Hi,

I do some investing in near by Wonthaggi. Some say it's Moe by the water.
Those areas certainly have the infrastructure and the employment with the power stations etc.
Things to be wary of are the crime rate that comes with an are that has this kind of socio demographics.

What sort of investing are looking at?

John

Funny, was down there in sept (just a holiday) and looked at the realestate windows as you do and thought the same, cheap, good rent, etc and since then this area has popped up a few times through my various general research.. yes there appears to also be al the other fundimentals for growth as you mentioned. worth a look, You might have some competition

I've been looking at property in Morwell also infact i'm heading there this weekend with my brother and we are looking at buying 2 or 3 houses as they are great value, have high yield and i have also rung the latrobe city council and there are a lot of projects coming to the area over the next 12 months to 3 years which will bring employment which brings people who then need somewhere to live which then brings higher returns.  Its got the thumbs up from me

I think LaTrobe Valley is just like investing in any area as long as it suits you and does the figures for you.  I know lots of people in the Real Estate business say "Dont use negative gearing" but if you earn over $120,000 a year it can make "tax sense" to do it as long as it is not a long term condition and you DO NOT over commit yourself.  But if you are on a not so high fixed income you need to do your sums carefully and as much as possible make it cash flow positive. 

First work out how much money you have to spare to fund your investing, how much rent you can get for various houses and how much your loan payments will be.  With loan payments remember most banks and credit unions take the monthly payment and divide it by 2 and that is your fortnightly payment.  NOT divide by 30 days and times by 14 etc.  Trap for newbies with some calculations.  Add rates, insurances, water and at least 5% for maintenance and as much as 25% depending on the age of the house.  Buy in a good area as much as possible or in a fringe close to a good area.  Try and pick which areas are going to be "gentrified" next.  This is happening alot in West Traralgon, and Middle to east of Morwell.  There are some areas to avoid in Morwell and in Trarlagon.  I wont tell you which areas, you need to find a good and honest agent.  And there are some here to avoid.  PM me and I can give you an idea of who we deal with.

That being said.  REMEMBER – How you treat your house (ie its condition upon rental) is the "Highest" your tenant will treat it.  If they see clean painted walls, nice carpeted floors and neat gardens they will more than likely keep it that way.  Rent your house out looking like a mess and thats legally the way they can give it back to you on cessation of tenancy. ie in the same condition as commencement of tenancy.  When an agent walks through your rental property and sees that it is nice and neat, they will find you a comporable tenant if they are a good agent.  Lousy walk through and you will get a lousy tenant.  If the agent sees you care then they will more than likely care.  We allow about $5,000 for each house we buy in order to clean it up, replace floorings and paint etc.  This is on a house valued at about $110,000 in LaTrobe.  We can then usually rent it out for about $160 – $180.  It takes a lot of hard work to find a $100K house but they are out there.  And these are at least 3 BDR's.  This does the figures for us okay at the moment and in our particular circumstances.  You need to do these figures for yourself. 

We are holding onto these properties that we have and then we will vendor finance them down the track.  Like I said, your investing, needs to suit your circumstances and plans.  When you buy a house you must see its life whilst you own it and what you are going to do with it to the end.  ie buy and hold for capital appreciation, rental, or vendor finance or a mix of either or. 

Before you buy in LaTrobe valley do some research and come down here for a holiday and see what you think.  You dont have to like the area – just see if it suits your investing purposes.  When your investing career takes off it will be less important to see an area, staistics and numbers will mean more to you.  But whilst you are learning it is important to get your feet wet and soak it all up.  Liaising with agents can be hard and so can just finding your way around a new place.  Its all fun!  I would do it if you can and LaTrobe Valley seems to do the numbers well at the moment.

This might be a little late in coming, but could anyone advise the current situation in these areas? A lot has changed over the years, as well as agents. Any advice would be appreciated. TIA :)

Unfurnished room in a share house. Roomy double bedroom with ceiling fan and good size wardrobe in lovely home in Morwell