Avoiding Analysis Paralysis

I have read that I should specialize on a type of property, a city, a neighbourhood, a renter profile, etc. At the same time I am suppose to avoid being paralyzed by the analysis stage. I think that is much easier said than done. This is where I have found the largest gap to date with the real estate investing books.

I quite easily narrowed it down to Alberta. That wasn't hard as cash flowing in the lower mainland of BC is virtually impossible and I think anyone interested in real estate has seen the amazing headlines coming out of Alberta. That is where easy ends though. Calgary or Edmonton? Which neighbourhood? This area has a higher than average crime rate, should I be concerned? What sort of area will draw my target clientele? What if I can only afford this neighbourhood? Detached, half-duplex, or condo? Do I let my funds dictate the the type of house or the city? If so, which is more important? Should I be concerned about the flooding in Calgary or take it as an opportunity?

I thought I had it all figured out by starting off with a plan. The goal was to find a detached house in Calgary in the low 300 thousands, with a basement suite and a detached garage, in an area where transportation was currently being expanded to (started but not complete). In realty this left only one area of town that was completely out of our price range (detached or not). So we dropped the detached garage requirement, settled for near already completed transit, and settled for a half-duplex. Good news is we can cash flow nicely with this formula.

Then someone suggested Edmonton. Sure why not? After all my original research showed Edmonton and Calgary to both be great options. I originally chose Calgary solely to avoid being paralyzed by choices. Especially when we're talking about good vs great choices with no real downside.

A detached house is now back on the table, as is the detached garage. There is a transit expansion under way and we can actually afford to buy in that area. Sounds great, except my Realtor continues to tell me that transit doesn't add a lot of value in Edmonton, and the new station will be a destination for school, not a starting point. Also, the surrounding area has a much higher crime rate than the cities average. Finally the houses are all built prior to 1960s, where things like fridges were an afterthought.

If we drop transit from the equation, I feel like I've lost my anchor. We just decide that Edmonton is a great place to invest and buy based solely on budget. Or maybe we buy in the best neighbourhood, but then we give up on the detached house. Once we give up on the detached house I'm left wondering why we didn't just stick to Calgary.

If you feel dizzy from reading this I think you have a taste of how I have felt over the last few weeks. If you have any suggestions on how to come to a decision I would love to hear them. When I do finally come to a decision I will make sure I explain my rationale and hopefully help you avoid a similar pitfall.