Working from home is great because you can maximize your time and it costs very little to get started. If you are looking to start a home based business then you need to save anywhere you can before you start making money. The best way to do this is to use a spare room in your house to work out of.First you want to convert one of the spare rooms in your house into an office. Make sure that you make it a place that you feel comfortable working in and that you are not in a corner with no space. Clean the room out so that you can hang pictures and have furniture that you would have if you were in an office outside the house.You may already have an internet connection at home but if you are going to work there now then you need to make sure that you have a good one. You may want to increase your internet speed so that you are more efficient. Call the cable or phone company and compare rates before choosing how much you want to upgrade.If you do not have an office desk or chair then and you are trying to save money then you need to check with goodwill or the salvation army. You will be surprised that you can find great used stuff at a fraction of the price it would cost you to buy brand new. You can get something fancy later when you are making money.Make sure that buy the things you need right now to start your own home based business. Some people want to go out and charge a bunch of new equipment and this is not necessary until you make money. You do not want to go into debt and have a hard time paying bills. Let the income dictate when you buy new stuff for your business.

On a sunny afternoon in Florida, an energetic crowd gathers on the lawn of a high end luxury estate. A loud and eager banter between an auctioneer, a group of bidders and bidder assistants fills the air. For several minutes the auctioneer asks for the next highest bid and the bidders respond. Suddenly the bidders grow silent. The high bidder holds his breath in anticipation of winning the auction. The auctioneer calls for one more bid. In a loud clear voice which rolls over the audience he says, “Fair warning, last chance” the auctioneer pauses, “SOLD!” And in less than 10 minutes another multimillion dollar estate has changed owners.

Successful real estate auctions like the one above are happening all over North America and the Caribbean. Recently real estate auctions have been on the rise, the increase in popularity is partly driven by growing inventories and fading buyer confidence. Properties that were selling in weeks using traditional methods are now languishing on the market unable to attract buyers even as seller’s lower prices. Many say the real estate boom is over but savvy buyers and sellers are profiting from real estate auctions.

Real Estate Auctions Work in Up or Down Markets.

Regardless of trends or market cycles, real estate auctions provide an open and transparent process for buyers and sellers. Properly conducted real estate auctions attract ready and willing buyers and motivate them to act now.

The auction method removes the “wait and see” attitude which serves to further depress real estate values. Buyers are always concerned about overpaying. Buyers gain confidence with their purchases at real estate auctions because they can see what others are willing to pay.

When market demand is high and inventories low, real estate auctions can deliver selling prices well above what a willing seller would have accepted in a negotiated private treaty sale. In good selling climates many property owners using traditional real estate methods; negotiating with one buyer at a time, leave thousands of dollars of equity on the table. During up markets real estate auctions are the best way to establish top market price.

Evaluating Your Real Estate for Auction

Not every property or seller for that matter makes a good candidate for auction. First of all sellers must be ready to sell now and for the current market value. Also a real estate auction will not fix problems caused by a downturn in market value of your property, if you owe more than a willing buyer will pay, be prepared to come to closing with your check book.

Properties that do well in real estate auctions have a high uniqueness factor. Ask your self, “What makes my property different from most others?” Maybe you own a resort property or high end luxury home, commercial properties and land do very well at auction. Real estate auctions thrive on uniqueness. If your property is like everyone else’s, the best thing you can do is offer the most competitive price.

Most importantly sellers must be reasonable about setting a minimum bid. A seller must look at the lowest, most current comps and price below that to generate the interest and urgency necessary for a successful real estate auction. Once the auction begins and qualified bidders start competing against one another you can watch the selling price increase.

Locate a Qualified Real Estate Auctioneer

Start by checking with the National Auctioneers Association, the best real estate auctioneers belong to this organization. These real estate auctioneers are well trained and adhere to a standard of practice and a code of ethics. Many attend the annual International Auctioneers Conference where the latest techniques and innovations in the real estate auction industry are presented.

Find out if the company you are interviewing is a full time real estate auction firm. Many real estate agents are getting auction licenses yet have no experience with the auction method of marketing. Conducting a successful real estate auction is nothing like (private treaty) traditional real estate sales. Go with a real estate auction pro.

You’re probably better of with an auction house that specializes in real estate auctions. There are many qualified auctioneers who have generations of experience selling personal property; furniture, dishes, lawn equipment and the occasional rare painting. Selling real estate at auction is a complex matter that should only be attempted by full time experienced real estate auction professionals.

Commissions and fees may vary, sellers must pay all marketing expenses up front and buyers typically pay 10% of the sales price to the auctioneer of which a share goes to participating real estate agents.

Types of Real Estate Auctions

Auctions are effective because they create a seller’s market. Professionally conducted real estate auctions create urgency, a reason to buy today and competition for the property. Terms and conditions of sale are established ahead of the auction. Real estate auctions will follow one of these three approaches:

Absolute Auction

The property is sold to the highest bidder regardless of price- using this process often returns the highest sale price.

Minimum Bid Auction

Seller agrees to sell at or above a published minimum bid price – this method is useful for internet auctions.

Seller Confirmation or Reserve Auction

With a reserve auction, the seller “reserves” the right to accept or decline any bids usually within 48 hours of the auction. Reserve auctions are used when there is a lien on the property from a lender or a court ordered sale with a minimum selling price.

I know at times it can be challenging looking between all sorts of home based business opportunities and finally deciding which one is for you. Trust me I’ve been there before. At times it can simply be overwhelming.Because I’ve been in the home based business industry for a while (5+ years) I decided to write this article to help guide you in the right direction. Ultimately the choice is yours.Now there are several types of businesses that fall under the “home based business opportunities” category.You have day cares, consulting firms, carpet cleaning, network marketing, direct sales, internet marketing, forex trading, and the list goes on and on. I want to bring to light in my expert opinion 4 critical keys that you want to consider while looking at home based business opportunities.1. Does It Offer True Freedom
Correct me if I am wrong. However I believe that you are like me. You are looking to be your own boss ultimately so that you can have freedom. Freedom to do what you want, when you want, with who you want, for as long as you want.A lot of home based business opportunities claim you will have freedom but in all honesty you won’t.
Too many businesses end up running the people or rather owning them. They are constantly filling orders, answering the phones, dealing with clients, driving all over town, dealing with vendors, answering email, trying to collect payment, and more.Who wants to deal with that? What if there were a way to have the benefits of being your own boss without having to deal with all the extra stuff that weighs you down?2. Systematic Process
This is a big one. I fully appreciate now knowing how powerful efficient systems are when you have them in place. It can be the difference between you being involved in every single thing that goes on in your business which will eventually wear you out vs you focusing only on what you are good at and allow the system to do the rest.It truly is a beautiful thing. Because of the systems that I have set up now, I’ve been able to eliminate myself from a lot of the heavy lifting if you will and get my work day down to 2 hours per day on activities that produce income. And it’s all because I have a system set up to do that which I’ll tell you about later.Imagine if you will having a system so powerful that handles your explaining, telling, selling, billing, payment processing, filtering, and outsourcing.3. Automatic Follow up Process
Answer this for me. If there were a way to follow up with your customers without you having to pick up the phone and feel cheesy making that phone call, would you want to know how to do it?If you are like most people you are nodding your head yes. Let’s face it. We live in a day and age where people really don’t answer the phone anymore unless your number is saved into their cell phone.Not only that but being tied to the phone to follow up with customers, prospect, make sales, collect payments, etc is a drag. That essentially makes your business your owner and you don’t have a life which goes back to point number one.Fortunately for you and me there are certain tools out there now that automate this process that we can leverage.4. Product Creation
I don’t want you to overestimate the importance of this last point. When researching home based business opportunities many people struggle with should they provide a service or a product. Then when they decide to provide a product the next question is what kind, how much will it cost, how do I get it patent, and there’s a lot of research that is involved if they are doing it right.What if you didn’t have to do all that extra intensive leg work and there were valuable products that you can stand behind that were already created? What if you didn’t have to handle the shipping, billing, or any of that with the products yet money still was deposited into your bank account like clock work.My friend that is the day and age that we live in now. If you don’t want to create a product much less provide a service then you don’t have too. There are product creators out there that are just looking for people to resell their products. Some are good and some are bad, you’d have to decide for yourself.Now that I’ve given you 4 serious points to consider when evaluating home based business opportunities I want to help you out even further. I want to show you the business that has all of these covered and then some.This business has allowed me to walk away from my job, earn a full time income, work anywhere I want because it is internet based, help develop me as a leader, and given me my life back since I only work about 2 hours per day.