Hello Everyone Investing in Hamilton Real Estate!!
Year in review and planning for 2016
2015 is almost over and where did the year go?? Those last 11 months went by like the blink of an eye and I hope you made the best of it, because those who did are getting ahead in life. As I tell my friends, five years from now, when you look back, will you be proud of your accomplishments? Five years will pass no matter what so make the most it.
Evelyn and Mike LaMarsh, or “Team Marshmallow” as they call themselves, are now at EIGHT properties and they don’t turn 31 until next year. Their investment journey started almost five years ago by being frugal. When buying their home, they did so based on economic fundamentals. They work hard, all because they want to work less to spend more time with their future kids. Team Marshmallow is highly motivated.
Cherry and I are highly motivated as well. We want to be able to travel more and live for several months abroad when the kids are out of the house. We are not passionate about being landlords, but we are willing to trade off enjoyment now in exchange for post secondary education and a downpayment for first homes for each of our children. This is why we’re trying to buy yet another property this year and will buy another next year and the year after.
2016 will pass just as quickly as that past 5, 10, 15 years have and what you choose to do in 2016 will have repercussions on your future. In 2015, we had 26 investors purchase their first investment property, the first step in their real estate investment journeys. We’re grateful to be their coaches on their journeys to financial security or freedom, and it will be our pleasure to be there for them when they buy their 2nd, 3rd, … 10th! But for now, just focus on the next one! 🙂
Enough rambling from me, how are those economic fundamentals doing in Hamilton???
City tops $1B mark in construction permits four years in a row
Full article available here: http://www.thespec.com/news-story/6113638-city-tops-1b-mark-in-construction-permits-four-years-in-a-row/
Here is a summary, quotes, and my thoughts on the article. If you’re one of the many who ask me about future property prices in Hamilton, you need to give this a read.
This is the fifth time in the past six years the city has topped the $1-billion permit mark — and there’s still just over seven weeks left in the year.
“A lot of it is due to business expansion and that is exactly our strategy to grow business in our community,” he [Mayor Eisenberger] said. “This is exactly what we want to see.”
Neil Everson, director of Hamilton’s economic development department, said city council has set a clear direction to chase more business-related building, but the pace is being held back by a lack of employment land.
Some of that will be solved as business development around Hamilton airport increases and as U.S. Steel land becomes available as the former Stelco restructures under creditor protection.
Suzanne Mammel, executive officer of the Hamilton-Halton Home Builders’ Association, said her members are building houses as fast as they can because demand is sizzling.
“The frank reality is that we’re in a ‘drive until you can afford it’ scenario,” she said. “People from Toronto just keep driving this way looking for the single-family home they can afford.”
While those home-seekers draw down the inventory of available new and resale homes, available land for building in Hamilton is slowly dwindling as builders creep closer to the city’s urban boundary.
Mammel and Everson both expect the demand for homes downtown and in the east end will accelerate as the new GO stations are completed.
There was a lot of gold in this article for strategic investors. Many investors ask me my opinions on the market and top neighbourhoods for investment. To me, it’s easy! Follow the fundamentals:
- Demand to increase near Go Stations (James North and Centennial Parkway and maybe future stations in Grimsby and beyond)
- Demand is sizzling near the urban border, terrific news for those of you who invested in that land development project I recommended. I only wish I had the capital to invest myself. 😛 My preference for buying will still be to buy near transportation (highway, LRT, Go Station) vs. near those urban boundaries.
- More employment is coming via the Airport employment lands. I’m noticing more and more of the goods I order online are coming from distribution centers in Hamilton.
- $1 billion in building permits equals demand for housing and jobs
For the reasons above, my wife and I continue to buy and I advise my clients to buy and to hold what they already own.
Thanks for reading and happy Hamilton real estate investing everyone!
Erwin | MrHamilton.ca
