Real Estate is so boring

[pyriel]

Yup, you heard this from me. Real estate investment is so boring. If done correctly and you do your homework, real estate investment can be lucrative. Why is it boring? Because of all the hoopla that is going on with stocks right now, a well planned and well executed real estate investment will continue to make money for you whether the market is up or down. Hmmmm... Did I say this right? Can I prove it?
The best time to buy real estate property for investment is when there is a bubble. Everybody knows that and it is a matter of supply and demand. It is is still possible to get a bargain every now and then but they are scarce and you need to be able to move fast.

Anyway, i've lost about 6-7% with my tsp (i think) since last week but I am too dumb to do something about it. I've read all the post and decided to just stick it out (most likely another dumb idea). However, i've always contented that stocks are not my forte. As for real estate, I say it is boring because every month, there is a big fat check (direct deposit) that comes into my account from Uncle Sam and I have to pick up rent money from my tenants. I have to do to do this for rest of my life? Have somebody pay for my mortgage and all other expenses like my car, travel, gas, etc. etc. etc.... So boringgggggg....

The only thing that makes real estate investment fun is when I am purchasing a new property (which is really slow right now). It keeps my blood pumping whenever I acquire an ugly duckling house and I turn it into a beautiful swan. Pretty lucrative but also means that it starts to get boring once the renovation is done. Robert Kiyosaki did say that investment when done right is boring. So maybe I am in the right track... Too bad, I can't say the same thing about my TSP account...;-)
P

[Gilligan]

Boring?
I thought it was getting a little confusing. I was waiting in the bank drive thru, depositing a check from one of my renters and thinking what Wizard said about Real Estate investments being so bad, and yet I see my net worth going up and up and up. How can something that seems so good be so bad?

[FundSurfer]

Pyriel, have you noticed a bunch of apartment starts in your area? I've been talking with a property managment firm manager and he has been saying that developers began building apartments when interest was so low knowing that as interest rates rise, people who got adjustable rate mortgages will be squeezed and will drive sell houses and have to move (back in many cases) to apartments. Some of these complexes are nearing completion. This will drive up demand for apartments and glut the housing market. The developers thought is to have cheap apartments ready for when this happens. I've looked around and have seen a bunch of new apartments on the way. This could affect the house rental biz and impact equity at the same time. That wouldn't be boring at all...

I also have a friend who is a realtor who has sold all but 3 of his 18 rental houses. He says he's getting ready for retirement, but....

[Brett]

We too are getting our financial house in order and getting ready to sell our rental townhouse. Not to be overlooked it the 15% capital gains tax. Also, we have been blessed to have the same renters for about 12 years. I hope to give them a good deal, rather than having to invest too much money to sell it while the house sits empty, not bringing in any rent.