How to invest half a million dollars in Vancouver, Canada?

Question

Disclosure: I'm a total newbie to Bigger Pockets and real estate investing world.

And my apologies for the catchy title :)

Here's little background to my question.

I had purchased a condo in 2018 for 455k, with 5% down.

Then, in June 2020, I got a townhome for 630k with 6.5% down and rented the condo out.

Now, the condo isn't cash flow positive. The rent covers my mortgage but I pay the strata fees (almost $500 a month). But the value of the property is appreciating. Has grown 15% since I purchased.

Now comes the interesting part of my post :)

The townhome I purchased might get redeveloped and I might be able to repay my mortgage on the townhome in full (598k as of today) and might still have around 500k left with me.

Should I pay down my condo mortgage with that money, or should I invest it elsewhere?

If elsewhere, what are some good options the lovely community here would recommend?

Thanks :)

Taylor L. · Answer

I'd invest elsewhere for sure! Somewhere that produces positive cash flow and is in a generally more affordable market. If you can get into the States, so much the better.

Wendell Fong · Answer

Nice win on that appreciation play.  The bulk of the investors here do not do appreciation plays.  It is all about the positive cashflow.   With cashflow, you can ignore the ups and downs of the market.

With that in mind, it is hard to get positive cash flow in BC.  In addition, BC is very tenant friendly, and Strata bylaws are typically also restrictive on landlords who want to rent their units out.

If you are interested, there is a Vancouver-Edmonton virtual RE meetup on June 16 for new investors , 5:30pst.  Message me and I will send you the link/invitation.

Cheers