All Forum Posts by: Zorya Belanger

@Eric M. I know there are absolutely ways that a JV partnership can work on a buy and hold property. I've done them, and I know many many others who have done them - one couple in Edmonton did 100 of them! Maybe each one wasn't 50/50, but that's a good starting point. It should be adjusted based on what each person is bringing to the table. Ultimately it's whatever the 2 parties agree to.

In our case, we have a 3rd party property manager who helps us find tenants and deals with and communicates with tenants on daily basis, so really they should be called tenant assistants. There are a lot of advantages to having someone like this on your team. There is still a lot of work that they don't do, for example, they don't deal with any money, they don't make any decisions, and they are not managing the business.  

A fix and flip may seem like more work than a buy and hold, but it is just condensed into a few months, while managing a buy and hold property over the course of 10 or 15 years... there will a ton of work and time that goes into it over those years, and it all adds up.

Some of our earlier splits were 70/30 or 60/40, with us as the active partner taking less, but I'll never sell myself short again, knowing now what's involved. The active partner is worth 50%, even if 10% monthly expense goes towards a 3rd party manager or to themselves. It is an expense of the property, like David said. And if the expert bought right, and the property cashflows, there should be plenty of profit for both after that $160/month or whatever goes to the PM.

An experienced PM will find a great tenant in less time, and having one month less vacant will pay for a years worth of PM fees. It's a business decision that the active partner makes in operating the property, with the intent to increase profits for all.  :)

At the end of the day, we always tell our money partners, that they will get their entire initial investment back first, and then we split the profits. Our investment is time, but we will never get that time back.

There are many other Canadians on here to network with, and get help. Be cautious about advice from US investors because many things are different here, especially when it comes to financing, tax, and legal matters. I've never used the BP tools. I'm a member of the real estate investment network, which is based in Canada, and I used their tools, spreadsheets, and resources a lot when I was getting started.

@Devonte Thomas Like David said, you can do it however makes sense to you. But I agree with Jeff. I like to have extra cash flow and money for expenses all in one account to keep it simple, instead of transferring out money every month and making sure enough remains to cover expenses (which can fluctuated). Unless you have a TON of cash flow, I wouldn't be pulling it out at all, but leaving it as a reserve fund. Covid has shown why it's important to have 3-6 months worth of expenses sitting there just in case.

@Devonte Thomas  go to meetup(dot)com/revenue

If you buy right, it should cost you less (per month) to own your own home. That's why people go into the business of buying homes and having people rent them - there's profit to be made! Plus the mortgage that is being paid down is your equity, not your landlords.

Consult a mortgage broker!

I suggest joining in on Edmonton real estate investors association (EREIA) meetings

@Devonte Thomas I would just have one chequing account for the property (and have everything related to that property in same place), and a savings account for the security deposits. Doesn't make sense to have a business account unless you are incorporated.

@Varun Batra Gotcha. I just know when I started learning about real estate investing, I thought I had to be a realtor. Having your license sure would help, especially for finding properties and getting comps. Sounds like a good plan so far. Living upstairs and renting below is a great first property!

@Varun Batra I'm in Edmonton. You don't need a realtor license to invest fyi. 

Doing BRRRR in Edmonton does work. Getting a good local team in place will be critical for success. Fix and flip (to sell) does not work the best right now as we're at the beginning to middle of a slump. However, if you are planning to hold onto it long term, that is a good strategy.