The last 4 months have been a whirlwind...seems like on the one hand it went by so quickly but on the other hand, time seemed to slow down completely. We sold our house and it closed last week!
We'll spare you all the details (and there are a lot!) but we learned several important lessons:
Hire a competent and professional team of real estate agents, mortgage broker, lawyer, etc.
Monitor the real estate market. Know the comparable sales and trends.
Stay knowledgeable and current with interest rates, the mortgage market, the economy and government policies.
Real estate is a unique investment vehicle: not that liquid, but profitable returns if invested wisely.
Timing (and luck) is everything!
Teaching children about the intricacies of real estate investment might be too premature, but it's not too early to emphasize to them the importance of planning and investing wisely. There are many investment assets and strategies to utilize in order to grow your portfolio. Leaving your money in a chequing account is as good as leaving it under your mattress!
Children must have a solid foundation of investing. Even though it's not the right age yet to teach them about technical analysis or candlestick charts or financial statements, it's again not too early for them to grasp the basic concept of investing. The best place for children to learn that is from their parents.
The most interesting way to teach kids about investment (and also to maintain their attention) is to play board games like Monopoly. An activity like that is fun for the family and provides fundamental lessons of property ownership, investment and money. You might want to remind your kids that the goal in life is not to force your opponents into bankruptcy, but it's to accumulate assets and to increase your net worth! Have fun!
