I agree with a lot of what you’re saying, although the real estate is where I have shifted myself and want to stay. I like the idea of being an actual part of investing in this city, as I want to see it turn around in the worst way…I believe a lot of great things are happening here, and being a property owner certainly keeps your interest vested…
my wife owns her own appraisal business, which i lend a hand with. we also used to do some property flipping then moved on to buying rental properties. over the past several years we have bought and sold several properties for ourselves or investment purposes. but i would say our biggest educational experience was our brief brush with the government. after that we made sure to be very cautious and make sure all the loose strings were taken care of.
when they visited they knew all of our property purchases and sales- which is public knowledge- but they had clearly taken the time to put it all together. it was just kind of a wake up call to keep an eye on everything because it isn’t that hard for someone with a little effort and determination to put together a reasonably complete picture of your real estate dealings.