Personal background:
I am a 35yr old expat living in the USA. I've spent nearly every day of my life working in front of a computer from breakfast to bedtime, and it's killing me. I desperately want to quit, to stop wasting my life, and pursue more creative (probably not profitable) interests instead. I've felt this way for years, but I just couldn't give myself permission to do anything else until I've secured my financial freedom. I hope maybe that time has come.
Financial background:
If I liquidated my life here, my net worth should amount to about $650NZD at the current exchange rate. Looking at realstate.co.nz, it appears that could buy me 4 or maybe 5 modest homes in the cheaper centers like Wanganui or Invercargill, with a little cash left over for emergencies or unexpected maintenance. I could live in one then rent out the rest, or rent out all of them and apply part of the proceeds toward the mortgage on an additional property elsewhere.
Advice needed:
While I have been back to visit (and loved it), I have not lived in NZ since childhood, and perhaps naive about the true cost of living and the legal/tax environment there. I've been reading a lot, but that's no substitute for experience. What I hope to hear from you Gurus is reassurance that it's enough for someone to survive on indefinitely. I am not a materialistic person, all I need are the most basic necessities (how I've managed to save so much). Since I've heard mortgage/rent takes up about 1/3 of most households expenses, it seems like owning 4 or 5 cheap houses would set me up forever. Am I missing anything?
I understand that this is not how most of you operate, that investors use loan leverage to buy as many properties as possible and maximize longterm capital gains, but my overriding concern is liveable cashflow. I don't need to retire rich, I need to retire now.
Words of wisdom would be sincerely appreciated.
I am a 35yr old expat living in the USA. I've spent nearly every day of my life working in front of a computer from breakfast to bedtime, and it's killing me. I desperately want to quit, to stop wasting my life, and pursue more creative (probably not profitable) interests instead. I've felt this way for years, but I just couldn't give myself permission to do anything else until I've secured my financial freedom. I hope maybe that time has come.
Financial background:
If I liquidated my life here, my net worth should amount to about $650NZD at the current exchange rate. Looking at realstate.co.nz, it appears that could buy me 4 or maybe 5 modest homes in the cheaper centers like Wanganui or Invercargill, with a little cash left over for emergencies or unexpected maintenance. I could live in one then rent out the rest, or rent out all of them and apply part of the proceeds toward the mortgage on an additional property elsewhere.
Advice needed:
While I have been back to visit (and loved it), I have not lived in NZ since childhood, and perhaps naive about the true cost of living and the legal/tax environment there. I've been reading a lot, but that's no substitute for experience. What I hope to hear from you Gurus is reassurance that it's enough for someone to survive on indefinitely. I am not a materialistic person, all I need are the most basic necessities (how I've managed to save so much). Since I've heard mortgage/rent takes up about 1/3 of most households expenses, it seems like owning 4 or 5 cheap houses would set me up forever. Am I missing anything?
I understand that this is not how most of you operate, that investors use loan leverage to buy as many properties as possible and maximize longterm capital gains, but my overriding concern is liveable cashflow. I don't need to retire rich, I need to retire now.
Words of wisdom would be sincerely appreciated.
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