Originally posted by "kenvest":better treat your 35 an hour guy right...he's barely getting by or not paying taxes, take your pick.Kenvest…Either I am just really cheap, or we just have way too many landscapers around here… Maybe “too much” competition. $35.00 an hour for a yard guy is by no means cheap here, there are many cheaper.

The rental market is pretty good down here, but competitive.

The rate is competitive for a full-doc, low loan amount AAA (FNMA/FHLMC/FHA/VA) loan.

Low prices provide more work, more work=more done jobs or I call them "free 10-20 year ads" for others to see, and price slashing takes competition out of the game eventually, ruinous competition if you will.

The competition is selling like crazy though they seem to be praying on the newbies by claiming a higher value and selling one anothers deals.

Sometimes you can actually get in the first page of google that day (you have to have a title with keywords that are not too competitive in order to get in the first page of google).

I used to… But over the last 3 years or so too many people show up to bid… Not that I can’t handle the competition, but these people would show up and just pay stupid prices for the houses…It just got to a point where the time chasing the houses and going to the sales just to watch them cancel or for someone to pay $20k more than I was willing to was just not worth the effort…In the good ol days… I could show up and on a good day 0-3 people would be there to bid… Last I went, they were attracting crowds of 50 or more people… In addition, with all the investors, foreclosure help services, realtors, loan officers, and attorneys marketing to people in foreclosure, many never make it to the steps…I may go again soon just to see what it is like today… My guess is that not as many people go now as lender workouts and short sales have became so popular.

I've been reading up on tax lien sales and just curious -- how competitive is the bidding for tax lien certificates?

The broker's slow motion might help scare off competition.

Over the past 10 years of investing in Real Estate I have gotten more and more frustrated with the utility bills and waste generated from the tenants in my buildings.I have since worked closely with a micro wind-turbine manufacturer out of California and have really concentrated on making the idea of having GREEN power & GREEN reuse on my buildings a reality.Well, about 4 months ago, I joined an idea competition on a website called IDEABLOB, hosted by a credit card company.