The real estate market dropped substantially in the summer of 2008. Lenders were suddenly in big trouble with mortgages that were not being paid and many houses were going into foreclosure. If you’ve ever thought about investing in real estate, then right now may just be the perfect time.

In this market there are some things you should do when starting your real estate investing.

1. Follow the 70% rule. If a property has a market value of $ 100,000 you need to buy it for $ 70,000. When you are flipping you need to keep in mind the closing costs when you purchase and when you sell and there are also holding costs when you place the house on the market.

2. Only buy your houses from sellers who are motivated…There is a very simple way to determine who is a motivated seller. Use the four D’s; Death, Disease, Divorce and Disaster, these are the factors that will motivate someone to sell their property.

3. Do not use your own money… If you invest with your own money you are actually limiting your investment potential and your resulting cash flow. By using someone else’s money for investing you will be able to level your value. There are a number of private investors out there who are willing to help you out with a short term loan at about 12 to 20% interest; even though that seems a little steep for interest rates, you can still clear an average of $ 20,000 per flip.

4. Have a contractor do you repairs and improvements. Spend your time looking for the next property.

5. Never quote a price. Always let the seller make the first offer.

There are quite a few investors who have paid dearly for breaking one or more of these rules. The key to your success in the real estate investing business is to have both a system in place and a mentor to guide you. Learn from the success stories, as well as the failures, so you can determine what factors played a part in each. Avoid gurus and seminars; they are only a waste of your time and money. If you learn all the ins and outs of the business real estate investing can prove to be very lucrative.

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