There’s no magic extra you get if you sign up for a membership or subscription. Likewise, I don’t ever think you should have to pay for an ebook or an online course to get started in property investment. I don’t charge my clients to work with me and I’m upfront about that, so there will never be any hidden costs or sneaky “exclusive” options. All it takes is patience, discipline, and having the right team around you. Let the properties do the work for you and appreciate over time. 

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If you want to invest in property, but just don’t know where to start – you’re not alone. Most of my clients don’t know the ins and the outs of the property industry, making it hard to know where to even begin when it comes to buying an investment property. On top of this, many of my clients are time-poor, which can make the whole process seem even more overwhelming. 

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I don’t charge my clients to work with me; instead, I get paid in a similar way to mortgage brokers. I get paid by builders and developers for bringing clients to them and this means my clients won’t be out of pocket like they would if they used a buyer’s agent. 

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I am certainly not concerned about any rental properties being vacant anytime soon. If you’re thinking about buying a new property or a house and land package, rest assured that it will be in extremely high demand for tenants for years to come, and not only will you be able to get rent, but you’ll be able to get good rent for many years to come.

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When it comes to choosing an investment property, you could easily spend hundreds of hours researching suburbs, visiting home opens, and agonising over whether you’re making the right decision about where to buy. 

Buying for investment is very different from buying a family home to live in, and it can be tough to know where to start. But I firmly believe investing in real estate shouldn’t be rocket science, so I wanted to share my 3 top tips for choosing the right investment property – tips that I have always relied on when investing myself, and that I consider when recommending property for clients. 

Location is key – look for a growing area

You’ve heard it before, I’m sure – location, location, location. But when it comes to investing in property, location really is key. 

You want to invest in an area that has a growing population; for this reason, I have invested in, and often recommended, property in capital cities around Australia. Capital cities are usually a ‘safer’ bet for your investment and you can’t go wrong when picking a busy urban centre in Australia. 

More specifically, when looking within capital cities, you want to pick an area with good infrastructure. Keep an eye out for places where the government is spending money on upgrading roads, putting in train lines, or spending on schools. 

Take a good look at what amenities are available nearby. At a minimum, you want a retail centre with a grocery store nearby, while other amenities such as schools (public and private, primary and high school), universities, and medical centres are a big plus.  

These are the things tenants will look for and they will choose a rental property in a good area whenever possible. 

If you find you can’t secure an investment property in this kind of area, the current market means you will still be able to get tenants and they will still pay you rent – however, they may not pay as much rent, or stay in the house for as long, as they are likely to want to move to a better area when they can. 

To put it simply, securing a property in a growing area, with good amenities, will give you a much higher chance of securing a long-term tenant. 

Quality matters – buy the best you can afford

Whether you’re looking for your first or third investment property, you’ll have a budget in mind – and this will be different for everybody. But whatever amount you’re looking to spend; my advice is to focus on quality. Do not buy the cheapest house on the street!

Let me explain. You want to buy a house that reflects the quality of the area you’ve chosen. Some people will look at buying the ‘worst house on the street’ in order to secure a place in a good area, but I don’t recommend it. Because while you may save money on buying that property in the immediate term, you will most likely find it hard to attract long-term tenants, which is what you want for the long term. 

Often the tenants who move into poorer quality homes are doing it as a stop-gap until they can find, or afford, something better. If your house is not good quality, your tenants will always be comparing and looking for something better, whether it be that they want something newer that doesn’t require as much maintenance, or just better fixtures and fittings. 

My advice is not to buy the absolute cheapest property you can find when building, or buying, an investment property.  You want a house that fits well with the area, that’s as good (if not better!) as the other houses in the street. 

Focus on appeal – what do your tenants want? 

You’ve already thought about what potential tenants want in terms of location, now it’s time to look at the specifics of your house to make sure it will appeal to long-term tenants. 

After many years of working with clients, builders, and property managers, I know what features are key to attracting long-term tenants: a well-laid-out four-bedroom, two bathroom property, with two living areas, a double garage, and some outdoor living space, ideally an alfresco area. 

It sounds simple, but these features appeal to the largest group of potential tenants and work for most families. 

Another way of thinking about this is to consider the things you want to avoid – such as “quirky” features that may have worked for the original owner but won’t suit typical renters. While they won’t be impossible to lease, if you can, avoid properties that have less than four bedrooms, have an odd layout with spaces that aren’t user-friendly, have renovations that were poorly executed, or a floorplan that doesn’t flow well. 

Always think about what will be attractive to long-term tenants; if you start compromising on any of these things you might find your tenants don’t stay as long as they would in another property.  

Reach out for more advice 

If you’re thinking about buying an investment property, let’s talk. With more than 15 years of experience and over 2000 properties sourced, I can walk with you through every step of the process, from financing to finding the perfect property. 

Investing in property can be overwhelming, but it honestly isn’t rocket science.

Yes, there’s a lot to consider – if you’ve never bought a house without planning to live in it before, you might not be sure what to look for, where to buy, or what information you need to consider.

But if you’re like most of my clients, there’s one big fear holding you back.

What if you jump in, find a property to buy, get set up with a property manager, and then…your property sits vacant.

I know you don’t want to risk getting it wrong, that’s why you found my site and you’re reading about how I can help you through every stage of investing in the Australian property market – from getting your finances sorted to independent property investment recommendations that suit your needs. But there’s still that niggling fear that, after all the effort you put into securing a property, you won’t be able to find a tenant.

Believe me, this was one of my biggest fears when I bought my first property. And of course, it’s important to think about this possibility when reviewing your finances and how much you can afford to borrow or spend.

But I’m here to assure you that Australia is currently experiencing a high demand for rental properties that will continue for many years to come. Here’s why.

Building approvals are down in the current market

In early November 2022, the Australian Bureau of Statistics released figures on the supply of new housing. Every time a house, unit, or block of apartments is approved, it is added to this data, and based on these figures, we can see that building approvals for the year are trending down. In fact, as of November, building approvals are down 13.8 percent from where they were at the same time in 2021.

What does this mean? Fewer houses are being built than 12 months ago.

Now, this wouldn’t be such a big deal if the demand for housing wasn’t currently so high. At a time when we should be building more, we’re building less. That’s going to create a continued pent-up demand from the current Australian population, but also from an expected influx of migrants we’ll be welcoming to the country over the next couple of years.

International students and skilled migrants need short and long-term accommodation

If you’ve started researching the property market, you’ve likely heard that the government is raising the number of people who can come into the country under skilled migrant visas, raising the cap from 160,000 to 195,000 in the 2022-2023 financial year.

This means an additional 20% more people coming into Australia, looking for short and long-term rental accommodation, than in previous years.

Consider that many skilled migrants coming into the country won’t be able to buy property until they have either secured a job or established work history. This usually means they’ll need to rent, and they may do so for a couple or even as many as 10 years before they buy a family home. They’re not just looking for a place to stay when they first move to the country, but for a decent number of years – and they could be your ideal tenant.

On top of this, international students are expected to return to Australia in droves in the aftermath of COVID-19. In the 2021-2022 program year, there were 365,004 student visa applications lodged – and 246,651 of those applications were made between January and June 2022. Around 50,656 of those student visa applications were lodged during the month of June alone, the highest in the program’s history (source: Student Visa and Temporary Graduate visa program report).

Students often want to rent for the duration of their studies, which means they could be your tenant for three or more years.

One incredible example of this impact can already be seen in Perth, where building approvals are down 30 percent year on year. Perth has historically experienced good population growth overall and gets quite a lot of migrants, and with that number set to increase in the next 12 to 24 months – while building approvals are down – the city is going to see a real rental crisis.

With my guidance, your rental property won’t be empty

I am certainly not concerned about any rental properties being vacant anytime soon.

I’ve had rental properties for more than 10 years and the longest any of them has been vacant is about a week, and that’s been in during years where there has been an oversupply of stock. A lot of this comes down to choosing the right property in the right location, and that’s where I can help you make the best decision for your needs. So, in the current market, when we’re looking at a rental crisis and a supply crisis that is only set to get worse, I don’t envision empty properties to be a concern at all.

If you’re thinking about buying a new property or a house and land package, rest assured that it will be in extremely high demand for tenants for years to come, and not only will you be able to get rent, but you’ll be able to get good rent for many years to come.

I hope that gives you some insight into what the current property market looks like in Australia, and what it’s likely to look like for at least a few years to come. With this in mind, you can be reassured that your rental property won’t sit empty [RS1] and that with the help of a good property manager, you will be able to get the price you want. And if you’d like to talk further about any of your fears about investing, or how to reduce the risks, I’m always here to offer advice.

3 positives that spell good news for investors

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To keep it simple, remember that new properties will be in higher demand in a market where rental supply does not meet demand. You’ll spend less money on maintenance and warranties than if you buy established, allowing you to maximise earnings from your rental.

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The Australian property market may currently be experiencing a downturn, but there are still positives to be found.

But that’s not what mainstream media wants us to think. And believe me, I get it – the articles online and the news headlines all point to a looming worst-case scenario, creating panic and negativity about the state of real estate in Australia.

If you follow the markets or are thinking about investing, it’s enough to make you feel down about the whole situation.

But I’m a glass-half-full kind of person, so I wanted to share my perspective on the positives that can be found in the Australian property market right now.

Every time you look to mainstream media, there are downbeat forecasts saying the property market is going to drop by 20% to 30%, with some even catastrophising in predicting prices will go down by up to 50% in the coming months.

And yes, it’s true that there is a downturn in the market currently, but realistically it’s more of a stabilisation as prices come back down from the all-time highs experienced during the last couple of years of the pandemic. In a large part, prices have been falling due to the rising costs of construction, however this is now stabilising as well.  

I certainly believe in the fundamentals of the Australian property market; we currently have an undersupply of properties, especially for rent, and that’s only forecast to get worse over the coming years.

There are simply not enough houses being built to meet the current demand.

The demand for rentals has skyrocketed, and I believe it will only increase in the next few years as Australia opens back up after the pandemic and skilled migrant and international student numbers rise.

The government recently announced that it would lift the skilled migrant cap from 160,000 to 195,000 in the 2022-2023 financial year to help meet skills shortages – which instantly means 20% more people coming into the country looking for short and long-term accommodation than in previous years.

Additionally, international students are expected to return to Australia in droves following border closures during the height of COVID-19. In the 2021-2022 program year, there were 365,004 student visa applications lodged – 246,651 of those applications were lodged between January and June 2022. And 50,656 of those student visa applications were lodged during the month of June alone, the highest in the program’s history (source: Student Visa and Temporary Graduate visa program report).

It’s clear that between skilled migrants and international students, significantly more people are entering the country than in recent years. These new arrivals will need a place to live, so demand for student, short-term and long-term accommodation is only going to go up.

We’ve already seen rental increases of around 10-20% in some locations over the last 12-24 months; imagine what will happen once all these skilled workers and students start flooding into the country, as they’ve already begun doing.

While it’s true that there are still market declines being seen in some locations around the country, particularly Sydney and Melbourne, there are also many areas where you can buy a fantastic investment property or house and land package for less than $600,00 – even less than $500,000 in some areas – with a current rental rate of 5.5% than will only get higher as the rental squeeze continues.

I always like to look on the positive side of things and think it’s important to have a counter perspective to what we see so often in the media. My perspective is not based on fear or worst-case scenarios, it’s based on years of experience investing in the property market.

As those who have invested over the years would know, now is the time to buy. I always advise buying during the downturn, in fact just when you think the news about the market couldn’t get any worse is when you should be buying.

Why? Because when the market is going up everyone wants to buy, and this means you’re more likely to be outbid, get less for your money, or have to settle for what the land developer has available. When the market is having a small downturn there are fewer people actively looking to buy, so you have less competition and more options to choose from.

These are the positives I focus on, and why I recommend you buy now if you’re looking to invest.

The market is stabilising, there are some fantastic opportunities for investors available right now at reasonable prices, and the demand for rentals is set to increase exponentially. If you can look past the doom and gloom of mainstream media reporting, I can help you take advantage of the current property market. Get in touch and let’s talk.  

Many of the experts and people who have predicted property market crashes in the past are saying the same thing – the market is correcting. But some are saying property prices will drop 5-10%, while others are predicting much higher drops and even going as far as warning of a worst-case scenario, 50% decline. 

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