Thanks for replies – much appreciated. I think diversification is the key to all this.  No I don't want to put all my eggs in one basket, but am still very interested in buying a property to rent out.  On the lower north shore of Sydney where I live, there are more people than properties and many people can't afford to buy here, so rentals have been good for over 5 years.  But I still don't know whether I should buy a property outright or maybe mortgage for some of it and that would leave me some to put into other savings.  I have an overseas property which I have hung on to as prices in my country have taken a dive, but at least it is rented out and is owned outright by me, so no fat interest rates to pay !   Somehow, I don't see this happening here – but maybe properties will level out, rather than go down in value. Its all to do with how much my nest egg will be worth in say – 12 years, if I just put it into savings.  I feel (still) that if I invest in property it will be worth more.  You're right in that I will have less to live on initially, but  but I think I would have enough – so to speak, if I pay my own home off first. Then when the time comes that I can no longer work, then hopefully, my investment will have grown.