HEALTH & WEALTH IN THE GLOBAL VILLAGE
Less than 10 days ago, the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic. Wow! A lot can change in 10 days! How much more evidence do we need to prove that our health and wealth our inextricably linked?
So what can we do as real estate investors to take care of our health and wealth, especially when it appears we have lost control? How do we adapt to a “new normal” when it is a constantly moving target? Randy Pausch, author of The Last Lecture, said “we cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.”
So let’s begin with our strategies for maintaining and possibly improving our health. Isolation, quarantine and social distancing are all necessary in the midst of this crisis. Our nutrition can benefit from the extra time many of us have: there is ample time for healthy meal preparation at home. We were just invited to a virtual dinner party with family—that sounds like a great new experience! And while Netflix may be tempting, how about some extra exercise time; remember that treadmill that has become a hanger for your clothes? There are many options for exercising at home. Yesterday was the first day of spring! This is a great time to head outside, breathe some fresh air, and wave at your neighbor from across the street. Perhaps the most important thing right now is taking care of our mental health. There are many actions we can all do to care for our stress and anxiety in these times of uncertainty: music, dance, video chats, meditation, journaling to “get it out,” and limiting our exposure to some of the sensational media news. Just this morning, the news was broadcasting about one death in our area—not the global stats that are starting to show 90% of people are recovering or recovered. We are choosing to be aware, but not wallow in the worst case scenarios.
Today, real estate investors are contemplating how they will deal with the “wealth” component of the current “cards we are dealt.” We remind ourselves that real estate is a business. Every business has income and expenses. Many of us have seen our incomes decrease beyond our control; no one has the crystal ball to predict when economic conditions might improve. So then, let’s switch our focus to what we can control: expenses. Most of the big banks are offering 6 months of deferred mortgage payments. If you could take this valuable action with your properties, with no implications to your credit, would it improve your monthly situation, protect your bottom line and conserve your reserve funds? Each business owner needs to assess that answer for themselves—but it certainly buys you some time to sort through the confusion! Can you take advantage of any of the federal and provincial offerings in their stimulus packages? Can you simply renew a mortgage at a lower interest rate?
As real estate investors, we are typically in this for the long term. And as humans, we hope to be in this for the long term! Finding innovative ways to take good care of our health and wealth is our priority right now. What actions can we take, what choices can we make to manage the short term problems?
None of us has asked for this hand that we have been dealt. But if you can’t have your first choices in this global crisis, what will you choose? How can you protect yourself, your family and your assets in the short term mayhem? Are there ways to use this time wisely? How can you “play the hand” to set yourself up for future successes in health and wealth?
