Invest for Wealth Being
By Jim Palmer Jr.

A few years ago I was asked to speak to a group of young adults about real estate, the benefits of owning it and the process of purchasing. The average age among these young men and women ranged from 21-30 years old. As the evening progressed I realized that most had no interest in purchasing real estate because they thought it was out of their reach in their current life status, and a few had the very strong opinion that they should not buy real estate, that it would never really be an advantage to them.

By the end of the evening I was able to convince all but the most hard core, that buying real estate was not only within their grasp, but was truly an advantage in terms of beginning the process of accumulating wealth. I spoke with passion as I shared my testimonial concerning real estate as an investment vehicle because I had lived a life of penny pinching in order to be able to afford to invest in real estate. Through the years, I have watched many poor but entrepreneurial people start from scratch and eventually accumulate a grand nest egg because of their real estate dealings.

That first home has been the financial spring board for most property owners who have invested in real estate at any level. Most people who purchase a home soon find that they can create value by doing fix-up work to the property or by adding bedrooms to an attic space or basement.  This “sweat equity”, when added to the principle payments they make, can become a financial nest egg that within a few short years of ownership can allow them to move upward to even bigger investments.  An added bonus is that there are some specific tax breaks to owning a home, including mortgage interest deduction, deducting property taxes, and capital gains exclusion.  

Some people feel stuck because they fear overpaying in a hot market, but time usually heals that dilemma when inflation or sweat equity overcomes their deficit.  Taking that risk no matter what the market is like has always paid off in my personal experience.

The great philanthropist and wealthy industrialist Andrew Carnegie wisely noted, “Ninety percent of all millionaires become so through owning real estate.  More money has been made in real estate than in all industrial investments combined.  The wise young person or wage earner of today invests money in real estate.”