First timer newbie with some general questions re: GOLD COAST PROPERTY

Morning Benhaman,

As a beginner, one thing to remember is the more research you do… the more aware and prudent you will be.  You will probably already understand that … what you focus on … is wehat you see!  and the reverse is true too … what you don't focus on… you wont see!  Therefore ask lots of questions everywhere you go and as a suggestion subscribe to google news for relevant titles.
It's also helpful to understand that prices are governed primarily by supply versus demand … in many parts of Australia, especially capital cities, we are struggling to meet housing demands for the next 20 years plus.
As a suggestion, you are likely to be more able to afford to buy a property to rent out rather than one to live in at this stage.  This is because the tenant will be paying a good part of the holding costs in rent.  If property prices in the area that you buy rise … then you could consider accessing the deposit for a property you would like to live in the future.  By that time your income situation may have changed and rent value are likely to be higher too!
A spotlight in the market at the moment is South Australia due to the lower costs of living, relatively lower housing prices and especially the Defense Projects and the Mining Boom in Northern SA.

Good Luck!

Maxxi

JJM Finance Services P/L
[email protected]
0403 234 234
8.77% Full Doc and Lo-Doc is about to begin!!

The only city I would invest in ( if I were to buy right now ) would be Melbourne, but not Adelaide.
Mind you, in Melbourne the prices will also drop, but due to the better infrastructure and the amount of work there, it won't be affected as much as for instance Brisbane or Perth or Sydney.

Gold coast is nice when economy does well. But once that stops, prices plunge there.

Scamp,

You definitely havent done your homework …. and you definitely dont know the Australian market… Maybe because you dont live in Australia???  As I said before … I do agree that housing prices will drop …. and I do agree that the market will recover in about three years …. but your evidence and figures etc are disgraceful…  You clearly dont understand the Markets in Brisbane or Adelaide.  My belief is that the Gold Coast is an over inflated market in many suburbs, as it Sydney in parts and Perth in Parts.  In every economy you need to do your home work and there are areas that you would buy in and areas that you would not buy in.  I do however agree that some suburbs have and will drop by up to 50% due to ridiculously overpriced values.  This has already happened in suburbs of Sydney ….. but is not an overall reflection of the whole economy ….

I'm interested to know how well established your own portfolio is??? 

If you'd like to speak to someone who knows the local markets … speak to experts in that area.  There are plenty of avenues to research any area you like…. maybe you should do oyur research more on Adelaide Scamp …. why would the government in a time when spending is scarce, be still spending Billions on Infrastructure to support these areas of growth??? Maybe to support the economy by supplying more jobs and opportunity …. to overt such catastrophies as a property meltdown??? 

Scamp… what you focus in is what you will see …… try not focusing on the problems all the time and maybe you'll have a better day….

In the early 80's the ABC 4 corners show ran a episode on the Gold Coast questioning whether that bubble could burst. Almost all contributors said "NO" as the huge torism boom and flood of retirees made it bullet proof.

Forward two years to an accountant I worked for and I was doing the personal tax for a exec of TNT. Now this guy was the luckiest son of a gun you could ever see. Everytime he bought shares it was days before a rights or bonus issue,  (talk about luck !!! and please I am in no way inferring that as a director of public companies he had any inside knowledge, as we all know in Australia that does not happen). he built up a nice fund of 200k (this is early 80 dollars ) and thought he better get in on the GC.

Bought two off the plan for 160 each, and when he had to settle they had dropped to  80K. The 200K he had build up thru lucky investing was flushed away.

So can the GC drop again, don't know, but has it dropped before, sure has.

And Jon if you want his name to confirm please PM me, as I said only facts.

Well, Ben : you have your answer : don't buy now. Just wait till Januari 2009. The inside info all points to only 1 thing : Wait with buying, you will get loads more for your money later, than before.

And seeing stagflation is just around the corner, you will be happy you have some spare cash to survive the 'harsh times' where the debt bubble deflates ( debt bubbles deflate in stagflation times ).

Just read the news, if you think the news is very positive, then do NOT buy. If you think they're very negative, don't buy either. When the news focuses on other things, then it's the time to buy. When everyone stops talking about real estate, when noone cares about it anymore, when everyone warns you of the dangers and everyone knows at least 1 guy who lost their fortunes in real estate : THEN it's time to invest in property.

That won't be anytime soon.

Haha.. he warns you already there "Great DEPRECIATION!" I think I found the first honest RE agent out there
Anyway, do you know any student that can afford 240$ per week ?
Count on 130$ per week , that's 520 per month, which is a lot to pay for a student already.
520 per month = 6240 per year rental incomes.
You PAY : 260000*9.5/100 = 24700 per year
You LOSE : 18460 per year if you buy this appartment.
That doesn't include the losses from the promised DEPRECIATION! as advertised in the advert ofcourse.

It's a bad deal. Plus it's a student flat, expect them to trash the place.

Scamp,

have you even been to the Gold Coast.

The Varsity precinct  houses students from Bond University. This a private, full fee paying tertiary campus. The students   attending there are funded by their parents and can well afford the rent you scoff at.

And, the depreciation that you also mock is a paper loss that enables investors to offset and reduce holding costs. All buildings/dwellings lose value and depreciate.

I am not passing comment or judgement on any of the deals that appear above, just merely wanting to clarify that before you post you should check your facts   about the area/suburb you are commenting on.