If your next real estate purchase is your first time property investment, chances are you'll need a bit of a primer on what to look for. Fortunately, there are certain criteria you can use to narrow down your choices.
Choose a capital or major city
Capital or major cities tend to have steady growth over time. Such metropolitan centres have large and typically growing populations, as well as receiving a large degree of public funding for projects and works.
It can be tempting to invest in boom towns, which experience meteoric short-term growth, or property in regional or vacation towns, but success here is often fleeting and based on speculation. If something suddenly makes the area less favourable - such as drought or the end of growth - this can leave you in a worse-off position.
Within these major cities, you'll want to pick growth suburbs - areas with steady population growth that are seeing a significant amount of infrastructure investment. A stable increase in population means more sustainable market growth, while added transport links, health care facilities and other infrastructure attracts buyers and pushes prices up.
An affordable entry point
Expensive doesn't necessarily mean better. Investing in property is a long-term wealth-growing strategy, rather than a get-rich-quick-scheme. So look for an affordable property within your means that's located in a growing area - if you choose wisely, eventually that entry price will have grown significantly.
If possible, a property with a land component is preferable - land is limited, so this type of home is more likely to appreciate over time.
Buy new
To make the most of your investment, a property that's as new as possible is ideal. This is because the depreciation of your investment property can be offset against your taxable income for tax savings.
In addition to all of this, consider working with a company that offers a fixed build time and rental guarantees. DPN do this successfully, as well as providing you with a free property investment plan before you start looking.
