SUCCESSFUL REAL ESTATE INVESTING FOR THE SINGLE PERSON

by Jack Cummings ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 12, 1980

Adult singles, whose fast-growing ranks encompass the divorced and widowed as well as the unmarried, have become targets of opportunity for aggressive merchandisers. But Cummings' sound, straightforward handbook offers little evidence that singles constitute a discrete market for real estate, or even for advisories on the subject. Indeed, beyond brief references to singles' frequently disadvantaged tax status and two incidental chapters on the putatively special needs of women (which, among other things, counsel prospective divorcees to keep a list of hubby's holdings), Cummings pays only lip service to the notion of a singular clientele for real estate. Drawing on his experience as a realtor/investor, however, he covers the requisite ground systematically and responsibly. Appraised in detail are opportunities in single-family homes, duplexes, apartment buildings, condominiums, vacant land (""few investments are more forgiving of mistakes. . .""), recreational properties, and small commercial structures. Cases in point range from cautions on maintaining adequate cash reserves and the pitfalls involved in property swaps (pursuant to Section 1301 of the IRS Code, which governs tax-free exchanges) through step-by-step directions on creative financing techniques like wraparound or blanket mortgages. Though consistently intelligible, the text has one stylistic quirk that may disaffect some readers; virtually all important material is presented by the numbers--e.g., ""the four stages of every purchase"" and ""twenty-six ways to get in for little or no cash."" Hardly new, in sum, but a worthy challenger to Harney's Beating Inflation with Real Estate (1979), the best all-around guide of recent years.

Pub Date: Jan. 12, 1980

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Playboy--dist. by Harper & Row

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1980

Categories: NONFICTION