THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH
I hope that is not the case as it has been a fabulous journey since we became part of the Professional Real Estate Group, how fast do the years fly by, seven years seems like yesterday, we celebrated on the 1st of July at our local with all the staff. Many changes have happened over the seven years with staff and of course my constant remodelling of the office.
The major change has been the market, back in 2008 we had the GFC (nobody would have forgotten) we started with a boom in 2006 and then bang (bust) tough times for all, our business dropped 50%, however we have survived. Since then we have had peaks and troughs. All in all we are still a strong brand here in Broadbeach and surrounding suburbs with a tight nit team in sales and property management. One thing I can be proud of is the way we have grown our property management portfolio .
Just to finish off the fabulous seven years, my wife and myself had a longer than normal break OS, with a well earned trip to Hawaii. The batteries are now fully charged.
EVERY property ’expert’ who writes, speaks, blogs or tweets about how to get the most out of the Gold Coast property market and avoid mistakes should always make it very clear to do your research before you buy, sell or invest in a home to rent. The first element of that research should really be about the area's demographics. For example, knowing the total number of dwellings within a suburb will help you to understand what percentage of the area is on the market. You'll need to compare the demographic number to an online search of the suburb to discover how many homes are for sale.
Compare the number of homes for sale with neighbouring suburbs to give you an insight into the local supply, noting some homes listed may be duplicated and some may be old listings or under contract. It can take a bit of time, but that time is teaching you all about the homes in that area, which is the point of the exercise. Short supply in your area could mean that is not the time to buy, but the time to sell. Looking in the papers then will add to your insight even more.
Perhaps you are researching the rental market as a potential landlord. What you need to find out is how many homes in the area are rental stock? What rents are they paying typically? It is even better if you can obtain an insight into the typical average earnings and the amounts of income that is spent on rent. All these statistics help you decide if the rental figure you are hoping for is reasonable and if there are good chances of retaining 95 per annum occupancy or better.
Another good way to discover a true insight into the type of area you are considering, is to establish how many dwellings are owned outright, owned with a mortgage, or just rental stock? Then you should look at the typical household mixes of that suburb. How many people typically live in a home? How many cars do they have? How many children on average? What age group is the population? Marital status? All these factors help you to understand the choices you will need to make in relation to the type of property you should be seeking that will be most attractive as a rental in that area. It is even more useful if you can compare this suburb with others similar in the state and nationally.
How time is flying, almost spring time and here on the Gold Coast the weather is amazing - clear skies and sunshine. Perfect Queensland weather, a great time to buy or sell.
A question that I get asked daily - How is the market?
Today I can sing the song that the people want to hear, the market is on the turn. WHY - low stock levels, more buyer enquire, more sold signs. So for me, a very positive sign of market improvement. Add to that, rates have now fallen and are now at a record low 2.5% http://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/rba-cuts-rates-to-record-low-20130806-2rbps.html, and a change of Government in September, Alleluia!
Just remember though, there is no such thing as instant success, it still takes determination and vision.
I have just spent a couple of days in Melbourne and know why I live in Queensland, Melbourne temperature at 8.00am in the morning, 7 degrees, wind chill 1 degree, absolutely freezing, they can go on about their Yarra river, restaurants, the G and shopping, we don’t need any of that, we have the best weather, we love it up here. Hope to hear from you all soon.
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