What We Are Up To
November flew by! I’m sure it did for you also. Does anyone else feel like time has sped up?!
Edmonton
November we put boots on the ground in Edmonton which is where we have decided to turn our investing attention and dollars to. It is important to keep up with all of the changes continually happening -regulatory, government, economic, population, and more, and pivoting location and or strategies as necessary. Edmonton checks off the boxes right now and has some great investing opportunities. They are open for business and welcome investment dollars.
We attended the Trust Your Talent Investment Properties Field trip for a weekend focused on multifamily and infill properties, property tours, learning, power team member introductions and valuable networking with our fellow TYT students. It is always worthwhile to spend time together and I always come away with valuable nuggets.
Outside of the weekend tour, I spent a week there, learning the neighbourhoods and viewing many many many potential properties. Building a strong team is critical, and this trip strengthened our network of realtors, contractors, property managers and more. It is so important to get boots on the ground when you can. When you build a strong team, you can invest outside of your back yard.
My cousin Donna and her husband Greg, joined me for the week and we had a lot of laughs touring some very “interesting homes” including the “poopy house” (unflushed poop in every toilet, so you can smell the smell I’m sure) and the Ukrainian house which was like walking into a time warp of the last 50 years including a ringer washing machine! They are newer to TYT so it was a great opportunity to share my knowledge and experience so far and they are excited to learn along together as we tackle our investment project. A couple of our investor friends also joined us on some of the tours we did outside of the field trip.
Correa Equity Partners is looking at various strategies including multifamily, infill, flip or short-term rentals in the Edmonton market. With Donna and Greg, we found 3 properties that were appropriate for a flip and put offers on all 3. We ended up as backup offers on two of them and successfully secured one of them, closing next week. It is often scary for investors to put in offers, especially the first ones, however, without taking action and putting in offers, you will never find a property. Stick to the numbers as you don’t want to let emotions jump in and overpay. I have received a good portion of my deals from backup offers that have fallen through from the original purchaser. Always let the numbers do the talking.
I was super proud and happy for Donna and Greg who have jumped right in and are fearless. We are looking forward to turning the very dated bungalow with a basement home we purchased into a beautiful home for a family to live. This project starts January 6th so watch for before and afters!
Here is a sneak peek of the project.
If investing in Edmonton is something that interests you as a passive investor or a more active investor learning alongside me, reach out.
Doll House update
The Dollhouse now has plans for the new lower unit, the main floor unit which has to be redone to jack up the house, and for making an existing unit into an accessible unit which is a new provincial requirement for new builds. They are making us do this even though it is not a new build. The reno to this unit will include widening all doorways including closets, changing the tub/shower combo into a roll in/walk in shower and making all sink areas accessible.
We are getting pricing on the build now and then will prepare the ton of paperwork for CMHC to be submitted in the new year. We can’t start the demolition and renovation until late spring as the clay we have to pull out to build the foundation, can’t be put into trucks on the roads until things are drier due to the weight of it.
Chicago Football Weekend
Doug and I snuck away for 4 days to Chicago for a football weekend and some downtime. His cousin and her husband met us in Chicago and we drove out to Notre Dame on Saturday to watch Notre Dame beat Virgina. It was quite an event as football is such a big deal there and it was fun to experience it with Doug who is a huge Notre Dame fan (so I am too lol). And we always have a blast hanging out with Colleen and Duc. The next day we watched the Bears play the Packers with a heartbreaking loss in the last few seconds. You could hear the stunned silence in the stadium. The weekend also including some shopping, our first Starbucks Reserve experience, and spending quality time together!
4th Annual Correa Ugly Sweater Party
At the end of November, we held our 4th Annual Correa Ugly Sweater Party for the local TYT and TYT curious investor community in Vancouver (with some guests flying in from Alberta and Ontario!). It was a rousing success with at one point over 60 people in our kitchen lol. The sweater competition is heating up and there were some very creative entries including the 1st place Toilet Paper Christmas winners (if you know you know, and if you don’t know, ask me!) and the 2nd place Fireplace mantel and Christmas tree. Such a fun evening of networking and celebrating the year. We can’t wait for next year!
What I am listening to on Audible
Tax Free Wealth
by Tom Wheelwright
This book is written by a US CPA (who works with Robert Kiyosaki, Rich Dad Poor Dad) however covers Canadian and Australian differences also. While focusing on US taxes, most of it is also applicable in Canada.
5 key takeaways:
Taxes Are Incentives, Not Punishments
Tax codes reward behaviours that align with government priorities, such as creating jobs, investing in housing, and developing renewable energy. This allows you to align your activities for maximum tax benefits.
Proactive Tax Planning Is Essential
Tax savings require year-round strategic planning and partnering with a proactive tax advisor who can help you leverage the tax code to reduce your liability and grow your wealth.
Entrepreneurs and Investors Have Unique Tax Advantages
Business owners and investors benefit from deductions, depreciation, and credits unavailable to employees. Examples include business expense write-offs and accelerated depreciation for real estate.
Depreciation Maximizes Tax Savings
Real estate investors can use depreciation to offset taxable income, significantly lowering tax bills.
Education and Adaptability Are Key
The tax laws are always changing, especially with the current Canadian government we have who seems to keep throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what will stick. Staying informed about tax laws and working with an experienced tax advisor ensures you can adapt to changes and consistently optimize your tax strategy.
Useful Tip:
Cool Greek Pizza
This is a recipe I am asked for every time I bring it somewhere and it is a quick and easy-to-make delicious appetizer for the next party or dinner you go to where you are asked to bring an appie. And as it is mostly red, white, and green, it is perfect for Christmas. We like it so much, we make it just to watch movies or football. We usually eat it so fast, I realized I didn’t have a great picture of it lol.
Cool Greek Pizza
This recipe is originally a Pampered Chef. (I have made the recipe so many times, that I don't use the original recipe anymore so here is my version: (like your grandma's recipes that didn't have measurements, just pinches and dashes.) I have also veganized it.
Ingredients:
1 Pillsbury Pizza crust or home made pizza crust
8 oz (vegan) herbed or garlic cream cheese
Lots of dried dill
1/2 red pepper and green pepper diced
1/2 English Cucumber diced
1/2 large tomato diced
1/2 Red onion diced
(vegan) Feta or grated cheese
Directions:
Precook one Pillsbury Pizza crust. Or make a homemade recipe and precook.
Cool it completely.
Spread cream cheese over pizza dough and sprinkle a generous amount of dill on top.
At this stage I find it easiest to cut the pizza into squares here before the toppings go on.
Chop the red and green pepper, English cucumber, tomato and red onion. Mix together in a bowl. (You can also add in olives if you like.)
Spread over the cream cheese mixture.
Top with vegan feta cheese. You can crumble it on top or use a grater to grate it over top.
Serve right away.
Watch it disappear fast! Always a party favourite.
If you have a useful resource, website, tip or app that I can share in a future newsletter, please send it along!
We’d love to hear from you!
If making your money work harder for you by investing in real estate without all the hassles is something that interests you, or if you want to partner alongside us and learn as you participate, reach out to us to book a no-obligation call or email michele@correaequitypartners.com.
We can discuss your goals and see if we are a fit to work together and invest with purpose.
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