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Expand Y our Proper ty Por tfolio

Implications for Potential Profi ts

As you evaluate areas for growth (appreciation), review socioeconomic statis-
tics such as jobs, incomes, and household size. Notice the types of people
moving into an area; the types of employment; and the restaurants, cafes, and
bookstores that are opening. Discover what festivals, tournaments, outdoor
activities, and sports events are gaining in size and recognition.
Is the area, whether a neighborhood, city, or rural outpost, attracting peo-
ple who will serve as drawing cards for others? Seek areas that are developing
cachet. Look for areas where increasing numbers of people say they would like
to live. Such dreams encourage conversations and positive word-of-mouth.
Such talk reinforces the decisions of those who decide to move. Many of us
like to provoke at least a mild amount of envy from our friends, relatives, and
acquaintances, and where we live, and where we are moving to, says a lot about
us to those we know.

Right Place, Right Time

When I read Florida’s discussion of the “creative class,” I could see refl ections
of my own job moves. Throughout my career, I never accepted a job anywhere
that I did not want to live. Those places (Vancouver, Palo Alto, Berkeley,
Charlottesville, Williamsburg, Dubai), rank highly as creative class growth
centers.
Yet, before reading this author’s book, I thought of my location decisions
as personal choices, not as “class” choices. It didn’t occur to me that millions
of other baby boomers would like to choose the same (or similar) locations—
and thus push up property prices at an accelerated rate.
Apply my experience, as well as Florida’s and Karlgaard’s research and
observations. Don’t just personalize—generalize. What places do you like
that have yet to hit their full stride? What cities do you hear others talking
about? What locations have you read about in favorable articles? Identify
“creative class” areas, and you have probably identified a promising area to

invest.

Cash Flows and Emerging Growth Areas

As a rule, rental properties in emerging growth areas don’t generate cash

flows like a slot machine, but they certainly outperform established “creative
class” areas such as Silicon Valley, Seattle, Boulder, and Washington, D.C.

If you invest in Charlotte, for example, you can find appealing properties

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