It can take a lot of hard work when you are starting out as an estate agent, but it is worth it in the long run.

These agents experience a rude awakening when they realize the amount of time and effort that must be put into their work to experience even the smallest amount of success.

It’s rare that a new real estate agent can achieve a significant amount of success by working part time. This is does not meant that success is impossible. Rather, that it will not be gained so easily.

Expect to make a financial investment that will not be returned in a short amount of time. You will spend money when you first begin your career as a real estate agent.

Some fees that a new real estate agent must pay include the business license, local Multiple Listing Service fees, Board of Realtor fees, training or certification required by your brokerage company, as well as expenses for doing business.

It is a good idea to have a healthy savings built up because it could take a few months for you to receive your first pay check. As a real estate agent, you are paid commission based on the houses you sell. The transaction must close before you are paid for the transaction, so don’t expect to receive your commission immediately. It typically takes between thirty and sixty days for the transaction to close.

You will likely work long hours when you first start out as a real estate agent. In most cases, you will be allowed to make your own hours, but keep in mind that you might have to work around your client’s schedule in some cases. By no means should your client’s control your time. However, be prepared to make a showing in the evening or on the weekend in the case that a client does not have any other available time. This might not be your ideal situation, but it is often necessary.

Know that you are expected to be more than just a salesperson. Often, real estate agents forgo customer service for the sake of making a commission. Your clients want to be treated as more than dollar signs.

Putting more into each deal gives clients a reason to refer you to their family and friends. At times, your referral network will prove to your best marketing tool. Do the work it takes to find the perfect property for your clients. Understand that there may be times in the process that your client needs emotional counseling. These are the aspects of a real estate agent that make clients want to tell their friends about you.

Discouragement can come easily during your first months as a real estate agent. It might seem like everyone around you is closing deals while you struggle to find clients.

When you start to feel this way, remind yourself that you are just starting out and these people have had years of practice. Until you build your referral network and other marketing strategies, finding your clients will be entirely up to you. You will have to resort the manual method of overturning every stone to find clients.

Real estate seems to be the new money-maker, the way to get rich fast and easy. Everyone looking for some quick cash can invest in a few courses, get their license and start working. Some people prefer to attend their classes in person, while others take the route of online real estate training. But is online training really all it’s cracked up to be?

It may seem very easy at first; after all, what is real estate if not buying and reselling of property? When put in that context, most businessmen should be first-class agents. But if we go deeper into the qualifications needed to be good at real estate, we find that it’s not as simple as it looks. For one, you have to be ruthless to succeed, almost to the point of liking to scam people out of their property. It requires a lot of patience to deal with legalities too, not to mention it is hard work and saps a lot of money. Adding to that, a certain amount of hands-on experience is required. Keeping this in mind, would online real estate training really be the best way to learn?

While we can all agree that online learning saves time and is far more flexible and relaxing, the one-on-one experience is lacking. In real estate, you need to get the hang of what is a good deal and what isn’t, and this is something that can’t be done from a book and definitely not from an online course. It is a risky business, one that could be fatal to your bank account if you are not sure of what you are doing.

One of the many things about online learning that greatly benefit agents is the immense amount of time they save when they have to meet the regulatory requirements for continuing education as laid down by their state. These usually come to light every couple of years, and if the market is hot at that time agents are often unwilling to take away several hours a day to study. In this case, online learning is the right choice, offering them the flexibility that they need.

Does this mean that online real estate training never produces good sales agents? We would have to say no. If a person is born with a natural instinct for the business, it would be just as productive to study online as offline. The extra experience will be gained through trial and error, and added to the original instincts a formidable real estate agent will be born!

If you analyze the numbers, you see that the equity available in this deal is $87,500 (Property Value minus Purchase Price minus Repairs).

So here’s a hypothetical question for you: Assuming that the information above is accurate, and the property is located in an area that you view as acceptable and/or favorable, then:

If I offered to give you this deal in exchange for $10,000 in cash, would you do it?

Remember - this is hypothetical. The real question here is this:

Would you exchange $10,000 in cash for $87,500 in equity?

For most savvy investors, the answer is: Absolutely YES!

This is called “Wholesale Real Estate Investing” - the process of buying a lot of equity at a very significant discount from another real estate investor who has already done the hard work of finding a deal and getting it under contract.

Just think about that - consider how easy real estate investing would be for you if you had a network of real estate investors in your area (and maybe even all over the country) who, several times each month, offered you the opportunity to purchase significant amounts of equity for a severe discount…

…It would be quite easy to become wealthy, fairly quickly, wouldn’t it?

The answer again, is: Absolutely Yes, it will.

It is through smart “wholesale real estate investing” that you can increase your net worth by $20,000 to $100,000 on every real estate deal that you do.

…Now the burning question becomes, “Where exactly do I find these wholesale real estate investing deals?”

I know of at least 3 solid sources…

You’ve got to admit - it will be a pretty wonderful thing when you know how to find great real estates deals in which you can trade a small amount of cash for a large amount of equity without even having to find the deals yourself…

…And that’s exactly what “wholesale real estate investing” is all about.

So let’s get right to it. Here are 3 places to find wholesale real estate deals:

1.) Visit the local real estate investing club in your area. Almost all of these clubs have networking opportunities to work with other investors who wholesale deals regularly, and this is an easy way to find great opportunities.

2.) Watch for ads in the newspaper, television, and in other media that advertise slogans like, “We Buy Houses”, or “Sell Your House in 9 Days” or anything similar to that. Most of the time, these people are real estate investors, and they are happy to wholesale deals to people like you.

3.) Watch your email-box. Why? Because if and when you choose enrollment in various free e-courses online, such as that via tm-RealEstateInvesting.com, you’ll be provided with automatic notification about great local and national deals as they become available. But be forewarned - you’ve got to act quickly whenever these deals are announced, because obviously the response is always significant.

Home Decor always starts with some basic design rules that we need to follow in order to achieve the best results. I think most people would agree with me about the backdrop (or background) elements for home design.

1. Paint Color(s)

2. Window Treatments

3. Flooring

4. Furniture

These four elements set the base, or backdrop for your decor needs. Before we get into choosing color schemes, textures, patterns, etc… we must address these four elements of design, and this is where the renter is at a disadvantage to a home owner.

Most landlords already supply two or three of these elements. Paint color(s), Flooring, and often it is the landlord that chooses your Window Coverings. Let us first address paint. Most landlords supply the paint color and they take a dim view of renters using any paint color other than that which they have supplied. Most landlords paint their rentals in off-white colors. This may not be your favorite color and many renters would certainly like to choose their own paint colors, but most renters would also like to get their security deposit back when they move out, so most often you are stuck with the choice that has already been made for you. This does not have to be a horrible thing, as off-white will usually work with most any home decor. Some landlords will let you paint in other colors as long as you re-paint it back to off-white before you move out. Perhaps they will allow you to paint one accent wall which can help greatly. Check with your landlord before you decide to change the paint. If they say no, it is not the end of the world. You simply have to pick your design colors from other sources than the paint.

Most landlords also supply the Window Treatments. Most rentals that I see have been supplied with shades or blinds that are neutral colors. Here also, most landlords do not want you to remove or replace what they have supplied. Although, most landlords will not mind if you use curtains or draperies to add to the existing window treatments, so here is an area worth asking about. Always check with your landlord before you start attaching window coverings to their property. Some landlords will not allow you to nail or screw anything into the walls. Most that I know do not mind, as long as you fill the holes in when the window treatments are removed. Now you can use texture, pattern and color for your windows to compliment your home decor style.

The next consideration will be your furnishings. Most renters already have their furniture, or at least some furniture. Many time the furniture you have may be hand-me-downs. If you do not have your furniture yet and you are on a budget, consider shopping at thrift stores or yard sales. You can usually find some great bargains and if the furniture is not the right color or does not have the right texture, you can always use paint or stain to change the color, and slip-covers can be found for sofas, chairs, etc.. and this will still allow you a good amount of latitude for your home decor.

That leaves us with the Flooring. This is often the most aggravating part, because the flooring is almost always supplied by the landlord, and most landlords don’t care how it will tie in with your home decor needs. No matter how ugly the color is, or how old and worn the flooring is, you are pretty much stuck with it. I have had many clients who have tried to get their landlord to change the flooring, and almost always, they will not even consider it. Even when the tenant offers to pay for part of the cost. This can be frustrating, but changing the flooring is not your only solution, so don’t give up just yet. This is where area rugs can be a wonderful option. Area Rugs come in all shapes, sizes, and colors and although I usually suggest that a person find their rug first before choosing other decor items, you can easily work the other way around and choose a style and color that matches your decor. Use an area rug to cover that old dirty carpet or add warmth and color over any type of hard-surface flooring. It is best to invest a little bit more for a good quality rug (many wool fiber rugs can be found for the same price or slightly more than the cheap ones you find at the chain-stores). The great thing about a good quality rug is that you can take it with you when you move, and a wool fiber rug can last a lifetime with proper care. Also, most patterns will never go out of style, if you choose a more classic or traditional pattern.

The discrimination acts, including disability, sex and race all apply to landlords who are renting their property out along with many other obligations that both tenants and landlords are under.

There are a lot of considerations that need to be taken into account when it comes to the renting of a property, especially from the landlords side of things. If your are hoping to break into the property market through the renting of property you need to ensure that you fully research all of the regulations and the responsibilities that come with maintaining and managing properties for rent.

When it comes to the letting of properties both the landlord and tenant have responsibilities to ensure that the whole process runs as smoothly as it can. These responsibilities are as follows; for landlords:

• Repairs to the structure and exterior of the property, heating and hot water installations, basins, sinks, baths and other sanitary installations

• The safety of gas and electrical appliances

• The fire safety of furniture and furnishings provided under the tenancy

• Ensuring that the property is fit for habitation

• Repairing and keeping in working order the room and water heating equipment

The responsibility of the tenant when it comes to the property letting process is as follows:

• Paying the rent as agreed and taking proper care of the property

• Bills for gas electricity, telephone, etc if this was agreed with your landlord

• In most cases, paying the council tax, water and sewerage charges

One aspect that needs to be taken care of before any tenants are able to move into a property is the maintenance of the property. Landlords are the ones who are responsible for the maintenance and major repairs that need to be undertaken on a property. Included in this are repairs to the structure and exterior of the property and heating and the installation of sanitary units such as basins, sinks, baths and toilets.

The design and up keep of a house that is becoming available for rent needs to be up to suitable housing standards that comply with health and safety laws. The property that is going to be let needs to be capable of providing heat and the building must be in good condition with any repairs that need to be carried on the structure of it being done so.

The property that you are hoping to rent needs to have a good supply of electric and gas and also be free from damp. Any gas boilers that are present within the property need to have annual safety checks by someone who is recognised with the CORGI (council for registered gas installers). As well as ensuring that the gas supply is safe etc you also need to ensure that the electrical wiring of your property is checked and meets the criteria of the Part P regulations.

Any of the repairs or maintenance that needs to be carried out on a property needs to be done by the landlord of a property; however the tenants who rent the property, under common law, need to use it in a responsible way.

Living on the third floor at your apartment can at times be frustrating…especially when you are trying to lug groceries or furniture up three flights of stairs. However, as frustrating as it may be from time to time, there are some really great bonuses to living on the top floor.

1) No above neighbors- You will never have any upstairs neighbors pounding on the ground and bothering you with noise. If you start hearing noises above you, it could only be either thunder or some really big squirrels. You also don’t have to worry about an upstairs neighbor dumping liquid or a cooler full of ice over the balcony passed your balcony.

2) Best Views- Looking out of your windows or going out on your balcony from the third floor can provide you with some of the best views in the community. How can you beat that?

3) Further Away From Car Noise- Up high, you are further away from the parking lot and the cars passing back and forth. This helps you isolate yourself away from the noise as well and things are a little quieter.

4) Harder For Crime- It may also be more difficult for a burglar to break in to your apartment through the windows on a higher floor unless they are good at scaling walls. They also would be less prone to take things out of your place because they would have so far to lug that stuff.

5) Work Out- The best bright side of all is that you get a little more of a work out and burn more calories than you would in a downstairs apartment just by simply going to and from your place. (This is no way to get fully in shape, but every little bit helps)

So there you have the top 5 reasons that living on the top floor in your apartment building is a really awesome thing. Enjoy it! Relish it! Remember to live for fun!

Extra Tip: Keep a big brown box broken down in your trunk that you can put together and use to bring your groceries up in bulk and in one trip!

For more tips on apartment living and getting the most out of the apartment lifestyle, check out ApartmentHomeLiving.com

Jeff’s just a regular guy with a funny goatee that really enjoys people and life. On top of that he is a bit of an expert on apartments, living in them, and getting the most out of the apartment living lifestyle.

As a Managing Partner of Apartment Home Living, Jeff wants to help you find the right apartment by getting to know you. Not only where you want to live & what you want to pay, but what you like. This way, we can help you find an apartment that fits your personality, not just your budget.

At AHL Apartmentites have a platform to share their own stories, get great info & tips on apartment living, read Jeff’s entertaining blogs/stories, find Answers to a wide array of apartment related questions, and have a ton of fun sharing their love of apartment living with others.