10 Real Estate Markets Where The “Buy and Hold” Strategy Actually Made Sense

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Have you ever heard of John Jacob Astor?

A couple hundred years ago, this guy was kind of a big deal.

Astor was one of the earliest (and most successful) businessmen in America. He was a merchant, fur trader and real estate investor who became the first multi-millionaire in the United States. In 1799, Astor acquired several tracts of land in an area that is now known as New York City (perhaps you’ve heard of it?). This guy had the foresight to predict a major economic boom and fortunately, he had the means necessary to acquire this land at a time when nobody else saw the opportunity. 

“His estimated net worth, if calculated as a fraction of the U.S. gross domestic product at the time, would have been equivalent to $110.1 billion in 2006 U.S. dollars, making him the fifth-richest person in American history.” (Source: wikipedia via forbes)

Okay…   but that was 200 years ago – right?

That time has come and come. We can’t find those kinds of deals any more – can we?

Take a look at these various real estate markets around the world and you tell me – do you think it’s still possible to buy real estate in the path of growth? Which markets do you think will follow this pattern over the next few decades?

Shanghai, China 1990

Shanghai, China 2010

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Dubai, United Arab Emirates 1991

Dubai, United Arab Emirates 2014

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Chicago , United States 1955

Chicago, United States 2014

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Hong Kong, China 1900

Hong Kong, China 2012

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New York City, United States 1911

New York City, United States 2014

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Toronto, Canada 1930

Toronto, Canada 2013

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Los Angeles, United States 1970

Los Angeles, United States 2013

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Shenzen, China 1982

Shenzen, China 2010

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Athens, Greece 1860

Athens, Greece 2014

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Tokyo, Japan 1945

Tokyo, Japan 2014

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Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.