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Reflections of a Real Estate Investor: Ondoy's aftermath

Jay Castillo — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:45:44 +0000

I have been compiling a list of reflections from the point of view of a real estate investor that I want to share here in Foreclosure Philippines but after Typhoon Ondoy’s wrath, a lot of them have changed. Mike, a fellow real estate investor, said it best when we met the other day and mentioned to me that “You must have a million things on your mind Jay…”. Mike was right. There are just so many things running through my head right now.

Although it’s true that a lot has changed after Ondoy’s deluge, there are also things that cannot be changed even by such a calamity and I want to share these thoughts first. Don’t worry, I won’t be babbling about a million things, I’ll just include coherent thoughts and reflections.

Whatever happens, always count your blessings

During the past days, I sometimes find myself with a blank stare and teary eyed during moments of feeling overwhelmed with all the challenges I face in the aftermath of typhoon Ondoy. I have yet to fully assess the damage to our house in Provident Village, but I’m quite sure that just about everything inside it got ruined or destroyed.

Our kitchen… or what’s left of it.

Our house and our stuff. Notice the make-shift tent on the roof?

This used to be my son’s toyland

One of our wall clocks that all stopped a little past 2:30pm. This one hangs on the wall 8 feet from the floor. Anyone left inside the house at that time would have surely drowned.

No need to feel sorry for me as I have found a way to get through these moments. All I have to do is just look at my son if I am with him or I just have to think about him and I am able to snap out of it. My 4 year old son along with Emily, his nanny, were spared by the rampaging floods brought about by Typoon Ondoy, thanks to the courage and quick thinking of Emily. They were both staying at our 1-story house on that fateful day while my wife and I had to attend to some matters which we normally don’t do on Saturdays. Maybe I’ll write about this sometime when I’m ready to do so.

My wife and I feel that we are still very blessed and luckier than most who not only lost property but also loved ones. When we first entered our house and saw just about everything ruined and destroyed by the muddy flood waters, we didn’t feel such a big loss. What’s more important is all of us are alive and well. It also helped that we lead simple lives and we are not really in the habit of buying doodads. When I say that my ultimate goal in becoming financially free is to have the freedom to do what I want, when I want to, and with who I want, It’s quite obvious that I am referring to my family and loved ones as the “…who I want”. The bottom line is we know what is truly important in life which is why we still feel blessed in spite of all that has happened. What ever happens, I shall always remember to count my blessings.

My advocacy remains the same

My advocacy still remains the same and it is to help as many people as I can to learn about financial literacy and achieve financial freedom. I believe that financial literacy is a prerequisite to financial freedom and that financial freedom can really be achieved through real estate investing, with focus on bank acquired assets and foreclosed real estate. As a real estate investor, my mission is to be financially free with the ultimate purpose of helping people and my community. I advocate financial literacy with the goal of making a difference in the lives of people around me by sharing what I have learned in my journey to financial freedom. I want to help as many people as I can to achieve the same in the process. I am more focused on acquiring investment properties that generate passive income and when I surpass my passive income goal before the end of 2009, I shall retire from being an employee and go full time with my advocacy.

Some of you may be asking, “Sounds good Jay but how can you do it now when you have this major challenge that will cost you lots of money?” Actually, that’s a question I often find myself asking these past few days but the answer still remains the same. Real estate investing is still one of the best ways for ordinary people to gain financial freedom. If you knew what I know, you’ll know what I mean. It’s hard to explain but I shall be doing my best to do so. I guess I may not have been doing a good job explaining the very basics which is why I also have plans to focus on sharing stuff that would be more beneficial to newbie real estate investors.

Let me put it this way, If I was to do it all over again, what information would have helped me conquer my fear of the unknown when it comes to real estate investing and start with my first deal? That’s the information I want to share.

Coming up next…

I try to share what I’ve learned and become aware of as a licensed real estate broker, homeowner, and real estate investor in Provident Village, Marikina City, Philippines. Read on to Part 2 of this series – Lessons learned by a real estate broker, homeowner, and investor from Provident Village

Reflections of a Real Estate Investor: Ondoy's aftermath is a post from: Foreclosure Investing Philippines

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To all OFW’s: Need To Earn Passive Income And Come Back Home For Good? Try Foreclosed Property Investing!

Jay Castillo — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 05:04:00 +0000

“Are you always sending BALIK BAYAN boxes every month or every payday, year after year?
Are you working your head off having 2-3 jobs to just earn enough for you and be able to send money home?

What if you can make your money work for you! Instead of getting 2-3 jobs, you teach how your relatives can earn money from rental properties? Wouldn’t this lighten the load.

Instead of BALIK BAYAN BOXES, why not a HOUSE and LOT, or an APARTMENT which you can rent out. It’s safe since your family can not sell it without your permission, not like a car, computer or any expensive appliances like TV.

You will be surprised to know that the amount you spend to fill up a BALIK BAYAN BOX can actually buy you a rental property that can earn you additional money.“

The quote above is the description for the now defunct “OFW earn Passive Income via Real Estate Rental Properties” Meetup group, which I was a member of.

Passive Income or doodads?

Although the Meetup group is gone for now, the message is still relevant. We often hear stories of OFW’s who send money and gifts(in balikbayan boxes) to their loved ones with the hope of coming back for good one day after amassing enough savings and/or so called “assets” like home theater systems, computers, PSP’s or other expensive gadgets/appliances, which are actually doodads since they don’t generate income and tend to depreciate quickly. After awhile they do come home and enjoy life but they then realize that their savings are already dwindling.

What’s worse is I also hear of stories of OFW’s who come home only to find out that all the money and gifts they have sent home are gone without a trace. With a heavy heart, they have no choice but to leave again to work abroad. The “rat-race” cycle continues. Of course there are those who are already enlightened and actually buy real “assets” that provide passive income but judging from the number of friends and friends of my friends who I know who are still working abroad, I would say these are quite few.

It’s really possible to be back home for good

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a way for OFW’s to come back home for good, where they have a choice to stay with their loved ones or still go abroad in case they wanted to but not out of necessity?

In my opinion, buying foreclosed real estate fits the bill as it can provide the means to buy income generating properties that are real assets as described by Robert Kiyosaki in his book Rich Dad Poor Dad. If you haven’t read this book, I highly suggest you read it NOW!

Little downpayment needed for foreclosed property investing

Foreclosed property investing requires very little down payment which is comparable to the cost of the contents of balikbayan boxes that are sent home to loved ones. Imagine that, for the cost of a balik bayan box, one could have already acquired an investment property that can generate passive income for many years.

Passive Income and Positive Cashflow

If chosen correctly and managed well, foreclosed properties that are then rented out could generate enough income immediately that would cover the monthly amortizations along with an excess cashflow that would increase over time as the loan gets paid, and rents increase. This positive cashflow that would be coming in without depending on the amount of work put into it is passive income.

My Vision

Are you beginning to see my point? My vision would be to have OFW’s building enough passive income through rental properties which would then allow them to come back home and stay home for good, if they wanted to. While it’s true that OFW’s earn big money working abroad, I believe it would be better if they had the means to stay home and have the time to enjoy a meaningful life with family and loved ones here in the Philippines!

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