It is important to look at population movements. As an example today many people do not get married and many people do not have kids. Therefore those people and many retirees will live in inner city areas of our major cities. I think that there is a danger that if you buy property in far out areas there is likely to be little capital growth. As an example we build development projects but generally look to within 10 km of a major city. Or in Brisbane it might be 5 or 6 km. The real problem is that most people investing do little or no due diligence. It will be one of the most expensive investments that you make. So get the right advice and do your research carefully.

The secret is to buy as close to the city as possible. There are also ways of making a high return or buying a property at cost by directly investing in a development project.

Do not buy student apartments. They are small hard to finance and will only ever sell to investors. In fact in most cases you are still losing money and there will be no capital growth. If you want to develop a market for students. I suggest you buy as house and rent it out by the room

Perhaps look to a mentor that can help you to look at things you may not have heard about before. My experience is that most people believe that they they no more than they do especially when it comes to Property. It is important that you learn how to do due diligence. Once you are fully educated you will be in a stronger position to make your own decisions. Often lawyers accountants and brokers know little about property and get get you to make bad decisions. So while it is important to seek these professionals to assist you the only way to learn about the market is to study it yourself or work with someone with more experience than you.

Have you considered investing directly in a development project. I try to create opportunities that benefit everyone involved. The problem is that most people pay full retail and if the market is flat it will take a while for capital growth to kick. There for if you develop property it is the most effective way of making money or buying property at a wholesale price.

You have to make your money work for you buying serviced apartments will not help you. In fact if you are losing money  on property unless there is strong capital growth you are wasting your money.

If you only spend $400,000 and one grows at 5% and the other grows at 10% and you are keeping the property for 20 years the difference between the 2 is around $80,000 per year for each year you own the property. So think about it could you live on $80,000 per year. The serviced apartments you are talking about will not grow at anything like 5% so do not waste your money.

If you are aiming at buying properties for students consider a house that you can rent by the room. However do not buy student accommodation. They are generally to small and will only be sold to investors. Therefore you will have no capital growth. Keep in mind as well that most wealthy Asian students tend to rent normal apartments not tiny ones aimed only at students.

We will be running seminars very shortly as we are involving clients directly in development projects in Australia. I am also buying commercial properties in the United States. Both require a great deal of due diligence. Most people who lose money in this area do so because they do not do research. Remember no matter what anyone says at the end of the day it is your money and there is no excuse for you losing it.

The Australian property market in my view will not fall in fact in many pats of Australia we have a shortage of properties in many of our major cities. This is leading to an increase in rents. This is occurring because finance especially for development  projects is very tight. The solution is that we partner with people in mid size projects and we are finding that there are great returns for our partners and us. However there are also great opportunities in the United States however I believe there is better value in buying commercial properties such as apartment complexes and small strip centers.

Hi It is a great idea and I do it al the time with both Property development in Australia and buying larger properties in the United States. Sure there ae issues but if it is set up well then it works. Generally the returns and profit are higher with larger deals. In property development there is a lot more profit in a 6 million dollar deal than a small two unit development. When it comes to the United States it makes a lot more sense buying a large apartment complex rather than a cheap one off house.