The Best Ways to Invest in Real Estate
Wednesday, May 28, 2025
By Mario Toneguzzi for REALTOR.ca
When it comes to investing in real estate, most people look at owning their primary residence with the hope and confidence the value of the property will rise in time as they build equity in their investment.
It’s a sound and fairly safe way to grow your investment if you keep your eye on the long-term. But for many novices they’re likely not aware growing an investment in real estate can take many other forms-everything from renting out a property or a vacation home to buying a home, fixing it up and selling it for a higher price to investing in a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT).
A professional women and man walking down the sidewalk of a soon to be residential area.
As with any investment, each approach carries with it different risks–so you’ll want to thoroughly research your options to ensure you’re investing your money responsibly and strategically.
“Realizing the dream of homeownership has proven over the years, decades and decades, to be one of the best investments available to Canadians. If you look historically and you had X number of dollars to put in a downpayment . . . what you put down and what you paid, your investment has outperformed most other vehicles that are available to Canadians,” said Costa Poulopoulos, Chair of the Canadian Real Estate Association, adding people are paying down their mortgage while the property value rises so they’re winning on both ways.
“Another key point is you hear people talk about the stock market and mutual funds and RRSPs as go-to things. And sure there’s returns there and yields. But you can’t live in a mutual fund. So not only are you getting appreciation and a tremendous return on your initial investment but it’s actually serving two purposes-it’s a secure investment and it’s housing.
“There are many vehicles available for investing from the novice first time trying to figure out a secondary home and starting small to sophisticated investors, conglomerates, REITs, whatever the case may be.”
For example, Poulopoulos said many people buy properties to rent out. In this regard, the property value can appreciate over time but also you’re generating revenue.
One of the key things to consider when buying rental properties is the financial costs including mortgage payment and paying for utilities to taxes. And of course, unless you’re hiring someone to take care of the property you do have responsibilities as a landlord you might personally have to handle.
Romana King, a personal finance columnist and real estate expert, said it’s relatively simple to make money using real estate as the investment asset whether it’s speculation buying and flipping a home or investing sweat equity and flipping.
“Simple in that you don’t require a lot of specialized knowledge so you don’t have to go to school for anything. You don’t need a qualification. But with that said it’s not easy in that you do still have to treat it like a business so you really need to be aware of the numbers involved,” she said.
That’s really important when it comes to real estate flipping. The homework required here is to make sure you understand what exactly is selling in that neighbourhood, what the current trends are in that neighbourhood and whether or not what you propose fits in with those two current snapshots.
King said she is a big fan of investing in a rental property.
“You can make money on rental purchases as long as you have a cash flow positive budget sheet. If you don’t and if there isn’t enough wiggle room in that budget then you’re buying a property that’s priced too high for you and you need to actually rethink your strategy. It’s still a good strategy but consider a lower price point. Even if you get lower rent all of those numbers have to make sense,” she added.
King advises people to save up a larger down payment and look for a multi-unit property to buy whether it’s a house that can be divided into two units or a triplex. That spreads your risk with more rental revenue.
She said REITs are incredible vehicles and they can be a great gateway into real estate investment.
“It does give you a better idea of how extraordinary real estate investments can be. They can be fantastic holdings. It also helps you diversify a little bit,” added King. “I really love REITs. I love REITs for anyone who really wants to get into real estate investing but doesn’t want to do the work. That’s not a negative. Not everyone has time to do all the investigation and crunch the math and make sure you have cash flow positive. If you don’t want to do that, and you want to get the upside of real estate investment, REITs are awesome. They’re excellent.”
Whether you’re a novice or a sophisticated and experienced investor, the real estate industry presents a golden opportunity to invest your money and grow that investment if one takes the time to research the many vehicles available.
If you are thinking of becoming a real estate investor yourself, or you are already an investor and would like to leverage your current investment(s) into more properties, or you are looking to sell one or more of your investment properties, give me a call at 905-683-7800.
I’ll be more than happy to answer any and all of your questions and help you with all your real estate investment needs.
Thanks for reading today’s BLOG!!!
If you would like to see any of my previous blog posts, please click here.
Brian Kondo
Sales Representative / Team Leader
The Brian Kondo Real Estate Team
Re/Max Hallmark First Group Realty Ltd.
905-683-7800 office
905-426-7484 direct
brian@briankondo.com
www.BrianKondo.com
www.BrianKondoTeam.com
Mario Toneguzzi's article was initially published on Realtor.ca. You can find it by clicking here.
| REALTOR.ca is the most popular and most trusted real estate website in Canada. Owned and operated by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), REALTOR.ca provides up-to-date and reliable information that makes finding your dream property easy and enjoyable. REALTOR.ca is popular with sellers, buyers, and renters and is accessible online and on mobile devices. |
|
Mario Toneguzzi |
About the Author Mario Toneguzzi, based in Calgary has 37 years of experience as a daily newspaper writer, columnist and editor. He worked for 35 years at the Calgary Herald covering sports, crime, politics, health, city and breaking news, and business. He now works on his own as a freelance writer and consultant in communications and media relations/training. |
Homesellers - Find Out What Homes in Your Neighbourhood are Selling For! You can receive a FREE computerized printout of ALL recent Home Sales and Current Listings in your neighbourhood. Click here!
Best Buy Hotlist - You can receive a FREE list of the 10 Best Buys in your
specific price range sent to you at No COST or OBLIGATION.
Click here!
Your Home Sold Guaranteed or I'll Buy It!* No Gimmicks! For a Free Special Report that Details my Guaranteed Sale Program, visit: www.BriansGuaranteedSaleProgram.com.
Remember, your referrals change lives! We donate a portion of our income on every home sale to a great worthy cause like SickKids Hospital. To find out more visit: www.ReferForSickKids.com.
If you or anyone you know is considering making a move in the next little while, give me a call or pass on my number ... 905-683-7800 (Office) or 905-426-7484 (Direct).
#BestRealEstateTips #RealEstateTips #TopRealEstate101 #InvestmentTipsForBeginners #PassiveIncomeIdeas #WealthBuildingStrategies #InvestmentEducation #FinancialFreedomJourney
We would like to hear from you! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are always looking forward to hearing from you! We will do our best to reply to you within 24 hours !
