Finding the Goods on Real Estate Markets
Cris Chico and the crew over at Virtual Wholesaling spilled their secrets and named names on how to find good real estate markets. The list of names is long, but the secret is simple: research.
The depth of research can make all the difference on whether you make it or break it in real estate, and it’s not as simple as looking over a house and thinking it’s pretty. If you’ve got a market you’re looking at, do the research:
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Check with mortgage lenders. If a mortgage lender says, "We wouldn’t give a 100% loan," you might want to think twice.
One of the mortgage lenders that Virtual Wholesaling suggests to their trainees is Countrywide. Countrywide is the largest mortgage lender in the nation, with several statistics on which way the markets are going. If they refuse to give a 100% loan in a specific market, you can bet that, unless there’s something the pros don’t know (a shopping mall being built nearby, for example), it’s not the best market to invest in.
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Check with mortgage insurers. Again, private mortgage insurers make it their business to know the market trends, and if they say they wouldn’t invest or insure, you might want to rethink the possibilities.
What lender and insurer does Virtual Wholesaling suggest? The two major ones are MGIC, the Mortgage Guarantee Insurance Corporation, who insures things for over 5,000 lenders, and PMI Group, the Private Mortgage Insurance Group, who is the second largest US based mortgage insurer.
Specifically, however, they suggest looking at the MGIC Restricted Market Guide. MGIC will tell you where they won’t loan in a restrictive market, or if they’ll insure the mortgage in that area. Then, you’ll have to make your own decisions based on whether something falls on the restricted list again or if you know something special about the area.
Another guide under MGIC is called the soft and weak market index. MGIC has a guide for several large metropolitan areas that show you what the housing prices are doing in a particular area. If you’re going to invest in particular market, make sure the trend over the last 12 to 18 months is flat, slightly increasing or slightly falling. If it rises or falls by more than 5% in 12 months, it adds volatility to the mix, making it an unsteady market.
Whatever market you choose, don’t be disheartened if it doesn’t work out. Learn from your experiences, move to another market, and apply what you’ve learned!










