Hello everyone!
Welcome back to ‘Keeping it Real, Edmonton’, where we have on Real Guests to talk all about Real Estate.
In today’s post, we spoke with former general contractor and current Real Estate expert Dustin Racine to hear his perspective on the Edmonton scene, and what key things new investors – local or out of town – need to focus on in the current market. We love Dustin’s down to earth approach and the way he pushes the boundaries with marketing! Hope you enjoy this episode!
Q: How long have you been a real estate professional?
[Dustin Racine]: “I’m in my second full year [as an agent] and things are going very well – I’m 52nd in Canada. Previously, I was a general contractor so that’s certainly helped me out just because I’ve got previous relationships with past clients and trades people and now they’re using me as their agent – so that’s been a huge help. I think that, at the end of the day, people just want to work with somebody that they can relate to, somebody that they can trust who’s got some knowledge. I’m not a fancy person – I usually wear a hat because I’m bald and I don’t have a fancy car. I’m just not a pointy-shoed, fancy Realtor.”
Q: How has your previous experience helped your transition to a realtor?
[Dustin Racine]: “Everything’s coming together right now. Marketing is huge – branding yourself. A lot of it is who you know – I’ve got some trades people I used to work with – my flooring guy, my windows guy. They’re both flipping now, I used to do flips as my job. They wanted to get into it. So, for them, it was kind of a no-brainer because they’ve been there done that. I’ve been in their shoes and past clients too […] A lot of is just like gardening – you’re planting seeds. It might not all come together but down the road it does. My dad said “Do you wish you did this sooner because it’s going well?” and I said “no, not really” because you’re always learning. I’ve been pretty lucky, and [my] last occupation as a general contractor has been highly beneficial. Making those connections and friendships, and those people eventually turn into clients. […]
(In regards to the Boom or Bust cycle):
“...If you’re not as familiar with Edmonton neighbourhoods, though, you need to find someone like myself or someone else who is going to advise you accordingly, who is looking our for your best interests as opposed to their own. I’ve seen it where out-of-town investors who don’t know the area well – they'll look at the numbers [and say] it looks great, the property, the capital as well, but it’s [in] a crummy neighbourhood. They buy in, and there’s lots of turnover – poor tenants, lots of repairs. I hate to see that happen. It’s important to do your due diligence and surround yourself with people you trust. Run your numbers […] Be very, very careful.”
Q: What should investors look out for when purchasing a property?
[Dustin Racine]: “There are some things that are obvious, some that are invisible. You need to be thorough – [hire] a licensed home inspector. […] If you’re looking at an old 1970s original furnace, it’s [likely] at the end of it’s usable life cycle so you can bet on having to replace that. You’ll have vertical foundation cracks, water staining. You can get that repaired fairly inexpensively – get them epoxy filled and [backed by a] warranty. If it’s a horizontal foundation crack? We’re talking structural and you usual need an engineer to […] sign off and stamp it.”
Dustin also stated that older houses vary with the way they are structured in terms of load-bearing capabilities, and stressed the importance of doing your due diligence in order to ensure that you can make repairs and do renovations knowing that you won’t be doing damage to the building. Houses can even vary based on decade, according to Dustin:
“It depends on the builder, too – In the 70s, we had a huge oil boom and they were slapping up houses. Same thing in ‘07, ‘08. They were slapping them up as fast as they can build them. […] I’ve also seen some really good custom builders who do good work, and their houses are bulletproof. It really just depends”.
Q: What’s one piece of advice you would give to investors who are looking to purchase their first investment property?
[Dustin Racine]: “I would say it’s all about your neighbourhood. Your neighbourhood dictates your tenant and if you get a bad tenant, it’s going to be a struggle the whole way through. Know your neighbourhood, know your numbers”.
Q: Where can our readers find you?
[Dustin Racine]: “Check out my website dustinrealty.ca, email me, dustin.racine@exprealty.com. Find me on Instagram and Facebook, Dustin Realty. Even a Google search – Dustin Realty, Fort Saskatchewan! You’ll find me just 20 minutes northeast of Edmonton.”
Before becoming a Realtor, I owned and operated a Construction Company called Built With Pride Construction. Our niche market was legal suite development, so a lot of our clients were investors. Eventually, I started investing in real estate myself thru flipping homes, building our own home from scratch, and developing legal suites. I have always had a deep interest and passion for real estate and given my previous experience and knowledge in construction and investing, I feel it gives me a competitive advantage over some of my peers.
- [Dustin Racine – dustinrealty.ca, About, https://dustinrealty.ca/about/]
Want to explore what a passive investment in Edmonton looks like? Reach out to Tom and Brandy Mullen. We can help you make money in your sleep! 1-866-736-5767 or tom@sproutproperties.ca
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