Why becoming a landlord was the best money move I ever made

Looking after your finances isn’t easy, especially in your early years of building a career. But if you get it right, your finances, one day, will look after you

One day, in my early 20s, I sat across from my parents, excited about a decision I’d made. I was about to tell them how I had just bought my own flat. How I decided that I was sick of paying a mortgage. How I drove around the neighbourhood one Sunday looking for ‘For Sale’ signs.

I had driven about 7 km before I found something in my price range. It was a cute little studio apartment converted to a one-bed. It was perfect for me, at the time.

I will never forget their reaction. I did not anticipate the comments and questions that followed. My dad was stunned, with a tinge of disappointment. He asked why I didn’t just build my own home in their backyard (there’s a reason why I left home!).

My mom was quite matter-of-fact, asking why I would spend so much money (R400 000) on such a tiny apartment (I preferred the word ‘cosy’).

That was over a decade ago. The apartment was quite small, in hindsight, but I was paying for the manned security at the gate and a central location, not far from where I worked in Auckland Park, and close to where I used to live in Greenside, a lovely neighbourhood. The irony is that I lived in my cosy flat for only three months before getting a work transfer to another city.

I spent the next few years moving around cities and learning to be a long distance landlord. What I loved most about my flat – its central location – was also the thing that would ensure its occupancy to this day.

The decision to buy the property was the foundation of my good (okay, let’s go with fair) financial habits.  All through my 20s to date, I have never owned a store credit card.

I believe in buying cash, albeit impulsively at times (retail therapy is the devil!). I’ve paid off the two cars I’ve owned in my name over the years and don’t believe in buying a car for the sake of it.

In my 20s I was insistent about not owning a credit card and when I eventually had to, because I needed a credit record, I made sure I kept it in check.

I can’t pinpoint the exact point that my financial habits started going haywire, but I do remember it was after having kids and being married. There seems to be more ‘rainy days’ than ever now, and trying to keep a consistent savings account and a paid off credit card is a bit of a mudslide.

In the past few years I’ve amassed more debt than I have since acquiring a credit record. It devastates me, because I started off so well.

I haven’t lost hope, though. I’ve started learning about ways to accrue income, such as investing in shares, as well as budgeting. I’m hoping these will help me  reset my financial track while I tussle with the credit card debt.

I foresee a future where I can announce the purchase of a new family home – I’m hoping for a farm this time – to my parents. I hope they’ll be more agreeable this time!