I'll give $1 to anyone...

who still has a non internet based phone in five years. You know where to find me.

Here.

So close.

Country information

The CIA has a handy website for tracking basic information about countries. Another tool to use for finding out details about countries like GDP growth.

CIA Factbook

I'm dispicable...

according to the commenters on many financial blogs. Cover our ears. Apparently I am a high income/low net worth type. Ewww. I even hate myself now.

But, don't count me out. I've been playing on pure good looks for a long time and I still got game.

Doug

She said, He said

Dear Doug

Thank you for your response. All of the opportunities we have available in Berlin require a minimum 30% deposit, you would then be able to mortgage the remaining 70%, therefore a minimum investment of approximately 27,000 Euros + purchase costs would be required.

If you are looking to invest towards the end of the year, I would recommend for you to contact us in November as the property market is continually changing and the properties we have available now will not be available in a few months.

I look forward to speaking with you in the future.

Thank you
Marie

*********

Dear Marie,

You have some very outstanding product, but 30% down doesn't work for me.

I thank you for you prompt and courteous responses. I don't expect to be back, for the stated reason. I wish you great good fortune.

Doug

Snapshot

While I sit here typing, I have come to believe the following.

• Real Estate should be bought with as little of your own money as possible

• It should be an interest only mortgage, with the capital gains paying for it when sold.

• It should be self sustaining requiring no new money for upkeep.

• The places that are hot right now that interest me personally are Berlin, Paris(leaseback), and Bulgaria.

And since Fortune Favors the Bold...
I fired off an email.

Greetings Marie,

I am : 49 y/o
6 years from retirement on a small pension
debt free
have very good credit
earning $100k Cdn/yr
with limited savings

My dream is an RE investment in Berlin (all city centre amenities on their doorsteps including the S-Bahn (Train) and many shops, bars & restaurants.) No money down, fully managed with mortgage payments around $1500 Cdn (for those months when I end up making the payments).

I will have $20000 saved by xmas, but would like to hang on to as much of it as possible.

I am in your hands, I will be focusing on investing all the monies I am able to save between now and retirement. Besides Berlin I am also interested in a Paris proper leaseback with no penalty opt out after 9 years, and Bulgaria.

What can we do together Marie?

* based on this email *

Doug

And once in a while...

... a nugget.

Global Property Guide

Doug

Looking down at the clouds...

from the top of the Kokanee run at Mt. Cain, I took a minute to soak in the view, to appreciate life. I'm going to miss it when it's gone.

It was my first time snowboarding. Conditions were perfect. Three feet of fresh powder, short line ups at the tbar. Another first in the bag.

> To Risk is to Live <

Once you stop risking you are just putting in time till the end. This is it! Your chance to be you. There is only one you and there will never be another. Do a gut check. What is your passion? Do it. Now.

Next time you find yourself listing all the reasons you can't do it, change over and list all the reasons you can. I assure you they will be more compelling.

On a more serious note, somebody stop me. I have had Naked Bungee Jumping bookmarked for over a year now.

First, you must talk their language...

then you can do business with them. Real Estate investors talk in short hand. Here is some help with translations.

Rod Thomas Blog had this today.

A second good source is, of course, possibly the greatest repository of human knowledge, Wikipedia. If you have joined the Firefox revolution, you can simply type wiki then space then your search query into your address bar to access the wiki. e.g. wiki wayward girls hostels

Doug

Irish Stew

I am still in the process of getting a copy of my grandmother's birth certificate so I can apply for my Irish Passport. After a few fruitless attempts, it's time to branch out. I am going to hire professionals to hunt it down. If I have to, I will buy a shovel and go dig up the ruins of St. Paul's church, myself. Erin Go Bragh!

At forty-nine I decided to go back and get a University degree. I have to say that in the beginning it was hard. Concentrate till my eyes squinted and I couldn't seem to absorb anything. Two months in, it's all coming together. I nailed all the answers on the last quiz. Also I just realized I should decide what I will write my essays on before I start the course so I can take notes along the way. Use it or lose it. Did you know that your prefrontal cortex, which is the executive branch of your brain and organizes all, gets it's most synapse growth when you learn new things. You cant just do Sudoku after Sudoku. You have to toss in a scramble once in a while too!

I accumulated nearly $6000 credit card debt in the aftermath of getting to Debt Free on a deadline. Debt Free is a way of life now. I am back down to $2000 owed and will free again in two weeks.

Live Learn Invest, a blog I follow stated "We all know that when demand > supply, prices go up. That’s why real estate investors track the migration patterns of the population." Which led me to seek a site to track international population inflows


Doug

Berlin, Bulgaria bounce Britain!

Britain will continue to have outstanding RE capital growth as it is becoming the world financial center, and it is hosting the 2012 Olympics, but it is becoming so pricey that rents won't pay the mortgage. Buh Bye.

Berlin and Bulgaria become new hotspots.

France stays in because it has the leaseback program. More on that later.

Top 10 enquiries for overseas property

Rank Country Share Change Comment
1 France 12.65% Non-mover 2 months in top spot
2 Bulgaria 9.85% Non-mover
3 Spain 7.05% Up 1
4 Italy 6.77% Down 1
5 Portuga l 4.29% Up 1
6 Turkey 3.68% Up 1
7 Cyprus 2.85% Down 2
8 Romania 2.75% Up 7 New to top 10
9 India 2.67% Down 1
10 Germany 2.49% Up 11 New to top 10

Other risers include: Morocco, Malta,
Venezuela, Latvia, Hungary, Malaysia Source: Themovechannel.com

Bulgaria

Germany

Doug

My FICO, DTI and LTV...

will determine whether I get my interest only loan for my cash flow property this year.

FICO, I have previously explained.

DTI is Debt-to-Income ratio. Basically it is the minimum amount of all payments you must make every month divided by your monthly income. The qualifications will vary, but over forty-five percent and you will be hard pressed.

LTV is Loan-to-Value ratio. This is simple. It is the percentage of the value of the property that you borrow. Borrow 80,000 of 100,000 and your LTV is 80%. This is where FICO is important.

Own your FICO.

Doug

We journey together

These places pass the sniff test. Today I add two links.

Searchlight Crusade, a Real Estate blog with regular, insightful updates from a professional.

and

Themovechannel.com, a configurable international RE listings site. I get regular emails about opportunities in areas that interest me.

By the time I am ready to buy, I should have a good idea of the different types of investments available.

Doug

Finally...

I have a cohesive website

I read 36 blogs

This changes daily.

As you well know I am on a quest. Freedom 55.

One aspect of this quest is to diversify my revenue streams. 2007 is the year I buy Real Estate with the intent of having renters pay it's mortgage. I know nothing about this. I have a good friend who is doing it, but he actively manages his property and my preference is to have a professional manager handle my properties.

I seek a mentor who invests internationally. My first investment will almost certainly be in Britain or France.

In the course of gathering knowledge for my new RE investment strategy I subscribe to blogs of all kinds. I delete and add several every day.

Today, I passed this one... ChipIn The gist of it is that you pick a cause and have other kindred souls donate. You can read a summary here.

The end result is the new widget in the sidebar.

Doug

Show Up!

Thanks to Tom Peters for this...

Show up! (If you care, you are there.)

“Being there” matters...Big Time. I'd go so far as to say that three out of every four (or nine out of every 10) (or 99 out of every 100) of the most intractable situations could have been ameliorated by...showing up...and are exacerbated by...absence.

The idea holds at every level: How many deteriorating relationships, personal or professional, could have been mended by one humbling (or even not so humbling) phone call...two days ago...or two months ago? Call it death by 1,000 uncertainties. Perhaps the most potent force in the world is powerlessness and/or paralysis, that comes from the confusion of the moment. The physical presence of the leader, even though she arrives bearing no Strategic Silver Bullet, makes all the difference and moves tens or tens of thousands out of the paralytic catatonic state and off the proverbial dime.

The Power of Presence. Never, ever underestimate it!

The premier (only true!) indicator of caring is...Visibly Spending the Time

Common Sense

As part of my plan for financial sovereignty I use all the following tools.

Thanks to Utterly Clueless.

Doug

Master the loan

In a conversation today I was reminded how painful it can be to apply for a loan.

I can help. While you are sitting in the chair and he/she is asking your name and typing it into the computer it automatically brings up your credit score. The bank will compile thier own depending on your history with them, but if you don't have a history, and also as a cross reference they will check your FICO score. Over 750 you get the loan. Under 750, you better be a smooth talker.

You can control your FICO score.

• 35%, punctuality of payment in the past (only includes payments later than 30 days past due) No late payments.
  
• 30%, the amount of debt, expressed as the ratio of current revolving debt (credit card balances, etc.) to total available revolving credit (credit limits) No debt, plenty of available credit.
  
• 15%, length of credit history Don't close accounts, just tidy them up and walk away if you get pissed at the bank or card company.
  
• 10%, types of credit used (installment, revolving, consumer finance)
• 10%, recent search for credit and/or amount of credit obtained recently Don't do unnecessary credit requests.

When you apply for credit at a bank etc., ask for your score, they will happily give it to you, or pay one of the credit bureaus occasionally.

This I Know

It may be counter-intuitive, but you can change your attitude, by changing your facial expression. Just do it when you feel the need.

Doug

Take Charge

I have one link on my blog. billcara.com. It is for people that are in a mood to take charge of their financial market investments. I have been reading his blog for eight months, and I consider it a changing experience. He is a very successful person who is at a stage in his life where he wishes to contribute to the social fabric by mentoring "the little people". In plain english he explains what is happening and why it is happening, before it happens. You can not find this anywhere else in the world for free. As important as Bill's words are, also read those in the comment section, as you get to know them one by one, you will come to realize they are all people you would wish advice from in their own right.

Change your life.

Learn.

This IS your life.

Doug

Reasearch for Real Estate

The majority of my education on RE investing comes from blogs. I downloaded Google Reader, and everytime I pass an RE blog I grab a subscription and read it for a while. If I like what I see I keep it, if not I unsubscribe.

One of my favorites is BiggerPockets, and I also really enjoy reading thier forums.

Blog readers are super simple. If anyone hasn't used one, drop me a line. Super simple.

Also I see references to Rich Dad Poor Dad everywhere, which I will have to add to my reading list.

Doug

Stop the Bleeding

In my quest to achieve my 2006 goal of freedom from debt I reached the end of the year with no savings and an income vacuum. It's a risk I was willing to take. I don't regret it for a second, but now it's time to pay the piper. I accumulated fresh $5300 credit card debt between Belize/xmas/rent/bills. The bleeding has stopped, now it is time to repair this fresh setback, then get ready to make my RRSP contributions.

Once these two must do items are dealt with I will begin directing all my energies towards saving a $20,000 for a down payment for investment in a real estate rental property. This is my chosen method of diversifying my income stream for this year. I am looking for an accountant to help me structure a company to handle this transaction for the tax benefits it will give. I know nothing about Real Estate investing except that I am learning as much as I can as I save my money. If I can do this, you can too. Desire.

It's a new year. On that note I direct you to an article I came across today. Enjoy. Stupendously Lucky Us