Could you afford an investment property?

For many of us its not going to be viable to live the lifestyle we’ve become used to once we retire if we are solely reliant on our superannuation funds. If you are in your 20’s or 30’s – retirement might be the furthest thing from your mind, but time goes quickly and planning for your future does give you peace of mind. The other thing to think of is, do you want to have to work until you’re 65? Wouldn’t it be great to have the option not to or to do something else because you’re in the financial position to have options.

The obvious solution for me is something that is accessible to most of us, and that’s to buy real estate. If you buy in good areas, your property value is likely to double every 10 years, plus the rent is likely to go up around $5pw each year (ie $50 pw increase within a 10 year period). The great thing is with interest rates the lowest they’ve ever been, borrowing money has never been so affordable.

The other thing to note, is if you currently have a mortgage, or mortgages there may be more cost effective loans out there that you can refinance to, which are worth checking out.   The savings you make on the loan or loans you currently have may well give you the cashflow to buy an investment property (or another one). We have recently referred a couple of our landlords to a mortage broker and they’ve been able to save between $4000 – $8000 per year!!!

I challenge you that if you’ve been considering buying an investment property but haven’t quite made the plunge – speak to an experienced mortgage broker (call me if you don’t know one, I have a couple I can highly recommend – will save you time and headaches) and get your finances sorted. Don’t waste any more time – the quicker you take the plunge the better in my mind.

I am also more than happy to talk to you about what makes a good investment property – this is an area of real estate I’m extremely passionate about and would be more than happy to give you some advice.