There is no such thing as a catch-all “how to” guide to property investment. Every company, developer, agent, brokerage, mortgage adviser and financial advisor has a different take on how to make money in property.
There are, for me, two ways that an investor can grow a lucrative portfolio of properties – the management of this will be different for all people, as will be the structure. Capital growth or yield, retirement planning or school fees… who knows? It doesn’t matter, that is a personal choice. What does matter is the approach you take to property investing.
Be bold…
There will ALWAYS be uncertainty in the market. There will ALWAYS be a reason or excuse not to invest in property or at all: referendums, elections, commodity prices, geopolitics because your hairdresser told you not to! Whatever the excuse, you can sell it to yourself if you are looking to talk yourself out of it. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t take these major factors into account but do so with care and don’t let it scare you off. Bricks and mortar go up in value, they aren’t making any more land (in this country) and the population is growing. It doesn’t take a genius to do the maths on that. When should you get involved? As soon as you can, buy a place for yourself, but if you can’t afford something big enough for your family, buy something to rent out and still get yourself in the game. Make sure you leverage sensibly to maximise your returns and if you can have someone else paying off your mortgage then even better. Never, ever over extend yourself no matter how tempting something sounds. If you can’t afford it, don’t do it. If you can, jump in!
Be informed…
I am NOT saying just jump in with both feet and not think about it. How to invest in property sensibly is not knowledge we are born with, even for those with innate good sense it is something you must make a point to learn. How do you learn? Read everything relevant you can get your hands on, read varying opinions and different arguments, listen to experts and listen to your friends who own property. Essentially become an expert in your own right, here’s the tricky part… don’t become arrogant and think you know it all. I have been in the property for 15 years and I still know I can gain from asking, questioning and debating with everyone in the market so I can keep on learning. There are companies and managers who can help you and guide you. Taking advice from someone who knows more about this than you will stand you in good stead. At the end of the day the decision to invest is always yours, but the more informed the decision, the better the dividend it will pay.
Be rewarded…
In whatever way your portfolio is managed, for whatever reason, you are building a portfolio, by being both bold and well informed you will be rewarded.
I won’t tell you who to invest with or how to invest, it’s not my place to. I work for Castlereach within a group of companies headed up by Brett Alegre Wood and the guys and girls here are tremendous, I respect them all and I trust them with my own portfolio and thereby the success of my future.
Check them out here www.gladfish.com and see if you like the sound of our formula for reward.