All Forum Posts by: Julie Toh

@Roman Stefaniw @Brianne H.

If you can, get a readvanceable HELOC. It is cheaper than a unsecured LOC.

Agree with @Marie Tai @Cory Graham

Simple Path to Wealth - a book to read and add to your financial library.

Hello everyone, I'm from Vancouver, BC and I enjoy reading, learning and sharing best practices with other investors here on Biggerpockets.  Thanks to my mum's guidance, I bought my first property while still in university, later leveraged that to buy the next and next and next property. As an independent licensed mortgage broker, I have access to many many lenders that can help me expand my portfolio.

@jack young I posted this article titled, "What type of lenders do you need to finance your portfolio?"

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/90/topics/572...

@Marivi Bau Leveraging the equity in your principal residence is a good move. Using a HELOC is another option.

@Luc H. Congrats Luc on your first rental. Good move on choosing variable...I'm pro-variable myself.

Hi Joyce, welcome to BP. I'm also from Vancouver. You have come to a good place to learn more about real estate investing. What kind of commercial property are you interested in?

Good question from @Sean Kollee Using a HELOC would be cheaper than a LOC.

@Victor Zhou  I'd be interested in joining the meeting of like-minded investors and share best practices. When is the next meet up in downtown Vancouver? 

@Nathan Chase @Luc H.

Hi Simpy, I started buying real estate after graduating from university, have learned a lot and am still learning. Shoot me your questions and I'll give you my two cents.

@Nina W.  

Many real estate investors are advised to put your investment properties in a corporate name. There tends to be two primary reasons for this: 1. Income tax benefits: You can take a dividend income which is taxed at a much lower income tax rate. 2. Limited Liability on you personally: If you were sued (a tenant is injured on your property) or had a legal case against you as a landlord, it would be against the corporation and not you personally so it can assist in protecting your personal assets in this type of situation

The title of the property will be in a corporate name but you, the investor, will be required as the owners of the corporation to also provide personal guarantees. The only time personal guarantees may not be required is if:

• the property is underwritten commercially
• the corporation is established for at least three years
• the corporation can provide three years full financial statements and corporate tax filings that are strong
• the corporation has a high asset base, and
• the corporation has positive cash flow and consistent net profit

Do you set up a holding or operating company? Most lenders require that the corporation be a “holding Company” only or “holdco” for short. A holdco, as the name implies, is a corporation which is incorporated for the sole purpose of holding something like an asset. Usually, that “something” is shares in an active corporation (typically referred to as an operating corporation or optco) or assets. When talking about real estate holdco’s, the focus is on the assets which would be the real estate itself and the shares may be in an operating corporation that “manages the property”. This holdco is set up for the sole purpose of real estate acquisition. 

A simple holdco structure with say two directors (you) with the real estate as the asset holding is known as a “single tier”. You may have just an operating company “optco” instead... also known as “single tier”.

Feel free to DM me for more info.