buying off the plan

Hi there, please do a forum search on off the plan…..risky investment in my view particularly in inner city Melbourne and Sydney with prices that only the Chinese can afford….

Cheers, Ivan

Honestly, and many may disagree as they have had success, but most experts I follow suggest avoiding buying off the plan like the plague! I would never ever do it myself!  Here are some reasons I'd avoid it;

1) No one has a crystal ball, so what you buy for today bares no reflection of the value tomorrow, It could be less if there is more supply than demand

2) Generally OTP are unit in large complexes. One should avoid large complexes as your unit is like a commodity, there are many of them to choose from when you need to sell making it harder to sell for the price you'd like (plenty of stories about the GC and Docklands)

3) Mostly developers sell at inflated prices based on the fact its a new unit, it looks great, it has all the mod cons that you would want, pool, lift, gym, nice common areas, sounds great hey, then they throw in the guaranteed rental return or offer to pay the stamp duty. This is just designed to woo you in. Its all in the price and some!

4) Generally if an expert is selling you a property of the plan run for the hills as all they are an expert n is lining their pockets instead of yours!

5) If you are still thinking about buying off the plan re read the above again!

I could go on, but there are far better and less risky ways to invest in property than buying off the plan. The fact you are at the web site means you have a plethora of methods to consider depending on your preference for passive or active investing. Buying off the plan would be passive, if that is your preference, consider researching to find a hot spot and use a buy and hold strategy and repeat once you can afford to.

As always seek professional advice suitable for your own circumstances.

Cheers

Simon

Hi Jason and everyone here.

I just saw this message and thought I would clarify (so at least things havent been mis-construed).

Firstly, apologies if you were made to feel uneasy, as my intention is to help the best I can. A simple google search of myself should have given you a heads up about my philosophy and background. But we are all humans and the great thing is that we all have different opinions.

For everyone else here, this was a house and land package with an instant subdivision / equity position that was presented in Toowoomba at that time, certainly not units – especially not docklands – its concerning to say the least as to how that conclusion was derived.

As a company we over 80% of the stock sold being house and land in select growth areas with only select unit developments. Personally, my own portfolio is skewed that way as well.

There’s a difference in being logical about a purchase and looking at it as an investor and being emotional about a purchase and purchasing through greed and fear. That being said, i agree with most of the advice above, its good, solid advice! Do the Due Diligence and ensure numbers stack up to whats being promoted – with any investment.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by  goro.
• This reply was modified 10 years, 4 months ago by  goro.