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If you’re considering a buy to let condo in the United States, you should know that most condo buidlings have a homeowners association (HOA). They can be your best friend, or your worst enemy. They can save you a fortune, or cost you a load of money. Here are ten things you need to know to ensure your investment remains profitable.

1. What is a homeowners association?

A homeowners association is a collective of people comprising of all the condo owners in the building. When you purchase a property you must join the HOA and abide by it's rules.

You must also pay the homeowners association fees. And this money goes towards repairs and common areas such as reception halls or elevators should they break. This means an HOA is typically managed like a small business.

I found this article, and wanted to share it.

Here's the link

http://nationalmortgageprofessional.com/news47995/waters-introduces-hous...

Waters Introduces Housing Finance Reform Proposal

Fri, 2014-03-28 17:25 — Robert Ottone

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee has unveiled a comprehensive proposal for reform of the housing finance system. Known as the Housing Opportunities Move the Economy (HOME) Forward Act of 2014, the legislation effectively puts an end to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The climate in Washington certainly seems centered around putting an end to the GSEs, a concept Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) head Mel Watt has been supportive of since before he took office.

Formerly the OFHEO Index, it is now the FHFA, Federal Housing Finance Agency Index. While this index also uses resales of existing single family homes, there are some major differences in areas covered and methodology in data gathering. Let’s assume basically similar home types and the fact that resales of existing homes are used, let’s just look at the differences:
• While resales are used, the data comes not from county records but from records of federally-backed mortgage documents.
• In addition to resales, this index also uses refinance appraisals to the same home over time.
• FHFA equally weights all prices, no value weighting.
• FHFA gathers data from all states, including the 13 not covered by Case-Shiller.
• FHFA covers hundreds of cities as well.

Each day I have the great honor of sitting down and talking to many of Dean's students. You come from all over the world. It is amazing to rub shoulders with so many who are working so hard to better their lives and the lives of their families.

A question I am often asked is, "Why do I need an LLC?" The question is an important one and one we should understand.

The most important thing we are trying to do is create a shield that protects us and our personal assets. What does this mean? We are wanting our LLC to be seen as a separate entity from us personally. If either entitly is exposed (sued) we want the other to not be dragged into the fight. We want all that we own protected the best that we can.

Have you ever really thought what sets apart individuals who succeed from those who simply get by? I am sure that many people have different answers, but I am convinced that those who set goals and then are ACTIVE in going after those goals tend to do the best.

Following and catching our goals often entails consistant effort on our part. We have to be willing to work each day in order to do the things we need to do to meet our goals. That means prioritizing and making sure we are doing the right things to move forward.

I believe we were made to succeed. Each one of us can meet our personal goals. Keep end in mind and you will do well for the rest of your life. Working towards your goals is important.

For some reason new clients often get intimidated about finding and working with real estate agents. My experience has taught me that there is nothing to fear. When you fully understand how agents are paid and who is willing to work, you will have an easier time finding one to work for you.

Let's remember some facts about agents. If you have an office of 25 agents (1 will be the broker) there will be five agents that make 80% of the income in that office. the other 20 agents will spilt 20% of the income. In other words, the vast majority of real estate agents do not make enough money to live on.

Does everyone remember a year or two back when
Dean was saying put aside the news for a couple of weeks? I am a news junkie. However, I have decided that it is again time for me to step away from the news for a couple of weeks (or more). We cannot control the things being done in Washington. We can control what we do.

Find buyers, find properties, make offers and assign deals. These are the things we can control. Keep a positive head and you will do well.

I hope everybody is signed up to go to Deans Edge event this month. If not follow this link to get signed up right now to go:

https://www.deanenterprisesllc.com/edge2013/edge2014.html

I went to the Edge last year and it rocked my world of how I think and how I now do my business. I have changed more in the last year than I have in the previous 7 with my business.

My most difficult thing I have had to change is my mindset. This event was life changing for me and I can't wait to go this year.

Post on here if your planning on going and your feelings about the Edge event good or bad. This will help people see how amazing it is and they need to go.

Thanks
Dean

I was recently asked about finding a good Realtor.

They were given the direction of calling Realtors at their offices and asking them a series of questions to find a good Realtor.

I was then asked if the companies will have trouble with us offering them work. The answer is "No". Realtors get paid by working in real estate. They want to help you. Their offices want you to work with them.

This however does not mean you will find a good Realtor.

I read an article a couple of years ago that less than 5% of all Realtors invest in real estate themselves. I have also heard that the average realtor closes 7 transactions a year.

So how do you get to the Realtors that are best?

I call the offices and title companies asking for Realtors that deal with investors.

There are two major home price indexes used by housing market analysts and others involved in the real estate markets. They are valuable to real estate investors who want to follow price trends nationally, regionally, and in some cases in local markets. In this article we’ll see how the S&P Case-Shiller home price index gathers and computes results. In the next article we’ll look at the FHFA, Federal Housing Finance Agency Index, which is similar in some ways, but very different in others. You may find that one of them is better for your needs, or you could use both.
The Case-Shiller index is the most widely followed, and is actually several indexes in one: