Between 1985 and 1995 I purchased five properties in a remote, high desert area. The properties included 40 acre and 10 acre parcels, some smaller parcels with cabins and eventually a small home with a well.
During the years, I sold most of them and made small profits on some, lost a bit on others. All in all it was a break even kind of thing, but I had fun in the desert camping and hanging out.
Then in 2001 I made my last purchase, which was a small house with a well. The real estate boom hit, and after investing a total of about $3k in repairs to the place I sold it in 2005 for six times what I had paid for it.
My point? If I had paid attention to what my friends and family said about the desert I never would have made the best investment of my lifetime.
There are opportunities everywhere, but of course luck, timing and history are going to play their roles…
