Building for Investment

“What make a new house a better rental property?” . . . . A quick answers is probably along the lines of  “Would I be happy living in it.”

Do you want capital growth or regular rent income is something you need to also consider.

Here are a few things to think about when considering building a new house for investment:

Inner Or Outer Suburb?

Inner suburbs will be more expensive so units, or town houses will probably the way to go. With few new houses capital growth should be reasonable.

Outer suburbs and you are probably looking at 3/4 bedroom houses. The problem I’ve found with new developments  is capital growth can be slow until well after the last house is built.

What’s the Local Market?

Spend some time talking with local agents about occupancy rates for various house sizes and properties in demand. No use building a 300m double storey house surrounded by single storey 150m2 houses.

Area Demographics

Spend a little time walking round the suburb. Is it singles, young families or empty nesters? Are there lots of professionals or is it a more ‘Blue collar’ area?  

Aim for the middle of the demographic to capture the most tenant demand. Not just with the house, but the standard of fit out.

Aspects Of Location Attractive to Tenants

Proximity to workplaces, transport links and amenities such as schools, restaurants, parks and shops are all aspect that are valued.

Easy Maintenance

As a frequent renter, and landlord over the years I can tell you that property maintenance has never been as high on my agenda as when I have been an owner occupier. Make sure  front and back yards are low maintenance.

 

Negative Investment

Negative Investment can be quite a problem…..but what is it.

Well it’s when the house is worth less than you paid for it. This can be a real issue if you need to sell the house.

There are three ways you can find yourself in a Negative Investment Situation:

Falling House Prices

For a long time a lot of people though that house prices always go up.

Over the past five years prices have been more up and down. Now they seem to be on the way up at the moment but there is no guarantee that will continue.

Unfortunately there is nothing any of us can really do about this problem in the short term. If you can wait long enough you should get your money back. In 1991 we built a house in Country Victoria for $130,000.  Ten years later we couldn’t sell it for the original cost.  After renting it out for another 5 years we were able to sell it for $200,000. 

At least with this type of negative investment it will also typically affect the price of any house you buy when you sell your existing house. That’s  good if you do keep in the housing market……….but not good if you have to sell and enter the rental market.

Extensive Upgrades

I have already mentioned that the builder provides the Typical Display Home with upgrades that increase the cost of the base house by 50%.

If you go for a similar level of upgrades you may not get your money back. This is because:

    • When you put the house on the market you will be competing with houses in the same suburb that didn’t cost as much. Those owners are happy to sell for less than you. This means you may only get minimal interest from buyers.
    • Taste is very individual. For instance prospective buyers may not be too keen on the ‘Special’ tiles you paid  thousands extra for.

If you keep the house for a long time,say 20 years, this effect of the upgrades diminishes as your original costs wil be long forgotten and buyers will be expecting to remodel.

Over Development

Over Development is the extreme version of upgrades. Its when you put the biggest possible house on your block….. Often loaded with upgrades.

With this you may now have a house that costs two or more times that of the average house in the suburb.

When you come to sell the problems are:

  • For the price you want most people will prefer a smaller house in a more expensive suburb.
  • Generally people want outdoor space in proportion to the size of the house. A narrow gloomy strip at the sides and back won’t cut it.

The trouble with Over Development is it can have a permanent effect on the value of the property.

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