All Forum Posts by: Christian Chaffe

Hey Everyone,

As the title suggests, I'm in the process of talking to a family member about buying their property in Nova Scotia, Canada. We're likely going to rent to buy , as they're looking at moving back to their home province and I don't have the total amount for a down payment currently.

I just wanted some clarification regarding the legal implications of renting the property out after purchase. I heard that I have to live in the property as the sole resident for a minimum of 5 years before I can consider renting it out. Is this correct? If this is the case, is there any way around this?

Many thanks in advance.

Christian

Hi Everyone,

Mid next year, I have the opportunity to move to either Calgary or Toronto. Once I have moved, I am going to start wholesaling, rehabbing and slowly building my passive income property portfolio. My decision is going to be primarily based on where I can be most successful within property investing generally. I understand that wholesaling in Canada is generally unknown and is a lot less common than the US (due to stricter lending laws etc etc), but in all of your opinions, would it be easier to start in Calgary or Toronto?

I understand that Calgary is at risk of having its housing bubble burst (which could go in my favor) due to falling oil prices and rising unemployment (may also be good to pick up some distressed property owners!), however Toronto obviously has a much larger population (finding that diamond in the rough could be easier possibly).

What would you do if you were in my position?

Many thanks for all of your advice in advance.

Thanks for the advice so far everybody!

@Roy N. I really am just going for the shotgun approach. I have developed a relationship with a local Realtor who suggested I focus my search on the North end and the West end and pretty much anything within the peninsular (except the south end - too expensive) but I'm keeping my options open at the moment. Talking to postal workers - great idea! I'll see if I can catch my delivery man tomorrow to pick his brain. Maybe I could offer him a referral fee if he finds a diamond! 

I just wondered whether anyone could suggest the best way of marketing for good RE deals in Canada? Due to our stringent privacy laws, I understand that gaining data from list brokers (to facilitate direct mailings etc) is not a viable option. Is there a better way? I want to start finding motivated/distressed sellers who are not on the MLS and I'm a bit lost on how to proceed. Any tips would be much appreciated!

*I am initially going to be wholesaling with a view to start rehabbing and flipping within the next 6 months

Thanks for your advice @Roy N. . I am looking in the HRM and I'm looking for lists of properties with owners in any kind of distressed position (pre-foreclosure, absentee owner, absentee owner - expired from MLS and so on).

I must admit, I have done a couple of Google searches, and I haven't come up with much. If these lists and non existent in Atlantic Canada, where would be the best place to find this information? Developing relationships with probate lawyers, mortgage brokers etc? Is that how most people find their prime deals?

Hey everyone,

I just wondered whether any of you pros on here would recommend any data list companies similar to 'list source' in Canada?

Many thanks in advance for any recommendations.

Hi everyone,

I am just starting off my wholesale marketing campaign in Halifax, Nova Scotia and I just wondered what contracts will be needed?

I understand that I will need a right to purchase agreement with an 'assign to' disclosure so I'm able to 'sell' the contract to an cash investor. However, I met with a RE lawyer the other day and she suggested that I would need the contract mentioned above and then a separate contract for the final purchaser. I imagine she suggested this so the seller and buyer's 'numbers' don't come in contact and the seller doesn't see the margin I have built into the deal for my profit. Does this sound right?

She also suggested that I become and incorporated company instead of a partnership because of the potential liability if something was to go wrong. Is this something that you pros on BP would suggest to? From my reading, I was under the impression I would be able to effectively wholesale without this?

Many thanks in advance for the advice!

Christian 

Hi everyone!

I have recently found the BP community and the wealth of information on here is incredible. It has been a huge help with my planning and has really given me the push to begin my REI business, so I just wanted to say a big thank you to all of the contributors on this site for your time and wanting to share you expertise - it has been invaluable!

I have just started a company called 'Laurus Realty' and I plan on wholesaling for the first 6 months with a view to then start rehabbing once I have built up my appraising and pricing ability. I am about to start my first marketing campaign and I plan on initially using bandit signs, online ads and direct mail. With this in mind, I have a question that I wanted to get everyone's opinion on.

- In regards to advertising my services, would it be more effective to advertise as 'Laurus Realty', with an option for potential customers to visit my website (which would be full of information about our services as a company), or would it be better to buy a domain such as 'webuyhouses.com' that would direct to a squeeze page to capture information with the option of then directly visiting my companies website?

The reason I'm asking this is because I imagine that consumers are probably more likely to be attracted to a domain/service that is self explanatory like 'webuyhouses.com' rather than just another real estate company's website. Am I right in thinking this? Or should I just stick to advertising the company and services as 'Laurus Realty' to avoid confusion?

Any advice would be hugely helpful :)

Christian