Real estate investment has gotten a bad name in the past because of unethical investors, but there is a lot of good work being done by East Coast investors these days. The robber barons who bought out people's home from underneath them do not represent today's face of real estate investment. Markets for property from Manhattan to Atlanta are full of smart and ethical real estate investors changing the face of the real estate market.

Real estate investment often helps people, rather than hurting the little man as the old stereotype dictates. It is very hard to take advantage of people in the information age, so being an unethical real estate investor just doesn't make sense. There are thousands of New York and New Jersey homes, for example, that people are desperate to unload in order to move to the suburbs or elsewhere. Some home owners may have recently gone through a divorce or bankruptcy, or are planning job relocation. These people need to sell their homes, and real estate investors can help.

A real estate investment in these situations should not be seen as taking advantage of people while they are down, but rather as lending a helping hand. It hurts them each day that their home is on the real estate market. Many distressed home sellers are embarrassed about their situation, but there are some questions that an ethical real estate investor should ask. These include:

Why are you selling?
When do you need to sell by?
What are your plans after you sell the home?
What is the minimum amount of cash you need?
What do you plan to do with the proceeds from the home?

By being conversational and friendly, a real estate investor can determine the needs and wants of the current home owner. This way the deal that is most advantageous to both sides can be struck. Casually asking the same question in different forms more than once can also help to check that their story remains consistent.
If a real estate investor can't make money and help improve the situation for the seller at the same time, the deal isn't a good one. The win-win rule is a good rule to live by for East coast real estate investors. If the sale of the home only helps the seller, then it is more charity than business. If the sale of the home only benefits the buyer, then it is taking advantage of someone else's unfortunate situation.

Communities in upstate New York, for example, have people who have been living in their homes for years. There's no need for the sale of the home to be a traumatic experience for them, but investors must still make a profit to remain in business. A home investment can be a good business decision and a good moral decision if it benefits the seller as well as the buyer.