I have a spark and would like to make a fire.

[Justin Cooper]

Hey guys!

So for the past 5 years my fiancé and I have always been interested in real estate on the HGTV level (Canadian here). Recently I've started doing some reading into the subject. I've started with the BRRRR book by David Greene just to get my feet wet on one of the many ways to invest in real estate. I'm not sure if there are many Canadians here but currently I live in Fort McMurray, Alberta. I'm moving to the Halifax area in Nova Scotia in 4ish years permanently. What I would like to find out is where is the best place for me to start so I'm prepared in 4 years to really dive in on some property. Right now we're here to pay down our student loans which if our budget sticks will be done in about 3 years. After that we'll be taking in 130k/year combined and the only over head we have is our condo. 15 year mortgage, 5 year fixed rate 143k financed through the bank. Our plan is to be able to either sell this place, currently the market is in the toilet and we've lost probably 25k off the market value already. Then put that money towards a property for us to live in and have enough cash to get another as an investment.

I know this is very long winded and not even sure if this is the place for something like this, but here I am!

Thanks so much!

[Greg Pierce]

Hey Justin,

Love that you're planning this far out in advance. Although BRRRR is a great option you may also want to consider house hacking. Buy a Duplex or Triplex and live in one of the units. Only 5% downpayment is required and live in the worst condition unit so you can fix it up while living there. In a duplex you should have most or all of your mortgage paid for you by renter, and Triplex you need to be cashflowing. The market here right now is absolutely ridiculous and certainly a Seller's market. This should correct itself in the coming months but I would start looking at properties now to run through a calculator so you have an idea of what you're looking for and what's going to be in your wheelhouse. Hope this helps and goodluck! Feel free to reach out when you arrive in 4 years!

Cheers,