Not many property investors know a lot about land tax. I guess it’s not surprising, as the vast majority of property investors won’t pay for land tax until a number of years after they buy an investment property. However, it’s an insidious tax in that it sneaks up on you and is at its worst (most costly) when you least need it – in retirement. The decisions about property investments you make today will determine how much land tax you’ll pay in the future. It’s definitely something you need to know more about. 

Read on to find out more...

Most people are aware that finance can be classified as ‘good debt’ and ‘bad debt’. Good debt is debt used to finance assets that are purchased with the dominant aim of improving your wealth.

Good debt is tax deductible (e.g. investment property loan, margin loan for shares, etc.). Bad debt is debt used to purchase items which the dominant aim is not to improve your wealth and this debt is not tax deductible (e.g. home loan, holiday home, car finance, etc).

Read on to find out how you can make your home loan pay...

The sad fact is that most financial planners can’t provide you with balanced, impartial and independent financial advice even if they wanted to. That’s a scary statement, I know!

In my experience, the people that need financial advice and guidance the most (i.e. people that aren’t financially savvy), are the ones that seem to get “sold” the poorest quality advice. It’s almost like some planners take advantage of the fact that these people are easily bamboozled.

That’s why I am so deeply passionate about the need to increase the level of honesty and integrity in the financial planning industry. Read on to find out more...

Working with property investor’s day-in, day-out for the last 8 years has given me fantastic insights and taught me valuable lessons. I’ve been able to observe the way people make decisions, the quality of those decisions and the consequences – both good and bad.

Today, I thought I would share with you the top 3 most common mistakes that I see property investors make.  In my opinion, avoiding these mistakes increases your chances of being a successful investor by a factor of 10 – if not more. Therefore, if you own property or are looking to make a start, read on…

With 30 June 2009 fast approaching (less than 2 months away), your attention might be turning towards tax time, or at least it probably should be. There are some things you can do in advance to save money and minimise your end of year tax bill (or boost the refund if you’re one of the lucky ones). This month, I’ll take a look at six smart tax tips you can implement this year.

Read on to find out more...

It is no secret that the younger generations are living life differently to the baby boomers. Things like marrying later in life, taking a career break for travel, spending more on “lifestyle” items and not being shy about borrowing have all been debated and discussed in the media. A consequence of these changes is that we find a lot of professionals in their late 20’s to early 30’s who have a significant earning capacity, but few assets to their name.

Read on to find out more...

Having helped hundreds of property investors finance their acquisitions, I have been able to gain a great perspective as an “outsider” with regard to how property investors go about making their investments. There are some common things that the vast majority of investors do not do, which I think negatively impacts on their chances of success.

Doing these things will not necessarily cost you a lot of money, take a lot of time, or maybe even change the way you invest. However, taking these three simple but critical steps will greatly increase the likelihood of you building a significant amount of wealth.

Read on to find out why…

I am sure you have seen the ads in the Saturday newspapers preaching the benefits of off-the-plan property investments. Stamp duty savings, rental guarantees, “no need to pay for 2 years” are some of the common hooks used in these ads. However, are these investments really worth making?

I would argue that there are some fundamental flaws with off-the-plan property investments...

Most investment properties are cash flow negative for the first few years of ownership. That is, the rental income received is not enough to cover all of the property's expenses (especially interest which is the largest expense).

This turns some people off investing in property, because they do not necessarily want to commit to meeting a cash flow deficit every month from other income. Well, you don't have to. There is a solution that is worth considering.

I will show you how to structure your loans so that the investment property ends up paying for itself...