The consensus is almost deafening. This is the time to invest in real estate (RE), there’s no doubt about that. But there are four questions that you must be able to answer before choosing your strategy and plunging into the icy waters of today’s real estate markets:
- What to buy?
- Where to buy?
- What strategies are working best in today’s markets?
- What role does real estate marketing play in growing profits and safeguarding by RE business?
Baby Boomers Dominate Free and Clear Markets
Right now, one of my favorite strategies is high-equity free and clear RE www.realestateout.com. These properties have little to no mortgage debt and, with the right real estate marketing and evidence-based decision-making, the sky is the limit for savvy real estate investors.
For those who want to get in on the action, ensure cash flow and protect their portfolios, investing in free and clear properties and becoming a landlord are promising strategies.
Understanding the demographics and psychology and trends that motivate free and clear sellers and drive rental markets illuminates what the “big picture” has in store for wise investors and is critical to safeguarding your business and your future.
Homeowners Seeking Stability, Cash Flow
It’s no secret that Baby Boomers (or those born during the post-WWII baby boom that took place in the United States from the mid 1940s through the mid 1960s), not only make up one of the largest segments of the U.S. population, the also comprise a huge group of homeowners with high equity and relatively low mortgage debt.
In many cases, these folks also are grappling with job shortages, woefully under-funded Social Security and Medicare systems, soaring insurance costs and diminishing values on what’s been for many their largest nest egg: the homes they’ve worked most of their lives to acquire, finally free and clear of mortgage debt but often suffering from years of deferred maintenance.
Asset Ownership vs. Liquidity
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are approximately 24 million free and clear homeowners in the United States. Forbes magazine reports that a growing number of these homeowners are feeling the pressure of tightening credit markets and a languishing economy.
While they may “have it all” many Baby Boomers are struggling to keep it. These folks are facing a dismal economy as they limp towards retirement with an uncertain future. Baby boomers are confronting rising costs of living and health care, diminished value of their investments, and social security payments that often fail to cover basic household expenses, a growing number of retirees looking for cash flow to achieve basic sustainability.
Demand for Affordable Rentals Set to Surge
The most pressing decision for many homeowners in this growing demographic is when to sell their single-family homes and move on to more modest accommodations.