I have a good friend who asked me what I thought about property investment when he was 24. After an hour of sharing, he told me he understood more about all the risks and potential returns. He purchased his first property after a few years’ of working and I do think he has a number of properties today. I have an ex-colleague who bought her second property after listening to my property sharing. These people researched and decided that property investment is for them.
I also have good friend who told me that he is going to buy a property very soon. That ‘very soon’ was around 15 years ago. He is still staying in the same home thus far. At the same time, I also have a good friend who told me that her husband will buy one particular home they like very much when the price is lower. She does not know what price her husband is looking for. He does not know yet. This brings us to the 2 greatest reasons of all time.
Buy very soon. Buy when it’s low. 2 greatest reasons of all time.
Feeling of comfort and safety is the same whether we rent the home we stay or still paying for the home we are staying in today. Please do not say that we will only feel comfortable and safe if we own the home we stay today. By the way, if we are still paying the home loan, it meant that the property belongs to the bank, not us.
A home sweet home keeps away the rain, the shine and it provides safety to our lovely family when we are away on business travel. In fact, it provides a space to watch our favourite show and we could even convert one of the rooms in the home into a mini cinema too. Since a home is such a good thing, everyone says that they want to buy one. However, decision to buy may not be so straightforward. Two reasons were often given. They are as follows:
I want to buy very soon.
Many friends have told me that they will be buying a property very soon. When asked how soon is that, they gave another good reply. As soon as I am ready. When asked when would you be ready? Another good answer follows. As soon as I have saved enough money. Then, when asked how much is enough, the answer would be I have no idea yet. Wait until I found a dream home I like. The conversation has no end, really. Days, weeks, months and even years later, the same answers above apply as well.
Anyway, how soon is soon? Some say the property market is slow currently and that every developer is desperate and the unsold units are at record high. So, can wait. Some even say that many owners are willing to sell at a much lower price. So, can push. Some say many good auction deals. With all these backgrounds, is it a time to wait and is it a time to look for good deals? However, all these answers also still does not tell us the answer to how soon is soon.
I want to buy when the price is right
When price is right means when price is low enough. How low enough is low enough? This is about property prices. We want to buy when the prices are low, lower or lowest? Well, no one in the world knows when will property prices hit rock-bottom. As for low and lower, this depends on our own assessment. If we found a place where the rental is now giving yields of 8 percent based on the property price, should we wait until the yield is 10 percent or higher before buying?
If we love a certain area and we know the usual prices and suddenly we saw a property for 10 percent lower than the usual, should we buy or should we wait longer? In the auction market, someone may have the opportunity to buy at 20 percent lower but he chooses to wait for the next auction where prices will go down another 10 percent lower from the previous auction price. In the next auction, there are now more than 5 potential bidders because the price is just too attractive. He may have lost the opportunity to buy that property at 20% below the market.
Perhaps a better question is how do we decide?
I think this is a better question to ask. We can decide what kind of property we prefer, decide on the areas we want to concentrate in and even by deciding the price that will be attractive enough to enter. We could also decide if we like landed more or high-rise units more? When we have all these focus areas in place, we are now ready to grab opportunities as soon as they come along and it’s not about waiting for the best time or even the best price anymore. Be ready to grab the opportunity.
As for how and what to decide, that’s up to everyone yeah. Keep reading, comparing and evaluating and soon, we will be knowledgeable about that certain area that we are looking at. Way better than any of the property speakers in some property shows even. Happy deciding yeah.
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