All Forum Posts by: Alex Butz

Hi all,

Great information in this thread, thank you, everyone, for your thoughtful posts!

Does anyone have any opinions/thoughts on Langford near Victoria? It's been described to me as Surrey but for Vancouver Island with lots of growth in the area. For reference: my realtor sent me this pre-sale opportunity recently below:

https://www.livebinders.com/play/play?id=2401340&inf_contact_key=6b7f654ce924647d651691c917f29c65a48f4ae5eadbb3c491f47a96c95433d4

I have only invested in condos to date so this is up my alley, however, I've never done a presale before. I know the risks involved in a presale but several things interest me including the low rental rate, the rental "pool" (as they call it) and the reasonable prices for some of the units. I'll be taking a drive out to the island in the next month to visit Langford but curious to get thoughts on anyone actually living out on the island!

Hi Marie,

This is all wonderful information, thanks for answering my questions! Always curious and glad to hear about real estate paths from a fellow BC resident. It sounds like you had a lot of work in front of you and ultimately everything worked out. I'm happy for your success! Congrats.

To answer your question in #1: I previously lived in my condo before renting it out. I lived there for 3 years and had the opportunity to sell as my wife and I went traveling. At the same time I started learning about real estate investing and the power of buy-and-holds, so we decided to rent it out instead. So far we've been successful with the tenants we've had, and been able to cash flow a bit every month as it is a very popular area. We wouldn't be able to buy in the area now because prices have risen so much, but that also gives us an opportunity to the equity in our property to buy a 2nd property. 

Currently, we are looking for a 2nd property, but it has been a slow process. I would love to connect, will send you a PM shortly!

Thanks as well for the realtor suggestion, will reach out to them soon.

Cheers,

Alex

Hi Marie, welcome to BP! I'm also an investor in the lower mainland, currently have one condo in Burnaby that I am renting and am planning to use the equity in there to purchase another in 2017. Currently reviewing the market to find a piece of property that would make sense financially. Some questions for you: 1) Where did you purchase your new condo? As I said, I have one condo in Burnaby right near Brentwood mall. I've been looking at Port Moody and Lougheed Mall area but not much that makes sense. 2) How is your cashflow looking for the property? I'm only receiving 100/month but that covers all mortgage, strata, tax, maintenance, etc. It's certainly tough to find a cash flowing unit in the lower mainland nowadays. 3) You mentioned you have a realtor that you work with that is also a investor. Would you be willing to share their contact info? Looking to get in touch with a proper real estate agent shortly. Cheers! Alex

Hi Ash, Nice to meet you, I'm also a CPA living in Vancouver. I have one rental property currently in Burnaby but will most likely be selling it soon and buying a home for personal use (hoping to house hack for awhile). As Tristan said, would be down to get together and talk REI strategies in the lower mainland. Cheers, Alex

Hi Angie, I'm still not living in Vancouver currently but have been doing research from afar. You are definitely correct - it's very difficult to find any properties that are cash flow positive in Vancouver proper. I've found some condos/apartments in the outskirts of Vancouver but they just barely meet the criteria. I'm with you - I've been looking in places like Northern BC towns (Vernon, Fernie), Edmonton, and the Niagara region in Ontario. Niagara is where I'm originally from so I know the area well. One thing I'll say about Ontario is that their tenancy laws really favour the tenant which could be problematic. But if you're screening tenants properly you can greatly reduce that risk! I'm hoping to be back in Vancouver in the next couple months, would love to connect with you and other property investors in the area. Alex

Congrats Nes! Sounds like a solid deal you've found, how was the cash flow for the property? I have a 2 bdrm condo near Brentwood that is doing decently. It seems like anything near a skytrain is quite valuable so kudos to you. Curious, who did you use as a mortgage broker? Still doing some analysis here and there in and around Vancouver and hoping to meet a mortgage broker in the next couple months. Let us know how things go!

Hi Ko, Thanks for sharing your story! I am from Burnaby myself and am currently renting out my first property, a condo near Brentwood mall. I'm currently searching for other properties in the lower mainland myself but haven't taken the leap yet. From what I'm seeing, anything properties close to a skytrain or university are sky rocketing. What kind of income are you anticipating for your new home? Are you listing on air bnb? Not sure if you're comfortable disclosing the numbers for your new property but I would be very interested! Take care of those wrists, Alex

I am interested to hear responses as well. I also live in Vancouver and condos outside of Vancouver (Coquitlam, New West, Surrey, etc) are the only ones I'm finding where cash flow would be even a little positive. I have yet to purchase a rental property myself because of this market but will keep watching in the coming months, especially with prices stabilizing a bit. In terms of leveraging your primary residence, this is a valid strategy to use. I have a condo myself and would be using equity to help with purchasing a property. For me, as long as the numbers work and you're comfortable with the risk, it's a great way to get started. What areas have you been looking at?

Hi all,

My name is Alex, living in the greater Vancouver region. After 3 years of working as an accountant, I quit my job to travel for several months with my wife. I discovered financial accounting wasn't for me, and am using this trip as a partial 'self discovery' thing (sounds sort of lame but it's true!). We are still currently traveling and will be back in the new year. We will eventually move back to BC and settle down into full careers (with real estate at least on the side). 

I currently own a condo (purchased 2012) outside of Vancouver that I'm renting to my brother. We hope we will keep that property and continue to rent it out into the future.

I've read a lot of material from bigger pockets so far, including the Ultimate guide and beyond. It is all really helpful and something I get excited about as I continue read. Buy and hold property ownership interests me the most, but my research shows that it is difficult to do in Vancouver area and beyond.

I have a quick questions for investors in high COL areas: I keep reading about the 1% rule when evaluating properties. With such high real estate prices in Vancouver its almost impossible to reach even 0.5%. Does anyone have any thoughts or advice on this?

Looking forward to continue participating with everyone. Thanks!