Real Estate Investors: Stop Buying Barry Manilow Albums Today ...

Posted: 24 Jun 2014 01:40 PM PDT

I buy real estate investments. My degree is in aerospace engineering. Turns out, I'm not really an engineer. I row competitively. I am a published conference paper author. Camping, outdoors, the beach, and sunshine make me very happy. I support two incredibly cute Pekingese dogs. I try to play rugby, but I'm constantly reminded I'm too small. I eat healthy (try to) and I love working out. I'd rather work 100 hours in a week on my own schedule than 40 on someone else's. I fly airplanes. I'm from Atlanta and Miami, but live in Los Angeles. I've been trying to learn Spanish since I was 10.

real estate investing tips Strong statement, we know – but what else would you come to expect from Hipster Investments by now? Ok – if you really love Barry Manilow, don't be offended. He did, after all, croon the famous song "Mandy" as well as "Copacabana". It's true – at one time, Barry Manilow's tunes were where it was at. Um…the thing is – that was a super long time ago. Manilow, and his music, have aged (and not all that well). To be relevant today, Manilow would need some serious rehabbing, a rock star agent and a miracle like that whole Rick Roll thing that happened a few years ago.

Bottom line? Barry Manilow albums aren't accruing in value – so stop buying them. Our point? Only buy real estate that accrues in value over time. Don't fill up your collection of homes that are just taking up valuable space and money (in repairs). Buy homes that are fresh, that people want to rent (or, in the case of Manilow, listen to) – and fine-tune your portfolio so that it reflects where you want to go in life as an investor. Sounds simple right? Yes and now. Here's how to stop buying Barry Manilow Albums at once:

Real Estate Investors, Be Weary Of "Good Deals"

You know what? You can go into any Salvation Army or Goodwill in the country and get a great deal on a Barry Manilow album. Actually – we dare you. How low a price can you find one for? Um, yeah. Barry Manilow albums are pretty cheap – why? They're not relevant. They take up space. The whole nine yards. In real estate investing, don't end up buying Barry Manilow houses because they're a good deal. You'll end up with a cluttered portfolio that doesn't play out how you want it to.

Real Estate Investors, Don't Think You Can Reinvent The Wheel

OK – or at least don't think you can bring back Barry Manilow to his hay day. Again, avoid buying homes that don't have what it takes to be rentable – don't buy homes people don't want to live in – don't buy homes that are so scratched you can't play them. See where we are going with this? You can't reinvent the wheel, you can't make Barry Manilow Justin Timberlake, and you can't buy old, dusty homes and turn them into true cash-flow.

Key Takeaway

Whether it's record collecting or real estate investing, buy properties that are ready to rent (and albums you actually want to play – that don't have scratches on them or seriously outdated songs). Buying old properties is fine, especially what we'd call a 'turnkey' and you can get good deals – but buy ones that have been fully renovated and are ready to go. Remember: don't try to reinvent the wheel (or revive Barry Manilow's career).

BTB Real Estate Investment Trust: 6 Different Insiders Have ...

Posted: 21 Jun 2014 04:34 AM PDT

Summary

6 insiders purchased BTB Real Estate Investment Trust stock within one month.
The stock was sold by no insiders in the month of intensive purchasing.
2 of these 6 insiders increased their holdings by more than 10%.

BTB Real Estate Investment Trust (OTC:BTBIF) operates as an unincorporated open-ended real estate investment trust.

(click to enlarge)

Insider buying during the last 30 days

Here is a table of BTB Real Estate Investment Trust's insider activity during the last 30 days.

Name	Title	Trade Date	Shares Purchased	Prospectus	Current Ownership	Increase In Shares
Benoit Cyr	CFO	June 18	3,000	Yes	27,822 shares	+12.1%
Claude Garcia	Director	June 11	10,000	Yes	133,209 shares	+8.1%
Jean-Pierre Janson	Director	June 18	5,000	Yes	70,000 shares	+7.7%
Michel Léonard	CEO	June 11-18	17,600	Yes & No	330,622 shares	+5.6%
Peter Polatos	Director	June 18	3,000	Yes	88,127 shares	+3.5%
Frédéric Seigneur	VP	June 18	1,000	Yes	1,000 shares	from 0 to 1,000

There have been 39,600 shares purchased by insiders during the last 30 days. Most of these shares were purchased pursuant to a public offering.

Insider buying by calendar month

Here is a table of BTB Real Estate Investment Trust's insider activity by calendar month.

Month	Insider buying / shares	Insider selling / shares
June 2014	39,600	0
May 2014	950	0
April 2014	1,200	0
March 2014	0	0
February 2014	3,990	0
January 2014	2,250	0
December 2013	0	0
November 2013	0	0
October 2013	0	0
September 2013	14,000	0
August 2013	0	0
July 2013	10,000	0
June 2013	12,900	0
May 2013	0	0
April 2013	3,025	0
March 2013	14,690	0
February 2013	0	0
January 2013	10,365	0

There have been 112,970 shares purchased and there have been zero shares sold by insiders since January 2013. The month of June 2014 has seen the most insider buying.

Financials

BTB Real Estate Investment Trust reported the first-quarter financial results on May 12 with the following highlights:

Revenue	C$16.5 million ($15.3 million)
Net income	C$4.0 million ($3.7 million)
Book value	C$5.43 per share ($5.03 per share)

The six insiders purchased their shares after these results.

BTB Real Estate Investment Trust announced on May 26 that it had purchased a commercial property in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, province of Quebec for $29.3 million. On June 18, BTB Real Estate Investment Trust closed a $19.3 million public offering to fund this acquisition.

Competition

BTB Real Estate Investment Trust's competitors include Partners Real Estate Investment Trust (OTC:PTSRF), and Canadian Real Estate Investment Trust (OTC:CRXIF). Here is a table comparing these companies.

Company	BTBIF	PTSRF	CRXIF
Market Cap:	116.74M	120.24M	2.86B
Qtrly Rev Growth (yoy):	0.05	0.15	0.07
Revenue:	59.09M	53.92M	375.11M
Operating Margin:	0.50	0.56	0.41
Net Income:	17.50M	-4.80M	80.78M
EPS:	0.65	-0.20	1.17
P/S:	1.98	2.23	7.63
P/B:	0.82	0.72	1.82
Dividend Yield:	9.0%	10.1%	3.9%

BTB Real Estate Investment Trust has the lowest P/S ratio among these three companies.

Here is a table of these competitors' insider activities this year.

Company	Insider buying / shares	Insider selling / shares
PTSRF	530,292	0
CRXIF	75,716	0

Only BTB Real Estate Investment Trust has seen intensive insider buying during the last 30 days.

Conclusion

There have been six different insiders buying BTB Real Estate Investment Trust, and there have not been any insiders selling BTB Real Estate Investment Trust during the last 30 days. Two of these six insiders increased their holdings by more than 10%.

The stock is currently trading below the book value of $5.03 per share. The six insiders purchased their shares at prices ranging from $4.14 (C$4.47) to $4.21 (C$4.55). I believe BTB Real Estate Investment Trust could be a good pick below $4.21 based on the intensive insider buying.

Editor's Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.

Disclosure: The author has no positions in any stocks mentioned, but may initiate a long position in BTBIF over the next 72 hours. The author wrote this article themselves, and it expresses their own opinions. The author is not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). The author has no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. (More...)

Markus Aarnio (3,713 followers)

Long/short equity, insider ownership

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Real Estate Investing

Tuesday, 24 June 2014