All Forum Posts by: Dea Chu

Hi @Henry Salonen,

I do plan on investing in the Sudbury area, mainly because I would want to manage the property(ies) myself to start and I'd like to be nearby. The prices here are nowhere near Toronto prices, but I have a hard time making the numbers work at current prices. Anything below market price would require some work, and I don't want to take on a big reno to start with. I hear patience is key as a real estate investor, so I'm getting a lot of practice with that, and likely some analysis paralysis as well...

Best of luck finding some investment opportunities in Toronto!

Hi @Marie McLean,

Welcome to BiggerPockets! I took a spin over to your profile and it is fascinating! Sounds like someone like me could learn a lot from you! I hope you enjoy being on BP; there is a lot of information here, and there are a lot of people to share with! 

Do you invest in other areas of Ontario/Canada or mostly in the US? 

Cheers,

Dea

Hey @Henry Salonen, 

Good to see you here! Where in northern Ontario have you invested? I am in Sudbury and just bought my first home, but am still looking at purchasing a rental property. The film industry seems to be pretty active in Sudbury as well. It's always neat to see the caravan of big trucks and crews in nearby neighbourhoods shooting movies. 

Best of luck with your investing career and I hope you enjoy learning a lot at BiggerPockets!

Cheers,

Dea

I'm in Sudbury, Ontario. Still a newbie with no investment properties yet, but I'm learning a lot!

Well done! It looks great! Looks like a much brighter, more usable space!

Way to go @Okeoma M.! Very inspiring, especially knowing about your intense job, and family life! And big congratulations on bringing your newest arrival into the world! Looks like your patience and perseverance paid off. The numbers look great and it sounds like you've built up a good team of people near and far. Best of luck with anything else you choose to take on! 

Hi @Rob Murphy (type "@" and start typing the name of the person and look at the bottom of the chat window. A picture/name will pop up you can select to mention them...)

I think I have a similar condition as you. I'm ready to get in the market in Sudbury, ON, but prices here are also inflated. I can't seem to find a property with good numbers in a good location. I have relatives in St. John's and have heard that things there have been pretty expensive for the past few years. It seems that the RE market in Canada is inflated in general, and that getting good cash flow can be tough, but I guess that's why not everyone is a real estate investor! At first glance though, it sounds like rents of $2700 generated by a $250,000 property that doesn't need much work upon purchase might work well. I'm not currently an actual RE investor though, just my 2 cents!

There are some people I have talked to on BP that specialize in student rentals and they have been quite generous with their advice. Maybe @Justin H. or @Roy N. would have something to add. 

Best of luck getting started!

Dea

Thanks again @Roy N. for your thorough rundown of how to go about making something like this happen. I will see the property again today and possibly set something up with a contractor if my partner/fiance is on board!

 Hi Roy, thanks for the reply. This is a different property and has been on the market for about 2 weeks. There has been an offer but it was rejected because it was too low for the buyer. I think you're right, the list price is probably too high and there is a lot of deferred maintenance. I have seen the property once alone and will see it with my fiance tomorrow. As for walking the property with contractors, how does that work based on your experience? Having no experience in real estate and rehab, I don't have any relationships with contractors and wouldn't know where to begin. Would contractors charge a fee for walking a property, or provide a quote and then hope to get a call-back and job out of it?

I'm looking for some ideas about a duplex I'm interested in. I don't own any property yet so this would be the first. The property is in northern Ontario, Canada, and is an all brick duplex with an in-law suite. It was built in the mid-50s. Here are some pros and cons in my opinion:

Pros: Desirable area, potential for 3 legal 2 bedroom apartments, new hot water boiler, shingles are ~5 years old, separately metered, lot is sloped toward back of building which allows for basement in-law suite to exit to ground level in backyard, seller to provide fire retrofit, parking for at least 4.

Cons: Hasn't been updated electrically (2-prong plugs and 60 amp service), concrete stairway needs leveling (tilts toward house), in-law suite is not legal unit, older finishings in kitchen and bathrooms (and plaster walls).

The list price is $399,000 but I wouldn't want to pay/offer this much. I'm considering putting 5% down and moving into one unit and renovating over time, but would want to be sure the basement could be made legal, and things like the electrical system wouldn't cause too many problems or could be updated. Can anyone give me an idea of what it takes to make a basement in-law suite legal in Ontario? And does anyone have experience with old houses and old electrical systems?