'The worst investment people can make': Real estate guru Grant Cardone says too many Americans are chasing after the dream of homeownership. Here's what he thinks you should do instead

moneywise ^ | sep 27, 2023 | Bethan Moorcraft

[where's_the_Outrage?]

Homeownership has long been a cornerstone of the American dream. It symbolizes independence, financial security and prosperity — but is it a dream worth chasing?

Not if you ask real estate investment guru Grant Cardone.

“Buying a home without a doubt is the worst investment people can make, yet it’s also the most common one,” he wrote in an Instagram post earlier this month.

“Is it because [of] the lack of knowledge people have when it comes to financial education? Or is it just because too many people are trying to fulfill their American dream?”

Whatever the reason, Cardone says he is on a mission to “change the trajectory.” Here’s what he thinks you should do instead of sinking deep into debt to buy a home......

He gave the example of spending $576,000 on a home that you keep for 10 years. On top of that huge total, Cardone said you’d also have to pay the following fees over a decade:

12%, or $69,120, in broker fees;

10%, or $57,600, in maintenance fees;

20%, or $115,200, in property taxes;

and 70%, or $403,200, to the bank

Those amounts add up to $645,120 — and when added to the original price of the home ($576,000), would bring the total to a staggering $1,221,120.

“A $576,000 home will have to be sold for $1.2 million in 10 years,” Cardone said. “You’re not going to sell it for that, to break even.” .......

Rather than buy a house, Cardone says you should rent where you live and use the money you've saved for a down payment to instead invest in real estate that generates passive income.

He advocates for residential real estate, which appears to have remained strong through the economic turmoil of recent years,

[LeonardFMason]

And Location.

My Children:

Near Seattle. House prices are insane.

Outside of Boston. House prices are insane.

Chatanooga. House prices are reasonable. A house my son is looking at for $450,000 would be 1,000,000 to 1,300,000 near Seattle or Boston.

[A_perfect_lady]

I started buying cheap houses for cash and renting them out in 2008 now own 14

Is it hard finding good renters?

[genghis]

The key is buy bargain houses then you can rent below market easy to find people looking for bargain. But to be honest I have no idea what I am doing just that things have worked out really well for me.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Not if you ask real estate investment guru Grant Cardone.

Who is this dumb a$$?

[where's_the_Outrage?]

My guess is that he is a entrepreneur that has started up rental investment properties opportunities available to the dimwitted enough to not buy a home and put capital management under Grant Cardone.

[dfwgator]

Paying rent makes some other family rich.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

That would be my guess as well.

Now I have bought, I have rented and I have been a landlord. Renting is pretty easy because all you have to do is give them money and they take care of everything. Of course the corollary is that you are not allowed to do any number of things. Including decide what kind of window shades you have. The people who think it means you can just leave the rental at any time are forgetting about rental agreements. You are stuck for a year unless you want to pay some pretty stiff penalties.

Owning is more complicated but has greater freedom for personal expression (as long as you stay out of an HOA). You can redesign the entire house if you like so it fits you.

Being a landlord is a pain for the amount of return you get. Because they are just giving you money and all the problems are yours. Property taxes which are quite high, income taxes, repairs and any conflict with neighbors. You are doing all of this and you do not even get the benefit of living in the home.

If you live in the area and you are capable of doing a lot of the repair and maintenance yourself and you are able to get reasonable renters you can get a return of a couple hundred dollars a month from a unit. If you have more then three you will have to accept section 8 with all the headaches that brings. If you have less then three you probably will have a passive income of around $900 a month.

Which is not hay but it is not exactly great.

[where's_the_Outrage?]

I’m currently a landlord but use a management company because I live over 500 miles away. All the rental income I’ve supposedly received over the past year has been used to pay for storm damage (2 different events), I paid to replace the deck, a new stove, and currently have major leak to get fixed. Luckily I don’t depend on the rental income.

I tried to sell it a few years ago but after 8 months I rented it again.

I would not recommend using rental property for income as a senior.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

We used to have a small management company and we specialized in landlords that had three or less properties. While they did not get big checks they did get anywhere from $800 to $1,400 passive income a month. Which was a nice little boost.

But that was the Before Times.

Now I would not recommend that anyone become a small landlord. The clients we kept are mostly people who are out of the country and plan to live in their houses when they return.

The rest told us to sell their rentals as they were getting out of the game.