Edgar Martinez

Top 10 Most Expensive Mistakes You’re Making on Your Home 1. Using Traditional Light bulbs If you still have incandescent light bulbs in your home, you could be throwing a lot of money away every month on inflated electric bills. Over its life span, an incandescent bulb can use $180 worth of electricity. A CFL will only use $41 worth of electricity over the same time period. Even better is the LED bulb, which only uses $30 per bulb. Think what replacing every light bulb in yo...Continue reading

10 Keys to Survive the Next Real Estate Downturn 1. Keep an eye on the high end because when the economy starts to turn it’s the upper end of the market is typically the first get hit. This leads to key #2. 2. Invest in B and C-class properties because it gives you a chance to see the recession coming. Also, rents in this class typically go up during a recession because of demand.... 3. Diversify with more units under a single roof. As alluded to in key #2, recessions typically create renters, so the more units you have available to fill the demand the better off you’ll be. Fun Fact: From 2008-2012, 8 million single-family homes went into foreclosure. During the same time, multifamily default rates were less than 1%. 4. Remember the saying, You make your money when buy. So always run your numbers and make sure you’re getting a good deal. Also, don’t get emotionally attached to a deal, if the numbers don’t work do not try to play with them or justify why they might work or how things might be different. Getting a good deal also allows you to have a cushion in a downturn. 5. Stick to cash flowing properties because overleveraging will crush you in a recession. An income producing property will help you weather the storm. 6. Buy in an up-and-coming neighborhoods, these tend to have lower rents so renters move out of pricier areas into more affordable neighborhoods; this transition leads to making them into a hot new area. 7. Another saying goes, Most real estate booms die from oversupply. Keep this in mind. Supply and demand is a basic fundamental of investing. Overbuilding is a growing concern in several markets, especially at the high end of the market. Track your metro’s supply/demand stats, absorption rates, etc., so you don’t get caught. 8. Look for ways to add value. If you can reduce expenses and/or increasing cash-flow with strategic renovations, you are increasing the value regardless of the economy. In the event you’re in the position you have to sell (typically for a lower price than it’s worth pre-recession) this adds another layer of cushion for you. 9. We’ve all heard, Cash is king. This saying is so true in real estate. So having cash reserves puts you in a great position to not only survive during a recession but also have cash to buy when prices are low during the recession itself. 10. Don’t try to time it the market. Market cycles are predictable, but the specific timing of them is not. Our economy is too complex to know the event that will trigger the investor fear and cause a recession.

4 LLC types and the way they pay taxes Disclaimer, I am not an accountant or an attorney, this write-up is for informational purposes only. Single-Member LLC:... As the name suggests, the single-member LLC is an LLC with only one member. It allows the owner of the LLC to pass-though the profits of your LLC into your income taxes instead of having to pay the 39.1% corporate tax (who wants to do that!?). A Married Couple LLC: Only made for two people who are married to each other; this type of LLC also has the pass-through tax advantage unless the LLC is formed in a community property state. A quick google search yielded Louisiana, Arizona, California, Texas, Washington, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, and Wisconsin as community property states as of 2018. If you're in one of these states you'll have to file a partnership tax return for your LLC. In this case, you and your spouse will each have to include your respective shares of the profits on your income taxes. Multi-Member LLC If your LLC has two members that aren’t married, then it’s considered a multi-member LLC. A multi-member LLC also receives pass-through tax treatment. Each member will claim his or her share of the LLC’s profits on their tax return. With this type of LLC it's good to have defined roles and percentage splits ahead of time. The Series LLC The series LLC uses a parent-child structure. You and your partners will form a "parent" LLC then create as many "children" LLCs as you need/want. Each of the series LLC's operate directly under your parent LLC, but are treated separately for liability purposes. While this has many benefits, one drawback of this type of LLC comes when it's time to paying taxes but for that I would recommend you speak with a professional.

The Upscale Home Improvement Projects With the Lowest ROI in 2019: Master Suite Addition (50.4% ROI) Average Cost: $271,470 Average Resale Value: $136,820... Bathroom Addition (58.1% ROI) Average Cost: $87,704 Average Resale Value: $51,000 Major Kitchen Remodel (59.7% ROI) Average Cost: $131,510 Average Resale Value: $78,524 Bathroom Remodel (60.2% ROI) Average Cost: $64,743 Average Resale Value: $38,952 Window Replacement (Wood) (70.8% ROI) Average Cost: $20,526 Average Resale Value: $14,530