By Joe Inman

Trading is considered by many to be the most dangerous event short of war, and like the old saying goes “he who is well prepared has won half the battle.” You are going up against the best and brightest Wall Street has to offer and sometimes it feels they all have one goal, which is to take your money. If this is true, what can you do to survive and prosper in such a demanding profession? First, you must commit to yourself that your goal is not merely to trade but to trade successfully. Successful traders are patient and let the market come to them. It is not in their nature to force a trade. They realize it is better to do nothing unless there is something that should be done. All too often, those who are new to trading will commit the costly sin of overtrading. This occurs most often out of the fear that if they miss this trade opportunity, they may not get another one. Experienced traders realize it is better to miss a trade rather than get into one that only has a marginal chance of success.

By Matt Fagerness

We’ve all heard about the numerous ways you can successfully do real estate transactions with no money down (or at least with a bare minimum of operating capital) and I am a believer in these techniques myself. After all, I was also a Wealth Intelligence Academy® student before becoming a trainer and a mentor for the Academy. I have done deals with owner financing and I have done my share of wholesale deals too, which goes to show that the no money down concept is alive and well, and that these kinds of deals are also something you can do.

With that said, let me shift gears just a little bit. It is often said that businesses (particularly small ones) usually fail for three common reasons. One is the business owner selects the wrong business to begin with. With real estate being as diverse and commonplace as it is, I am not concerned about this pitfall being in your way. Another reason that businesses may fail is they are poorly managed. Right now, your business is likely so small (personnel-wise) that management is not really a factor. On top of that, remember none of us need to be experts on all facets of the business and what you do not know can and should be delegated to your professional power team.

Learn More about this Important Piece of the Short Sale Package

By Lauri Waddell

When a short sale is negotiated with the lender, a hardship letter from the homeowner is requested in the short-sale package. There are several purposes for the submission of the hardship letter which we will explore.

The hardship letter is a letter to be written by the homeowner detailing the events that led up to the default and pre-foreclosure of the mortgage. The letter should detail, in chronological order, the events that caused hardship which ultimately led to financial duress and the default of the loan. As investors, we must always keep in mind that “Life happens to good people.” No one intentionally chooses foreclosure. Our job as investors is to assist the homeowner in documenting the events that led to the preforeclosure of their home. We do this with an empathetic and professional approach that gives the homeowner dignity in the process of letting them tell their story.

For tips from the FBI on how to avoid becoming a victim of mortgage fraud, visit http://www.fbi.gov/page2/august08/mortgagefraud_081408.html

The survey found that 46 percent of sellers who responded attempted to negotiate a lower commission rate. Roughly 71 percent succeeded. The survey also found that sellers who paid commission rates of 3 percent or lower were just as satisfied with their brokers’ performance as those who paid 6 percent or more, suggesting that negotiating can’t hurt.

Most of the time, it’s because they don’t take action. They fail to execute their plan.

Goals are important. A plan is essential. But without action, all the goal-setting and planning is a waste of time.

So think about it. If you haven’t yet reached your goals, could it be because you’re still milling around on the starting line?

If you are investing in foreclosures or own properties with code violations, it’s a good idea to move quickly to correct the problems. If you are cited, don’t ignore the notice. Contact your code enforcement department and let them know you are working on the problem.

By Lance Garvin

Whether you are a seasoned investor or just getting started, the question “What do I do in a bear market?” will most likely arise. Some of you may have heard that money can be made in any type of market environment—up, down, or sideways. In this article, I want to briefly talk about a few options you have in a down market that will help you protect your money. Some of them can even make money.

Almost anyone who has ever purchased real estate can tell stories of problems at closing that ranged from minor glitches to massive headaches—and sometimes even resulted in the deal falling apart. Your closings will go more smoothly if you understand what you need to do and prepare ahead of time.

By Jacquelyn Lynn

You find a property, you complete your due diligence, and you negotiate a deal that both you and the seller are satisfied with—but there’s still one more step in the process: the closing. There is no circumstance where the old saying, “the job’s not finished until the paperwork is done” is more appropriate. A real estate closing is where you complete the transaction, where the buyer pays the money and the seller takes ownership of the property. And though it sounds simple, there’s a lot of paperwork and it needs to be done accurately. What’s more, no two closings will ever be exactly alike. That’s why real estate investors need to understand everything involved in the closing process and what they need to bring to the table whether they are buying or selling.

By Mich Christensen

What is a farming area, how do we find it, and what do we do when we find it?

When we decide to become an investor, we go through the process of getting an education, gaining access to current information, and then implementing what we have learned. Here are some of the first steps in finding our “farming areas,” and once we find them, what to do with them. As beginners, we may start out with one or perhaps two areas that we may be interested in farming. Then as time and experience allows, we expand into additional areas.

“Known as the New Mass Affluent, this new crop of wealthy Americans were born of the post-war boom, raised in middle-class suburbs and benefited from college educations and years of economic prosperity during the bull market of the 1990s. Today they're the empty-nesters converting their kids' old rooms to home gyms, the well-heeled shopping at Costco and the workaholics fiddling with their BlackBerry on the express commuter train.”

These people are also investing and could be ideal financial partners for real estate investors.

Click here to read the full post by Jack Loechner (you have to sign up, but the account is free), then look around at the people who know who fit the demographic he describes. You may have some funding sources right in front of you that you never thought about before.

He points out that the United States has been affluent since its founding, but until the past few decades, had remained “industrious, ambitious and frugal.” He writes this about lotteries: “Here is the government, the guardian of order, telling people that they don’t have to work to build for the future. They can strike it rich for nothing.”

He also observed a dangerous shift in values, writing: “[Benjamin] Franklin made it prestigious to embrace certain bourgeois virtues [of hard work, temperance and frugality]. Now it’s socially acceptable to undermine those virtues.”

Click here to read the full text of the column.