Hey there – we wanted to take a few minutes and share some reasons why we (among millions of others) believe real estate is the single smartest investment to achieve long term wealth.
The simple truth is, most individuals spend their lives working full-time jobs as it provides a sense of security coupled with a steady paycheck. And there’s nothing wrong with that! Both of us here at Ten27 did it for a few years, our parents did it, and out grandparents did it too. However, the wealthiest individuals in the world have figured out how to exploit the advantages of one particular asset class to make their money work for them.
So, what do the wealthy know that most others don’t?
One of the biggest secrets that the wealthy tap into is the incredible power of real estate. Real estate can generate passive income and provide a path toward building wealth. Every dollar invested in real estate works for you in these five ways:
• Cash flow
• Leverage
• Equity
• Appreciation
• Tax benefits
• Diversification
1 – Cash Flow
The greatest benefit of investing in real estate is passive cash flow. When an asset is purchased and rent is collected from tenants, the remaining value after property expenses are paid is your cash flow.
If you put down $50,000 to buy a rental for $200,000, your mortgage payment would be about $1,000 per month. Now let’s say that you’re able to rent the unit out for $2,000 per month.
Upon receipt of the $2,000 rent payment each month, you pay the $1,000 mortgage, use $700 for expenses and reserves, and keep the remaining $300 as passive cash flow (i.e., money in your pocket). For just one rental unit, $300 cash every month ain’t bad. Now imagine if you scale up to 5 units, 10 units, 50 units!
2 – Leverage
In the example we just discussed, you hypothetically bought a $200,000 rental without paying $200,000 in cash. Instead, you put in $50,000 as a down payment, and the bank contributed the remaining $150,000.
The cash flow you earn is based on the full $200,000 asset, not the $50,000 portion. This is the magic of leverage.
Even though the bank contributed 75% of the money, all you have to do is pay the mortgage and interest, and any excess cash flow or profit is all yours. No need to share it with the bank.
3 – Equity
As you receive monthly rental checks and use them to pay the mortgage, your equity in the property increases. In this way, the rental property generates income to pay for itself.
Imagine buying a laptop that generated money to pay for its own wifi!
Once your rental builds significant equity, you may have the opportunity to refinance you home and cash-out to pull out your initial investment or use a home equity line of credit (HELOC), which allows you to borrow against your existing asset. Cash-out or HELOC funds can be invested into another asset, which allows you to make your money work even harder for you.
Additionally, if you decide to sell your asset, you can use all of the gains, tax free, and reinvest it into a like kind asset through a 1031 exchange.
4 – Appreciation
Real estate values have consistently increased year-over-year, which means your money can also work for you in the form of appreciation.
For example, consider a property purchased for $580,000. In time, the duplex appreciates to $750,000, at which point it is sold. The profit at the sale, or $170,000, will have been generated via appreciation, plus any additional equity that you had built through paying down the mortgage.
That being said, while appreciation is nice, it’s not guaranteed, which is why you should always invest for cash flow first and foremost, with appreciation as the icing on the cake.
5 – Tax Benefits
When you invest in real estate, you get the benefits of depreciation and mortgage interest deductions, as well as a whole host of write-offs for a number of other related expenses.
Investors often show losses on paper, while actually making money through cash flow. The losses play a big part in helping to offset other income, which is a major reason real estate is so lucrative.
Further, when investing in commercial real estate syndications, you have the opportunity to take advantage of cost segregation and accelerated depreciation, further increasing your tax benefits.
6 – Diversification
Real estate investments are seen as one of the best asset classes for all of the reasons listed above. These investments can provide a lot of tangible benefits you will be able to see each and every year that your money is invested. However, investing money in real estate can also provide diversification to your portfolio which may mostly be invested in one or two investment vehicles such as mutual funds, stock, etc.
Adding real estate to your portfolio can bring all of the aforementioned advantages as well as provide some diversification which can lower your overall risk of being over-invested into one type of asset class.
Advantages of Investing in Real Estate
With each dollar invested in real estate, you have the opportunity to take advantage of cash flow, leverage, equity, appreciation, tax benefits and diversification. This is true regardless of whether you invest in single-family rentals, large syndications, or anything in between.
We hope this helps! As always, don’t hesitate to reach out to either of us if you have any questions, concerns or want to learn more. We’re always here to help whether you decide to invest with us or not!
Cheers,
Mitch and Kevin
