The weak part of this article is advocating rental property. I never wanted to deal with tenants who may have problems making ends meet. Those are more likely to be amongst those who don’t plan. My money went into Vanguard. Only one representative to deal with rather than a cross section of lesser individuals.
My brother in law has a late-paying tenant who gets daily deliveries from Amazon. Go figure.
“The weak part of this article is advocating rental property. “
The strong part of this article is advocating rental property.
Perhaps the BIGGEST risk is if you own rental properties in areas where tenants outnumber homeowners.
I’d much rather see a person work for a soul-sucking Fortune 500 corporation that has a 401K plan with company match that they can max out than be a landlord for even one day.
One of the primary strategies was acquiring rental properties.
I agree - rental property is more of a hassle than I want to put up with (bad tenants, maintenance even at slumlord levels, accounting and taxes). Most of my money went into equities. I’ve talked to older folks who tell me that they are bringing in more with their RMDs + SS than they ever made working. Still working, but probably can’t afford to when I have to start taking RMDs.
“The weak part of this article is advocating rental property.”
I agree 100%, particularly in tenant-friendly Blue States, where evicting a problem tenant can take months if not years. Several Blue States have “good cause” eviction laws, which prohibit owners from evicting residential tenants or refusing to renew their leases except for good cause, which is often a very high standard even for deadbeat tenants who claim financial hardship. In addition, some Blue States (i.e., NY) limit the owner’s ability to raise rents to reflect increased operating and maintenance costs, tax increases, supply and demand, etc., if the local municipality determines that the residential vacancy rate is less than 3%.
Commercial tenants present risks as well. Tenant bankruptcies can tie up the property for years. I’m aware of situations where tenants have vacated the property in the middle of the night leaving the owner with thousands of dollars in clean-up costs. Solid locations often turn bad and leave properties vacant for months if not years.
No thanks. In my opinion, the best investments are a well-diversified portfolio consisting of equity, income, and cash (I prefer exchange traded funds), with a solid history of growth and income.
In my experience, the best way to build a portfolio is to pay yourself first by maxing out on tax deferred retirement funds, IRAs, etc. “Dollar cost average” by setting up an automatic investment plan directly from your paycheck or bank account and invest the same amount weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, into three to five exchange traded funds that meet your investment goals. (This results in the purchase of more shares when prices are low and fewer shares when prices are high.)
Also, except for a primary residence, don’t buy anything unless you can pay cash - including motor vehicles and vacations.