I think you’ll achieve your goals standing on your head.. sounds like you’ve already done very well and know where you’re headed.

Cheers
r

hi cousinwooly,

get your self-confessed bad spending habits under control… sock away your cash in an ING or Citibank online account that give 5%+ interest. Save up for at least 6-12 months. Don’t be in a hurry because deals bob up all the time. Sure they might not all yield 10.4% but they’re good none the less. If you’re struggling to find something, just sit tight, because in 12 months or so I reckon better and better deals will bob up as property continues to be “on the nose” for the majority.

Also, ask yourself, why would investment partners give you money if you have no experience and a poor financial record? I certainly wouldn’t.

cheers
r

It’s worth paying for good advice and getting the job done properly. Don’t try and cut corners. I’m using Dale’s mob to set mine up at the moment. Wish I’d done it a few years ago, but c’est la vie.

cheers
r

I re-read my original reply and wanted to add:

Can you give any more details as to your circumstances, re: earning, age, why you haven’t got any savings? What are the details of your number crunching that tell you this is a good deal? Did you go to Kalgoorlie and look at the place yourself?

I wouldn’t recommend jumping into property investing straight after reading a book if you haven’t managed to get the savings bit down pat first.

Also, if you miss this one, there’s bound to be another around the corner.

cheers
r

great stuff nat. well done.

you must have reasonable jobs/salaries to have achieved all that at the age of 23 considering you squeezed in uni too.

cheers
r

I think the basic answer, steph, is easy credit. And I reckon the out of control credit situation here in good ol’ Oz has the government rather concerned, because I think (my opinion only) that there is a heck of a lot of people, who have bought a heck of a lot of stuff, that they really didn’t need, with money they can barely afford.

People looking at 350k-400k places for their first homes should be looking a few price rungs lower… I don’t understand this mentality that many people appear to have that the first home has to have all the bells and whistles… it seems a lot of people don’t like taking stepping stones any more, they over extend themselves in one big jump, and a few will fall in the pond with a very big splash!

Case in point, my wife’s sister and her husband set up a LOC on their house out in Knoxfield, which is a bit of a battler suburb here in Melbourne. Like everywhere, it’s price has gone up a lot in the last 5 years. They used this CG to establish their LOC from which they paid for a new kitchen, new car and new television, and then wonder why they’ve all of a sudden got this big interest bill that they have to pay back. She is a school teacher getting paid stuff all, he is not working at the moment. Yes, we know it’s stupid, but I tried to explain to them why they shouldn’t do it etc etc … there are a lot of people who have not been able to restrain themselves in such situations. I mean, who really needs a big screen TV and home theatre system costing thousands?? I’d love one, but there’s other priorities.

If you do a google search, you’ll find a similar situation in the United States… too many people going to see their “equity mate” without understanding what they’re getting themselves into. It’s a house of cards that won’t take much to blow over IMHO. Mind you, I’m no economist, just an average joe.

Cheers
r

I agree Wayne, they have to come back quite a bit more… and I’m confident they will… a 30% drop is a price reduction of $400k to $280k… places in some of the suburbs I’ve been keeping an eye on have already dropped from around $420 to mid 300s… it’s not outrageous to think they’ll come back more.

(by the way I’m surprised this thread hasn’t generated more of a response… just how closely are people watching things in their respective areas? I would have thought serious investors would have their finger on the pulse… oh well)

cheers
r

yeah sure brendan, have some of my hard earned equity and borrowing power… don’t think so mate… your time might be better spent learning a. about property investing and b. how to become less money poor.

cheers
r

FWIW, I have never seen Steve recommend buying in tiny towns solely based on yield, but so many people come on these boards screaming out to be told where the cf+ deals are, and get put on to places like Rosebery Tasmania… from what I recall he says the indicators he looks for as well as yield, are other development in terms of Bunnings, regional unis, hospitals etc… if the jobs/students are there, there is an accompanying tenant pool. If there are bugger all jobs in a town, or industries/employers are moving away, the tenant pool goes down, and your risks go up greatly in terms of vacancies. A property can have the best yield in the world, but it doesn’t yield anything if there are no tenants around to fill it. And sorry to disappoint some, but it takes a bloody lot of research finding out whether an area has the fundamentals to support your investment decision… there’s more to it than just looking at a few real estate websites. Sometimes you have to fork out for airfares etc to travel to the city/town itself to suss it out, rather than rely on someone else’s say-so. It’s your money, YOU have to do the work and YOU have to bear the responsibility for your decision’s failure or success. Don’t look for easy answers because there are none.

Some people hear the 11 second rule and then tune out… there’s a lot more to it than that, and a lot more research to decide if a property is a good investment than just looking for 10.4% yields.

These yields are not around any more in decently sized cities for RESIDENTIAL homes in towns IN AUSTRALIA (there you go Mini), period. They can however be created… the Mappers have proved that.

Horses for courses.

My two cents
r

Hi

What are the stats? Purchase price v yield? I’d also go to http://www.somersoft.com/forums and do a search because redcliffe has been mentioned many times there. Don’t rush, there will always be another opportunity if you miss out on this one. Make sure you’ve done your homework first…

Cheers
r