All Forum Posts by: Joel Armstrong

Jeff Cassidy at Port City Mortgages. I’ve used three or four now in the city and he is hands down the best. If he can’t make the numbers work, you’ll be hard pressed to find someone who can.

There is development on every end of the city in Saint John, NB and the surrounding communities. It may be worth a call to a seasoned realtor who is familiar with the city and has experience with multi family properties.

I just purchased a 4 unit and had people show up at the property asking to rent before it is even ready. There is tons of growth here right now.

how do you like the Saint John market? Which part of the city did you invest in?

All kinds of potential in SJ, just invest in the right building in the right areas. Property taxes are high in NB, but there is still money to be made.

I’ve listened to a podcast with Gabriel Hamel on his experience with seller financing deals and thoroughly enjoyed it. Without scrolling through the other 400 podcasts, can anyone recommend any other VTB podcasts on bigger pockets?

All kinds of markets out there, just depends on what you’re after. I agree with your point. I just feel the need to defend my hometown when I know there’s potential. Right location, it can be very lucrative. As far as the older heritage buildings go, yes it’s a pain dealing with the heritage bylaws and you’ll have to increase your budget to redevelop the older buildings to bring them back to their former glory, but it’d be difficult finding a better unit once they’re complete. A project that size would seem like a pipe dream for someone starting out, but there are many other opportunities around the city, just have to find them. 

I found my first 4 unit by calling every contact I had until I met someone who was able to help, that led to another. I sourced out a 12 unit by mailing a letter to the owner who I knew was older and looking to sell. Now I have a VTB with 5% down in the works. It’s all what you make of it.

And the Oceanside lofts, yes the old Salvation Army building.

@Roy N.

I agree with what you minus the rents, but that is why I said in the right location. If all we had were dilapidated four units for 59k in the north end then I wouldn’t invest here either. There are many attractive locations; most of the east side, millidgeville, Quispamsis, Rothesay, and the uptown core, minus the south end. There are even new developments though like the new 25 unit building in the south end on St James st that are high end units. Look up Oceanside Urban Lofts. St. James street is still a rough area if you go further down, but it just shows that developers want a piece of the pie.

Sure thing, send me a message when you plan on coming to NB 

Saint John has had a tainted name in the past because of the financial deficit the city was in, little to no growth, and the high property tax. I’m not naive, I can see why investors turned away in the past, but that is all changing now. There still is a deficit and higher property tax, but we’ve seen significant growth, especially in the uptown core. Since 2017, off the top of my head I can think of 10 large apartment complexes that were developed in Saint John and Quispamsis/Rothesay. That’s not including the two big developments  that are slated for Germain Street in uptown SJ in 2020. Just to drive home my point, all those developments had all the units purchased or leased long before the project was complete. I realize this is a stipulation to release funding from most financial institutions, but considering the number of new units that were taken right away, that’s a sure sign of growth for our city. Even if you start off smaller with a four unit, the demand is there if you own clean, modern units in good locations. 

@Mazen Al Ashkar makes a good point, it depends on what you’re looking for and what your goals are. If you’re looking for properties that will have a good cash flow, Saint John is where you want to be.

I can't tell you why MLS listings provide more detail in listings in New Brunswick, but I can tell you It can be a very lucrative place to invest with the right properties in the right areas. Saint John has had huge growth in the last five years and it's only the start. We have big time investors developing high end up scale buildings all over the city and in the valley. You can't go wrong, you just need to find the right location and property. Message me if you want more information.