FAQ

General

Q:	Why do I need the products you are offering here?
A:	As a potential investor in a real estate property, you have vested interest in knowing what kind of return you can expect from your investment and what kind of cash flows (incoming and outgoing) you will see in the future.
Q:	Can I use the software for comparing two real estate properties?
A:	Absolutely, you can compare a number of projects that are available to you including the sale and refinancing of your existing property with other purchase opportunities you may have. You can compare these "projects" based on the expected cash flows (cash on sale or cash infusion requirements) or the return on your investment (ROI or IRR). You can do the analysis for as many properties as you like.
Q:	I am interested in flipping properties. Can I use your software for this? Or in general, can I use your software products for periods less than a year or include fractions of a year (for example, 2.5 year time horizon)?
A:	You can use the software for any holding period of more than a month. Fractional years for holding periods will be converted to months during the rate of return calculations.
Q:	How much time do I need to spend to complete my analysis?
A:	Obviously, the answer depends on the type of property you are analyzing. For example a multi-family real estate project is more complex to analyze than a personal dwelling. However, if you have the input parameters ready, you should come up with estimates for your cashflows and IRR of a personal home within a few minutes.
Q:	Do I need to have an in-depth understanding of accounting or finance to use your products?
A:	No special training is needed. Your technical savvy that landed you in our web site is more than adequate to use our software products. The software products are so easy-to-use and intuitive that you will not require a manual, even though a help file is available to you.
Q:	What type of technical support do you provide?
A:	We answer all your technical questions submitted to us electronically in less than 24 hours via email. Again, the software is very easy-to-use and in all likelihood you will not require any support.
Q:	How do you arrive at the expected cash flows?
A:	The are three kinds of parameters that serve as input to our programs: 1. Property specific parameters that are known at the time you make your investment. Examples of this kind of input are purchase price, down payment, and mortgage interest rate. 2. Parameters whose future values are less certain, but you can use known historic values as proxies. Examples of this kind of input are inflation rate and property appreciation rate. 3. Property specific values whose future values are uncertain and historic values may or may not be indicative of future expectations. Examples of this kind of input are cost of maintenance or special projects. For example, you do not know with certainty if you would like to change the flooring in your vacation home or your personal home needs an all-new siding.
Q:	What is IRR?
A:	IRR or internal rate of return (or sometimes referred to as ROI, return on investment) is the mathematical term describing the overall average annual rate of return on a series of unequal cash flows (e.g., first year income & expenses, second year,..).
Q:	How do you calculate the ROI (or IRR)?
A:	Once the cash flows are known for each period, we use standard mathematical functions to arrive at IRR of your real estate project. We also provide plots of how IRR changes depending on the holding period of the property.
Q:	What if I can find a cheaper competitive product?
A:	We at AnalyzeToWin believe we provide the most comprehensive least expensive software solutions to your real-estate analysis needs. If you find a software product with the same features as one of our products, we will give you a 20% discount as compared to the competitor's price.
Q:	What if I do not like your software product?
A:	We have a ten-day money back guarantee. No questions asked, with a full refund.
Q:	How do your Microsoft Excel-based products differ from your stand-alone product? Which one is the right solution for me?
A:	The stand-alone Real Estate Analyzer Deluxe allows you to analyze three different property types (rental, vacation, or personal home) while the excel-based programs are each specific to one property type. Additionally, the Real Estate Analyzer Deluxe features a scenario analysis that allows you to see the impact of a parameter change (e.g., price, mortgage rate, etc.) all on one screen wihout having to go back to the input screen to change. However, it does not offer the same level of detail and features as the Real Estate Analyzer Pro and that are required for more advanced property investments.
Q:	I am a real estate agent and would like to buy several copies. Can I get a discount?
A:	We offer volume discounts. Please contact us via email with the number of copies you would like to have.

 

Technical

Q:	What are the minimum system requirements for the Real Estate Analyzer Deluxe ?
A:	The Real Estate Analyzer Deluxe runs on any Windows 98, 2000, XP or NT system. Some of the reporting features require Microsoft Word to be installed, but it is not required in general. You can also save the report as text file for printing or further use in other programs.
Q:	How do I install the Real Estate Analyzer Deluxe?
A:	The CD contains a setup.exe. Double-clicking on setup.exe will take you through the easy installation process.
Q:	What are the minimum system requirements for the excel-based programs?
A:	The excel-based programs will work on any Windows system with Microsoft Excel 2000 or higher.
Q:	How do I install the excel-based programs?
A:	Simply unzip the downloaded file into any directory and open it with Excel. Excel will ask you whether you want to enable macros. You answer yes to enable the macros in order for the program to work.