Last time I wrote about my real estate investments I said I had sold two of my three properties. In that post I gave reasons for why I did so. These include 1) I have won the game and wanted to stop playing it and 2) I want less time and more simplicity in my life. I suggest you read that post if you want more of the "whys" behind why I have sold. I will review some … [Read more...]
Why and How I Sold Most of My Rental Properties
As regular readers know, I have been a rental property owner for the last eight and a half years. I bought my properties in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 2012 and 2013 when there was still blood in the water from the real estate collapse and many people wanted out of real estate. I thought it might be a good time to begin investing in real estate. So I set up a lunch with a … [Read more...]
Alternative Housing Stories
My post titled How to Live in Airbnbs for the Price of an Apartment Lease generated a lot of conversation about alternative housing arrangements. There were several comments from people who had actually taken steps to go from a more traditional house set-up to something different. I reached out to them and three people agreed to tell us their housing-related … [Read more...]
My Real Estate Syndication Investing Journey
This is part three of a series on real estate syndication investing (though it has a different title than the other two parts). In case you missed them, you'll want to read How to Get Started Investing in Real Estate Syndications, Part 1 and How to Get Started Investing in Real Estate Syndications, Part 2 for my friend, Jeff's, great summary of real estate syndication … [Read more...]
How to Get Started Investing in Real Estate Syndications, Part 2
Today we're continuing our series on how to invest in real estate syndications. If you missed part 1 of this series, you'll want to review How to Get Started Investing in Real Estate Syndications, Part 1 before reading this post. In it my friend, Jeff, from Debt Free Doctor started educating us on real estate syndications. We'll continue that process today. Today we'll … [Read more...]
How to Get Started Investing in Real Estate Syndications, Part 1
As you know, I'm a big fan of real estate investing. Several years ago I purchased 14 units in Grand Rapids, Michigan and they have done very well through the years. Then a year or so ago I added private real estate lending to my list of investments. That has been going well too (who can argue with 10% returns?) That said, I have been looking for even more ways to … [Read more...]
How to Live in Airbnbs for the Price of an Apartment Lease
One key retirement question revolves around housing. Where will you live? Will you stay where you are or move? If moving, within the same city or elsewhere? And what type of house? We have been considering these questions as it seems absurd to have two of us and a cat live in a 3,600 square foot house. As of now, our two kids, my son-in-law, and my daughter's four cats … [Read more...]
Savings Tips for the Top Five Housing-Related Costs
I have heard a couple philosophies on the best ways to save money. One school of thought is that you need to focus on the "big three" expenses -- housing, transportation, and food. The proponents of this line of thinking say that if you get these right, the rest of your spending takes care of itself. Another school of thought says watching "small spending" is just as … [Read more...]
How I Picked My Properties and a Rental Income Update
It's been over four years since I shared the Financial Details of My Real Estate Investments. I've been wanting to give an update for some time and since I've just completed the process of getting all my numbers together for tax purposes, I thought this would be the year to do so. In addition, I thought I'd share the highlights of the process I used to select my … [Read more...]
Why You Should Invest in Real Estate
I've been meaning to do a real estate post for some time now. I'm finally getting to it with this one. In my walks around the neighborhood I've been listening to The ABCs of Real Estate Investing: The Secrets of Finding Hidden Profits Most Investors Miss and really enjoying it. The book is a good, solid primer on real estate investing and I wish I had read it before I got … [Read more...]
