We talk a lot on this site about the wisdom of owning tangible assets. And we've decided it's time to start focusing more intently on educating our readers how to invest in the largest tangible asset market of all: real estate.
The global real estate market currently stands at over $200 trillion. This dwarfs both the outstanding securitized debt and equity markets.
For centuries, ownership of land and property has been a direct indicator of wealth. That's still true today; the difference being nearly everyone can now gain access to this asset class, and the options for doing so are much more plentiful.
Real estate offers a path to build equity and income outside of the Wall Street casino, in ways that take advantages of tax incentives not available to stock and bond holders. It can also offer purchasing power protection during periods of currency devaluation.
But, education and timing are very important in this space. How can the novice investor get involved while reducing their risk of making costly mistakes? Real estate markets can enter price bubble territory (as many are in now) — how can you determine when it's safe or too risky to invest?
We've invited Robert Helms and Russ Gray, better known as The Real Estate Guys, onto the podcast this week to provide a "Real Estate Investing 101" overview for the Peak Prosperity audience. In it, they cover the different ways to invest, how to identify which approach is best for you given your personal goals and risk appetite, and how to get started educating yourself towards becoming an active investor.
Despite the overvaluation of many real estate markets right now, we believe this sector has long term relevance and potential for most investors. So for those, like us, who are positioned defensively as we wait for the next major correction, now is the time to educate yourself. When the correction occurs, you want to be ready to deploy your dry powder swiftly and intelligently into this asset class once good values appear.
Expect more podcasts on this topic to come throughout the year, focused on specific steps in the real estate investment process (valuation, financing, property management, captial improvements, tax consideratons, etc). The more informed we all are, the more options we'll all have.
NOTE:
To learn more about or purchase "The Future of Money & Wealth" DVD set mentioned this podcast, click here.
Click the play button below to listen to Chris' interview with The Real Estate Guys (47m:15s).
by macro2682