Pros and Cons of Real Estate Investing

Real estate is highly beneficial for many people but not for the faint of heart. Before getting into investing, understand the advantages and disadvantages so you can avoid analysis paralysis. Following are the must-know pros and cons of real estate investing.

Advantages Of Real Estate Investing

1. Value Appreciation

When you start investing in real estate, depending on the area, the property’s value will gradually increase over a long period. This can be a significant advantage if you are planning to hold onto a property for quite a long. The longer you own, the greater equity you possess.

2. Stable Monthly Cash Flow

When your property is rented out to someone, it generates passive income through rent payments. This can let you use the cash flow from buying one property to another. When you have great cash flow, the rental income will beat the yearly expenses associated with it, such as maintenance, property taxes, and mortgage payments. 

3. Tax advantages                   

When you own a rental property, you can get several tax deductions. The following are some benefits.

• Mortgage interest
• Repairs and Maintenance
• Depreciation
• Property management
• Insurance

4. Leverage Benefits

The goal of financial leverage is to increase the profit without requiring to have the use of additional capital. Only a few real estate investors use this method. But leverage is a powerful tool because now you can earn income from the assets you can’t afford.

Disadvantages Of Real Estate Investing

1. Solid Capital

Once you invest in property, it is difficult to sell it within a short period. The investor must have some additional sources of funds aside from the property. You can only put some of your net worth into the project because it will drain your resources in no time. It is important to have an exit strategy to save you from the risk of ruin.

2. Long Time To Materialize

Getting returns from real estate to provide stabilized income, but it takes a long time to make profits out of it, and only if you purchase properties wisely enough to maintain it. It may require significant time to manage the properties directly, which is a major drawback.

3. Low Liquidity

Compared to other investments, real estate investments are illiquid because you can only sell quickly with a substantial loss in value. You have to own a property for the long term, especially if it will be rented out.

4. Value Can Decline

Anything is possible in real estate; you can get rich quickly, or you can drastically fall into debt. Real estate assets react proportionally to inflation. If inflation goes down, housing values and rents go down. For this reason alone, diving into real estate can be hazardous.

Like every other investment, real estate has some advantages and disadvantages too. It can be beneficial as long as you are careful about purchasing properties wisely.