Cyprus Buying Property What are the Running Costs?

Writen by John R F Mason

Before anyone purchases a property abroad they clearly wish to know what the cost of ownership is. In Cyprus the costs are very reasonable and this article sets out for prospective purchasers what the typical or guideline costs are.

The local equivalent of UK Council Tax is small. Guideline CYP 110.00 ony a year as opposed to around GBP 1000.

There is an annual standing charge for water and sewerage (assuming water is supplied by the municipality and not from a private well). Guideline CYP 13.00 (+ VAT)

Water is on a meter where the guideline is CYP 50 per quarter.

If you have a telephone, the monthly line rental is CYP 6.95 (+ VAT).

The standing electricity bi monthly charge is CYP 2.31 (+ VAT). Metered costs are the same as in the UK.

Buildings and contents insurance is another cost. Guideline Annual premium works out at around 0.095% of the total sum insured.

Cooling costs guideline June/July electricity bill around CYP 60.00.

There is just a guideline few hundred pounds per and for maintenance, repairs, etc.

If you buy an apartment, or any other property in a communal development, you will be liable to pay an annual fee to a management committee that regulates and manages its relevant affairs. (These committees are usually set up by the developer or an associated company to which property buyers pay a proportionate annual fee to cover the costs of insurance, maintenance and repairs of the commonly owned parts of the building). Maintenance charges on these types of properties can run into Guideline 200/300 CYP/annum.

Gardens can consume a lot of water if you do not use drought tolerant plants. If you choose you plants carefully, they will not need water once they have established and you will also avoid the costs of installing an irrigation system. Avoid planting grass it will cost you a fortune to water.

The other aspect of gardening is maintenance. A couple of ‘weed clearances’ and tidying up once a year should suffice. Or you could go for a low cost maintenance option - patterned concrete/tiles/natural stone patio.

Similarly swimming pools can be expensive to operate and maintain.

If the property is left empty for long periods, you may wish to consider installing an alarm system with a phone link to an alerting centre. Guideline running costs are CYP 9.00/month.

If you want rent it out your property for either long or holiday lets, then you will have the costs associated with maintenance charges, property management fees, repairs, redecoration, cleaning, breakages etc. You may also find that your building and contents insurance premium is higher due to the increased risk.

John Mason is the owner and author of http://downtoearthcyprus.net. Down to Earth,Cyprus provides all you need to know about property purchase and finance in Cyprus.Your Definitive Guide to Buying Real Estate in the Republic of Cyprus.

You may freely distribute this article on condition that you keep this Author bio intact with an active link.

Flipping Properties for Profit Strategies for Success

Writen by Robert Lipply

So, you are wanting to get into the flipping game and make money or possibly you had a bad experience with flipping a property and want to learn how to flip a property and actually make money? First of all, let me say that I don’t believe in expecting a large return on a flip if all you do is sign your name on a closing statement and expect to turn it around quickly. It’s just not that easy.

What can happen though is that if you follow some of my techniques you can expect to earn a nice profit for yourself. There are five keys to success that I would like to discuss in this article. They are:

(1) you must buy the property right,

(2) you should be willing to shop for good deals,

(3) you must not be afraid to get your hands dirty,

(4) you must be reasonably handy, and

(5) you need to do most of the work yourself.

How to buy the property right. Here’s where you need to either be a real estate agent or work with one. Knowing the market area is essential to getting the right house at the right price. Are prices in this area increasing? Are others improving their homes? Is the home’s sale price consistent with the repairs needed? Does the listing allow for an easy out of the contract should you learn something during the home inspection stage? It is my opinion that you definitely need a home inspection because you want to know everything that is wrong with this house before you start.

You should be willing to shop for good deals. First thing I always do is set a budget. It’s not iron clad, but it is a starting point. You know what you bought the home for and you know roughly how much you want to get out of it, so now work backwards. What needs to be done and how much money can you allocate to it? Be methodical, make a list and try to stick to it. Shop hard for sales, closeouts, and alternatives. Many of the home improvement stores put closeouts out front early in the morning. Swing by on your way to work. Check garage sales, newspaper ads, and even the internet. While you certainly should buy quality materials, you need to resist the urge to buy the nicer faucet or the prettier cabinet pulls. Always buy with price and quality in mind with a close eye on the budget. Over spending is a common pitfall.

You must not be afraid to get your hands dirty. If a home needs to be remodeled, chances are it is pretty dirty too. Hiring a cleaning person is expensive and not necessary. Anyone can scrub. It’s good exercise too. The yard most likely is a mess since the previous owners probably neglected it. Some of the hardest work is done in the yard. Having the right tools is key, but you don’t have to buy them, most of them can be rented.

You must be reasonably handy and you need to do most of the work yourself pretty much go hand in hand. You should consider finding another hobby if you cannot do average repairs yourself or if you don’t enjoy it. If you get stuck and have to bring the professionals in for a botched job, your profits will quickly go down the drain. Labor is very expensive to pay someone for and should be used sparingly.

Bob Lipply is a top Real Estate Broker Associate in the Tampa Florida Real Estate area.

Getting What You Paid For

Writen by Carlo Caparras

In the recent years since the dawn of man, Real Estate property has been one of the utmost concerns of living beings. Even animals compete for Real Estate and man has developed a ways of Real Estate ownership. In spite of numerous wars and lawsuits over the 5000 year history over Real Estate ownership, technology and economics have made it into a powerful business industry.

In the USA in the last 10 years the online Multiple Listing Service (MLS) have provided Real Estate professionals the most powerful tool ever created since the “title”. The MLS removes the need for the 6 degrees theory where someone needs to know somebody who needs to know somebody who knows somebody to make buyers and sellers meet each other.

The MLS has been such a huge success to Realtors in the USA that other counties have tried to emulate the concept the past few years but it never seemed to have enough funding or internet reach to achieve the success that it had in the states.

Recently the US has another innovation in the MLS; it’s called an MLS only listing. MLS rules requires that only licensed REALTORS have access to place listings in the MLS a lot of Realtors allowed sellers to place their home in the MLS for a Flat fee and no listing commission

This is a pure list only service, using giving any seller the marketing reach of the MLS while allowing them to save on listing commissions. This irked a lot of realtors since the reduced service pertains to a lot of reduced professionalism in the industry. A lot of states seem to agree as they have implemented a minimum service law preventing the MLS only listing service concept from being served “as is”.

Flat Fee MLS only service not only removes the professional in selling the home on one side of the table it also it gives more work for the buyers agent. But the question is. Does everyone really need to have a full service listing agent? It may be true that a lot of sellers are amateurs and require their services. Then if they can afford to pay the extra 2 3% for the seller side, then it’s not a problem. But how about investors, developers, retired agents, people who sold properties before and banks that already know what they are doing. Is it necessary to have a Realtor on their end when they sell dozens of properties a month as their profession? A lot of Flat Fee MLS clients are Realtors themselves who let another Realtor list their property in adjacent MLS boards where they are not members. Is there really a natural competition between the 2 services? Or is it a just a whole new innovation to the time tested Real Estate Wheel.

People get what they pay for, more often than not. If they are aware of what they are buying, they will always make the right choice.

Carlo Caparras is currently the executive vice president for American Real Estate and Mortgage LLC. Overseeing day to day operations of the company and spearheading all the expansion and innovation projects. A background in Telecommunications, computers and psychology. The Author spends a lot of his free time as a Director of World Care international. A non profit organization devoted to giving free education to Americans, Eastern Europe, and 3rd world countries.

Customer Service The Real Estate Revolution

Writen by Glenn Murray

Traditionally, real estate has been viewed as a sales industry. But perceptions are changing. Agents around the country are coming to believe that the key to real estate success is service - not sales.

Competition and technology now give customers almost unlimited choices, so agents are having to work harder and spend more to win listings. They’re discovering that business success comes from repeat business and word of mouth.

And customer service is the key.

Loyalty and good will can’t be bought - not even with the sale of a house. Customers like to be treated with honesty, respect, and integrity. They want a realistic and accurate property appraisal. They want an agent who commits to action. They want to be able to speak to someone who can help them when they call. They want to feel welcome when they walk into the office. They don’t want their intelligence insulted by advertising. They don’t want to be fed a line (even if it is what they’d like to hear).

Agents with business sense know that if they can provide this customer service - if they can pioneer great customer service in real estate - they’ll have a real edge on their competitors. Far from being an impediment to success, they see today’s marketplace as an opportunity to flourish.

Obviously, the sale is still critical, but it’s part of a greater whole - almost like a critical KPI (Key Performance Indicator). It’s based on the simple premise - serve and you will sell. The premise holds true because all the pre requisites of a sale are intrinsic to good customer service: The price is realistic, the marketing is intelligent, the advertising appropriate, and commitments are made and kept. Vendors, buyers, landlords, and tenants alike receive the same high level of customer service.

5 Quick Tips for Finding a Service Oriented Agent

1) Ask to see references - It’s not that much different from a job interview. Think of the agent as the job seeker, and encourage them to prove their customer service qualifications. The right agent will be only too happy to provide as many references as you’d care to see.

2) Analyse their business growth - Assuming their references are in order, ask after their business growth. References provide you with qualitative evidence of customer focus. You should supplement this with something quantitative. If the agent is still growing rapidly in today’s environment, then they must be doing something right.

3) Analyse their market share - Like growth, market share can be an indicator of customer focus. Ask what their share of the target market is.

4) Observe their behaviour - Do they return phone calls? Do they commit to action? Do they meet their commitments? Are the punctual? Do they keep you informed? Do they remember important details you provide them?

5) Gauge access to staff - When you first called, did you get to speak to someone who could help you? If not - if they took your name and number and told you they’d get someone to call you back, this might be indicative of their customer service approach.

* Glenn Murray is an SEO copywriter and article submission and article PR specialist. He is a director of article PR company, Article PR, and also of copywriting studio Divine Write. He can be contacted on Sydney +612 4334 6222 or at glenn@divinewrite.com. Visit www.DivineWrite.com or www.ArticlePR.com for further details, more FREE articles, or to download his FREE SEO e book.

Will the Real Estate Investor Bubble Burst?

Writen by Scott Ames

Everyone these days is a real estate investor it seems. Mom and Dad, cousins, Uncle Joe, and the butcher down the street all have an interest in real estate investment.

I don’t blame them. Real estate has been a great way to make money for as long as I can remember. It’s been the foundation of the word investment forever.

Everyone knows that if you purchased a house 20 years ago that it’s worth many times more today. Even with real estate dips and crashes in certain area, real estate’s price rise marches forward.

In the 1980’s Texas real estate crashed hard. Houses were being sold very cheap because no one wanted them. People lost their homes to foreclosure by the droves. Could that happen again? Sure. It could.

If you do a Google search for Real Estate Bubble you get over three and one half million references. Money Magazine, Warren Buffett, along with many others are warning of the coming bubble. It’s such the rage that if we were headed for a bubble or not, it’s likely to be self fulfilling. When people reach the point that they believe a bubble is coming and start pulling out of real estate, the bubble will have arrived.

Bubbles are nothing to be feared for the average homeowner that has lots of equity, low payments, and a steady job. They can weather the storm and do just fine. Sure they might be sore pressed to sell or refinance if they wanted, but if their intent is to live in the house long term, they won’t even notice the bubble burst.

Those that need to fear are overextended long term real estate investors. Those that finance every property to the hilt and barely make the payments are at risk. It can have a domino affect when an investor that has ten units gets in trouble with one of them, then two, then loses all of them to foreclosure.

Less at risk are long term investors that have planned for the future and have their properties financed in such a way that they could carry them easily at less than 100% occupancy.

Flippers have less risk. These are the type of investor that finds a money pit of a house and fixes it up, then sells. The only risk they have are the houses currently being worked on when the bubble bursts. After the bubble, they can continue flipping because houses will be at an even greater discount and people still need housing even in a saturated market. A fresh newly remodeled home is going to be more appealing than the average used home.

Wholesalers or Bird Dogs have the least risk. These are people that locate old run down houses, put them under contract, and then sell the contract to the flippers and fixers. The only risk the bird dog has is the few bucks put down as earnest money. Bird dogs that don’t hold properties can laugh at the bubble and even make more money once it bursts.

Whatever type of investor you are, plan for the bubble now. If it comes, you will be ready, if it never comes, great, nothing lost. Just don’t get caught holding over extended properties that you can’t carry in case of a loss of tenants or a big reduction in rental income.

Scott Ames is publisher of BIrdDogCity.com a website dedicated to those interested in flipping houses for profit, either retail or wholesale. You may visit the site at http://www.birddogcity.com

Buying a New Build? Get a Realtor!

Writen by Erica Wilson

One of the biggest mistakes people make when it comes to buying a new build is thinking that they don’t need their own realtor. This is mostly due to inaccurate myths and misinformation about real estate. Let me explain why.

Why do I need a Realtor? I guess the question you need to ask yourself isn’t “why do I need a Realtor?” A better question is “why wouldn’t I get a Realtor?” Some people believe that if they don’t use a Realtor when purchasing new builds that they will receive a price reduction or a “better deal”. This just is not true. Usually the price of a new build is not negotiable so whether or not you have representation the price will most likely stay the same.

Why do I need Representation? The key word here is representation. It is always a good idea to have someone working for you that has your best interest at heart when making the biggest investment that you might ever make. You will have someone working for you to look over the documents to ensure that everything is in order. Most importantly your realtor can keep up with the process of the purchase to ensure everything is moving along smoothly and that your best interest is being met, not the builders.

How much will it cost me? The best part of having a Realtor is that it’s FREE!! It should not cost you the buyer anything. Most new builds CO OP to realtors and actually welcome Realtors. Remember that your Realtor needs to be with you to sign you in the first time visiting new build sites. If you go without your Realtor on the first visit, the builder will not pay their commission if you decide that you want one.

So, if you are in the market of purchasing a new build home, go out and get representation. You will have peace of mind knowing that a professional Realtor is looking out for your best interest. Remember that new build Realtors work for the builder but your Realtor is working for you. Thank you and good luck with your new home.

Erica Wilson is a full service Realtor working with Merit Company Inc. and serving the Colorado Springs and Pikes Peak areas. You can search for Colorado Springs Real Estate at http://www.springscoloradorealestate.com