i too would be looking at releasing your mum as guarantor. although if shes happy to support your property investment goals and aspirations then your option 3 is probably not a bad strategy. i know that everyone is different, but your mum has obviously been kind enough to help you in the start. maybe now she wants her equity back to do other things herself. i would be paying her off, and with whatever money i have start improving the property to increase value. with the increase in val comes equity to then buy a 2nd property perhaps.

Eric

techhowse,

let me say that someone of your age who is thinking about property investment, SHOULD NOT BE DISCOURAGED. A big well-done!!!! (I’ve already started talking to my kids about it and theyre only 4 and 5!!)

i think though you need to understand that initially most (and I say most) get into property investment as a part-time or side-line affair. i bought my first property at 18 but did have a considerable amount saved from working throughout my teens selling newspapers etc. you dont mention what your financial capacity is?

anyway, my advice to you would be to take `baby steps’. think about what career you wish to follow. if that means going to university then go. when established in a job, stick to a conservative budget. save like crazy. if you can live with the folks then do so. save more. depending on what your savings look like, the next step that i would do is to speak with a broker. try to find one that is independant and is willing to help you on your way to property investment. i guess this really does fit in with point 2 of your original post. dont be impatient. there will always be opportunities for you to enter the property market. i think right now you need to establish your financial base before you can literally start building on it. i think by following this approach you might even convince your parents that you are serious about property investment and getting ahead in life. best of luck to you.

Eric

hi radek

if you can pick up a bargain because of others stigma with the area, then that must be your gain!! do pick in areas that perhaps are not in the middle of the `problem areas’ and then you should do well.

eric

hi veronica,

i own a property in queenstown, tasmania (another mining town). while the returns are ok, you will find that cg will be static or at best very low given the huge reliance on the one industry. sometimes the only employer in the town. when the resouces boom of current starts to go off the boil you will start to see vacancy rates start to increase as residents of these places lose their jobs. do your research carefully i say.

shelley

seems like you have some good responses to your question/s. may i add my 2c worth (or $100k worth as the case may be [smartass]!!!)

if it were my parent/s, with the state of the market as it is (buyers), i’d be suggesting that maybe consolidate bad debts (cc’s, store purchase, loans etc.) by refinancing the ppor. ive personally been in the same `boat’ before and after doing this free’d up alot of cash. was able to avert the costly scenario of selling etc. as i think one of my fellow forumites mentioned, selling for the sake of relinquishing debt is expensive. refinancing the way to go. all the best, eric

absolutely…..right anubis!!!!! its a fact that the catholic church is run like a business. the mafioso that run the church certainly have their fingers in all the pizzas….opps i mean pies.

ive read that same article by John Edwards, and cant help but be totally confused with all the messages that abound. some say flat or very low growth others like Edwards suggest that, `…the slump was drawing to a close and house prices would be on the move again this year.’ i thought we were just entering the slump?????? anyway if you look in API’s april edition this phenomenon of actual vs perceived growth gives some credence to Edwards statement. [baaa]

welcome to the forum solomon. if the challenge is to answer your brief question, its like this.

you need to start small. if you haven’t yet secured a principal place of residence (ppor) then do that first. the idea is to build as much equity that property first. then and only then are you really able to start talking about investment properties. Sure some here will say that you can do it on as small amount of equity as possible but thats just plain risky if you ask me. Why do you have to `…live in it for 6 months…’?? not sure what you mean by this. Good luck, Eric.

i dont necessarily believe that any question is necessarily stupid as such. however you ask some very broad non-specific questions which i think can be answered very competantly from a book. There are some fantastic ones out there. Ive just finished reading one by Jan Somers and found it very easy to read. You can make a passive income from property, its a matter of finding out how.

hi Cathnniv

im not sure who you are talking to about your finance, but i suggest that you find yourself a competant and keen broker and detail to he/she what your plans are. i did this a few years ago and to this day still deal with the same broker who somehow manages to find a way of making things work to our advantage. the problem however that i see with your situation is low income. serviceability is more important to most of the mainstream lenders than equity in a property. and as far as how others do it on average incomes ($50000 pa etc) depends on whether the property is + or – geared. if negative then i suspect damn hard. you only need to read the report on negative gearing on this very website to see how badly the numbers come out. if i were you, i wouldnt rush things or be impatient. you should really be looking at ways of increasing your income or reducing your current mortgage so that you dont need to borrow as much for the subsequent propertys that you intend to purchase.