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Real Estate Information |
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Investing in Real Estate for Your Retirement (and Now!)
You've probably heard a lot of opposing information about Investing in Real Estate, which is completely annoying! The straight-forward fact about Real Estate is that it is probably the best and safest investment you'll ever make, especially if you live in it, and that you are far more likely to make money in this market than with any other type of investing. The chances are very slim that you'll wake up one morning and the housing market will have dropped by 40%. Egads! That ain't good! In general,Real Estate values always go up. There are some Apartments in Calgary (Alberta, Canada) that I wanted my husband to buy (he wouldn't, but that didn't stop me from asking!) about five years ago. Back then, the Apartments were selling for $96,500.00 for a Two Bedroom place, and now that same unit is selling for over $150,000.00. Quite an increase in value, eh? (You're learning how to speak 'Canadian', too!) That's over $50,000.00 in gross profit, for the mathematically challenged (me included!). We sure didn't make that kind of profit in the Stock Market in that span of time. Now, if that were your Primary Residence (the place you actually live), and you had lived there all that time, you would make that profit tax free. The same profit made on the Stock Market would be subject to regular taxes, which totally sucks, since you were the one to invest in the first place, and you were the one to take the chances, but, them's the laws of the land - what are you gonna do?? That's right, buy Real Estate! Ha,ha! Buy Apartments or Condos One of the best bits of financial investment ideas that I ever got was from an old boyfriend of mine, Ben Johnson, the Olympic Runner. (Remember him? Turns out, great guy, bad rap, punished more than any real criminal, very wise business man - funny how the press doesn't focus on that?) Anyway, his idea was to buy 15 apartments and rent them at approximately $1000./month (he lives in Toronto, Canada where the rents are high, if that seems exorbitant to you, or low, if you live in New York, and that seems waaay too cheap! ha,ha!). That would give him a regular 'income' of about $15,000./month, provided that the properties are owned outright. Good idea, eh? Now, we can't afford that many rental properties, yet, but the idea is a good one. I don't know if he ever actually did that, but he planted a seed in my mind that will allow my husband and I to build a solid foundation for a comfortable retirement. I happen to be partial to the idea of buying new apartments in a regular Apartment Building as opposed to Town Houses, Duplexes or Single Family Homes, because you don't have to worry about serious repair problems, like a new roof or furnace! Those problems can add up to some serious bills for the Property Owner. New or well-cared for buildings are unlikely to require repairs within the first five years, and if you purchase in a Condo Development, your renter can pay the Condo Fees, which will cover any major building repairs. You will, of course, be responsible for general up-keep, but even that will be minimal if you have good renters and start with good stuff. If you are reluctant to get into the 'Landlord' game because of the whole 'collecting the rent' thing, you can always hire a Property Management Company. They'll handle everything for you for a relatively small fee. When you're first looking at Rental Properties, Apartments specifically, try to find one that is relatively inexpensive, and make sure that you are in a financial position to carry all the costs involved if you don't have a renter. Be careful not to pick up a 'real steal' that needs a huge amount of work - you won't save any money on this one - it could ruin you, financially, too, if there are too many complications in the deal. Again, I prefer new, but an apartment in good repair is fine, too. Only you will know how much you can take on. Also, check with your Banker or Broker to ensure that you qualify to carry a mortgage on the new property. The Interest Rates are particularly low, right now, so this is a great time to invest in property. The great thing about having rental properties is that not only will you be gaining a perpetual monthly income (the difference between the costs of operation and the rental fee), when you are ready to sell the property, you'll get back all of your initial investment and you'll have the equity spread as well. If you happen to live in the Property for a couple of years, or so, yourself, then any profit you've made will be tax-free, since it will have been your Primary Residence. Always check with your Accountant to comply with local tax laws. Also, you may be able to hand the property down to your children. Amazingly enough, this is no longer a basic right of a parent in certain countries without some one paying massive amounts of taxes, making it virtually impossible? Man, can't wait to live in the States, again! Our own plan is to pay off our Mortgage on our Primary Residence, then use the money that we would normally put toward the Mortgage Payment to get a mortgage on a Rental Property - an Apartment. I like the idea of purchasing a number of apartments on the same floor of an Apartment Building, or at the very least, picking up another apartment in the same building. It seems to me that it would be waaay easier to manage properties if they're close together. Also, we'd like to have an apartment available for each of our children when they are old enough to move out on their own. They could have the choice of having a room mate, themselves, who would pay them directly for their share of the rent. That way, our children could learn first-hand how to be landlords (Man, I really don't care for that term!) and we wouldn't have to worry about where they're living and whether they have any money for groceries! Scoooore! The other thing that is key to a comfortable retirement is that the properties you acquire before you retire may be paid off before your actual retirement date, if you have one. If you're living well on your regular income (not including the rental income), then you can put a larger portion of the rental income directly on the Principle of the rental property mortgage. This will give you a higher monthly 'income' later. (I thought this Ad was really funny!! Of course, It's Great to Be A Landlord, so you can still shoot for that!! ha,ha,ha!) Ailsa Forshaw is a Writer, Builder, Website Owner & Manager, Teacher, Mother... all in Alberta, Canada. She is Married with Two Lovely Children, and one gorgeous wee dog. Her Website, http://www.buildyourownhouse.ca, is chock full of all sorts of useful & fun information to help anyone become Financially Successful, Slim, Trim, and Happy... what more could you want?? Pop in for a wee visit! http://www.buildyourownhouse.ca http://www.theScottishDiet.com
MORE RESOURCES: These are the best and worst cities for first-time homebuyers in New England and beyond, new study says The Boston Globe Blackstone's Wesley LePatner, a mentor to women and real estate investing leader, killed in NYC office shooting Business Insider The real estate market: 5 key themes to watch this week Real Estate News by RealEstateNews.com Real estate: Home prices climb in Martin, Indian River counties; fall in St. Lucie County Treasure Coast News Troy Furbay has been appointed Managing Director, Hospitality at Crescent Real Estate LLC Hospitality Net ‘Walking beside him’: Daughter continues stepfather’s real estate dream Mountain Home Observer Richland County property transfers recorded July 21-24 Mansfield News Journal I-78/I-81 Corridor commercial real estate activity picking up Lehigh Valley Business Double digit price increases for Putnam real estate Mid Hudson News Real Estate Expert Jody Wainio of Buyers Choice Realty Shares Advice on Mortgage Pre-Approvals in HelloNation GlobeNewswire RE/MAX revenue continues to slip despite agent gains Real Estate News by RealEstateNews.com Real estate: Condo prices rise in Indian River County; fall in Martin, St. Lucie counties Treasure Coast News Alex MacWilliam of Alex MacWilliam Real Estate in Vero GlobeNewswire Haag-Brown Commercial Real Estate to open Bentonville office Talk Business & Politics Inside Zillow’s summer launch: 5 new tools built for agents - Real Estate News by RealEstateNews.com Inside Zillow’s summer launch: 5 new tools built for agents Real Estate News by RealEstateNews.com US industrial real estate investor Terreno sells $82m portfolio IPE Real Assets Executive Killed in Manhattan Shooting Was CEO of Blackstone's $53 Billion Real Estate Megafund Realtor.com Real estate transfers: 7/30 Toledo Blade Leading Arizona Real Estate Team JBRE Joins Real Brokerage, Bringing $310M Sales Portfolio Stock Titan Real Estate Transactions | July 14-18, 2025 Republic-Times Real estate office renovating former daycare The News-Enterprise Atlanta real estate tycoon Tom Cousins has died at 93 Rough Draft Atlanta News | UK commercial real estate investment slips slightly to £10 billion in second quarter - CoStar Inside Hulk Hogan’s $11M Real Estate Empire EntertainmentNow Ledge Road property in Newport sold for $3.3 million tops latest Newport County sales Newport Daily News Exclusive: Apple to buy another Silicon Valley campus for $365 million San Francisco Chronicle Real Estate Giant Anywhere Gives 100,000+ Agents Free Access to Canva Enterprise AI Marketing Platform Stock Titan Christie’s Debuts Crypto Real Estate Division The New York Times Los Angeles Area Wildfires Destroyed Nearly $52 Billion in Homes Last January The World Property Journal Real estate trends highlighted Morrow County Sentinel Santa Monica Ranks Second Most Expensive for Rentals as Real Estate Market Shows Mixed Signals Santa Monica Daily Press Asia Pacific commercial real estate investment surges to $31.2b in second quarter 2025 Institutional Real Estate, Inc. Luxury Presence Debuts the First Fully Autonomous AI Marketing Team for Real Estate Agents Business Wire Easton home on Sierra Drive that sold for over $1M 'epitomizes one-of-a-kind luxury' Enterprise News Population Growth in England and Wales: A Boon for Real Estate and Social Infrastructure Sectors AInvest Hamptons Real Estate Market Data – Week of 7/22/2025 Hamptons.com Boardwalk Real Estate: Q2 Earnings Snapshot San Antonio Express-News RealPage buys Rexera, maker of 'AI agents' for real estate deals The Business Journals Blackstone’s LePatner killed in NYC shooting Private Equity Real Estate | PERE Judge sides with LGBTQ+ Alliance in battle with ex-CEO Real Estate News by RealEstateNews.com Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results Quiver Quantitative One of the world’s largest luxury real estate firms wants to help you buy a house — with crypto New York Post Commercial Real Estate Still Has a Software Problem Commercial Observer The Future of AI in Real Estate Valuations: Understanding Tomorrow’s Appraisal Standards Appraisal Buzz WeWork Wants You to Know It’s a Grown-Up Real-Estate Firm Now The Wall Street Journal 18 months later, Blackstone still sees real estate comeback ahead Private Equity Real Estate | PERE |
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