I was recently asked to respond to the following question:
Barbara Corcoran said that real estate is the only investment she'll never sell, and it doesn't matter when you purchase it. Is this something you agree with? Why?
I mostly agree with Barbara Corcoran's comment, with the caveat that it really depends on whether you need the money for something else. If you just got a job across the country, you may need to sell your house to be able to afford a place in your new town, or you may have a huge debt load keeping you up at night, and selling might be better for your health and sanity. I'd also add that not every parcel of real estate is an amazing investment. If your land is sliding down a hill, or located in a high risk fire zone, which is now very costly to insure, or maybe you own a condo in a building fraught with structural defects and poor management, there are times when selling and cutting your losses is a better idea. Real estate is usually a great investment, but it's important to critically evaluate each property and make sure you really want to keep it, and also be comfortable with not being able to access to your equity for an extended period of time.
