![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/au.res.keymedia.com\/files\/image\/MB.jpg?resize=572%2C494&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\nSince 2006, OpenCorp has been helping investors expand their portfolios and build wealth in the process.<\/p>\n
Your Investment Property sat down with Michael Beresford, director of investment services at OpenCorp, to discuss what prospective investors need to know before they take the plunge \u2013 and what the future of the Australian property market may hold.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Your Investment Property:\u00a0<\/strong>What differentiates OpenCorp from other competitors in the market?<\/p>\n Michael Beresford:<\/strong>\u00a0We\u2019re investors ourselves, and we started the business because those close to us were curious about what we were doing.<\/p>\n People see it working for us and took notice of the fact that we were adding properties to our portfolios, becoming successful investors in the process. Basically, they wanted to feed off our experience and expertise to achieve the same success for themselves.<\/p>\n Our track record shows that we\u2019ve beaten the market in terms of capital growth performance, which is really testament to the amount of time and effort our research and acquisitions team spend analysing the data.<\/p>\n We do the market analytics to understand where makes the best sense to invest from a capital growth potential point of view, and how we can help our clients build their property portfolios. MB:<\/strong>\u00a0Without a doubt, the biggest mistake we see is that people get emotional about what they buy \u2013 that might be because of the area the property is based in or the character of the property itself.<\/p>\n We often see people buying properties as though they are holiday homes rather than investments, and it never fails to amaze me how much money some people will spend on properties without having done the necessary due diligence.<\/p>\n There are two key things to remember to ask yourself: the first is, \u201cCan I afford it?\u201d and the second is, \u201cHow is that property going to help me achieve what I actually want to do?\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n YIP:\u00a0<\/strong>What should every prospective investor know before they try to enter the property market?<\/p>\n MB:<\/strong>\u00a0They should know what they want to achieve \u2013 investors need to have clearly defined goals, understand what financial outcome they want, and have a realistic time frame outlined for achieving them. I work with my clients to articulate what\u2019s required to help them get exactly what they want. That might be private school fees, having the choice to retire earlier, regular holidays, paying off a home \u2013 or any combination of the above. Once you have that established you can understand what amount of passive income you are trying to create. It\u2019s also fundamental that people take a long-term approach.<\/p>\n We have a bit of a saying at OpenCorp: \u201cGet rich quick equals lose money fast\u201d.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n YIP:\u00a0<\/strong>Where do you see Australia going as a market over the next few years?<\/p>\n MB:<\/strong>\u00a0The important thing to realise is that there\u2019s not \u2018one\u2019 property market in Australia; rather, there are many markets around the country, even within the same city. They cycle at different times and have different drivers. In the next few years, some of those markets will see price growth and some of them won\u2019t, as you might expect.<\/p>\n At the most basic level, the dynamic driving price growth in anything is supply and demand. But to take a macro view, over the course of a decade we see growth every four to five years \u2013 like we\u2019ve seen in Sydney over the last five years. Then there are five years when it\u2019s relatively flat and it stagnates. So at any point in time we need to be looking at where the best place to invest is, based on the market cycles. Investors need to understand where they\u2019re buying and why they\u2019re buying there.<\/p>\n Many don\u2019t realise the larger nature of the cycle; they buy at the top of it and then are frustrated because they feel the property is underperforming. But ideally you want to see that growth sooner rather than later, to allow you to move into the next property, and the next property after that, as soon as possible. For investors to create significant long-term wealth, the focus needs to be on achieving capital growth over multiple properties \u2013 compound growth. Accordingly, Michael Beresford is a staunch advocate of purchasing land and constructing a new home atop it.<\/p>\n He outlines four main benefits: 2. You can maximise your tax benefits by being able to claim the maximum amount of depreciation<\/strong> 3. You\u2019re settling on a block of land and then building a house to match<\/strong> 4. Older properties cost more to maintain<\/strong> <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Since 2006, OpenCorp has been helping investors expand their portfolios and build wealth in the process. Your Investment Property sat down with Michael Beresford, director of investment services at OpenCorp, to discuss what prospective investors need to know before they take the plunge \u2013 and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":176692473,"featured_media":24669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,25,31],"tags":[70],"class_list":["post-24666","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-story","category-sponsored-channels","category-your-investment-property","tag-featured"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n\u201cInvestors need to have clearly defined goals, understand what financial outcome they want, and have a realistic time frame outlined for achieving them\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/au.res.keymedia.com\/files\/image\/YIP%20137%2036-39%20KEY%20MILESTONE.PNG?w=1060&ssl=1\")
<\/strong>YIP:\u00a0<\/strong>What are some of the common mistakes you see investors making when they dive into property?<\/p>\n
\nKEY FACTS AND TRENDS<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n1. You can get more rent for a new property than you can for an old property<\/strong>
\nNewer houses are frequently more attractive to tenants and attract a higher rent.<\/p>\n
\nDepreciation is powerful because it doesn\u2019t cost you any money to be able to claim it, unlike rates or loan interest. All the holding costs are covered by the tenants and the government, via tax benefits.<\/p>\n
\nClients know exactly what they\u2019re getting into in terms of quality and functional house design, making it an optimum fit for the surrounding area. Plus, you\u2019re saving thousands by only paying stamp duty on the land.<\/p>\n
\nThe biggest drain on cash flow is maintenance. It\u2019s far better to keep that money to cover holding costs, or to hold a bigger portfolio.
\n\u201cThere\u2019s not \u2018one\u2019 property market in Australia \u2013 rather, there are many markets around the country, even within the same city\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/au.res.keymedia.com\/files\/image\/YIP%20137%2036-39%20Michael%20Beresford%202.jpg?w=1060&ssl=1\")
Michael Beresford<\/strong>, director of investment services,
\nis one of a team of experienced
\ninvestors at OpenCorp who are sharing
\ntheir expertise with others<\/em><\/p>\n