If you’re feeling like you’ve missed the boat when it comes to property, you’re not on an island.
In fact, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve felt like that, and as property prices rise decade after decade, a few things have become clear to me that ring true now more than ever.
So, if you’re sitting on the fence about jumping into property ownership, you might be interested in our Top-5 Not-So-Typical Tips to get you over the fence and into ownership.
1. Harness the power of stepping-stones.
Forget the dream house for now. That’s right, not to shatter your dreams, but this will get you closer to your dream. With housing prices now sitting over $1 million across the nation, it means the upfront costs to get in are going to be in the ballpark of $250k! Wait, isn’t that what a house used to cost? In fact, units are just as gut-wrenching, especially if you’re eyeing off the capital cities. It used to be that in Sydney and Melbourne, units were the stepping-stones to houses, and the idea was to buy a unit that you could afford, let the equity (value) build over time, and then sell that and use the profit to buy a house.
So, the bare truth is that millennials and Gen-Z have been caught with their pants down, purely because they were born too late! And with units now out of reach, and prices now running away faster than any amount of saving can catch, the Aussie dream of home ownership is fading. If units are no longer a stepping-stone, then how do we make the leap?
Enter Proppie. Proppie is a mortgage-sharing matchmaker platform that helps you buy property as a team and matches budding homeowners based on their property preferences. The first of its kind, Proppie uniquely helps you to climb the property ladder twice as fast in half the time with half the risk! This way you can share the upfront costs and repayments, keeping all your finances separate, and with legal protection on the way in, during and on the way out. The best bit, you can sell your share of the property when you want! That’s right, that’s new!
Proppie takes the risk out of co-ownership and helps you from search to settlement to selling, all the while preserving the team relationship with its legal and financial framework.
2. Be prepared to compromise.
On the subject of forgetting the dream house (for now), Proppie asked millennials what they wanted to buy (it is no surprise the most wanted is a 3-bedroom house), and what they thought they could realistically afford. 73% thought that they would need to buy something other than what they desired and compromise on the size, type or location of the property.
I will say having an awareness of what I call the “desire-reality gap” and the need to compromise is a great start! In fact, compromise doesn’t always have to impact you negatively. I bet you’re thinking about your living situation and whether you can or want to live in a 1-bedroom unit. But if that’s not for you, think about this. You could rent-vest, where you buy an investment property in an area that will return great growth, and it might be closer to the city but smaller, and you still rent where you love to live, which could be a bigger place a couple of suburbs out.
It’s OK to compromise when you’re getting into the market, and in fact, those who aren’t prepared to compromise are more likely to keep missing the boat.
3. Be ready for disappointment and move on quickly.
It’s a jungle out there when it comes to buying property; you don’t know who to trust, you don’t know who’s trying to buy that place and you don’t know how deep their pockets are. You will look at a lot of places and it’s good to be prepared to face the situation where you miss out and have your offers turned down. You’d be very fortunate if you first offer was accepted, but unfortunately, the property ride is a little more dynamic for most. So be prepared if you don’t secure a place at your preferred price, and just know that there are many properties out there that are a great fit for you.
Stay focused on your goal and move on quickly so you don’t lose valuable time grieving the house that never was.
4. The calvary is not coming.
Yes, quite the opposite of a wartime message passed through the troops, but what I mean by this is that if you’re waiting for the knights to come and save the day, whether it be abolishing stamp duty, locking investors out of the market, policy changes that help you, that inheritance that is coming, or thinking a man is a plan, I have two words – stop it.
Help is not on the way. The sooner you embrace your independence (if you haven’t already) and charge forward to make things happen for yourself, suddenly, you’ll find you have people telling you how “lucky” you are (double eye-roll). Trust me, you will feel strong, free and empowered when you take the bull by the horns and start. Start your list, start ticking off your to-do’s and start hopping across those stepping-stones and claim your independence.
And, if you’re in a relationship and not sure if he or she is “the one”, I get that you’d want to hold off on buying a place together until things are a little more advanced. But the clock is ticking, and property is making a run for it, so we asked millennials if there was a legal framework in place to protect them when buying property, would they accelerate buying property together even if they were unsure of the “the one” status? And 58% said they would accelerate!
So that’s sorted. Proppie has you covered there. Things just changed and it’s a green light to go for the keyring before the diamond ring. Legal protection? Check!
5. Maximise your runway
Ah, the power of youth! I know, don’t talk to me about retirement or super because that’s waaaayyy off, but I am going to echo the wise and say it creeps up on you. And when you’re a spring chicken, you may have doubts and you may not back yourself yet, but one thing you can be confident in is that you have one of the most powerful advantages at your disposal – a long runway.
What I mean by this is that you have your years ahead of you, and when it comes to anything financial like investing, including property, runway is everything! Einstein said that compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world – and it is. Simply put, your money makes more money when invested and the longer the time it has to grow to more wealth, you will build in your sleep. So, my final tip when it comes to getting into property and investing is start early.
These are the tips – seize those stepping-stones and just start. Sharing is the new way into property and the world just changed.
