Alan,

I’m no expert, but I would think the best answer as to when to buy, is “when you’re ready” – i.e. you’ve done your research, found a good deal at a price you can afford, you’re happy with the purchase and feel comfortable making the commitment.

That was part of my point about not feeling pressured to buy. There are plenty of experts making contradictory predictions. Some say the market is going to keep going for a while, others say prices are already 30% over inflated.

I like to keep things simple. We’ve had a long strong market- one of, if not the longest housing boom in history. All booms end, even this one.

We also have the lowest interest rates for 30 years. This will change too, next week, next month, next year – who knows when?

So if you can comfortably buy now and get a good deal from the housing commission, you could lock in a great interest rate and start building equity. If that’s what you want to do – great!

If it happened that all the pieces didn’t quite align and you need to build some more deposit for example, then there’s a good chance of a great opportunity coming up.

I have no idea whether house prices will retrace or not. I would guess they might a little, because they have tended to after previous booms. But even if they don’t, when the market cools, houses take longer to sell. The longer a house is on the market, generally the less it sells for.

Looking at either option as a positive event takes the “pressure” out of it, so you can weigh up the here and now calmly – and then go for whatever you decide.

Best of luck,
Darren.

I have one you can buy. I’ve only played it a few times, it’s as new. I also have the 202 additional game that plays on the same board.

If interested contact me at darren @ graphic-designer.com if interested. It depends where you are though – they’r equite heavy so expect postage may be a bit extreme.

cheers,
Darren.

They’re amazing figures Lance. I justchecked out your website. Looks like you’ve got a very professional set up going.

cheers,
Darren.

Just as a sidenote; Kazaa software is often loaded with little nasties that the end user is not aware of – such as various forms of spyware. Make sure you run anti spy software regularly if using Kazaa.

Great article.

The thing is though the market moves in spurts.

A friend bought a property at Runaway Bay around 1992. It did almost nothing for a decade. Now it’s gone up just over 100% in 12 – 18 months. He told me it was still only 8% p.a. over the time he’s had it. It happens to be a hotspot at the moment.

We bought in Brisbane 12 months ago. Our property was valued at the beginning of the week. (We’re thinking of selling). The agent was confident getting a price 120% above what we paid.

Again property values in this area did nothing much for the previous seven years.

Sometimes you get lucky!

I read this thread with great interest and I can see both sides.

Six months ago I was looking at possible IP’s close to home, that I could almost afford. Looking back, and adding what I have learnt recently, I probably could have bought one after all.

Now they really have skyrocketed out of range, so my first IP is going to be somewhere else and probably quite a long way off.

I guess most people find the first time they do anything new a little nerve racking. Personally, I found the notion of buying something that was close to home conforting. I could be “on hand” within half an hour if necessary. I could do most repairs and maintenance items myself. I could keep “an eye” on things.

These aren’t things I can do with a property that is a long way away. I guess in reality these are small points, but emotionally for a first timer, it makes the first jump a little higher. What can I really do when I get there anyway? lol

I expect by the third time I won’t even think about it. But it’s all about what we’re comfortable with and what we believe we should be doing with our lives.

I don’t suppose property investment is for everyone. I think caution when inexperienced is a good thing. I learnt that when doing all my doe on shares a few years ago. It’s taken this long to recover to where we were then.

Even so I have nothing against shares (even though putting the same amount in to property fours years ago would have seen us in a very different situation today!).

It’s about being sensible, researchign what you’re doing before doing it, and when confident – going out there and doing it right.

quote:

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if you have owned the property of more than 12 months then you only pay capital gains tax on 50% of the profit.
regards westan

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What about PPOR? Do you pay CGT on your home if you have owned it more than 12 months?

Lots of good points there, some of which I have posted in various threads myself. Als being a Qld’er I can tell you that the very reasons people are moving here will soon be eroded by the number of people moving here.

The current price rises are being driven by investors from down south who want to buy property and can’t afford it southern states and / or see Qld as an opportunity / good value.

As you say, once interest rate rises push the yields down there may well be an investor exodus.

But will prices retrace? Looking at the info supplied in another recent thread, it seemed prices only fell about 5% (maybe up to 10%?) after previous property booms and then remained static for long periods.

Great chapter, thanks Steve. []