Hi I am new to the forum. I am looking to get started in property investment. The goal is to build an income to sustain us a decent basic lifestyle so we can retire early and well. I am 35 with wife and 2 children, and we own our own house in Sydney but no other properties. Open minded as where to buy, but Sydney and perhaps Brisbane in central areas seem attractive to me at the moment. I am open minded about the strategy and quite eager to learn different ways of investing so that I can pick the one that best suits us. On the other hand I am not really for seminars and the like, I would prefer to learn everything from books and people who have done it (but aren't trying to sell me anything). I have been browsing the forum for a day or so and it seems really good in terms of the advice, ideas, support and realism. Step 1 for me is to read books on property investment so that my knowledge of things like tax issues, how to research rental potential etc. is well rounded. Concurrently I am also getting the family on a budget (YNAB) which is showing on my salary along we are significantly negative every month but the SO is going back to work soon so we should be OK then . I really don't want to live a life where we always both have to work. Look forward to chatting to you all, and hopefully in 2025 I will look back and think I made some smart choices and feel more financially comfortable.
Hi Pommy Welcome to the PC forum. Have you also looked at Somersoft - PC's predecessor? There is a lot of valuable information on Somersoft going back years, which will provide insight into what others have done (including some of the very successful PC members who have used real estate investing and retired from it). It is fantastic you are looking at the next 10 years - which is a great start in itself, as you can work backwards on what can be done during this time. Best of luck and happy investing! Monalisa
Hey @pommy, Welcome to the forum. Your life is about to change and some of the brains you can network with here is unbelievable. I have also found my broker, property manager, accountant, conveyancer, all through this network. It's a great place. Some serious knowledge floating around here
Welcome abroad Pom. This forum is a great place to set sail on your property investment journey (just no whinging please lol)
@SeafordSunshine - I am not sure yet and in the process of figuring out what is realistic, however to retire early, and in reasonable style I would want to have at least $3m in equity (in today' money) in addition to a paid off house. Although ideally more that that. Having said this, if I 'fail' and only make a fraction of that it would be better than having done nothing.
@monalisa - thanks for the recommendation, I went to Somersoft and found an answer on page one to a question I had so that was quite nice.
G'day @pommy. Always great to see someone sign up. You will learn so much be reading and asking so don't be shy. Is 10 years your timeline to achieving $3mil of equity, or being well on the way?
@Steven Ryan thanks I am not sure yet. Ideally achieved in 10 years. It is going to depend on what kind of projects and investments we decide to do, appetite for risk etc. I am in the process of figuring out a plan that would suit us. I am happy if after planning that it turns out 20 years is needed - as long as it is realistic but at the same time allows us to achieve a good retirement.
Gday @pommy , welcome aboard. Reading plenty of books is the way to go. By many different authors focussing on the Australian market as possible to get a good idea of the different strategies.
@pommy, it will definitely depend on your risk profile and strategy. Soak up what you can here and you'll be on the way to forming a tentative plan
