All Forum Posts by: Doug Findlay

@Doug Findlay Welcome to the REI world. 36 hours in and your already found BP. Good job! I would suggest you and your wife get as much knowledge over the next 3-6 months as possible, while getting the HELOC set up. During these 3-6 months, find a mentor, figure out what strategy you want to do, how much risk you are willing to take, etc. Just because you have family in the US, doesn't mean they want to get into RE. Also, the area they are in, may not be an area you want to invest in. A word of caution, the HELOC has to be paid back so it is no free money. Take some time and read up on OPM and Smiths Maneuver. Buying an investment property may be a few months off yet for you, so maybe using the HELOC for second private mortgages may be an option.

Good luck

Thank you @Huong Luu. Yes I discovered BP while watching a Matt McKeever video - I wish there was a bit more Canada-specific content here but it's great to meet fellow Canadian investors and investor wannabes.

I will definitely take your advice and research the Smith Maneuver and OPM—admittedly it's all a bit baffling atm due to info overload. I agree that finding a mentor would be incredibly useful to go through the steps and understand the approach. It seems research can be both uplifting and inspiring (real estate investing is a no-brainer!) to depressing and discouraging (Ontario's market).

My question on family in the States was more about whether there's an advantage having access to a US citizen and buying through them.

We're hoping to begin our journey much sooner than 3–6 months from now. Hopefully concentrated research, reading and networking speeds that timeline up. :-)

1 Vote

I'm brand new to the REI world, stumbling into it after hearing a comment my stepson made to my wife: "Why does your generation only focus on being mortgage free?" My first reaction was to dismiss it as 20-something idealism fueled by get-rich-quick TikTok and YouTubes. Of course the more I look into this, the more I kick myself for following in my parent's footsteps: save up to buy a house, pay it down, live within your means and call it a day.

So we’re motivated to start but it seems to be a terrible time to do it…at least in the GTA.

So far I have about 36 hours of experience in this field reading and watching various webinars etc. lol so looking for some advice. We have a home in Mississauga valued at approx $1.4–1.5M with 380k remaining so I could secure likely somewhere north of $750k to get started.

My thinking is to get financing established through a HELOC so that's ready to go and I'm not a much of a gambler so I'm not looking to invest in cash flow neutral or negative properties and hoping for appreciation. This seems to leave me looking for my first cashflow positive property but that appears not to exist in the GTA.

I always imagined landlording property nearby—you know, in case a faucet starts dripping and I need to run out there to fix it. LOL :-) I see a lot of investors buying exclusively from a distance and using a property management company to do the legwork on the ground. Are there perils to consider looking far away / out-of-province? I also have family in the States—is there any advantage to using them to buy down there versus going it alone as a Canadian citizen?

Any helpful links/advice/tips/contacts/suggestions would be SO much appreciated. Thank you!

3 Votes

All Forum Posts by: Doug Findlay

Doug Findlay has started 1 posts and replied 2 times.

Post: New investor in Mississauga—where to even begin in this market!?

Post: New investor in Mississauga—where to even begin in this market!?