Investopoly

There have been a number of economists and commentators who have predicted that property values will fall anywhere between 10% and 32% this year. It seems like it’s almost become a competition for who can be the most bearish. However, my view is a lot less bearish. I believe property values won’t fall by more than 10% and it’s quite possible that they might not fall at all. You could be excused fo...

If many employees continue to work from home, then perhaps demand for property in close proximity to capital city CBD’s will fall. And conversely, perhaps demand for property in regional centres that are well serviced by pubic transport (trains) will increase. This encourages us to consider whether the work-from-home movement will change the way we invest in property. Covid forced us to work from...

With interest rates at all-time lows, in some situations, it is now a lot cheaper to be an owner-occupier than a renter. And with the prospect of interest rates not rising anytime soon, it could stay that way for a few years, unless the market changes. I thought it would be interesting to analyse the potential impact of this phenomenon. Obviously, there are some practical implications for people c...

Due to the impact of coronavirus, many people are having to navigate unexpected changes in income and expenses for the first time in their life. This is something I have been talking about over the past few weeks with clients, during presentations and podcast interviews. Cash flow management is the cornerstone of successful wealth accumulation. It doesn’t matter how much you earn, if you don’t man...

A few months ago, a reader of this blog asked me to analyse two options. Option one is to borrow more money to fund an upgrade of your family home and consequently enjoy tax-free capital gains. The second option is to invest in property. The reader wanted to know which is the best option, net of all taxes such as capital gains and land tax? Widen the scope of the question I’d like to widen the sco...

CBA Economics stated last week that property price declines are “inevitable”. It has forecast that prices will fall by circa 10% in Melbourne and Sydney over the next 6 months. It cited many reasons for this forecast including higher unemployment, lower economic activity, lower mortgage volumes, falling rents and fewer overseas buyers. I wanted to take some time to look at this forecast and provid...

If there is one certainty in life, it’s that there’s always going to be some uncertainty. Of course, there are times in our lives where there’s higher levels of uncertainty, which can be very stressful. But, to a degree, we all have to become comfortable with some level of ‘uncertainty’ and learn how to dance with it. This is especially true with financial decisions. Markets never exhibit zero ris...

We provide answers to a number of frequently asked questions below. We will continue to add new questions and update our answers as events and government announcements unfold. Questions about pausing loan repayments How does the loan repayment pause work? Banks are offering customers the ability to pause residential loan repayments for up to 6 months if they have been impacted financially by coron...

With most people being required by their employer to work from home, I thought it would be timely to update you on what deductions you can claim and what evidence you need as substantiation. Start keeping record now Remember, the onus of proof is on the taxpayer to substantiate any deductions they claim. If you use a tax agent, you probably won’t have to lodge this year’s income tax return until M...

Author and property investor, Michal Yardney says “real estate investing is a game of finance with some houses thrown in the middle”. People think that the scarce resource is investment-grade property. But the scarce resource is actually borrowing capacity – as everyone has a limit to how much they can and should borrow. In a normal market, investors that seek professional advice from a buyers’ ag...

Given many people are worried about the unknown consequences of the Coronavirus, I thought it was timely for me to share my thoughts and advice. Like in all ‘crises’, it is important to not let emotion or fear drive your responses. ‘A steady hand on the tiller’ is the best approach when navigating any storm. I acknowledge that the Coronavirus may have caused significant emotional and heath distres...

Borrowing to invest, particularly in property, has been a very popular investment strategy in Australia. A mortgage is a wonderful servant but a terrible master. If you use mortgages properly, in a risk adverse way, it can be a very powerful wealth accumulation tool. However, if used poorly, it has the power to destroy more wealth than it creates. After almost 18 years since establishing this firm...

Coronavirus’ impact on share markets is a hot topic at the moment. We’ve seen global markets fall by over 10% between 21 February and 2 March 2020. It seems that the market’s sentiment shifted literally overnight from a state of being arguably ‘over-optimistic’ to being ‘very fearful’. Some of my clients have voiced their concerns about the impact that coronavirus might have on their investments....

Over the last few weeks, lenders have aggressively cut fixed rates, particularly for investors that borrow on an interest only basis. Three and five year fixed rates now range between 3.18% and 3.40% p.a. This means the cost to hold an investment property is as low as it’s ever been. This doesn’t mean we all should run out and buy an investment property. The cost to hold a median property The grap...

I wrote a blog in December last year about how difficult personal risk insurance (e.g. income protection, Life and TPD) is becoming to obtain. Also, in December, the government directed Australian insurers to make some very significant changes to their products. I have been waiting to measure the insurers response to these directives. These changes will have a significant impact on your future ins...

With share markets at an all-time high and sentiment in the property market recovering, it is a great opportunity to divest of any underperforming (dud) investments. Not all investments perform as expected. Therefore, it’s important you regularly review them. This review should be completed without any influence of emotion – it’s all about the numbers. Let’s first discuss why now might be a good t...

Over the past few years I have observed a strong trend of investment-grade house prices growing stronger than apartments. It is true that all markets move in cycles and all cycles come to an end, eventually. It’s my thesis that several factors (such as the fall in the volume of new apartments, contraction of borrowing capacity and high population growth) are conspiring to create a growth cycle for...

With term deposit rates currently ranging between 1% and 2% p.a., and the prospect of further rate cuts by the RBA, many investors are contemplating where to invest their cash. Most commentators and economists agree that it looks like the interest rate environment will be lower for longer. If that turns out to be true, term deposit returns won’t even keep up with inflation. Therefore, most people...

Investing in shares can produce tax benefits. But it can also result in tax liabilities too. Terms such as “franking credits” and “imputation credits” (same thing) were frequently used during last year’s federal election (the Labor Party proposed to ban franking credit refunds). However, many people do not understand these concepts. So, this blog seeks to provide a simple overview of the possible...

An independent financial advisor does a lot more than just tell you how to invest your money. In fact, a lot of the work they do is ‘behind the scenes’ so I thought it was a good idea to share this information in a blog. This will give you a better idea of what a financial advisor does, and therefore whether you might benefit from having one. Develop a long-term strategy for you One of the predomi...

Personal insurances such as Income Protection, Life insurance and Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) are becoming impossible to get unless you are in perfect health. This change has occurred gradually over the past few years but has now reached the point that it’s become a real concern. This has a number of consequences which I discuss below. Insurers have a bad name We heard some shocking stori...

The bushfires in NSW and Queensland recently reinvigorated the conversation about global warming and whether the Australian government is doing enough to combat it. I’ll refrain from sharing my thoughts on this topic (I’m sure no one cares what I think about this anyway), but I thought it was timely to write a blog about sustainable investing. If you are concerned for the environment, this is a wa...

With the 2019 calendar year quickly drawing to a close, I thought it would be good to have a look at what next year might bring in terms of investment risks and opportunities. Over the years, I found that its best to form opinions on the economy by reading analysis/insights and attending economic briefings, whilst being careful to not overindulge. Too many opinions and viewpoints can confuse and s...

According to global bank Standard Chartered, the Chinese and Indian economies are expected to more than triple between 2017 and 2030. In fact, China’s Gross Domestic Product (a measure of a country’s economic output) is predicted to be more than double the USA. This is because the International Monetary Fund predicts that emerging economy growth rates will be nearly three times higher than develop...

Not more than 7 months ago, according to the media, investing in property was no longer a smart way to build wealth. Labor wanted to ban negative gearing, increase Capital Gains Tax (CGT), commentators were predicting that the market would crash by more than 20%, banks were tightening lending standards and so on. Since then, the world has returned back to ‘normal’ and most of these concerns have a...