Financial Security 
“While it may seem like a great idea to make a real estate investment during a buyer’s market, you need to make sure you are financially secure before diving in,” warns William Bill Price, Real Estate Teams, LLC of Real Estate Teams, LLC. Make sure you have enough cash for the down-payment—usually between 10 and 20 percent, and be sure you have enough money for upkeep and maintenance as well. “If this is going to be an investment property and not your year-round home, make sure you can afford to keep it in good shape while renting or leaving it vacant,” Price says. “And don’t count on flipping a property right now, unless you are in a position to hang on to the home for five to 10 years before selling.” 

Essential Ingredients 
“Make sure the property you’re looking at has a few essential amenities that will make reselling smoother, or the possibility for adding them,” says Price. These include central air, ranked highly as a must-have feature by a poll done by NAR; ample storage space; a good location and a few modern updates like energy efficient features and appliances. 

Strong Market 
“While most markets are suffering right now, there are a few pockets around the country that are not only remaining stable but appreciating. These are great places for a real estate investment that offer a real possibility of reselling in the near future,” says Price. Make sure you are extremely familiar with the market you are purchasing in before making any investment decisions. 

Tax Time 
Investment properties are taxed differently and the longer you hold on to your property, the better you will make out with the IRS. “Any profit you make from an investment is considered capital gains, and so it will be taxed based on your income and the amount of time you've owned the property,” warns Price. “It’s smartest to hold on to your property for more than a year so you will be charged a long-term capital gain, instead of an income tax rate. The difference here can be up to 20 percent more,” says Price. However, if you make your investment property your primary home, then you can avoid a capital gains tax altogether. To meet this requirement, you must have spent a minimum of two of the last five years residing in the property. “The two years don’t even have to be sequential,” notes Price. Other factors, like being married and filing joint taxes, can allow you to make even more on the investment without being taxed. 

“If you are a frequent investor and are buying several properties in a year, be prepared for the IRS to land you with business taxes as well,” warns Price. 

If you’d like to speak with an experienced Frederick Maryland real estate agent who has your best interest in mind, please contact me with any of your real estate or mortgage questions toll Free, 24/7, at 1-800-395-9636 x7 or E-mail me at bill@homes2price.com. My Office number at Real Estate Teams, LLC is 301-695-3020 x2793

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I am a long time Maryland resident having graduated from Annapolis High School, Johns Hopkins University (BSE) and the University of Maryland. I graduated from University of Maryland with a Masters degree in Engineering. I earned my REALTOR license in 2002 and the Graduate REALTOR Institute designation, GRI.

My focus is to assist my clients achieve their objective in their real estate transaction while saving them time and money. I believe that Real Estate Sales is about helping people.TM My goal is to help people save time and money by assisting them to buy and sell homes in the Maryland Counties of Frederick, Carroll, Howard, Montgomery and Washington. 

Some cities I specialize in are Frederick, New Market, Mt Airy, Middletown, Walkersville, Brunswick, Thurmont, Myersville, Ijamsville, Urbana, and Woodsboro.