Subtitled: Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth is.
For some time now I have been saying that this is a great time to buy real estate. Buy when everyone else is selling, sell when everyone else is buying -- you have heard a variation of it many times. I've said it, I believe it, and perhaps the following will enhance my credibility. My wife and I have now become buyers because -- you've guessed it -- it is a great time to buy!
It is certainly not that we need another house, especially one that is only about 200 yards from the one that we have. But it was available, we were able to work out a deal satisfactory to all concerned, and we believe that there is the potential to turn a profit worth the effort somewhere down the road. Not in the short term -- and by that I mean in less than 5 years. However, in the longer term, we believe that as a real estate investment this will work out for us. It is not guaranteed to do so -- as I told my better half, if you want a completely safe investment, don't expect any kind of return. If you want to make some money, you have to accept some level of risk, no matter what the endeavour.
I've written about this before, but, I believe that in real estate, it is the buy decision that is the important one, and I further believe that this will be borne out by our latest purchase. For more on my thinking, see The Better Investment - Real Estate or the Stock Market and Buying In A Down Market.