Big confusion.... Real estate

whatisthepoint · Post by **whatisthepoint** » Thu Jan 18, 2018 5:19 am

So, I'm 47 years old in the US for 20 years... 3 Kids 15, 8 and 5. 200K salary. Job is OK but dont plan to work beyond 55. Just a pipe dream but lets see.
Parents, brothers in India in Bangalore and Mysore. Parents are getting old but my brother/sisters stay near them.
Always wanted to go back to India but not sure anymore..
Didn't buy a house here and rent. So I put most of my $$$ in India RE.. Own a house in Bangalore. Inherited and investments worth around 12 crores on paper... including the house. 600K savings in US. 401K and CDs combined. so 75% of assets in india and on paper... I consider all these on paper until i see $$ in my bank.. LOL

The problem now is, I need to bring some $$$ back to US to plan for investments and buy a house and its not an easy task.. One of the reasons is to reduce stress on my parents managing these plots...Also to fund college for my son in 2 years. And ofcourse its wild west in India maintaining property. Add the issues with 20% tax and hassle of selling stuff. Mostly plots..

I took easy on my career for the past 10 years betting on the assets and didn't really mess up my life to get where I should have belonged to.. No regrets. Anyway, now Im itching to buy a house here and can't afford what I need.. RE is US has gone up a lot for the past 3 years in Westcoast.
I like it here but this situation is driving me crazy.. Should I just R2I but might face challenge with Kids. Also don't plan to work anymore in India.. Should I focus more on my career and build enough assets in US... What would you guys do in my situation...

Any feedback is welcome...

returning_indian · Post by **returning_indian** » Thu Jan 18, 2018 4:34 pm

If u like it here and really have no burning desire then why rock the boat! As for renting and buying don't fret too much. It will happen when it's suppose to happen. You have rented for 20yrs can rent for few more. Why lose peace of mind over it. Real estate in india is in shambles. It's not easy to sell. Would recommend waiting period or else u will not get good value. For college you can always take loans which can be paid off later. No point in selling property at loss for something that's easily manageable. You have good net worth and good coasting life. Don't waste it fretting over nothing. Try to be happy with what you have and be ambitious to achieve more if it gives you happiness.

AbhijithS · Post by **AbhijithS** » Thu Jan 18, 2018 6:04 pm

As returning_indian mentioned Indian RE is in a big mess right now. It'll take a few years to sort things out. If BJP comes back to power in 2019 then you can expect the RE uncertainty to last longer.

I'd say rent until then, later if you do decide to return you use your house.

whatisthepoint · Post by **whatisthepoint** » Thu Jan 18, 2018 9:48 pm

returning_indian;669158If u like it here and really have no burning desire then why rock the boat! As for renting and buying don't fret too much. It will happen when it's suppose to happen. You have rented for 20yrs can rent for few more. Why lose peace of mind over it. Real estate in india is in shambles. It's not easy to sell. Would recommend waiting period or else u will not get good value. For college you can always take loans which can be paid off later. No point in selling property at loss for something that's easily manageable. You have good net worth and good coasting life. Don't waste it fretting over nothing. Try to be happy with what you have and be ambitious to achieve more if it gives you happiness.

Thanks a lot.. Just wanted to get a different perspective.. Sometimes I'm in my own bubble and this helps...
Im not too worried about loss as these are old properties.. But again selling and repatriation is a big hassle.. I learnt my lesson...

PetK · Post by **PetK** » Thu Jan 18, 2018 10:19 pm

If you have lived this long in rental, I would suggest not to buy - especially in West Coast where one needs to outbid by $100k to get the place.
As far as Indian properties go, make a long term plan for their disposal. It will take time to offload real estate. So plan ahead.

R2I may not be wise considering the kid's age distribution.

Regarding assets in US - you have a decent amount of asset - even after paying taxes. Don't fret too much about paying taxes or making the extra dime on this. Offload methodically. You could settle nicely if you moved out of West Coast to some cheaper place. You could follow the elder son when he goes to college. Usually, college towns are good to raise younger kids and mostly affordable.

whatisthepoint · Post by **whatisthepoint** » Thu Jan 18, 2018 11:38 pm

PetK;669195If you have lived this long in rental, I would suggest not to buy - especially in West Coast where one needs to outbid by $100k to get the place.
As far as Indian properties go, make a long term plan for their disposal. It will take time to offload real estate. So plan ahead.

R2I may not be wise considering the kid's age distribution.

Regarding assets in US - you have a decent amount of asset - even after paying taxes. Don't fret too much about paying taxes or making the extra dime on this. Offload methodically. You could settle nicely if you moved out of West Coast to some cheaper place. You could follow the elder son when he goes to college. Usually, college towns are good to raise younger kids and mostly affordable.

Thanks PetK.. Plan is to offload one asset this year to prepare for college fund.. I guess I can wait to see where to buy as college might play a role in this..

crazyforger · Post by **crazyforger** » Fri Jan 19, 2018 4:06 am

How much does a typical college cost for USC per year?

honeyglue · Post by **honeyglue** » Fri Jan 19, 2018 4:31 am

whatisthepoint, I would say stay put in USA and build your career. There are tons of other things to worry about if you plan to R2I, unless things are lined up for you in India. As far as sending money from India to US, you can liquidate the properties. After paying the required taxes, you can transfer funds in your parents/brother account. Then they can transfer the funds in US dollar (any Indian bank will do wire to US bank). I believe there is $75,000 per annum limit where you dont have to pay taxes to uncle sam. On buying home in US, you maybe better off waiting, specially folks in high tax states due to recent tax changes, SALT cap of $10,000. You may come out ahead if you rent, depending on where you live/rent/plan to buy.

I am interested in knowing if you plan to bring these funds before your 15 year goes to college or after. Having funds available (after liquidating indian RE) before your 15 year old goes to college may limit the chances of getting a loan or federal help such as FAFSA. I am not clear on this aspect, would appreciate your input. Thanks.

whatisthepoint · Post by **whatisthepoint** » Fri Jan 19, 2018 5:02 am

crazyforger;669209How much does a typical college cost for USC per year?

Depends... I would say ranges from 30K to 80K per year.... So we are talking real big numbers..

whatisthepoint · Post by **whatisthepoint** » Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:15 am

honeyglue;669212whatisthepoint, I would say stay put in USA and build your career. There are tons of other things to worry about if you plan to R2I, unless things are lined up for you in India. As far as sending money from India to US, you can liquidate the properties. After paying the required taxes, you can transfer funds in your parents/brother account. Then they can transfer the funds in US dollar (any Indian bank will do wire to US bank). I believe there is $75,000 per annum limit where you dont have to pay taxes to uncle sam. On buying home in US, you maybe better off waiting, specially folks in high tax states due to recent tax changes, SALT cap of $10,000. You may come out ahead if you rent, depending on where you live/rent/plan to buy.

I am interested in knowing if you plan to bring these funds before your 15 year goes to college or after. Having funds available (after liquidating indian RE) before your 15 year old goes to college may limit the chances of getting a loan or federal help such as FAFSA. I am not clear on this aspect, would appreciate your input. Thanks.

I think putting money in parents/brother and then transferring is going to be trouble... My plan is to put it in NRO and then repatriate.. RBI now allows you to transfer from NRO to NRE now provided some requirements are met.. Limit is USD 1 Million.. So limit is not the issue but again might run into tax situation in US.

I agree with SALT.. My idea of a home was always 'forever home' like in India.. But that is rare possibility in US. So I can wait I guess..