Definition of "I.D.E.A.L."

Colleen   MacCallum real estate agent

Written by

Colleen MacCallumelite badge icon

EXIT Right Realty

An acronym stating the real estate is the I.D.E.A.L. investment. Each if the five letters in IDEAL stands for an advantage to real estate as an investment. "I" stands for interest deduction. The mortgage interest paid on the first and second residential homes are tax deductible. On the average, real estate is a good hedge against inflation because property value and the income from properties rise to keep pace with inflation. "D" stands for depreciation. The building on your land depreciates in book value each year and you can deduct this depreciation from your investment property and not residential. "E" is for equity buildup. This buildup of a capital asset is like money in the bank. As you amortize a mortgage, the value of your equity investment will steadily rise. In the case of income-producing property, this amortization could mean that your tenants help you build your estate. "A" is for appreciation. Your property value goes up every year, hopefully. Be careful because this is not guaranteed. "L" is for leverage. When you buy a house you make a down payment, say, 10% and you borrow the balance, say, 90%. You get the benefit of 100% even though you put up only 10% of your own money. You can maximize return with other people's money (OPM). The use of a mortgage and OPM means that you can use small amounts of cash to gain control of large investments and earn large returns on the cash invested.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

Section of the Internal Revenue Code relating to depreciation. Capital improvements made to real property are depreciable. ...

Residence units owned by the government and available to low income families at a nominal cost. ...

Appraisal by summation is an Alias for Replacement Cost A.K.A. Cost Approach, which is one of the approaches an Appraiser can go through in order to assign a Market Value to a ...

Rental agreement directly between the landlord and tenant. If the tenant then rents it out to another, it is referred to as a sublease. The relationship takes the following form: ...

Structure built into the water from the land providing a facility for boats to tie up. A dock will often provide utility access ...

Expenditure to make a specific security or real estate transaction. Real estate transaction costs include survey costs, mortgage points and origination fees, recording fees, state transfer ...

Changing property ownership. An example is the sale of a home to another. ...

Individual who will receive an inheritance upon the death of another. The proceeds of an insurance policy may be in a lump sum annuity. Real estate also passes to the beneficiary. ...

The term developer’s profit is the actual profit generated by a developer’s project after the costs of the development have been covered. This profit can come from the sale of ...

Popular Real Estate Questions