Where are the Canadians of BP?

[Mark Perry]

Hey Everyone,

It seems like BP is dominated by US investors, which is great, but I'm wondering where are all of my Canadian friends? The concepts of investing in real estate are the same, but mortgage and tax laws can be quite different between the two countries. It would be nice to connect with Canadians and see how they are succeeding in the Canadian marketplace. 

It would be a good opportunity to share information about preferred markets and discuss market fundamentals in those areas.

I'll start.

I have 2 rental condos in Ottawa, Ontario. I have lived there for 10 years and know the area quite well. Some pretty big things are happening in Ottawa right now. I'm also looking at the East Coast of Canada where I grew up. The cost of homes are much more reasonable there and can lead to good ROIs.

Your turn!

[Hai Loc]

I would say ROI in general in major Canadian cities like Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver are next to crap. Sorry for leaving out Edmonton and Calgary because they may have more cash flow then the above mentioned. Prices are too high here and the rents don't reflect.

I see value in smaller cities like Hamilton, Waterloo, Kitchener London in Ontario. Sorry I don't know much of the rest of Canada as I am from Toronto.

Gross rental multiplier in major US cities can be as high as 100% than Toronto and likely more.

You can buy a $350,000 1+1 condo in Toronto and get only $2000 a month rent and 0 cash flow with the maintenance fees eating up all the cash flow.

Take that $350,000 150 km south to Buffalo and you can buy 4-5 duplexes that yield at least $4000 a month and cash flow at least $800 a month even with management fee, vacancy rates, maintenance costs already incorporated. This is being very conservative.

I hope this opens up on how much $$$ there is to be made down south. Don't let those double tax crap fool you as long as you have a good accountant on your side. 

I can go on and on about the advantages 

I honestly don't look at a deal unless it is a minimum 20% cash on cash (not including equity)

I spent months on research so this is not something you learn overnight..

Good luck guys