All wealth is either made or held in real estate.
Is real estate a good investment?
The answer is: It depends.
If you are someone who is ok with doing a little bit of work to make much higher returns that the traditional stocks, bonds or mutual funds, then it can be a fantastic way to create and hold wealth.
However, if you are someone who does not want to deal with other people, human nature or do any work, then real estate can be a living hell for you.
To determine is real estate rentals are good for you need to ask yourself the following questions:
- Are you ok dealing with other people?
- Are you ok with keeping lots of cash on hand if things go wrong? Aka the furnace breaks and the roof leaks at the same time?
- Are you ok with getting a little dirty and doing some handy work if required (Painting, cleaning, leasing out suites?)
- Are you ok with paying surprise invoices for things that get damaged or break?
- Are you ok with hiring a property manager to handle everything for you knowing that the property managers fees could eat up most of the profits on your deal?
- Are you ok with carrying a property if it is vacant?
- Are you more entrepreneurial than the average person?
If you are ok with the questions above, then perhaps rental real estate could be a good investment for you.
Real estate can create some very stable and very high returns if you manage property well.
If you don’t wish to manage property or don’t wish to hire a good property manager, then perhaps you should look for a different asset class to invest in.
Respect The Grind,
Stefan Aarnio
