Ok here is where logic and strategy feed into the situation.

When I was a 14yo kid (many years ago) the developers started paying 150k for a 700m2 block in Ormond when we knew it was realisticly only about 110k to market. Yes I know these figures now will seem like the right reason to jump into a DeLorean with timetravel features and zoom back to…[Read more]

Hi Lpadfield,

You've fallen into the golden trap.

You havent checked out your market thoroughly enough and you've purchased in an area where there are market issues developing due to saturation and overpricing.

And as a result .. it really doesnt matter whether your apartment has silver plated taps or marble lined floors .. its competing in a…[Read more]

Hello Junkyster,

You are starting out on the property journey.

You've got the starter blocks for getting stuff going .. you have strategic plusses .. and strategic minuses.

The plusses should come first.
You have a nice little asset base to start with with existing equity from your wife .. and a little movement from you on your existing…[Read more]

You've already got an observation as to how such a market change affects the area.

Look at the closures that took place in quick succession at Dandenong in the late 80s.

First the Watties factory .. then the Holden factory and finally the South Dandenong Cattleyards.

The area was rendered nearly empty for a period of eight years. At which time…[Read more]

Hello CojoCojo,

There is another factor you haven't addressed in your question .. and thats the current amount of money coming in the door .. either through your efforts at work or your husbands current occupation. That in turn would affect the situation as to what your capabilities for borrowing more money are.

Another thing .. if you have…[Read more]

Majic .. you are at the wrong end of the market to chase the cashflow positive deal unless you are prepared to creative it from an unrealised potential.

You see .. cashflow positive properties are tough to find in a sellers market, easy to find in a slack market .. and near impossible to find in a boom market.

We are at a point where the weekly…[Read more]

The technicality is very slight.

I would tend to class this particular property type as geared to neutral with potential.

However it is deadly important to realise you are banking on the stability of those owner expenses for the longer term. People who gear neutral without accomodating movement in any ownership expenses or rates (allow a 2%…[Read more]

I dont think anyone WANTS to be financially free.
You see .. the more you live .. the more you see .. the more you want to see.

I think what most people want are better options. Money and the access to money creating facilities increases these options.

Financial security and FLEXIBILITY produces these options.
You'll always have the bills that…[Read more]

I agree with most of those postings on the actual article.

First you have to realise that Detroit pre 67 riots had a series of tensions due to race issues bubbling under the thin veneer of civilisation it put on.

And after the 67 riots there was an intense effort at 'appeasement' by Democrat factions to reduce the 'oppression' felt by blacks in…[Read more]

New or Old?

DEPENDS WHAT YOU GET !!!!!!!!!

If I'm presented with a brand new high quality good finish home with a class A builder, in my money its just as good as having a property that will be there to appreciate in the longer term thats secondhand and might need sprucing up.

If you buy lousy cheddar to start with .. dont expect to make a…[Read more]

With all the possibility of smart ideas you are staring into the face of fantasy when you talk like this.

First of all .. the only boom in food is in the premium organics range .. which despite appearance is actually a very tiny section of the market.

Our major food and produce markets are being trounced by better low value imports from foreign…[Read more]

I would suggest using the million to create a couple of little assets rather than one big one.

You see .. in any investment portfolio .. the worst situation is to be subject to a SPOF – Singular Point of Failiure.

Thats a property that promises high returns and doesnt deliver. Which in turn carries down the rest of your portfolio.

Better to…[Read more]

Its an observation you've made Tamara43 .. and I would consider it right and wrong.

People graduate to a comfort zone. They learn tricks and trades from their parents and family members that can not only be bad .. but inherantly wrong.

More importantly .. people brought up on these ideas only feel comfortable working within that comfort zone ..…[Read more]

I'm going to sound Freckle'ish on my next statement .. but its about time someone said it in this context.

Australians have been brought up with the concept of a continually incrementing property market as something that has existed for as long as they can possibly remember.

And yet they forget the key fundamental of any property market. The one…[Read more]

As talked about previously in another column, mould is self perpetuating and very hardy once entrenched.

You will need to track down the source of the issue, and its almost guaranteed that its a already a hidden major outgrowth to produce a continued and persistant response.

In this situation a humidifier or drying out the place just will not…[Read more]

Grab a property manager that does the job and wont be a pain in the ass to deal with .. or a cost you have to bear.

If you worry about finicky little things like whether a reletting fee is the issue OPPOSED to the quality of the property management you are going to get .. you may be looking at the wrong criteria for your property management…[Read more]

The best insight I can give you on the current movements in the markets comes from my experience in collectibles. When the market was hot .. people would largely buy anything and everything that had Star Wars written on it. When the market eventually slowed down .. they became more selective and only sought after the desirable and 'key' pieces in…[Read more]

Jo this classifies as a grade B investment and for your initial purchase thats not where you want to be.

A grade A investment is one which is treated by the financial institutions (not just banks) as collateral, produces a CONSISTANT (not necessarily high) return and is easily saleable in almost any market.

A grade B investment is one which is…[Read more]

I'm sorry to hear about your being wiped out in the GFC. I have met a number of people that were successful before the GFC and have been let down by the way events unfolded.

However, your idea of producing a retirement 'plan' through investment in the Gold Coast is going to lead to heartache whether you can afford it or not.

Here are the…[Read more]

To sum up a multi paragraph previous statement nicely,

Dont panic on circumstance ever ! Learn whats going on, be aware of what affects your existing situation and what will change it.

Thats a trendline.

Trends can change. Fast and without much forward notice, unless you are keeping track of them.

Dont get too caught up in a single commodity,…[Read more]