Wanting to Buy a Tropical Home?

If you are looking at purchasing a home south of the boarder, there are 6 things that you should really look at and seriously consider before purchasing.  There is a link to a document from REIN at the end of this article that outlines everything that you need to know about purchasing down south!

Rule One

Go There Twice, not just once… Don’t sign the dotted line until you fly!

You will want to view the home and area in different seasons.  Don’t just take a local’s word for it, do your due diligence.

Rule Two

Always check out the Competition on Both Fronts

It is important to look at the competition not only locally, but also in other countries.  Get to know the area and what is being offered.  Don’t just buy the first property that you come accross because it looks like a great deal!

The other competition is to look at the competition that your potential renters will be looking at.  If you are not planning on living there full time, you will most likely want to have some revenue on the property.

Rule Three

Know the Local Property Laws

This is very critical… if you don’t know the local laws, you are truly playing with fire…  You will want to find out what restrictions there are to foreign owners.. as there may be many!

Rule Four

Have Your Own Legal Rep in the Country

This individual must have nothing to do with the development or property that you are purchasing, and should review absolutely everything before you sign it… Do it right the first time, or it could cost you!

Rule Five

Dig into the Tax Implications – How will Profits be Treated?

How will the taxes be handled with owning outside of Canada?  Is there a tax treaty between the coutnries?

Rule Six

Know Exactly What You Are Buying

Do you know what you are truly buying?  Is it a true real estate investment, or is it an investment into a company?  Can you hold the title in a company name or personal name as a Canadian citizen?

Make sure you do all the due diligence that you can, as you don’t want to have to potentially pay for the property twice, cause you didn’t do your homework…

You can download the 6 Rules To Tropical Real Estate here which originated from REIN.

REIN – Real Estate Investment Network www.albertarein.com

Benjamin Zander: Who are we being?

Who are you, and what are you being?  What is it that you are wanting?

I have met people who are completely focused on wealth, power, false sense of influence in others and don’t have solid relationships.  I have also met people who are so focused on relationships, that they can’t keep the bank book straight.  Is there a happy medium?

This is a bit off topic with Real Estate, but is it?  If you are an investor like we are and are looking to gain wealth through investments and help others achieve the same results, we need to influence those around us to acheive greater things than they think possible.  This can even go to as far as influencing your children, parents, friends etc.

I encourage you to watch this video and see what a difference it can have on your day today!

How can we live life ‘on one butt cheek’?  Fully excited, and motivated.  Wanting nothing less for those around us and ourselves.  Thinking of how we impact others lives.  We try to live this way, is it like this every day? No.  But through what we have been given, we must do the best we can.

0% Down and 40 Year Amortizations are Now no Longer!

Below is a news release from the Canadian Government stating that there will no longer be 40 year amortizations and no more zero-down mortgages in Canada.  This will however take in effect as of October 18th, 2008, and will only effect new mortgages, while existing zero-down or 40 year mortgages will not be effected.

These changes are being made to  government-backed mortgages (insured mortgages including CMHC, AIG and Genworth).

These changes include:

-Fixing the maximum amortization period to 35 years
-Requiring a minimum down payment of 5%
-Establishing a minimum credit score requirement
-Introducing new loan documentation standards
Click Here to Download government-release-40-year-zero-down.pdf

Looking for a Recreational Property? see RedKey.ca

If you are looking for a great resource for new developments in the BC area, you have got to check out this web page.  It is well done, and has great info on it!  They currently have just under 250 new developments to search through.  You can search everywhere from Okanagan, Kelowna, Vernon and Shuswaps to find condo’s, townhomes and even land…  If you can’t find what you are looking for here… good luck!

Remember RedKey.ca

Free MP3 Download with Don R. Campbell

Here is a 90 Minute free MP3 download with Canadian Real Estate expert Don R. Campbell. Don is the author of Real Estate Investing in Canada. An excellent book and great resource for those who are considering investing in Real Estate… He goes through everything that is hot or not from BC to Ontario in this MP3 Download…

Calgary Still Has the Right Stuff For Investing

I wanted to point you to an article that talks about what is happening in the investing world in Calgary… Check it out!

Calgary Herald Article

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