Author Topic: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house  (Read 3053 times)

pudding

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I'm 54 and I'm single with no dependents. daughter is grown up and doing her own thing.

I have a handyman / renovation business and earn some decent money doing that.

I live in Vancouver Canada, I like it here for the most part, but I detest the long dark dreary wet months from November to February.

I have no savings, a bit of a pension coming from here and another from the UK, maybe 1200 a month when Im 65.

I have a big rental house that generates a good amount of money each year, enough to pay all the bills and more, if I sold the house at todays price I could net around 750k and I'd be free of all the hassles of land lording and home ownership.

I've had the house 9 years and it's often been a pain in the butt, it's also made me wealthy I think its fair to say.

An important point is that even though the house and the finance has been a pain in the butt, I think at this point in time I have things squared up with the house and its probably the best its been and the least amount of problems, due to fixing all the kinks and bills paid off and great mortgage rate. although for sure from experience if I move in and rent the basement the law of averages says there will be tenant hassles down the line.


Daughter and grandkids were living there, now they moved across country, I just spent 6 weeks fixing it up, I have it looking good, it's empty and I'm on the fence about if to sell it or keep it.

Theres a big development going in up the street and the word is that the house over the long term will likely go up... though I think we may be headed into a dip, in which case now is the time to sell or wait it out for a couple of years.

I was talking to my friend who is knowledgeable about investing, she figures I could get 6% and if I invest 700k I'd have 42 grand a year, I still like working and Id love to work less but not stop, so lets say I earned 35 k a year part time... I'd have  77 thousand a year.... I dont need that much and could easy roll 25k back into investing. Also have the pension in 11 years. Theres taxes etc that I havent worked into this, its just a rough idea.

If I keep the house, I'd have a thousand square foot 2 bed place to live and generate around 50k a year from rents and 45k a year expenses, then some tax to pay... so approx end up with a free place to live, bills all paid and mortgage paid down about 12k a year.  Plus if there is a big price rise due to new development in the area, I'd get that too.

I don't how to make a tough call like that.. it's almost like until something forces your hand and you have to change, then its easier just to go along with how it is now. But! Theres an awful lot to be said for just being free for the rest of my life.

I once read a book called the Dip, if I remember it was about when to quit to and when to not, maybe Ill dig it out. Anyone have any thoughts on how to call a tough one like that?  It almost reminds me of when deciding to end a relationship or quit a job you've been at for a long time and have a lot invested in... I just want to avoid regrets.

Apologies if this sounds similar to past post I did, things changed a bit so posting this one

PS, I should mention that if I sold it, I have a nice apartment that I can pay a decent rent for and its down by the beach. I think eventually I'd probably try my hand at living somewhere else for a while, maybe Ecuador or somewhere I could just kick back and take it easy



« Last Edit: October 08, 2016, 10:16:58 PM by pudding »

pudding

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #1 on: October 10, 2016, 01:08:05 AM »
I think this one might not be that interesting to other than myself, but I went looking online this morning.. reason being that was talking to a friend about selling and I mentioned to friend that the street my house is on is a busy street and that these are the streets the city re zones for increased density.
Anyway when I went looking I see that just a few blocks away some houses have been assembled and up for sale. Its a bit sketchy as they're not within the city area to be re zoned, but I guess they're seeing if it can be done.
The exciting for me bit is that each of the houses is up for sale at an incredible 2.6 million! which is about 1 to 1.2 million more than if they weren't rezoned.
I think maybe I have to do more research.

pudding

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #2 on: October 20, 2016, 12:27:37 AM »
The houses that were assembled for sale by the realtor sold, was a 26 million dollar deal, 10 houses sold together for demolition and then 6 story apartment building.

I called the realtor that put the deal together and met with him last night. He came by my house and walked up and down the block. He figures the city would go for the rezoning.

Now it's a case of wait and see how it unfolds... but if it happens!!! I'll pocket around  1.4 million .. then I'm done!!

Irishtache

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #3 on: October 20, 2016, 05:47:54 AM »
That was an excellent read. I hope it works out for you. Please keep us posted!

hoping2retire35

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #4 on: October 20, 2016, 05:55:07 AM »
Would you buy it?

If you didnt' have the house now and that was the only thing that changed but you also had the cash to buy, would you? It is pretty much the only question that matters.

ooeei

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #5 on: October 20, 2016, 06:29:11 AM »
Very interesting, best of luck!  Please let us know what happens.  I think one reason your thread didn't get many looks is because you posted in the middle of the night US time.  Most of us are on here during work hours, so it likely got pushed to the bottom of the page by the time most people were looking at the forum.

Frankies Girl

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #6 on: October 20, 2016, 06:42:35 AM »
Very interesting, best of luck!  Please let us know what happens.  I think one reason your thread didn't get many looks is because you posted in the middle of the night US time.  Most of us are on here during work hours, so it likely got pushed to the bottom of the page by the time most people were looking at the forum.

No, the reason is that he has posted many times before about this same property and should he keep or sell, and is mostly still frozen in decision paralysis.

Not trying to be rude to you or the OP, but there really isn't much point in offering up advice again until he fully commits one way or the other.

Threads by him on this same exact subject:

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/real-estate-and-landlording/to-sellkeep-or-develop

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/investor-alley/800k-what-should-i-do-with-it-total-investment-newbie

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/bit-burned-out-with-house-and-life-and-not-sure-what-to-do

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/investor-alley/house-value-appreciated-200k-last-year-220k-year-before-to-sell-or



Pudding - seriously, I get it - it's a super amazing amount of money but it's also super scary selling something like this for a super amazing amount of money and what if it was a better idea to keep it, but what if, what if, what if... this is a HARD decision for you, and things are changing in the area and it might be an amazing deal or things might just tank... I do not envy your choices right now and wish you good luck on your research and hope it brings you clarity in finally making a decision.

You might want to start a journal for your thoughts/feelings/actions so you can dump your worry and hopes and hamster wheeling out there, and not keep posting this thing as a question every month or two so as to not frustrate the posters that were trying to help you out. Good luck with whatever you decide!

« Last Edit: October 20, 2016, 07:03:05 AM by Frankies Girl »

pudding

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #7 on: October 20, 2016, 01:26:45 PM »
Very interesting, best of luck!  Please let us know what happens.  I think one reason your thread didn't get many looks is because you posted in the middle of the night US time.  Most of us are on here during work hours, so it likely got pushed to the bottom of the page by the time most people were looking at the forum.

No, the reason is that he has posted many times before about this same property and should he keep or sell, and is mostly still frozen in decision paralysis.




I can see how it looks like decision paralysis, but I don't think thats what it is.  Hind sight is always 20/20 as the saying goes..... so since I started posting about this, looking back the house went from being worth about 900k to 1.5 million to now possibly re zoned and maybe even 2.5 million.   

I was tempted to sell when it was 900 thousand, but something inside made me hesitant.

If this land assembly thing does happen and it sells for such a huge amount, then for sure that would be the end of me posting about it ;)


But honestly if it sells, I think I'd put a million in the bank and then buy another one in an area that I'm pretty sure one day not to far off, I'd be able to do the same thing again.

http://vancouversun.com/storyline/realtor-rallies-east-vancouver-homeowners-for-25-million-land-deal

pudding

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Re: When you're on the fence about selling or keeping a revenue house
« Reply #8 on: October 31, 2016, 08:22:16 PM »
This ones looking promising. Spoke with realtor again. He says rezoning would likely be allowed if the houses on the block could be assembled and sold to a developer.
He says if so its a million bucks more than if sold separately.
So far I chatted with 6 of my neighbours, and none of them said no to the idea.
I'll have to wait and see.. sort of lost my motivation to work much ;)  think I might just go off on holiday for a bit.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!