Investing in Property – A Short Overview


Investing in property is one of the four most common types of investments. Together with investing in cash, bonds and shares, property investment has many other forms ranging from buy-to-let (rent) to property fund investment.

Like the main aim of investing in general, property investment relies on its potentials of making a return of your money (investment). If the property you have is for rent to tenants, the income is in the form of rentals.

If you have bought property and then sell it for higher price, the profit is your income. You may not own a property yourself, but you can have these potential benefits indirectly by investing in funds that are investing directly in properties.

Property maintenance and management services of properties are also forms where income can be derived.


Collective property investment fund

One of the many ways in property investment is joining collective property funds. In the process, a professional manager collects the money from the many investors and invests the money directly in property or in property shares. (Property managers naturally charge fees for their services, which chips into your potential earnings.)

There are many common examples in the market today regarding these property funds. These include property unit trusts, property investment trusts, offshore property companies, real estate investment trusts (REITs), shares of listed property companies and insurance company property funds.

Risks

One of the most obvious risks in property investment is the fact that property prices and demands for rentals can go and down. This would point out that direct and indirect property investments need to be there longer than other investment types.

The action is your willingness to wait out the spikes and lows of the market. This is the only way to ride out the losses in a slow housing market and earn profits again when times are better.

Over-investment

If you have over-invested in properties (meaning most of your money is tied in a buy-to-let properties), for instance, you might find yourself in trouble when the housing market slows down.

If you’re over-invested in property – for example, if most of your money is tied up in a buy-to-let property – you might end up in trouble when housing markets slow. The antidote here is the time-tested (and smart) method of diversifying your portfolio to cover many kinds of investments.

General risks

In comparison to bonds or shares, property takes a longer time to sell (thus liquidating it and making your profit). Buying a property is one big commitment, like putting all your eggs in one basket. Buying residential properties for leasing has many costs that can be substantial when added up.

Property needs maintenance work. Managing property takes times and money and work from you. If you don’t own it outright, you might want to extend the lease. This also takes additional costs and may need negotiations.

Added risks are also looming if you use mortgage or a loan to buy property since mortgage costs can rise.  If you cannot keep up with the repayments, the banks can take back the property. Investing in property Brisbane has to have more than common savvy from anyone.

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