is it too late to get rich slow at 61

[Albert Gallucci]

tried real estate investing many years ago, before the internet era. Miraculously, I didn’t lose my shirt, but I broke even on one house and, due to other circumstances, had to walk away from another. Fast forward 20 years: I now have money in the bank, excellent credit, live modestly on my own, and run a business that’s doing well.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to save much for retirement during most of my life. With that in mind, I’m considering purchasing four rental units over the next four years to build a stream of income that could help supplement my retirement by age 68.

The challenge I’m facing is that the deals I’ve come across so far don’t make financial sense. Even with 20% down, there’s little to no cash flow. Most properties seem to be overpriced, often listed by pro investors trying to unload them, and have been sitting on the market for six months or longer.

While I could put 50% down to make the cash flow work, that approach would likely derail my goal of acquiring four units in four years. At my age, I wonder if it’s too late to "get rich slow," as is the case with most real estate investing.

I’m curious: is there a section of this website or a community that focuses on late-start investors?

I tried RE Investing many years ago before the internet and miraculously did not loose my shirt but broke even on one house and due to other circumstances was forced to walk away from another. Its 20 years later I have money in the bank, great credit,  living alone very modestly, and a business that is doing well. Unfortunately I was not able to put much away for retirement most of my life so I was thinking about attempting to buy 4 rental units over the next 4 years with the hopes of building up something that could generate income in 5 to 7 years to supplement my retirement at 68. So far no deals I have found are even close to creating reasonable if any cash flow with 20% down. Most of the props that I see are pro investors looking to unload and they are priced for zero cash flow and have been on the market for 6 months or more. So I guess I am wondering if at my age its too late to get rich slow as is the case with most investing. I could put 50% down and make the cash flow work but that kind of kills the 4 units in 4 years idea. Is there any place on this website that that focuses on investors that got in the game late.

[Travis Timmons]

You kind of have to pick a lane - do you want income or 4 units in 4 years? It is unlikely that you are going to have it both ways. As I see it, the only ways that real estate pays you well in the first 3-5 years is low to no leverage or a strategy that requires more work (short term rental, mid term rental, rent by the room, etc.).  Sadly, it seems that cash flow on long term rentals with 20% down just does not exist in most desirable locations. Cashflow on a spreadsheet vs. cashflow in real life are very different things, too. 

I would encourage you to make the offer that works for you. My method has always been to call every listing that hit 90 days on market in areas that I want to buy. Situations make deals, and there is usually a story to tell as to why a property has been sitting. To get a deal, you have to find a problem to solve. I think that we are in a "What can you do that is really hard?" market.