hi Josh,

thanks for the info, as for your question, i have calculated the tax already. As for your remarks on Dysart and Moranbah, yes they have only the mining to depend on, but from what i can see this is something that the government is backing heavily, as coal attributes to 25% of australia’s commodities export, i heard that there are mines opening up in dysart as well, but need further information. as for Emerald, i’m not yet convinced that its going to benefit much from the mines happening near alpha, specially now that you told me those numbers on the work force.

Hi Shooshoo,

There is a lot of land on the market in Dalby, as well as 97 advertised rentals on realestate.com.au

Here’s the land sales for the previous years:
2008 = 195
2009 = 176
2010 = 145
2011 = 15 so far recorded

this would suggest that a large amount of new homes could be available, however just not on the market for rent due to this crisis. Im not saying that there are 200 homes available but even 100 homes for a town that size is a lot of properties to be available for rent.

Shooshoo i would be staying out of the Surat Basin. I really don’t think it is all it is cracked up to being. It is situations like this that you mentioned where investors take marketing firms at face value who are only trying to line their own pockets and never wanting repeat or referral business and they then come unstuck as they aren’t telling the purchaser that the only limit to the number of houses they will build in the area is how many they can sell.

I would be sticking to the Bowen basin still, chase stability, and longevity in your investment. Unless you can afford to potentially have a property that fluctuates in value all the time as well as run the risk that it may be empty in 5 years time then keep to some key areas. Places where long term work forces will stay for the lifestyle as well.

You need to think of the family model. If a town can sustain a family model, that is education (including further education), work & lifestyle, then the region will grow and prosper, especially in the next 10-20 years in QLD as south east QLD struggles to provide infrastructure, and a lot of the new jobs and government infrastructure moves to regional QLD. If areas can ONLY provide work, people don’t stay, and that makes for an unhealthy investment be it property or business.

Look for areas where large companies are going which indicates longevity. Companies as in Woolworths, Stocklands & Lend Lease etc. In Emerald there is a $120m woolworths shopping complex being constructed, this is their second supermarket in Emerald. Harvey Norman are going in etc. In Mackay, they are nearly doubling the main shopping complex (Canelands) from 39,000 sqm to 70,000 sqm including Myer. West Gladstone is having a new Woolworths complex being built at the front of a new estate. Amidst such an abysmal retail environment, these companies are investing there money in these areas. They conduct a more in depth due-diligence than any residential property investor ever will in my opinion. These companies don’t make money overnight, it takes them years before some of these stores will see profit, hence they are there for the long term and they are not there on a gamble.

Again, personally, I would not invest in the Surat Basin. Any company that is renting out furnished accommodation on a large scale is not there to stay. I am talking from years of experience investing in mining areas here, I am not saying any of this light heartedly.

What happens if your property all of a sudden sits empty in 4/5 years time, remember your not the only one thinking of investing in these areas. You may have had all the capital growth in the world in the short term but if it goes empty, you wont be able to sell it, your capital gain is gone and you are still paying interest on $400,000. Your leverage to borrow more has just been reduced significantly whilst you burn $30,000 cash every year on a vacant property.

Ultimately the choice is yours, however, I know where I’m putting my money in the years to come.