S.E.C. Real Estate Observer

In today’s real estate climate, making your property more marketable requires creativity and an open mind. Owners need to expand the benefits their properties offer. Along with physical aspects and pricing, the structure of the transaction, and your capabilities and expertise all figure into the formula. The key to completed transactions is determining which benefits appeal to a particular buyer and still provide the same or better benefits for you, the seller.

While watching the election returns last week, I was reminded of a quote of Ronald Reagan’s: “When you can’t make them see the light, make them feel the heat.” This election was indeed a statement by the people. Through the 20+ national elections I have witnessed, there has never been such a swing of passions from one election to the next – 2008 vs. 2010. Change just for change’s sake is not always what we are looking for.

Traditional thinking is about “what is” — Creative thinking is about “what can be.” The news headline recently said “Double Dip Recession Possible.” The media enjoys seeing the “glass half empty” and it’s not the first time we’ve heard “the sky is falling.” In fact, it has happened numerous times in the past.

“These are the times that try men’s souls” as Thomas Paine so aptly put it in the winter of 1776 — although, he could have been referring to our current economic crisis. As the recession lingers on around us, we become caught in the quagmire ourselves and it seems, at times, like we cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel.

The year was 1961 — John Fitzgerald Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States. A country called the Soviet Union rivaled the United States for world supremacy and space exploration, putting the first human in space in April. In May the U.S. answers with Alan Shepard’s flight and the President vows to put a man on the moon before the end of the decade. Construction of the Berlin Wall begins, the Beatles perform for the first time at the Cavern Club, Roger Maris hits 61 home runs for the Yankees and the Vietnam War officially begins in December with the arrival of helicopters and 400 U.S. troops in Saigon.

Creative Real Estate Program coming to San Antonio On Saturday, March 8th, the SEC Education Foundation will present a real estate education program that you will not want to miss. Ken Vidar, S.E.C., CCIM will conduct his class entitled “Creative Real Estate Solutions”. The course will teach you the formulas needed to function in the […]

Creative Seller Financing: Scottsdale S.E.C. Meeting The S.E.C. Education Foundation will sponsor an education program entitled “Creative Applications of Seller Financing” conducted by Bill Broadbent, S.E.C., CCIM. The program will be held on Sunday, January 19th from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in conjunction with the Society of Exchange Counselors national invitational marketing meeting in […]

Remember in the early 80’s when Congress passed very favorable tax laws for real estate like shorter depreciation schedules for commercial real restate structures? The commercial real estate market took off and everyone wanted to invest and take advantage of the favorable treatment allowed. The commercial real estate market was booming! Then Congress, in its […]