In the Black

Posted on February 22, 2006 - Filed Under Personal |

My eyes fell upon the appraiser’s report for my property.

Holy Cow.

My blog has reached certain ears and I’ve been asked not to detail specific numbers.  Which, I concur, is a good thing.  But we can play a game of scenario to give an idea of where I’m at.  The median price of a home in Long Beach is $470,000.  In relation to that, my property value has gone up 23% since I purchased the home.

I am keeping a few things in mind.

  1. I got the deal of the century on these houses.  Everyone involved knows I got these houses at a steal.
  2. The houses were in bad, bad shape when I first got them.  I’m sure just cleaning the yard and putting new paint made a huge difference.

I’m encouraged by this.  It’s nice to know that I could liquidate right now and be way, way into the black.  Compared to a year ago, I’ve made a lot of progress.

I’m so glad I didn’t listen to the "bubble burst" people when I first purchased these houses.  But then again, they don’t (or haven’t) purchased real estate nor have they made millions.

If you liked that post, then try these...

What I've truly missed on August 9th, 2006
Steaks from Costco:  $20 GE Stove from Lowes:  $450 New Kitchen to prepare dinner:  $25,000 Steak served with Cognac demi-glace sauce along with potatoes, sauteed in foie gras fat:  IN-FREAKING-CREDIBLE .

I'm listening on April 12th, 2007
Over the past several days, some readers have expressed a common theme "Cliff, you're going too slow!" Believe it or nuts, the events I am describing have been boiled down from their original time-line.

Comments

2 Responses to “In the Black”

  1. Trisha on February 27th, 2006 11:24 pm

    WOW, that’s awesome! Congratulations! News like that is encouraging!

  2. pasadena on April 5th, 2006 9:24 am

    I was wondering what you thought of Robert Kiyosaki’s recent articles on Yahoo:

    Booms, Busts, and Where Opportunities Occur
    by Robert Kiyosaki
    Tuesday, April 4, 2006

    http://tinyurl.com/gm23y

    “I’ve covered this subject of booms, busts, and bubbles before in my columns and books, but since the world seems to be on the brink of so many different booms and busts, I think it’s a good time to revisit it.”

    …

    “Although my wife and I continue to invest, we’re more like hibernating bears, waiting for the party to end. As Warren Buffett says, “We simply attempt to be fearful when others are greedy, and to be greedy only when others are fearful.”

    So instead of asking, “Is it a bubble?” it’s more financially intelligent to ask, “What stage of the bubble are we in?” Then, decide if you should be fearful, greedy, or hibernating.”

    Does any of the bubble talk effect your plans going forward? Robert K still has real estate investments, but only the ones that cashflow:

    Investing: Assets That Are Lifeboats in a Shaky Future
    by Robert Kiyosaki
    Tuesday, March 7, 2006

    http://tinyurl.com/h2kmf

    “In my opinion, that means getting out of anything else that’s “paper with ink on it” — anything backed by the full faith and confidence of the SS U.S.A. That means I’m very suspicious of stocks, bonds, savings, and mutual funds, especially if they’re U.S. dependent. Although I love real estate, I’m suspicious of any piece of property that doesn’t generate cash flow today. I don’t invest in future appreciation of real estate — not today, at least.”

    How easy is it to find properties that are cashflow positive? Thanks for any help.

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