A beginners guide to property investment

So, you’ve been thinking about wadding into the investment property pool?! If you’ve only just dipped your toe in the water, the world of property investment can seem quite overwhelming and complex.

As a novice, it can be difficult to know where to begin. To help you on your endeavour, here’s some straightforward tips for setting up your property portfolio.

Finance

Don’t just assume you can’t afford to invest. Start by listing all your assets, including incomes and then determine your expenses. If you have a steady and reasonably paying job, you should find getting a loan relatively painless.

Get pre-approval

This can be done directly through your lender or your trusted mortgage broker. Be wary of applying for multiple pre-approvals, as each time you apply, a flag appears on your credit record and this can be a deterrent to some lenders. Make sure you determine whether you qualify for a loan, check your credit rating and try reducing any debts or credit card limits.

Budget and cashflow

You need to be aware of and understand all the costs involved in purchasing and maintaining an investment property. A good idea would be seeking the advice of a professional accountant to ensure to know what you’re financially in for.

Head over heart

When looking for and purchasing your investment property make sure your decision is based more on logic and analytical research than emotion. Ask yourself whether your selection will provide the gains and returns you require and is in an attractive location for quality tenants.

Strategies to profit from property

It’s not just about snapping up an investment property and thinking you’ve got it made. Instead, you need to know the strategies others use to accumulate profit from property. Generally, there are 3 methods to do this:

• Growth in the asset, this is called capital gains.
• Rental income outweighing the expenses.
• Tax benefits like depreciation can offset the employment/business taxes you have to pay.

Work out which strategy is going to best suit you and then conduct some further research. 

Suburb recon

If your wanting long-term capital gain, selecting the right suburb is crucial. Make sure you review sales statistics, identify gentrifying areas and look for anywhere near new or planned infrastructure. For more information, see our previous blog post How to select a growth suburb to invest in.

Understanding the property market takes time and there’s no shortage of information when it comes to property investment, so make sure you do proper research and understand what to look for and what to avoid.