Jump in, The Water is fine.

Is it time to jump in and buy an investment property. Depends on your
financial capacity and the type of property that you are looking for.

Residential and multifamily prices have not dropped in Canada like the United States or to the 30 to 40 % drop that alot of our stock and R.R.S.P.
portfolios did. The Canadian Real Estate Association has just revised their 
sales forcast up to 6.6% increase in unit sales and an average price to
$ 317,500
The Peterborough market is also up over last year and our unit sales at
Century 21 United are over forecast for November.
I would think that if there were more listings that the unit sales in Peterborough would be even higher.

THINGS YOU SHOULD CONSIDER
1. A real  estate Broker or Salesperson who has knowledge and experience
in the type of property you are considering. They will take the time to assist
in the ” Due Dilligence ” in selecting the right property for you and always
play the devils advocate as to why you should make an offer and why you should not make an offer on a particular property
2 Mortgage Broker. Your sales representative may assist you in finding the
right broker for you. A broker can offer many different ways and different
sources to find the best product for you.
3. Lawyer. You want a lawyer who specializes in Real Estate who can help
close the deal and assist with leases and general legal advice.
4. Accountant. If you don’t have an tax specialist now, get one to help
with finding you all the legal deductions that you can make.
5. Join an association. We have an excellent Landlord’s association
in Peterborough. The members are helpfull and knowledgeable and
will save you time and money.
6. Cash Flow. Years ago when I worked in the family construction
company one of Peterborough’s largest landlords told me his secret.
” Cashflow” Don’t  gamble on a capital gain to make it a good ” investment”
You have to have sufficent cash flow to cover the expenses and for maintenance and repairs. From 1991 to 1996 prices went down down down.
Good investment properties continued to provide a net operating profit.

Lets get started now before the spring market hits and you are competing
with more and more buyers.