Yep, hard work doing both. Hopefully we could meet up in one of these Winnipeg meetings, if one is ever organized. Always looking for potential partners on projects!

Great progress Nik! Good to see that everything is working out. Are you doing that on a full time basis, or do you have a "day job"? That seems to be my biggest challenge - building my portfolio while doing it on a part time basis.

MLS. Public Auctions, etc. Pretty simple answers to a vague question.

No one wants to move in the dead of winter unless they absolutely have to. I have a few vacancies as well, and it is always tough in Dec and Jan. It tends to get better in Feb and Mar.

There is a thread in the real estate fourm.

The problem is not credit card debt. That has remained relatively stable over the last number of years. The largest issue is HELOCs. Take a few minutes to go through the BoC statistics. I happen to have to do that on a monthly basis for my day job. It is astounding how much they have...

Little impact on me. I have always tried to go in with 20% down. I have a HELOC, but at 80% LTV. Most investors will see little impact. I agree with the comments on how Canadians seem to be using the homes as ATMs. LOCs held by Canadian chartered banks have increased from $122B in 2006 to...

QUOTE (markbrad @ Dec 14 2010, 10:32 PM) I want to know how you plan on fixing that up for only 30K? I am assuming you are doing ALL the work yourself and not including your hourly wage. Flooring at $3/sqft is $6600, windows would be at LEAST 10K plus install, painting at $2.50 sq ft is $5500...

QUOTE (RealtorAssist @ Dec 8 2010, 12:56 PM) Great comments and I agree. I`ve done 17 of these in Winnipeg. We have found that if we renovate and make it nicer then the others, we can choose our tenants. One thing of note, the "best of the worst" typically will not want to pay their own...

It certainly is doable as I have done it a number of times.  Do yourself a favour and keep the water bill in your name.  Unlike hydro, outstanding water bills do not follow the tenants.  As for finding " high quality tenants", there are certain areas in Winnipeg where this is absolutely...

I have two duplexes and a triplex. All had separate hydro meters, all had forced air (gas) feeding all suites. All have now been set up with forced air feeding the main floor suite only, with other suites running electric baseboard. Tenants pay heat and hydro. Separate hydro meters is one of...

QUOTE (fisher1 @ Nov 15 2010, 05:25 PM) What is a resonable amount to pay for property management? Do you pay a flat rate or a percentage of rent? You get what you pay for. If you are looking specifically in Winnipeg, I could give you some advice. Typically range from 6% to 12% in winnipeg.

QUOTE (BradTaylor @ Nov 17 2010, 10:22 AM) The reason I`m asking is because my place is listed with a discounted realtor that offers a flat fee of $3000.00 to the buyer`s realtor. I`ve been doing my best to spread the word about my place and have been emailing other realtors about an upcoming...

I think there should be some give an take on both sides. The truth is that reality will fall somewhere in the middle. Low cost listings will be more prevelent, no question. But the market for those will be smaller than most realize. For real estate investors, who know the market, their...

QUOTE (RedlineBrett @ Oct 29 2010, 02:39 PM) with regards to your last comment you better get ready to pay your buyer agent now... because if you are buying from "investors that know their properties and have all their paperwork in order" they won`t be offering selling commissions and your agent...

I for one see the value that a RE agent brings to a team, particularly on the buying end of transactions. I rely on mine to scout out properties, check financials, etc before engaging me with a property. But to say that this decision changes nothing is misconceived as well. What what I see...

Here is the newest solution. Seems to match the hype. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/20...gs.html?ref=rss

Ah, didn`t see it down near the bottom of the page. Mods, feel free to merge.

Looks like CREA and the Competition Bureau have now come to an agreement. Great news for seller in particular. http://www.vancouversun.com/business/CREA+...9191/story.html