

2009 projected change: -24.7%

2010 projected change: -4.0%

One in every 94 homes received a foreclosure filing this November in this northern California market near Sacramento, according to RealtyTrac. Eight of the ten worst housing markets projected for 2009 are in California.



3. Riverside, Calif.

2008 median house price: $256,540

2009 projected change: -23.3%

2010 projected change: -4.8%

A popular boom earlier this decade fueled runaway prices for single-family homes in this market, which includes San Bernardino and Ontario, outside Los Angeles. Median prices are expected to fall to $197,000 in 2009, down nearly $60,000 from 2008.



4. Miami-Miami Beach

2008 median house price: $293,590

2009 projected change: -22.8%

2010 projected change: -6.4%

Miami will be nursing the hangover from its epic building boom for years to come. After falling 22% in 2008, prices are predicted to plunge another 23% next year.


5. Sacramento

State Capitol building in Sacramento

2008 median house price: $225,140

2009 projected change: -22.2%

2010 projected change: 2.3%

High jobless rates and low population growth are helping burst the capital city's inflated housing market. Prices are expected to fall another 22% in 2009, after tumbling 34% in 2008.



6. Santa Ana-Anaheim

2008 median house price: $532,810

2009 projected change: -22.0%

2010 projected change: -3.5%

Of the 100 biggest markets, this Orange County area, which includes Anaheim and Irvine, was the fifth most expensive place to live this year. But in 2009, prices are forecast to decline by $121,000.



7. Fresno

2008 median house price: $257,170

2009 projected change: -21.6%

2010 projected change: -3.3%

Fresno is located between Los Angeles and Sacramento, but it shared their housing woes. Prices in 2009 are expected to fall 44% from just two years ago.



8. San Diego

2008 median house price: $412,490

2009 projected change: -21.1%

2010 projected change: -2.9%

As the luxury condo boom continues to fizzles, median home prices in this southern California market are forecast to fall $87,000 to $326,000 in 2009.


9. Bakersfield, Calif.

2008 median house price: $227,270

2009 projected change: -20.9%

2010 projected change: -2.5%

This city north of Los Angeles had the ninth highest foreclosure rate in November, as one of the country's largest real estate bubbles continues to burst. Including Bakersfield, six of the ten worst foreclosure markets were in California.



10. Washington, D.C.

2008 median house price: $343,160

2009 projected change: -19.9%

2010 projected change: -5.7%

This market, which includes bordering Virginia towns Arlington and Alexandria, is cooling off from record highs. Forecasts call for median prices to slide 20% to $275,000 in 2009.

UK residential property prices fall again in April

Residential property prices in the UK fell slightly in April putting an end to optimisim that had been created by a small rise in March.

Prices fell 0.4% and the average price of a home is now £151,861 according to the April House Price Index from Nationwide, the country's larges building society. The price of a house is now 15% less than it was a year ago.

Nationwide had said after the March figures that too much should not be read into the small rise and now it is saying that recent measures announced in the Budget were unlikely to turn things around.

But it said that the extension of the stamp duty threashold might encourage first time buyers and this combined with falling prices should have some kind of effect on the property market.

The building society said the government could have done more to aid the availability of credit. 'The chancellor announced several measures aimed at boosting the housing market in his Budget,' said Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide's chief economist.

'The scheme for government guarantees for new, high-quality residential mortgage backed securities are welcome and may help to boost the amount of mortgage credit available. However, since the availability of credit is only part of the reason why the housing market is in the doldrums it is unlikely to lead to a swift turnaround in its fortunes,' she explained.

'Lenders have already indicated that the availability of credit is less of an issue than it has been, but at the same time expect that the demand for secured lending will fall further. Given the weakness of the economy and the expected further increase in unemployment this comes as no surprise,' she added.

Earley pointed out that the effects of unemployment would have an effect the property market is very sensitive to income and, as a result, conditions in the labour market are crucial to its performance.

'That said, the correction in house prices and improved affordability conditions provide a good grounding for the market once domestic and global economic conditions once again become more favourable,' she concluded.

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said the figures were not a surprise.

Real Estate 2009

Happy Holidays and a Great New Year Ahead - Realty stocks have been among the worst hit in the ongoing meltdown and a number of them registered losses. Despite so many bad market news, the fact is large-scale real estate investments are unlike a homebuyer looking to own a single property. Investors can move money more seamlessly between countries than an individual and investors also have a different way of calculating the long-term value of a particular property. Therein lies the appeal of investing in property in India.

Individuals look for price when buying a home along with expected appreciation and perceived value based on the location or the surrounding neighborhood. Long-term investors look for capitalization rate, the interplay between how much property costs and how much it can be rented for. Though Bank Shareholders and Equity Investors want less exposure to real estate, there are many growth opportunities in properties ranging from from apartments in Bangalore to office buildings in Shanghai. And some investors are buying aggressively.

While investors from pension funds in London to middle-class property speculators in New York are stung by problems in US residential real estate market, plenty of individual and institutional investors are gobbling up real estate in other sectors. A skyscraper like New York City's iconic Chrysler may not be in a normal investor budget, the timing might be right to follow such leads and make significant investments in certain cities around the world.

As markets change due to economic slowdowns, rapid growth or government policy, the important thing is to keep money in growing sectors. And if things go wrong, its time for the bargain hunter investors and opportunity funds to have their day and hence fortune tellers like Forbes, TIME, Fortune etc. had to recalculate net worth of billionaires, every year.

Importance of Real Estate Property Management

Good property management would not cost you money, in turn it would fetch you money. If a real estate investor has purchased an investment property, a single family home, duplex, a 4-plex or even larger multi family unit, the actual goal is simply cash flow. Depending upon the size of down payment and condition of the real estate property, cash flow may or may not become a reality.

These days real estate investors are interested investing in property with high leverage, normally properties that have a great deal of deferred maintenance. The new owner has to face the challenge of a lifetime and it would look like a lifetime before he would ever see any light at the end of the tunnel.

Good Property Management

A good property management company could be really useful to the investor who doesn't have time to dedicate to his or her real estate investment. A strong manager could be an actual gift to the investor faced with a huge number of problems including but not limited to upholding repairs and a large percentage of vacancies.

Property Management is not only about providing an apartment for an individual or a family investor. The property manager basically manages all sorts of services for the owner. Shelter is the understandable but along with that you have to comprise plumbing, heat, flooring, tile showers and tubs roofs, ceilings, walls, panes, kitchen appliances, water heaters, carports, garage door openers, fans, cabinets, landscaping, walkways, stucco, siding, fireplaces, brick, and many other noticeable things. Aside from all of the tools and materials that are used for a housing unit, your property manager should be able to manage people. Those people are your customers and they are the individuals, which would keep your building afloat. The good managers know who needs to be rented your unit and who shouldn't. The manager would do credit checks , confirm income and previous residence.

When the successful real estate investor is about ready to buy an apartment building, they would usually bring their property manager along for one of the good inspections before signing any deal. The purpose, certainly, is to gain some imminent from another perspective. Often the real estate investor would fail to notice certain aspects or characteristics, which the property manager might quickly recognize. The property manager might see signs of sober maintenance problems, which an owner might fail to notice. The experienced manager could point out some hazards or possible problems, which might go unnoticed. The job of the manager is not to dishearten a real estate investor from making the purchase, but to assist the purchaser see the whole package.

Installment Sales - Real Estate Tax Tips

An installment sale is a sale of property where you receive at least one payment after the tax year of the sale. If you dispose of property in an installment sale, you report part of your gain when you receive each installment payment. You cannot use the installment method to report a loss.

General Rules
If a sale qualifies as an installment sale, the gain must be reported under the installment method unless:

• You elect out of using the installment method
  You are not a qualified accrual method taxpayer

Precaution While Buying Properties In Thailand

Some precautionary measures need be taken while investing in Thai real property sector. These hold true for both the native investors and foreigners, though expatriates will have to overcome more hurdles to buy property in Thailand.

Gathering Local Knowledge
One need spend sufficient time in Thailand to form an idea about good value real estate in Thailand. Familiarizing oneself with the local people and with the expatriates and consulting expert realty agents and lawyers will develop the local real property knowledge in you. Then you can easily avail big investment opportunities in Thai realty market.

Survey of property
To learn the actual market value of a real property in Thailand, you will have to receive the service of a certified appraiser. If the chosen real estate is brand new, looking at other properties built by the same developer will satisfy your queries. Some companies offer land title checking service of real properties which should be taken. One can easily find the required contact information of surveyors in local yellow pages.

Handling lawyers
Special precaution should be taken while choosing a lawyer and later when utilizing her service. In Thailand, it’s much easier to set up a law practice than in UK and US. So you need select a lawyer who is recommended as an expert by someone you trust. While working with a Thai lawyer, always give instructions in written form so that if the need arises you can refer to the document. And don’t employ a Thai lawyer on hourly basis.

Dealing with agents
Real estate agents are available in Thailand to help you invest in Thai realty market. Select someone experienced who can work well with you and can deal on your behalf with other agents if required. Don’t forget to check your agent’s work permit and also verify which organization s/he is a member of.

More Benefits of Real Estate Investing

People frequently claim that investing in Real Estate is an extremely easy way to make profits.
That may be true, in a way.
With a decent amount of sweat equity and a reasonable financial investment, properties may be bought and sold for a nice portion of money, and the future will still look very bright. However, easier is hardly equal to easy, and you may have to cross many barriers before you can experience the benefits of real estate investing.
Possibly the biggest obstacle to succeeding in real estate investing for those who are just beginning is that it has a rather steep learning curve. Regardless of where one lives, Real Estate investing is a multi-faceted business, and one stands to lose a lot of money faster than one can say ’stock market crash’ if one hasn’t done the homework on this subject. Thus, to make things easier, here are some facts to think about when beginning.

Financial planning is the most important thing you can do. Instead of running head first to invest your money, it would prove smart to invest your time into doing some research beforehand.
Proper financial planning depends on thinking about what your goals are and what you wish to achieve in any specified time frame. The key is to be realistic. When the prices for homes have been on the rise and show no slowing any time soon, that is easier said than done. Real estate values may go down and when they do it is usually a very big drop, so thinking ahead can help insure you reap the benefits of real estate investing.
Part of your plan should be to know how much capital you’ve got to invest. This will differ, depending on what funds you will use as your first investment.

For example, if you have less than $10,000 to start with you will need to think about buying a fixer upper or even use your own home to get you started. Some banks might lend you money for a secondary property with little out of pocket expenses to you, but you must have excellent credit in order from them to consider this. Also, the market would have to appreciate quickly, and you would have to sell quickly in order to make a good profit.

Such investments may prove risky and have legal ramifications. Another approach is to make higher monthly payments and spend more on home repairs, but this too is very risky and might backfire. The end result could be a disastrous one, as you will be held legally accountable not only for your initial investment, but also for any additional expenses that you have incurred.
Knowing how much risk you are willing to take is a crucial part of the plan. This depends on your own personal preferences. Some investors may favor security over higher profits while others lean towards quickly maximizing their return even though the stakes might be much higher. It is important to know your own tolerance and comfort level for risk before entering into the real estate investment market.

Investing in the real estate market is a great opportunity, now more than ever! As an investor you will be involved in the oldest and most solid investments in history. You can make extra money or you can make a full time living.

You must consider making friends with lenders and securing contracts. You must deal with insurance, legal, and tax issues including rights requirements and consequences. If you are still interested then good for you! You may be well on your way to reaping the benefits of real estate investing!