All Forum Posts by: Brandon P.

Hi Ranjeet,

Welcome to BP. Regina and Saskatoon are great markets for investors.

Good luck with your search for deals.

I have some relatives who have done this in northern Sask, it’s not extremely common but it is possible.

For example, you can buy a quarter section for $120k that is wooded and have a logging company come and cut down the trees and pay you $80k.

Bryan is correct in that most of the forests in Sask are crown(government owned) land, but there are definitely parcels that are privately owned on the “fringe” of the forests.

This was a BRRRR and a house hack.

I’ve had the basement rented out for $950/ month this year and will rent the rest of the house out for $1450+ utilities once I move into the next property. I’m expecting the first deal to cash flow around 500 per month after deducting management fees & some money set aside monthly for cap X

 Regina is a great rental market, especially when you look at the rent vs home price ratio compared to other major western cities like Calgary and Edmonton.

I purchased my first property four years ago, a 1300 sq ft bungalow located in Regina, Saskatchewan. 

My intent is to share some of the significant oversights and mistakes I made to help other new investors avoid making them as well!

Do not plan on doing everything yourself

This first deal needed a significant amount of renovations including 2 new bathrooms, new flooring throughout and a complete gut job in the basement. Since I didn't have much extra cash at the time to spend on contractors, I did most of the work myself, with some help from family.

My wife & I had our first child 1 month after we closed on this property and it took me 3 months to finish the renovations on the main floor. I started renovating the basement 1 year after we purchased the property, ended up hiring a subcontractor to hang drywall and mud and tape the basement and finished the basement renovation over the course of 2 years. I missed out on $25-$30k in monthly rent over those few years by letting the basement project drag on.

Although I shouldn't have done as much of the construction work as I did, the experience I obtained doing the work was extremely valuable. I learned which jobs I excelled at and the ones I never wanted to attempt again and it helped me to build the confidence to take on my next deal, knowing that if I did it once, I could do it again.

Get the financing right the first time

I went through a mortgage broker and gave myself 2 weeks to remove financing conditions. I initially applied for a purchase plus improvements mortgage, which in Canada allows you to use a 5% down payment for an owner occupied property and the lender will provide additional funds up to 20% of the purchase price to fund any renovations you complete when you purchase a property. 

Unfortunately, the lender did not like the property due to the structural repairs needed at the property and the application was denied. The mortgage broker was able to send the application to another and it was approved, so I was content to be able to close on the property.

I refinanced the home in January of this year with a mortgage and a home equity line of credit, which allowed me to get the capital back that I invested into the house. The sooner you can get your initial investment back, the better off you will be.

Find a realtor or mentor who understands investing to help advise you on potential deals

The realtor I used was a guy I had met at the gym. He only had a couple of years of experience and did not personally invest. 

I have been working with a new realtor this year who has owned rentals for multiple years and has renovated similar homes to the ones I am looking for and the difference between the two has been like night and day. We spend 10-15 minutes walking through properties, he is able to quickly ballpark renovation costs and market rents which helps me to know whether or not a property is worth pursuing.

You will make mistakes when you are starting out. Learn from these mistakes and you will continue to grow, become a better person and a better investor.

Keep your options open, if you haven't bought a house before, finding something off market may not be the best option for you, there are plenty of deals on the MLS.

If your really want to find something off market, be ready to invest your time & money into direct mail or driving for dollars & spread word to your friends & family you are looking to purchase a home. 

Reach out to landlords who have homes posted for rent as they may consider selling if they are having difficulty renting or had a bad experience with tenants.

@Clifton Gerring

Welcome to BP Clifton! 

It can feel like a real struggle to get started in real estate when you have a low paying job and are finishing up school, I have been there.

Keep an open mind as to what your career path will be, there are so many jobs in the construction and real estate industry that would help you advance yourself as a real estate investor. 

I recommend reading about house hacking and how to buy your first property, there is a tonne of free information online and the forums are a great place to educate yourself!

Good luck,

I’m investing in single family homes in Regina and surrounding area currently. 

I work full time for a large real estate/property management company in a financial role and have worked as an accountant in the construction/ real estate industry for 4 years.

Would like to begin investing in multi-family buildings, land and light industrial buildings at some point, but likely won’t take any action until I build a strong residential portfolio.

Most banks will do a purchase plus improvements mortgage if you obtain a high ratio insured mortgage through genworth or CMHC. I believe the max they will loan for renovations is a maximum of 20% of the purchase price. I included a link for more information about genworth's program.

This is the best option if you are wanting to rent the property out afterwards because when you apply for another mortgage on a different property, the next lender will calculate your debt service ratios including 100% of the rental income, usually making it just as easy to qualify as when you purchase your first property.

You can BRRRR with a conventional mortgage(20% down payment) as well, there are lenders which will do 6 month or 1 year terms, then you could refinance at the end of the term. It is a bit more difficult to scale up at first with conventional mortgages because if you go to purchase additional properties later, the lender will only include 50% of the rental income when they calculate your debt service ratios.

I recommend finding a mortgage broker who has experience dealing with rentals(not all of them do) and also speak with a mortgage advisor at a local credit union. The credit unions in Canada are subject to provincial legislation, they operate under a separate set of rules than the national banks do, so its worth exploring your options with them.

http://genworth.ca/en/products...

It sounds like a risky rehab. In my market, I have seen too many homes above $600k have been listed on the market for longer periods of time, sometimes years, however the average price is around $300k here. There is more of a market and demand for the regular sized, more affordable homes, for you that would be the homes priced for $680-$750k.