The Bubble Is Over by George Smith

Chapter 1: What Happened to American Real Estate?
"We're looking at the biggest housing slump in 40 years!"
Although I completely agree with this viewpoint, I can't take credit for saying it. Instead, that was the somber warning from Robert Toll, chairman of Pennsylvania-based Toll Brothers, in August 2006 as the housing bubble was going 'pffft'. His words are all the more extraordinary because Toll Brothers primarily builds Mc Mansions and caters to the wealthy end of the housing spectrum in place like Northern California, Central Florida, coastal Maryland, and swanky Southwestern cities like Las Vegas and Palm Springs.

Chapter 2: The Trail of Victims So Far (and How Not to Join Them)
In the backwash of the now-deflating housing bubble will come a towering surge of losses. Defaults and business losses will swamp the economy. The casualty list will contain many of the predictable companies, agencies and market cheerleaders that drove the housing segment to stratospheric levels and now have a front row seat to their mutual demise.

Chapter 3: How to Profit While Others Lose
Even though the economic signs are dire, you can--you will--find ways to gain during the coming hard times, while avoiding financial traps and becoming another statistic. Millions of homeowners, lenders, builders, home furnishing concerns, Mom & Pop hardware store proprietors and Realtors are going to take the fall for the irrational exuberance of the past decade. Don't let this happen to you. Instead, start taking steps toward winning in a down market.

Chapter 4: High Prices Don't Equal Big Profits
Who's the King of Real Estate? Donald Trump, hands down. And through real estate investing, you're going to make as much money that you'll be the next King, right? Could happen, but not with the attitude that you've gotta hit grand slams with every deal. This chapter explains how to develop the appropriate plan of action.

Chapter 5: Adjust Your Attitude and Increase Your Profits
Thus far, we've concentrated on the tools you need to locate and size up potential real estate deals in your area. We've also touched upon some of the situations you're likely to encounter as you move from the sidelines to becoming a player in today's bearish marketplace. Before we go any further, I am going to spend this chapter working on you--or to be more specific, on your appearance, attitude and image. In my many years of real estate wheeling and dealing, one thing is crystal clear: you aren't going to make money unless you act as if you've already made it. This concept is vital to your success.

Chapter 6: Know Your Turf
In earlier chapters, I discussed the need to develop a plan of action that factored in the 'local aspects' of the market in which you wish to invest. This plan helps you size up your investment opportunities. But there is another aspect to this crucial process that will have a huge impact upon your overall success. For your investment strategy to work, you need to determine two things: first, the conditions in the market today, and for the months ahead; and two, the area's recent growth and decline patterns. This helps you determine where to purchase, and when to sell, your holdings.

Chapter 7: Let Your Agent Find Your Properties
These days, you're likely to come across more and more 'For Sale by Owner' properties. These are homes or buildings that the sellers have brought to the market without employing the services of a Realtor. And, from your point of view as a buyer-investor, they are a mixed bag. Being a buyer puts you in the happy position of being able to use the services of a real estate broker or agent, and all the clout he or she brings to your property search, without costing you a cent!

Chapter 8: Why Moderately-Priced Homes are Recession Free
Although most people don't realize it at first, the American housing market is heavily influenced by forces and trends that high school students learn about in social studies class. Issues such as population growth, immigration policies and the so-called 'better-life' that living in the United States offers its citizens, help move housing prices up and down. But more importantly, these forces keep the market in perpetual motion as more and more people move up the social ladder to join the middle class.

Chapter 9: Your First Home as an Investment
For millions of Americans, their first home is an investment in every sense of the word. Most folks buy a home not only as a place to hang their hats, but also to grow equity--that is, the net value of the home, after carrying costs. They grow equity by making regular payments to their mortgage holder, As each payment is made, a small portion of the mortgage amount is paid for, and that much more of the property belongs to the homeowner instead of the bank.

Chapter 10: Home Improvement as an Investment
So now, you've taken the plunge and purchased a promising, investment-grade property. The location is excellent, the terms highly favorable and the risk-to-reward outlook is bright. Now comes the minefield of home improvements that add value to your home ... or don't.

Chapter 11: Trading Up to a Bigger House
If you're willing to trade in your digs every few years for a bigger house, then 'move-up-buying' is perfect for you. Essentially, you're going to be moving a lot--from a home in one neighborhood to a larger, more lucrative piece of property in another, realizing profit each time. What's more, this strategy is independent of your other real estate investments.

Chapter 12: Betting on Resort Property
Despite the cooling-off of the housing market, you can still find investment-grade properties waiting for you in some of the hottest resorts in the land. But you need to apply some different rules to your search. Here's why. First, with many of these properties, seasonability is a major player. For part of the year, occupancy is not an issue at all; owners turn away cash-in-hand customers by the dozens.

Chapter 13: Crazy Condos in Trendy Places
Las Vegas. Palm Beach. San Diego. Miami Beach ... especially Miami Beach. What do these swanky cities have in common? Condominium fever and the onset of speculators who specialize in what's known as 'pre-construction condo flipping'. We've all read about the truly astounding deals that have gone down in the last five years involving big-city condominium projects. Urban legends abound about speculators buying pre-construction condo units the first day they're offered--then flipping them just a few weeks later for for or five times their original price. All before the developer has even finished pouring the concrete for the condo tower! In fact, all 'buyers' may really be investor-gamblers who cause a frenzy of interest in a project, then collect handsomely when others want 'in' to the hottest property in town More