Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Plan Starts to Take Focus

One of the biggest obstacles for my investment strategy in single family rental homes is that I live in New York City.  Not only are the prices here outrageous, the competition for a "deal" is very difficult also.  And that also goes for the general metropolitan region.

So, instead of giving up, I asked myself how to get around this problem. 

By prevailing over all obstacles and distractions, one may unfailingly arrive at his chosen goal or destination. Christopher Columbus 

My answer was to invest elsewhere - and take on a partner local to wherever the investment is located.  Doing so also allows me to use NYC dollars (where the cost of living is higher, but so too are the salaries) an invest in a middle-America area.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Savings?

I've been diligently saving money the last several years.  I set an automatic transfer to occur each payday so that $500 goes from my checking account to my money market account.  When I started out many years ago, it was $300 and it grew as my salary did.

I put the max in my 401(k) each year.

As a result, I have a pretty good amount of savings.  I know most people don't, so I should feel pretty good.  Right?

Then tonight I read a piece in the September 12, 2011 issue of Forbes called "The Price of Abandoning The Gold Standard".  The article describes the detriments of Nixon's decision to remove the US Dollar from the gold standard back in 1971.

Friday, August 26, 2011

How, Exactly?

It's great to start a blog with the stated purpose of building your non-job income to the point that it allows you to leave your daily job.

But then pen meets paper.  The rubber meets the road.  The cars revving at the stoplight have to throw into  "drive".  You get the point.

How, exactly, will I accomplish my stated goal?

For me, it will involve real estate.  I love real estate and have since I was a kid.  My dad owned real estate. My grandfather owned real estate and so did some uncles.  Eventually, I started a career in real estate.  My journey will involve real estate.

And that's great, because real estate is one of the most powerful wealth builders around.  Most of the super-rich in America - and indeed the world - own real estate.  How, exactly?

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Revisited

I initially started this blog back in 2007.  It was an interesting year for me - I was nearing the end of one job and about to start another.  I was feeling out of balance and ready for something different.

I started a new job in January 2008 and promptly stopped blogging.  I had found my thing thing, my new j-o-b.  And it was great.  Wasn't it?

As I reflect back on 2007 from the vantage point of 2011, I'm finding that it's pretty much the same thing all over again.  My current job has been satisfying, rewarding (financially and otherwise), but ever more frustrating also.  The company I work for has had some changes and that may affect my day-to-day job duties.  My boss is difficult and demanding.  NYC is still expensive and it'll be even more so when my daughter starts school in a couple years.  I'm more convinced than ever that I need to find and take advantage of opportunities for additional investment income so I'm less reliant on my job, as well as making more time for my family and my health.

So bottom line:  I'm refocusing.  In 2007, this blog was about leaving work behind - as in "leave work in the office and use your non-working hours better".  Today, in 2011, this blog will be about leaving work behind - as in "building passive income so that you can leave your job".  And I intend to blog about my journey - partly to help others in a similar work/life unbalance and partly to keep me on track toward my goal of getting more "life" in my work/life balance.  I'm glad you're reading this and that you are part of this journey.