All Forum Posts by: Thierry Van Roy

Went to an 'open houses day' last Saturday. I simply didn't say anything, when they asked I said I'm both looking for a house for my own and as investment property. "It all depends on what I can do with it." That keeps the situation neutral. Most houses didn't have any broker/realtor there, simply the seller. Pretty fun stuff, especially when you see them struggle with the most basic of questions (gas/electricity, roof isolation y/n). The perfect icebreaker, heheh.

They asked me to fill out a form so the broker could contact me, I handed over a business card instead (not property related occupation). Two days later and I've run some numbers on two properties (checked out 9) and already know what to ask when they call.

One thing though, you should be the one asking the questions. But that wouldn't be the first time a broker gets overly eager or even agressively condescending. Someone should write a rebuttal guide on that.

it's meant as a principle. You make sure you're not last in line to be left with the scraps after paying tax and employees. In reality, this is a real issue to entrepreneurs who are often the least paid in their own company for years.

It's like when Kiyosaki says "don't live below your means". That's not meant as tax evasion either. What grinds me a bit is how this does tend to contradict his good VS bad debt principle. But it's all just principles.

Wow, kind of embarassing that I didn't find anything on this "life estate" thing. Thanks for the info!

And @Joe Delia , you're right, but I'm not scamming, I want transparent methods and win-win situations. Nothing outrageous, just beating the competition and the inheritance tax. The only thing perhaps slightly unethical is that I intend to be accompanied by a doctor who likes the idea. She can kind of estimate people's life expectancy. But it's her investment too, so yeah.

And @Roy N. , nice!

So I searched the forums and elsewhere, but couldn't find anything on this.

A few years back, a trend started in France wherein people would check out elderly living in prime real estate. The idea is that you pay them an initial lump sum AND a monthly fee in return for the right to get the deed upon death of the owner. This has had some success with people who had been living in prime locations like Paris for 50 years.

The gamble of course is that this 75 y/o still gets to his or her centennial. Also, it's a monthly negative cash flow. But if the return is something like a million dollar property, it has paid off.

I can't believe there isn't anything on this in English (found some stuff in French). Does anybody know more about this kind of strategy?

There's a hatchet murder house in my street which sold recently and not even at a discount (it did took him 3 years to sell). Though it isn't an issue to most people, here's an innovative trick if you come across someone who does mind:

Have it 'purged' by a preacher, shaman...

It can seem stupid or symbolic to some, but there are people who mind depending on where you live. You could offer them the option depending on their reaction when you disclose the info. Just ask whether they're religious.

Sorry, didn't mean it as a critique towards you. Especially if you flip I get why this is overcomplicating stuff, though there's probably a lot more risk management concerned with that sector. I'm just saying, there's more to it than inflation over the long haul (see thread's title). There's also market yield (reinvestment yield), loan amortization, tax VS debt, exit yield etc.

I recently started reading "What every real estate investor needs to know about cash flow..." by Frank Gallinelli. If anything, you need to understand the formulas and the numbers if you decide to go this route and not just use software. That's where things indeed get overcomplicated.

Custom spreadsheets give me the confidence to trust the numbers. I don't agree on with J Scott, there is a big difference between initial yield and discounted cash flow. And this is mostly important because you can see when the possible difference in results becomes a dealbreaker.

Having said that, I stuck to Excel, most software doesn't allow for Monte Carlo scenarios, making them more flashy than useful. I also love to tinker with my formulas. :p

I like this adage (though you need to build on it perhaps):

"The best time to invest in real estate is always twenty years ago"

Heard it recently on The Real Estate Guys podcast, but they didn't coin the term.

(Didn't see any rules against multiple replies and already posted before seeing Noordam's response, so here.)

Bedankt, Noordam!

I studied economics and simply bought "Beleggen in Vastgoed" because it seemed like a good place to start after having had an overdose of US REI information. Don't have the time or the ambition to go to the Amsterdam School, my education can already get me a license if I wanted one and the hard parts (discounted cash flow etc.) are simply applications of the general theory I already know anyway.

I'll jump at every networking opportunity. Already visited some property managers and brokers in Maastricht and I plan on becoming a member of VastgoedBelang (the national real estate investment club for non-professionals). So I'll be grateful for any and every opportunity that gets sent my way. ;-)

Maastricht is a personal choice, I used to live there, it's close by and my mother wants to invest in that market (she's my biggest source of capital and she trusts my capabilities).

As for financing, there has been talk about seller financing and lease options for some time now in The Netherlands. But nobody's doing it right, so I see opportunities in that respect.

Thanks again!

Thanks, Ky!

The market in a nutshell:

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The Netherlands market is the closest you'll get to the US market, save perhaps for the UK. It boomed ridiculously until the credit crunch, a 10 year period saw the rise and fall of dozens of multi-million stars. The situation got pretty horrible.

Right now, the down market is locked up because of the EU sovereign debt crisis still weighing in on the banks and owners not taking the necessary haircut on their investment. The Netherlands has 4 large banks, two are now state-controlled, one went under earlier this year and the other one is sitting out the situation. You get the picture.

The US got a relatively quick recovery because under water owners could simply walk away, but that's not possible here. So there's still a strong buyer's market.

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I get what you're saying about goals. Right now, I'm looking for multifamily B-class rentals (800-1,000 EUR / unit) in the core Maastricht urban area and I'm trying to wrap my head around 'innovative financing' (seller financing, lease options) to bridge the frozen market situation.

There are deals to be found, though I find the 2%-rule BP talks about too restrictive. Elsewhere, I always read about 1%, that's more realistic in my opinion.

Then again, I'm well aware the area I target is very popular. I can afford it, but I might switch to the greater metropolitan area if the margins turn out to be too low.