If you havent had a fall .. you dont know how to get up again.The best way not to fall too badly is to watch and read how other people fell .. and why.Experience and time will get you making more of the right decisions and less of the wrong ones for your future wealth.As long as you LEARN from your mistakes.

Stawell isnt happening.The entire rural region consisting of Stawell .. Avoca, Wedderburn and Horsham are all suffering from a severe lack of farmers and farming related enterprises. So to put it mildly .. thanks to those lovely imported items you buy at the supermarket .. these towns are going to the wall.Stawell's population of 8000 (official…[Read more]

Bjs .. thats a very nice approach.However the one factor you forget to lay out on the table is all your efforts is the major component of the risk. The risk always lies in either not knowing what you are doing or not preparing for what you are doing. Taking out any format of loan can be intimidating. When the banks turned around and said no to one…[Read more]

In the early days of the United States they were all idealists. They'd come from the harsh landscape of Britain and they werent going to do things the same way whatsoever. So .. they banned the use of private property as such. All property belonged to the United States govt indirectly and you looked after it on their behalf.This meant you couldnt…[Read more]

Ways to add and improve (depending on budget)I'm going on the basis of what you've got in the photos. As you might guess .. viewing the place always fills in the gaps.The place currently has a entryway that runs off the driveway. Thats the old  .. very el-cheapo way of organising house access.A more upmarket place has its own dedicated pathway…[Read more]

I took my Agents Representative at Swinburne Prahran Campus.Back then you could take it nights and do it over a series of nights to get it done.Not too expensive and a reasonable course.However having had my ex go through REIV offices in Camberwell I would suggest it provides better materials for a long term grounding in the business.If you were…[Read more]

I dont think the idea of positive gearing is what to look for specifically.I think usually properties that lie in the immediate positively geared range have one of several problems. Bad tenancies .. higher risk of longer term vacancies .. or poorly designed property or location. From that list .. the only one you can really control is the bad…[Read more]

I'm sorry .. I missed most of the fun of this thread .. simply because I have a life. But it sounds like pure comedy.I would take Jumping Jack Flash with a grain of salt. In fact .. pass him the whole bloody salt container. He's going to be sitting there .. grumbling about the state of the world until the cows come home. And for him .. he may just…[Read more]

hello newandkeen !As a newish investor .. you need to take the newish steps that keep you as an investor and not a mad punter.First … the simple one. It is possible to find the cash positive properties in regional areas. Some of the reasons they are cash positive may be genuine. There are some towns in Vic and Nsw that I just wont touch because…[Read more]

Sha .. if your budget is 360k you have options up and down the SE coastal corridor. You also have large swathes of the upper western block. Your budget should not be your limiting factor on your placement. Its possible to buy quite a nice place in pakenham for close to 300k still. The question is really what you want to derive as the end result.…[Read more]

Is there some sort of cosmic secret to have evolved here?First of all .. congratulations Engelo on finding out all about neutral to postively geared property investment. Despite the numerous books published over the last ten years specifically on the subject. Despite the fact that most authors say its a way to build a healthy and large portfolio…[Read more]

shoooshoo wrote:
Seriously guys, i have no idea what Xdrew or Paul are talking about. Vendors finance? i thought the bank only provides finance.  Please provide clarifications, i will also research the matter. And thank you for your posts

Thats what the banks want you to think. That the banks can be the sole suppliers of housing finance for…[Read more]

With loans … its a market and you gotta remember that.Someone offers .. and someone accepts. People tend to think the banks are the only people offering money.A couple of my recent deals are boring on paper but exciting in fact. I went around the student units in melbourne (you know the 'unsaleable' ones) and just ticked the ones who now say…[Read more]

Do a search on Orange on this forum. We've talked about it several times at different levels.Its still very much a land of opportunity. But it has its problems.

Ash88,If you arent prepped yet for dealing with bank loans.. go the other way.Build yourself an asset and income base. So regardless of your job situation .. you can approach them with your rental income and debt free assets.If your goal is to be a long term property investor owning lots of property .. you are going to need to be able to borrow…[Read more]

ChristinaM wrote:
I read this thread, because I am in a very similar situation. My property is in the market for 4-5 weeks and has only one offer, an offer that's 10% lower than our break-even number.It's easy to say "cut the loss short and move on" while you're not in that situation…For us, we're going through so much paid making a decision…[Read more]

All I can say to the idea of being 62 and asking is it too late?Colonel Sanders cashed his first retirement cheque of $105 and started visiting local stores in the area .. selling them a new sort of home grown chicken recipe. A Fried Chicken recipe. Kentucky Fried Chicken was born. He was 65.There is never any too late unless you dont do whats possible.

I wouldnt hesitate to say the 40k should go into the home loan. Two things that pumping into the home loan allows. First .. when the home loan loses its 'break' period and there are no penalties … it allows you to refinance your existing loan at a lower rate. And you end up with a bundle of 40k extra equity in the property that you can either…[Read more]

Two mistakes you are graduating to and both are fixable.You are moving WITH the crowd and not against it. You've found it hard to sell .. and so has everyone else .. because .. there arent the buyers out there now. You've moved with everyone else. Thats a recipie for trouble.So you follow it through with sticking the property on the market. At the…[Read more]

Here is some comforting stats that were in the paper in the last few daysFor the majority of conforming loans in this country .. the loans in arrears rate remains a paltry 1.8% and steady.That means in round figures .. for every 50 conforming loans … only 1 remains in arrears. Thats a healthy ratio.For the subprime loans and non conforming loans…[Read more]