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Articles by Craig Higdon

Browse published articles attributed to Craig Higdon, with full-archive search.

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By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Trading Up Using the 1031 Exchange

In spite of decreasing real estate values across the nation, real estate investors continue to come up with innovative ways to make their investment turn out profitably. A powerful method for building real estate holdings is the use of 1031 Exchanges, which lets investors defer capital-gains assessment on investment property by reinvesting sale proceeds into the purchase of new property within a set time period. Though 1031 Exchanges have grown in popularity as the number of active real estate investors has grown, 1031 misperceptions continue.

Primary topic: Real Estate

2,874 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Real Estate: The Importance of Population Trends

While commercial real estate can be an excellent investment, it’s all but impossible to succeed in this competitive environment without some sort of game plan. The most successful professional real estate investors are those who are able to look at a given area and accurately predict which parts of a given city are likely to experience the most growth in relation to other areas in or near that city.

Primary topic: Real Estate

2,460 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Is a SBA 7(a) Loan Still a Wise Choice?

Last year’s commercial mortgage slowdown was reflected in the statistics for the U. S. Small Business Administration (SBA), which reported a year-over-year decline in approved loans of 29%. This surprisingly high reduction in loan volume was also noticeable in the 13% drop in the program’s combined loan value. In the current economy, should you consider a SBA 7(a)loan when financing the purchase of a property for business use? Jeff Rauth, president of Commercial Financial Advisors Inc., cites the supply and demand issues that caused banks to reduce their SBA lending.

Primary topic: Real Estate

2,336 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

A Roadmap for Commercial Real Estate Syndication, Part 1

One of the most important requirements for purchasing commercial property is having enough down payment money, called “equity,” to complete the transaction. A very popular method of raising these funds when you don’t have it yourself is by forming a group of people who pool enough capital to let you close the transaction.

Primary topic: Real Estate

2,289 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Real Estate Financing: Who Controls the Third Party Reports?

Well, this weekend marked the official end of the 2008 NFL season with the NFC defeating the AFC in the Pro Bowl in Hawaii. NOW what am I going to do on Sundays??? I guess I’ll have to find some useful things to occupy my time … like tennis, martial arts, biking, skiing … It is going to be HARD until the end of summer, but I’ll think of SOMETHING. I can always fund some commercial loans, which is our specialty! I’ve heard that even Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are limiting cash out now … to ZERO dollars.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,889 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Real Estate - How to Ask Your Discovery Questions

In order to make a successful commercial real estate investment you need to know the right questions to ask and the right way to ask them. Since purchasing commercial real estate is a negotiation between the buyer and the seller (and probably their prospective brokers), it is important that you, as the buyer, are prepared. Asking the right questions could help you avoid owning an underperforming asset. Remember, both parties are trying their best to get what they want, but their goals are diametrically opposed.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,862 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Going Green: What is “LEEDs?”

“An Overview of LEED Compliance” Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is an internationally recognized certification system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to designate buildings which are notable for stewardship of our resources and for sensitivity to the structure’s impacts. It is a voluntary program that measures how well a building or community performs in the following key areas: – the choice of sustainable sites and managing the site during construction. Development on previously undeveloped land is discouraged.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,706 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Real Estate: Asking the Right Questions

There are many “insider” commercial real estate secrets. One of the most important secrets is knowing the right questions to ask when investigating a commercial property investment. While I’m not going to cover all of the potential questions in detail, I will make you aware of some of the key issues. I’m also going to suggest some places to go for assistance. Investing in real estate is a complex process. Unfortunately, far too many people jump into this complicated marketplace without the knowledge, training, and tools needed to be successful.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,656 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Individualist vs. Collectivist

With all of the hoopla surrounding the end of the Bush administration and the beginning of the Obama, have you noticed the stock market? It has been quietly sinking as the reality of the state of the economy has bee “sinking” in. Here is some of the evidence that things are probably going to get rougher rather than smoother: 1. Trade with other nations has declined nearly 18% in the last quarter. Fewer people overseas are buying our goods and we are buying fewer foreign goods.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,646 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Real Estate: Raising Equity

GETTING STARTED WITH INVESTORS Those researching the subject of commercial real estate investment are likely to encounter the term “OPM” on a regular basis.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,585 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Going Green: Commercial Property Owners Can Cut Expenses with New Solar Film

Coupled with the economic climate and its recent effects on Commercial Real Estate, “going green” is just one of the choices available in an effort to cut costs in building and maintaining office buildings, retail stores, manufacturing facilities and malls. There can be significant savings in utility costs and there are many choices in the marketplace with regards to heating and cooling. Now, new thin solar films are available that cover windows of office buildings all around the country. They reduce the temperature inside the buildings as well as cut cooling costs.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,551 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

A Picture is Worth $1,000,000 …or More

So let’s talk about pictures and commercial loans. One of the key items overlooked in most commercial financing requests is pictures. You would think this would be obvious but I think 70% of the initial requests that we receive come without any kind of visual reference. Kind of astounding, isn’t it? Think about this from the underwriter’s standpoint. Most files are sent outside of the market in which they are located. This means that the underwriter is sitting in an office 300 miles away from the property and knows nothing about it or the market where it is located.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,525 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Multifamily Properties: Strategies for Increasing Profits

Everyone is well aware of the cyclical nature of commercial real estate, as well as the potential for significant profits to be gleaned by purchasing assets before they rise in price. In an article entitled “10 Strategies for Apartment Profits in 2009 and Beyond”, Patrick S. Simons offers specific suggestions on how to make money out of distressed situations in a challenging real estate environment. 1. Analyze markets so that you understand the economic fundamentals that drive them and can anticipate which ones are most likely to rebound first and strongly. 2.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,501 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Picking the Right Commercial Property Lender

What a Super Weekend for sports! No … NOT the Super Bowl (although I’ll get to that), I mean the Australian Open. When Federer plays Nadal in a Grand Slam final, you begin to lose words to describe what you see. Even the announcers were speechless, and it’s their job to talk! Hats off to Rafa for beating Federer in 5 amazing sets and dispelling any doubt as to who is truly #1 in tennis. If you’re not a tennis fan, go see this match. If it doesn’t make you one, you need life support. And many thanks to the Cardinals and Steelers for putting on an amazing show of their own.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,449 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Segregate Costs for Better Cash Flow

Utilizing Cost Segregation to Enhance Investment Real Estate Cash Flow Everyone knows that a dollar today is more valuable than one received in ten years. Tweed Financial Services, Inc. suggests that a Cost Segregation study, which reviews the depreciation schedules related to your real estate investments, may reduce your taxable profits and thereby enhance your after-tax cash flow. Certain assets may qualify for classification as tangible personal property, which can be depreciated over a five to seven-year life.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,425 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Property Analysis: Use Real Numbers

Are any of you catching the Australian Open among all of the Superbowl Hype and College Basketball Overpromotion? There was a great match betwee Roger Federer and Tomas Berdych this weekend. Berdych jumped out to a 2 set lead with blazing strokes and looked like he was going to eliminate Federer in 3 sets. As it turned out, “The Fed” waited for his opportunity, won the 3rd set, and proceeded to win the match.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,410 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Bailout Survival Strategies and Commercial Real Estate

I have a couple of videos to share with you in this post that should get you thinking about your near-term future. First though, I want to you get a “visual” of what $1 Trillion Dollars looks like. For those of you who are numerically inclined that number is $1,000,000,000,000.00. Here’s the link to give you a look at how that number literally stacks up in $100 Dollar Bills: http://www.pagetutor.com/trillion/index.html. Now to put that into perspective with regard to our economy, take a look at this video clip of a recent Glen Beck show where he graphs the amount of U. S.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,379 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

A Roadmap for Commercial Real Estate Syndications, Part 2

Last week I covered the first ten steps to creating your own investment groups for commercial real estate acquisitions. I was able to take the process right up to the acquisition of the property and I’ll cover the balance of the process here. The focus of these articles has been on acquiring existing real property rather than on development.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,371 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Real Investment Strategy: Specialize

Folks, this week’s comments may be a bit too “revealing” for some of you. I’m going to talk my “inner” self … and I DO mea INNER. But before I go there, I should mention that if you use Twitter, there a really NEAT freebie that you can use to explode your social network. It’s called TweeterGetter. Just go here: http://tweetergetter.com/craighigdon. It is totally free. Just click on the link, fill in your Twitter use ame and password, and click on the button (you can get a Twitter account there, too … also free).

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,338 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Real Estate: Outlook at the Power Breakfast

I had the opportunity to sit in at the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) annual “Power Breakfast” that featured some high powered institutional investors as panelists. They included Erwin Aullis, the Managing Director of Transweste Investment Company, Stanley L. Iezman, the President of American Realty Advisors, Inc., and Glen Sonnenberg, the President of Legg Mason Real Estate Services.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,325 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Where Have All the Commercial Lenders Gone?

Do you remember that song from the 1960’s that went something like: “Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?” Oh … you don’t? Hmm, maybe I really AM old! Well, I would update that song for the current decade to something like this: “Where have all the lenders gone, no loans funding!” My walk down memory lane notwithstanding, I am getting a LOT of calls from people telling me that they can’t find commercial financing ANYWHERE. Even our correspondents are making it harder to get projects financed, with a notable exception.

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,325 views

By Craig HigdonRecently published1 topic

Commercial Land: The Asset That Lenders Forgot

Last week I discussed the financing of the purchase of a residential lot for development with a woman who, with her husband, wanted to build a custom home. As always happens when discussing financing, the conversation turned to interest rates and loan structures. When I described the going rate for a fully indexed land loan on a residential lot, she darn nearly fainted! She spluttered: “Whoa … How could rates possibly be so high?!? My home loan is at 6% and you are telling me that a lender wants over 10% for a land loan?

Primary topic: Real Estate

1,246 views

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