WENDELL F. SCHOTT: Retired real estate investor, 50, Indian Rocks Beach
By Times Staff Writer
Published June 8, 2003
Q. How did you get started in investing?
I saved my first $10,000 by the time I was 18 as a result of several part-time jobs over a six-year period. By age 26, I purchased my first multifamily home in New York City.
Q. What is your best investment so far?
No question, real estate. The house, a triplex, I purchased in New York in 1980, I sold in 2000 because I was able to live in one apartment and rent the other two.
Q. What is your worst investment so far?
I purchased a HUD home in St. Petersburg in 1989 at a very low price and spent an awful lot of money having the house fixed up. In the long run, it was not a good investment.
Q. What have you learned about investing that you think other investors should know?
That if you invest in real estate, it can be a very good shield as far as paying taxes because you can deduct most of the expenses of real estate property.
Q. How are you invested now?
Most of my assets consist of unencumbered rental property. Other assets include a 10-year annuity and traditional and Roth IRA accounts - 90 percent in rental property and 10 percent in the rest.
Q. Do you have a goal for your investing?
I expect to retain most of my present investments over the next several years. If interest rates go up, I might move some money from liquid savings to long-term CDs. Now it's a better time to keep money liquid.
Q. What is your biggest money concern right now?
One big concern is the cost of health care over the next 10 to 15 years before I'm eligible for Medicare.
