Fathers: A tough question for you...If you died tomorrow, would your wife and children know where to find your families most important financial information?After my wife suddenly and unexpectedly passed away in 2014, I was the executor of her will/estate.Since I was educated as a professional accountant and being an entrepreneur and real estate investor for over 25 years, I thought I was prepared for this role. I wasn’t. Certain account information, passwords and location of her safe deposit box keys were all unknown to me.On top of the mourning her loss, I was completely frustrated with the difficulty of navigating through the executor role. Then one day during the multi year sabbatical that followed her passing, I had very uneasy questions for myself:-What if it was me that passed away and she was left to handle all of the above?-how would she have been able to handle everything, given that she was always inwardly focussed on the family and didn’t have much idea about our financial picture and details?I started asking other fathers about this same scenario… The answers were not positive.So many brilliant men doing brilliant things, yet almost none of them were able to say that their families most important financial information would be easily found. Many of them did not even have a will. I soon realized this has to change… Dealing with a loved one’s passing is difficult enough… The mourning will still be there… But I wanted to help with the “other” stuff.That is how “Prepared Fathers” was born.

I coach father’s how to build real estate portfolio’s quickly and strategically.

Income/yield focused investors.... I FEEL BAD FOR YOU!You have been the bedrock of the economy for many years, you have followed the mantras about saving your money and then prudently investing it to create income. But now you are being PUNISHED.Consider the following:-Economic Uncertainty is All Around Us (Price of Oil, Brexit, US Debt)-Central banks around the world. Have been manipulating currency values and interest rates since the credit crisis.-Governments have been printing money excessively for many years. The inflation created by these polices erodes the purchasing power of the dollars you have worked so hard to save. I hear inflation reported at 2% per year, but when I look at the price of a basket of goods like food, gas, real estate, hydro in the past year or two, doesn’t it seem like prices have increased a lot more than 2%?-Negative Interest Rate Policy- some countries around the world are actually charging savers to keep their money in the bank. (This is absolutely Crazy)So what alternatives exist for you as an income investor?-Traditional safe havens such as corporate bonds and government treasuries are now yielding less than 1% (this isn’t going to change anytime soon)-Stock markets and mutual funds are volatile. Many income investors don’t want to allocate more of their portfolio to this asset class. It doesn’t offer the protection of capital necessary.-Gold is a great hedge against what governments and central banks are doing, but it doesn’t offer a consistent income stream.The Oakville Mortgage Investment Corporation (MIC) was created in 2016. Its purpose is to provide its investors with a stable and passive quarterly income stream while protecting their capital.What is a MIC? A pool of investors put money into the MIC so it can be lent out to a pool of borrowers.

After the birth of my first child in Aug 2005, I read over 150 books about real estate and success...I asked how do millionaires became millionaires? A common answer was real estateNot wanting to re-invent the wheel, I started investing in real estate in Edmonton, Alberta in late 2007. I bought at the market top. Values dropped drastically in 18 months when the credit crisis hit.I learned a lot of lessons... (some expensive), but I was determined. In 2009, I focused on Oakville, Ontario. (I had moved there in 2006 but didn't consider it for investing at the time)So, what was happening in Oakville around 2009-10?In my mind, it was poised to appreciate significantly- the signals were clear.Consider:* The QEW highway was undergoing an expansion from Trafalgar Rd to Burl oak Rd* The new Oakville Hospital was given approval and broke ground (it is now open)* Mansions built on Lakeshore Road were being sold for millions, positively impacting NEARBY real estate*Oakville ranks high on the living/desirability index...people want to move here*As I drove around my neighborhood, I noticed small houses on big lots were being torn down and replaced with 3000 sq. ft. plus custom homes (Hmnn, what would you do with all of this info?)I decided to invest in small bungalows sitting on 60 ft. frontage lots and rent them out for the long term.I shared this idea with my best friend back then.... he was in... he wanted to invest with me...soon enough a couple of others joined us.My partners and I built a $1.9-million-dollar rental real estate portfolio (2009-2011) which doubled in value over the next 5 yearsWere there some challenges along the way? Late paying tenants, property repairs, vacancies...I have been through them all.Do I regret any of it? No WayI believe real estate creates wealth.It is my hope you see this too.If you have questions about how to invest your money intelligently in real estate, please email me at jay@jaygabrani.com.

Some people may think it’s inappropriate to talk about this on a Linked in profile, but what I am going to talk about happened, and it affected me in a profound way.... what I do today was shaped by this experienceIt was Oct 29, 2014. My life changed forever on that day.My wife Elizabeth passed away suddenly.My 3 young children were devastated. I was devastated.I needed to be there for my kids. I needed to mourn, so I decided to stop my marketing business and just "take some time"Routines had to be changed. I became responsible for things like homework, play dates and meal prep etc.Everyday trips around Oakville stirred memories of Elizabeth- tears flowed every day.Trying to make sense of it all for my kids was impossible.This was the most difficult year of my lifePeople asked: How did you support your family financially during this year? One answer: Real EstateIf I didn’t own real estate, I am unsure of what would have happenedKey lessons learned: -Good things happen in life. Bad things happen in life- the only thing we control is how we react to them.-Life is short. Do what make you happy.-Elizabeth's legacy is our kids. The best way for me to honor that is to raise them to be smart, thoughtful and genuine.After this year was finished, I resolved that 2016 would be the best year ever.Take a look at the photos below

Knowing that I was going to be selling Williams Coffee Pub, I started a marketing agency serving small business owners with marketing strategies which would help them build their business.I thought it would be a good way to work remotely so I could be home with my young, growing family.Social media marketing and text message marketing were 2 areas in which Golden Key Marketing offered services.From time to time, I will undertake short term marketing consulting engagements for real estate service professionals and investors (if they are raising money)

Knowing that I was going to be selling Williams Coffee Pub, I started a marketing agency serving small business owners with marketing strategies which would help them build their business.I thought it would be a good way to work remotely so I could be home with my young, growing family.Social media marketing and text message marketing were 2 areas in which Golden Key Marketing offered services.From time to time, I will undertake short term marketing consulting engagements for real estate service professionals and investors (if they are raising money)When I left my last ever employer, Price Waterhouse on Dec 27, 1996 (the day before my 25th birthday), I had already signed a franchise agreement with Williams Coffee Pub.After a few potential locations fell through, I finally opened my franchise in Oct 1998.My team and I regularly served 5000 people per week. It's where I cut my teeth in business.Sales averaged $1 million per year.I was the day to day operator for the first 7 years, but that all changed when my first child Jaiden was born Aug 13, 2005.Wanting to be home with him, I hired a manager to run the day to day operations while I focused on building the business.Funny thing happened....my sales went up 10% the next yearThe lesson I learned was I am best suited to work on the business instead of in the business.To pursue my real estate interests, I sold this business in 2011.

I wanted to own my own business.I wanted to work for myself. There was zero doubts in my mind. I promised my parents I would never work for anyone after the age of 25, but to make them happy (and not really knowing what business to do), I attended the University of Waterloo.After graduating in 1994 with a degree in Chartered Accounting, I began employment with one of the Big firms.Having been part of Waterloo's cooperative education program, I had built up 16 months of work experience alreadyEven though I was young at the time, I looked at everyone who was 15-20 years older than I and asked "Are they happy doing what they are doing?"The answer was a resounding "NO"To make my parents happy, I wrote and passed the accounting exam which let you call yourself a CA.But they knew I found the work boring, so they weren't surprised when I resigned from Price Waterhouse on Dec 27, 1996- the day before my 25th birthday.It was the last time I was issued a "T4" from a company other than my own