Thanks to our friends at Spagnuolo and Company for this important information

THE B.C. FIRST-TIME NEW HOME BUYERS’ BONUS
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THE B.C. FIRST-TIME NEW HOME BUYERS’ BONUS
Subject to approval by the legislature, the B.C. government intends to implement a temporary BC First-Time New Home Buyers’ Bonus. Effective February 21, 2012, to March 31, 2013, the bonus is a one-time refundable personal income tax credit worth up to $10,000.
Requirements to Qualify for the Bonus
ELIGIBLE FIRST-TIME NEW HOME BUYER
You will qualify as a first-time new home buyer if:
You purchase or build an eligible new home located in B.C.;
You, or for couples, you and your spouse or common law partner, have never previously owned a primary residence;
You file a 2011 B.C. resident personal income tax return, or if you move to B.C. after December 31, 2011, you file a 2012 B.C. resident personal income tax return (you will not be eligible for the bonus if you move to B.C. after December 31, 2012);
You are eligible for the B.C. HST New Housing Rebate; and
You intend to live in the home as your primary residence.

ELIGIBLE NEW HOME
An eligible new home includes new homes (i.e., newly constructed and substantially renovated homes) that are purchased from a builder and that are owner-built. The bonus will be available in respect of new homes purchased from a builder where:
A written agreement of purchase and sale is entered into on or after February 21, 2012;
HST is payable on the home (e.g., HST will generally be payable if ownership or possession of the home transfers before April 1, 2013 – see further details below); and
No one else has claimed a bonus in respect of the home.

The bonus will be available in respect of owner-built homes where:
A written agreement of purchase and sale in respect of the land and building is entered into on or after February 21, 2012;
Construction of the home is complete, or the home is occupied, before April 1, 2013; and
No one else has claimed a bonus in respect of the home.

A substantially renovated home is one where all or substantially all of the interior of a building has been removed or replaced. Generally, 90% or more of the interior of the house must be renovated to qualify as a substantially renovated home (90% test).
Amount of the Bonus
MAXIMUM AMOUNT
The bonus is equal to 5% of the purchase price of the home (or in the case of owner-built homes, 5% of the land and construction costs subject to HST) to a maximum of $10,000.
PHASE-OUT FOR HIGHER INCOME EARNERS
The bonus will be reduced based on an individual’s/couple’s net income (line 236 of your income tax return) using the following formula:
For single individuals, the bonus is reduced by 20 cents for every dollar in net income over $150,000 (bonus is reduced to zero at $200,000 net income).
For couples, the bonus is reduced by 10 cents for every dollar in family net income over $150,000 (bonus is reduced to zero at $250,000 family net income).

THE B.C. FIRST-TIME NEW HOME BUYERS’ BONUS
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Additional Information
APPLICATION PROCESS
Individuals must apply for the bonus through the B.C. government. Individuals can apply once application forms have been posted on the B.C. Ministry of Finance website later this year. Applicants will be required to submit documentation demonstrating eligibility for the bonus.
ELIGIBLE NEW HOME
The bonus is available in respect of new homes (i.e., newly constructed and substantially renovated homes) where HST is payable. HST will generally be payable on homes purchased from a builder where ownership or possession transfer before April 1, 2013. Potential buyers should consult with the builder to determine if the home will be subject to the HST.
For owner-built homes, the bonus will be based on land and construction costs subject to the HST. Eligible new homes will include:
Detached Houses, semi-detached houses, duplexes and townhouses,
Residential condominium units,
Mobile homes and floating homes, and
Residential units in a cooperative housing corporation.

For More Information
INCOME TAXATION BRANCH
Ministry of Finance
Province of British Columbia
Telephone: (250) 387-3332 or 1 (877) 387-3332
Email: ITBTaxQuestions@gov.bc.ca

To help support workers and communities in B.C. that depend on residential recreational development, purchasers of new secondary vacation or recreational homes outside the Greater Vancouver and Capital regional districts priced up to $850,000 will now be eligible to claim a provincial grant of up to $42,500 effective April 1, 2012.

B.C.’s portion of the HST will no longer apply to newly built homes where construction begins on or after April 1, 2013. Builders will once again pay seven per cent PST on their building materials. On average, about two per cent of the home’s final price will again be embedded PST.
The temporary housing transition measures will be in place for two years, until March 31, 2015. The tax only applies to homes where construction begins before the transition date and ownership and possession occur after.
The temporary housing transition tax and the temporary housing transition rebates will be administered by the Canada Revenue Agency on behalf of B.C. The Province is administering the grant for new secondary vacation and recreational homes.

Canada’s mortgage party has come to an abrupt halt. (MAJOR BANKS CUT BACK WHILE LOWER RATES BY OTHER LENDERS STILL AVAILABLE)
The bonanza of dirt-cheap mortgages offered by some of the country’s biggest lenders in recent weeks has been shut down sooner than expected, as banks pull their offers in the face of higher funding costs and concerns over dwindling profit margins.
On Wednesday, Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD-T79.090.260.33%) pulled discount mortgage rates that were supposed to be available until the end of the month. Royal Bank of Canada (RY-T53.930.350.65%) did the same on Tuesday.
RBC and TD were both offering four-year fixed-rate mortgages with a 30-year-amortization at 2.99 per cent, and had announced plans to keep those rates in place until the end of the month.
The offers were in response to Bank of Montreal (BMO-T58.600.480.83%) offering five-year fixed-rate mortgages over 25 years at 2.99 per cent, which observers said is the lowest in recent memory. Though BMO’s move was a two-week offer that was eventually halted, it led RBC and TD to match the rival bank with extended offers to avoid losing market share.
Hints that an economic recovery is taking hold in the United States are putting upward pressure on rates. A slight increase in bond yields this month has forced RBC and TD to pull their mortgage offers weeks ahead of schedule, an indication of just how slim lending margins are for banks in the current environment. Benchmark five-year Government of Canada bond yields have gone up 17 basis points since the start of February.
“The rates coming down were in response to a very aggressive move by a competitor and a need for us to defend our client base, and to defend our business. We didn’t lead it there, but we felt compelled to follow,” David McKay, group head of Canadian banking at RBC, said in an interview Wednesday.
“When that market attacker corrected and raised their rates, it enabled us to say funding costs are going up, we’re not making enough spread at this rate … and we need to raise pricing because the cost of funds is going up.”
In an improving economy, expectations of inflation taking hold gradually push up bond yields and lending rates. Government of Canada five-year bond yields reached a two-month high of 1.416 per cent on Wednesday.
“Rates can go up and down, depending on conditions. The new rates reflect rising bond yields and the subsequent increase in the cost of funds,” TD spokesman Mohammed Nakhooda said.
In response, TD and RBC both increased their four-year, fixed-rate mortgages to 3.39 per cent, an increase of 40 basis points. BMO has also raised its rates to similar levels.
“We have seen some modest backup in Canadian bond yields in recent weeks, amid growing optimism on the global economic outlook – and in particular an improving U.S. outlook,” said Doug Porter, deputy chief economist at BMO. “In turn, this has put some upward pressure on borrowing costs.”
The banks, which will begin reporting quarterly earnings at the end of the month, aren’t saying whether the deep discounts on mortgages led to a boom in new business. However, anecdotal evidence gathered from inside the mortgage community Wednesday suggested a flurry of activity has taken place since mid-January.
The lower rates came at a time when Ottawa is trying to warn consumers against taking on too much debt, worried that household debt levels across the country are rising too quickly. Sources indicated last week that officials in Ottawa were not happy with the price war the banks were waging on mortgages, since it potentially encouraged people to borrow more.
Frank Techar, head of personal and commercial banking in Canada for BMO. said BMO began offering the 2.99-per-cent rate as a way to promote its 25-year mortgages, rather than 30-year amortizations. “We went to 2.99 per cent to draw attention to the benefits of having a mortgage with a maximum amortization of 25 years,” he said.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/canadian-banks-call-truce-in-easy-money-mortgage-battle/article2331673/

Government tightens stated income mortgage lending

The Department of Finance tightened lending rules in two sets of changes 2010 and 2011. In a continuing effort to control lending practices, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OFSFI) is increasingly worried about business for self underwriting practices at the country’s big banks. These practices include products targeted at business owners and new immigrants who both may have difficulty showing accurate proof of income. The increased attention and audits by OFSFI has resulted in some banks scaling back or (for the time being) eliminate their current programs.

In the case where a self employed person claims lower net income for tax purposes or where a new immigrant has not established income in Canada – some of the major banks and other lenders would “waive” the income requirement or allow “stated” income with the condition the borrower has good credit and a minimum down payment of 25%-35%. This guideline allowed those with the limited ability to show income to qualify for a mortgage the opportunity to access financing where they might otherwise not qualify based on income.

Earlier this week one major lender stopped access for this program. However, lenders such as TD Bank, Scotia and First National are still offering the program. CIBC also offers this program through the Mortgage Centre brokers only (which is good for me There are also other B side lenders with reasonable rates for these kinds of applications.

So – what will happen moving forward. I think we will continue to see rules tightening. For those people who have a unique situation or need a little special care for financing – talk to your independent mortgage professional to review your specific needs and to understand your options.

Depreciation Report Summary – excerpted from article prepared by Mike Mangan B.A., LL.B.

On December 13, 2011, the provincial government changed several important strata requirements.

The changes mainly concern depreciation reports and contributions to a strata corporation’s contingency reserve fund (CRF). Some changes are immediate, while others come into effect at different times over the next two years. This is a summary of the changes.

Depreciation Reports
A strata corporation’s depreciation report estimates the life expectancy of major items and the ultimate cost of their repair or replacement. Effective December 13, 2011, every strata corporation must periodically obtain a depreciation report, unless otherwise exempted. A strata corporation whose strata plan contains less than five strata lots is excused from this requirement. So too, where a strata corporation by 3/4 vote waives the requirement for a depreciation report, the corporation may defer compliance with this requirement for up to 18 months.

With some exceptions, a strata corporation has two years (in most cases, until December 13, 2013) to obtain the mandatory depreciation report. After that, a strata corporation must update its depreciation report every three years, unless exempted. Only a qualified person may prepare the report, which must involve an onsite inspection. The report must project the anticipated costs of maintenance, repair and replacement of major building components over the next 30 years. The depreciation report must also contain certain information, including a financial forecast that offers at least three cash-flow funding models for the CRF.

Strata Records
Effective December 13, 2011, a strata corporation must keep among its records any depreciation report obtained by the strata corporation. The strata corporation must also keep any reports respecting the repair or maintenance of major items in the strata corporation, including engineers’ reports, risk management reports, sanitation reports and reports respecting any items for which information is mandatory in a depreciation report.

Effective March 1, 2012, whenever a strata corporation issues an Information Certificate (Form B), the corporation must attach to it, among other things, the corporation’s most recent depreciation report.

Funding the CRF
In the past, the Strata Property Act imposed a CRF ceiling. In simple terms, once a strata corporation’s CRF exceeded the amount of the previous year’s operating budget, the law prohibited further CRF contributions, unless the eligible voters by 3/4 vote decided otherwise. Effective December 13, 2011, the CRF cap disappeared. Now, so long as the strata corporation has the statutory minimum amount in its CRF, the corporation may approve further contributions as part of the ordinary budget approval process after considering the depreciation report, if any.

“Copyright British Columbia Real Estate Association. Reprinted with permission.” BCREA makes no guarantees as to the accuracy or completeness of this information.

The secret to the sudden increase in variable rate mortgages

 September 22, 2011 (Vancouver) – A great question, says the Mortgage Brokers Association of BC (MBABC), especially when fixed interest mortgage rates are remaining the same.  The quick answer?  As with many things, it all boils down to money.

Over the last couple of months, banks and other lenders have been offering historically low variable interest rates to qualified homebuyers in an effort to attract new clients and mortgage business.  In the short term, lenders have been prepared to accept these low profit margins with the knowledge that, as the prime rate inevitably rises, so too will their profit on variable mortgages – a similar ‘loss leader’ tactic used by retailers to get consumers into their door.

“However”, says Geoff Parkin, MBABC’s president, “the recent announcement by Bank of Canada governor, Mark Carney has changed the mortgage lending landscape.”   Carney stated that, because of poor performing global markets and continuing economic uncertainty, the benchmark interest rate would remain unchanged.  The long-term outlook indicates continuing low fixed interest rates with no significant increases to the Prime rate.  “In a nutshell”, says Parkin, “the bank’s theory of anticipating rising profits on variable rates was proven wrong.  They’ve had to quickly respond to this situation by reducing the variable rate discount in order to gain back profit.”

What does this mean for consumers who have variable rate mortgages?  Much of the same, says Parkin.  “We continue to see low fixed rates and the variable rate is under 3.0%.  There may still be value in going variable over fixed, but because consumers all have different financial situations and mortgage needs, we recommend they obtain expert financial advice from their MBABC mortgage broker.”

August 26th 2011
Thank you to John Bordignon – Paradigm Quest Inc for this article.

The age old question facing consumers, do I take a fixed rate or variable rate……and a similar dilemma facing mortgage brokers as their clients ask them for advice on which option to take. We all know it depends on the client’s appetite for risk, affordability, cash flow stability, etc. however statistics have shown that taking a short term or variable rate has predominantly, but not always, been cheaper than take a longer fixed rate mortgage.
We maybe in or coming to an interest rate environment when taking a fixed rate or a hybrid mortgage (50/50) may actually be cheaper than staying in a variable rate. Why you ask…..let’s look at the facts as to why this maybe a good time to take a fixed rate or hybrid mortgage.

1. 5 year fixed rates are at the lowest levels in history, we have never been this low…..3.39% and 3.49% 5 year fixed rates are available through many lenders.

2. The gap between a prime – .50% (2.50%) and 5 year fixed rate (3.49%) is 0.99% and (in some cases even lower ), this is down significantly from 3 to 4 months ago when the gap between a 5 year ARM and 5 year fixed rate was as high as 2.00%

3. We have just seen major Bank’s increase ARM rates by 20 bps as liquidity costs and funding costs are starting to take their toll and forcing the increase in ARM rates, thus making the ARM to Fixed rate spread or gap even narrower and will this trend continue

4. You can’t predict when to time a conversion from ARM to Fixed rate, especially in a volatile market. Fixed rates have a tendency to move ahead of variable rates….when variable rates begin to rise the fixed rate has already gone up and if you convert you maybe converting at a much higher fixed rate than today’s rates.

5. Watch for what I refer to as the “Fixed Rate Bubble”. We have seen a large amount of mortgages over the last two years take a variable rate versus fixed rate, including renewal clients. I estimate that as much as $350 billion in mortgages outstanding are in variable rate today. Probably the highest levels we have seen in the Canadian mortgage market. If we see a large increase or numerous simultaneous increases in prime rate over a short period of time AND we experience a mass conversion from variable rate to fixed rate, what will happen to fixed rates? If demand for fixed rate outstrips supply of fixed rate funding, then fixed rates will have nowhere to go but up. We have seen mass conversions in the past, however, the potential magnitude in volume that exists today has never been experienced before and we could be entering into new territory.

No position is complete without looking at the counter arguments’, in other words why a client should consider a variable rate versus fixed rate mortgage. Once again let’s look at the facts.

1. Bank of Canada has indicated it is not looking at raising the overnight anytime soon or at least will hold off until such time as it sees the economy improving

2. There is no indication that inflation is increasing, therefore supports point 1 above.

3. U.S. has no plans to increase rates for the next two years making it more difficult for Canada to raise rates unless the Canadian economy is growing in spite of the U.S. being sluggish

4. Canada is becoming a safe haven for investors’ thus larger demand for Canadian bonds. This demand is keeping bond yields down thus lower fixed rates on mortgages.

Both positions have merit and no one has a crystal ball and if we did we wouldn’t be working we would be sunning ourselves on an island paradise we just purchased with the massive amount of money we made playing the markets…….well back to reality.

If we continue to see the gap between fixed rate and ARM rates shrink then the risks of taking a variable rate versus fixed rate increases substantially. The risk being that ARM rates could increase higher than 1 % over the next 18 months to 24 months, therefore over the course of a 5 year term the fixed rate maybe less costly than the ARM rate. Once the gap between ARM and fixed gets to 1% or less, I believe the smart money would go to fixed rate versus ARM. If the gap between ARM rate and fixed rate is between 1% and 1.50% then a 50/50 mortgage maybe the best bet. If the gap between ARM and fixed rate is in the 1.50% to 2.00% range then ARM rate maybe the way to go. Based on the present volatile market conditions it is hard to predict or say what will happen, this volatility, is the biggest wild card and probably the main reason I personally would be taking a fixed rate or 50/50 versus an ARM, a bird in the hand (fixed rate) is better than two in the bush (ARM rate).

Fixed Rate to ARM Gap * Primary Product Selection
less than 1.00% 5 year fixed rate
1.00% to 1.50% 50/50
1.51% or higher 5 Year ARM

* difference in rate between a 5 year fixed rate and 5 year ARM rate

Tom Fennell Yahoo Finance  If there’s one question being kicked around the barbecue more than any other this summer, it’s probably this: should I lock in my variable rate mortgage?

But with interest rates bouncing around, to the point where they make a mortgage-rate chart look more like the diagram of a rollercoaster, homeowners can be forgiven if they are hesitant.

After all, every time mortgage rates rise, they seem to come back down again. Recently, Royal Bank tried to raise mortgage rates, increasing the cost of its five-year fixed mortgage by 0.15 per cent, only to quietly lower them a few weeks later.

What gives?

On the variable side, rates have been stable, holding at 2.1 per cent for so long it seems like the new normal. They are priced based on the Bank of Canada rate. And with the U.S. economy slowing (Alberta created more jobs than the U.S. did in the last quarter), it’s little wonder that Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney decided not to raise interest rates this week – and it’s doubtful he will anytime soon.

While the variable rate has held steady for months, fixed-rate mortgages are far more difficult to predict. Fixed mortgages are primarily priced off of the five-year bond, and as a result are subject to volatility in the bond market, which is being whipsawed by the European sovereign debt crisis.

As more European countries edge toward default, interest rates have risen on their bonds, in some cases to more than 10 per cent. Many investors, however, fearing widespread defaults, have fled to the safe haven of the U.S. bond market. In the process, that has kept U.S. rates in the 2.3 per cent range, and helped keep mortgages rates low in this country, with a five-year fixed term mortgage going as low as 3.29 per cent.

But these bedrock-low rates could rise quickly if the U.S. does not solve its own debt crisis. President Obama has asked Congress to lift the country’s debt ceiling — the amount the country can borrow to meet its obligations. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives is refusing to grant the increase until Obama makes deep cuts to government expenditures.

They have until Aug. 2 to solve the impasse and if nothing is done, the U.S. will default on the latest round of payments it has to make on its debts. Bond rating agencies have already said they will downgrade U.S. bonds if a default occurs. If that happens, it will drive up interest rates in the U.S. and push rates up on Canadian mortgages in the process.

“If Europe gets into trouble and the U.S. gets into trouble, money will be looking elsewhere,” says Kelvin Mangaroo, founder and president of RateSupermarket.ca. “Interest rates have been bouncing around and we might continue to see that until the U.S. credit situation gets sorted out.”

Could the uncertainty in Europe actually drive interest rates lower in Canada?

If Obama and Congressional Republicans come to an agreement, there could be a sudden flight to quality as investors buy U.S. bonds. That could drive down interest rates on the U.S. five-year bond, and reduce rates on Canadian fixed mortgages.

“There is always the possibility that they could drop a bit still,” said Mangaroo. “They’ve been lower before, so there is no reason that they can’t go back.”

With so much volatility in the market, should you lock in your mortgage? It’s hard to say, but studies have concluded you are better off holding a variable mortgage. Then again, those studies also include periods of extremely high interest rates, but with rates now at historic lows they would only go marginally lower.

In fact, you can purchase a 10-year mortgage for just 4.84 per cent and a 25-year at 8.35 per cent. In effect, you could lock your mortgage costs in at today’s historic lows and that would pay dividends long after the crisis in Europe and the U.S. has passed and rates are rising again.

Whether to lock in or not is the most common question Mangaroo gets at RateSupermarket.ca. About one-third of Canadian mortgages are variable, but Mangaroo says, “It all comes down to risk profile. And interest rates will be going up, so if you’re uncomfortable with that, you should look at a fixed five-year term which is at 3.5 per cent.”

But one thing is certain. If you hold a variable mortgage, you can breathe a little easier knowing Carney won’t be raising rates anytime soon. Ian Lee, director of the MBA Program at Carleton University, says this is because of the ongoing failure by the European leadership to address, let alone resolve, the growing Eurozone debt crisis and the ongoing inability of the U.S. political leadership to seriously address their annual $1.5 trillion deficit and $14 trillion debt.

“This clearly suggests,” says Lee, “that Governor Carney will think many times before raising interest rates now or in the fall.” http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Why-Canadian-mortgage-rates-yahoofinanceca-3692205047.html

CBC News

Posted: Jul 19, 2011 9:09 AM ET

The Bank of Canada has kept its bench-mark overnight interest rate steady at one per cent, saying the need to keep the country’s economy growing amid the U.S. and European debt crises outweighs the need to slam the brakes on inflation.

In response to the central bank’s decision, the Canadian dollar has gained more than a cent in morning trading.

The Bank of Canada said Tuesday that Canada faces an uncertain international economic situation with European and U.S. debt concerns dominating the fiscal landscape.

“The U.S. economy has grown at a slower pace than expected and continues to be restrained by the consolidation of household balance sheets and slow growth in employment,” the bank said in a press release.

“While growth in core Europe has been stronger than expected, necessary fiscal austerity measures in a number of countries will restrain growth over the projection horizon.”

Greek debt riots indicate growing unrest over Europe’s financial crisis. On Tuesday, the Bank of Canada pointed to the crisis over U.S. and European debt as it kept its bench-mark overnight interest rate steady at one per cent. (Petros Karadijas/Associated Press)

Thus, while Canada is growing roughly as the central bank had forecast, the country still faces a threat to its slowly-recovering export sales, partly because of weak U.S. economic growth and partly because of a rising Canadian currency.

Tuesday’s rate decision provided further lift for the Canadian loonie. The currency traded at $1.053 US in mid-morning, up from Monday’s Bank of Canada close of $1.043 US.

Growth versus inflation

Economists had split as to whether the bank would raise its overnight borrowing rate or keep the trend-setting interest rate at its current, record-low level as the July decision approached.

Late last year, Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney talked extensively about the need for Canadians to rein in their personal debt levels, a signal many experts interpreted as the central banker about to get tough on rising prices.

Indeed, many economists began predicting that the bank would boost rates in July, especially after three months — March, April and May — when inflation popped above the central bank’s one-to-three-per-cent target range for price growth.

Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney kept interest rates stable in July. (CBC)

Carney, however, began signaling a change of sentiment in June when he talked about the financial “headwinds” Canada faced in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

His wording lead to a subtle shift in thinking among Carney watchers.

“The hard place that Carney is caught between is the growing risk that Canada’s economy will underperform expectations if U.S. demand remains weak and/or Europe’s credit crisis erupts and spews lava across global financial markets,” said BMO Capital Markets economist Sal Guatieri in a commentary prior to Tuesday’s rate announcement.

Economic growth — something central bankers are trained to generally ignore — began pushing out concerns over rising prices in the bank’s thinking, experts said.

Still, many economists believe the Bank of Canada will boost interest rates towards the end of 2011 as long as the Canadian economy keeps to its current decent GDP growth path.

RBC Economics, for example, currently predicts that Canada’s economy will grow at a 3.2 per cent clip in 2011, equal to the growth rate for 2010.

Courtesy of Stephan Abraham, On Tuesday June 21, 2011
During the first half of the 2000s, investing in real estate became more common for average Americans. With easily available financing and minimal down payment requirements many Americans made handsome profits by flipping homes. Well, as we are all aware of, this couldn’t go on forever, and the real estate bubble popped in 2007, leading to The Great Recession. Notwithstanding this fundamental change, real estate investment is certainly not unprofitable. Some economic factors such as high unemployment and very strict lending standards by financial institutions have contributed to low vacancies for rentals across the United States. Perhaps real estate investors should look at rental investments as an alternative to a buy and sell approach. So, how does one go about valuing real estate rentals? Here we will introduce at a high level some ways to value rental property.
Sales Comparison Approach
The sales comparison approach (SCA) is one of the most recognizable forms of valuing residential real estate. This approach is simply a comparison of similar homes that have sold or rented over a given time period. Most investors will want to see an SCA over a significant time frame to glean any potentially emerging trends.
The SCA relies on attributes to assign a relative price value. Price per square foot is a common and easy to understand metric that all investors can use to determine where there property should be valued. If a 2,000 square foot townhome is renting for $1/square foot, investors can reasonably expect a similar rental income based upon similar rentals in the area. Keep in mind that SCA is somewhat generic; that is, every home has a uniqueness that isn’t always quantifiable. Buyers and sellers have unique tastes and differences. The SCA is meant to be a baseline or reasonable opinion and not a perfect predictor or valuation tool for real estate. It is also important for investors to use a certified appraiser or real estate agent when requesting a comparative market analysis. This mitigates risk of fraudulent appraisals, which became widespread during the 2007 real estate crisis.

Capital Asset Pricing Model
The capital asset pricing model (CAPM) is a more comprehensive valuation tool for real estate. The CAPM introduces the concepts of risk and opportunity cost as it applies to real estate investing. This model really looks at potential return on investment (ROI) derived from rental income and compares it to other investments that have no risk, such as United States Treasury bonds or alternative forms of real estate investments such as real estate investment trusts (REITs).
In a nutshell, if the expected return on a risk-free or guaranteed investment exceeds potential ROI from rental income, it simply doesn’t make financial sense to take the risk of rental property. With respect to risk, the CAPM considers the inherent risks to rent real property. For example, all rental properties are not the same. Location and age of property are key considerations. Renting older property will mean landlords will likely incur higher maintenance expenses. A property for rent in a high crime area will likely require more safety precautions than say a rental in a gated community. This model suggests building in these “risks” before considering your investment or when establishing a rental pricing structure.
Income Approach
The income approach focuses on what the potential income for rental property yields relative to initial investment. The income approach is used frequently for commercial real estate investing. The income approach relies on determining the annual capitalization rate for an investment. This rate is simply the projected annual income from the gross rent multiplier divided by the original cost or current value of the property. So if an office building costs $120,000 to purchase and the expected monthly income from rentals is $1,200, the expected annual capitalization rate is 10%.
This is a very simplified model with few assumptions. More than likely there are interest expenses on the mortgage. Also, future rental income may be less or more valuable five years from now than they are today. Many investors are familiar with the net present value of money. This concept applied to real estate is also known as a discounted cash flow. Dollars received in the future will be subject to inflationary as well as deflationary risk and are presented in discounted terms to account for this.
Cost Approach
The cost approach to valuing real estate states that property is really only worth what it can reasonably be used for. It is estimated by summing the land value and the depreciated value of any improvements. Appraisers from this school often espouse the “highest and best” use to summarize the cost approach to real property. It is frequently used as a basis to value vacant land. For example, if you are an apartment developer looking to purchase three acres of land in a barren area to convert into condominiums, the value of that land will be based upon the best use of that land. If the land is surrounded by oil fields and the nearest person lives 20 miles away, the best use and therefore the highest value of that property is not converting to apartments but possibly expanding drilling rights to find more oil.
Another best use argument has to do with property zoning. If the prospective property is not zoned “residential,” its value is reduced since the developer will incur significant costs to get rezoned. It is considered most reliable when used on newer structures, and less reliable for older properties. It is often the only reliable approach when looking at special use properties.
The Bottom Line
Real estate investing isn’t out of vogue by any stretch of the imagination. Since the last crash, however, the housing market has changed dramatically. Flipping homes financed with no money down is an artifact of the past and possibly gone forever. But real estate rentals can be a profitable endeavor if investors know how to value real property. Most serious investors will look at components from all of these valuation methods before making a rental decision. Learning these introductory valuation concepts should be a step in the right direction to getting back into the real estate investment game.

http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/4-Ways-To-Value-A-Real-Estate-investopedia-3634752025.html?&mod=pf-sp14c