There are plenty of people out there telling you that the property market is hard to get into for young Australians. There are plenty of reasons why people are telling you this, but it’s important to realise that these politicians, economists, your parents - whoever - are right.

It is hard for young people right now, but it isn’t impossible. In this blog post we’re going to give you a few practical tips that you can implement today, and gain the confidence to begin your investment journey.

After reading this you’ll understand the following: How responsible financial management translates into investing success, how to find good advice (and avoid the bad) and how to prepare for opportunity.

Not everyone has the luxury to be living at home rent free, or having their parents act as a guarantor on a loan, so we will be letting you know how you can begin your investment journey without those advantages. If you have access to this though make sure you exploit it. Successful investing is as much about opportunity recognition as it is about finance.

1. FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY = INVESTING SUCCESS

Having a steady income is the first - and most obvious - step, so we won’t tell you to find a steady income, because if you’re reading this you’ve already done that.

What we will do is give you two easy things you need to be doing every paycheck to ensure you’re financially ready to invest.

1. Save 10 to 20 Percent of Every Paycheck
   Building a sound foundation of savings, and learning the discipline to do it, is the most important step in your investment journey. Do not touch this money. You need to keep this for emergencies and to show you are capable of saving responsibly.
   
2. Pay Your Credit Balance In Full Every Month
   If you have credit debt make sure you are paying the full balance every month, if you’re not - or you can’t afford it - get rid of the credit card.  Having unpaid debts will ruin your ability to get loans.

If you can get a handle on these two things you’re going to be far above and beyond most other people in the investment game. Not only that, you’ll develop skills necessarily to successfully manage your incomes from your future investment properties.

2. GET GOOD ADVICE (AND AVOID THE BAD.)

Good advice will literally save you thousands of dollars, and hours too.

Reading this is a good start, but there are other resources out there too. Look for property investment forums and facebook groups where investors and realtors hang out online, read what they’re saying to each other - that’s where the gold is.

Be wary of people who promise to reveal the “hidden secrets to investing success!”, these people are more often than not selling you snake oil. Any advice worth following is offered for free, and gives you actionable steps to achieve success.

3. PREPARE FOR THE OPPORTUNE MOMENT

As we said earlier, opportunity recognition is just as important as your financial soundness.

Knowing what is and isn’t an opportunity isn’t exactly a skill you can acquire overnight, but getting ready to take advantage of any opportunities that come by is. For our clients we recommend using the Rosie & Rosie PPIA method: Plan. Prepare. Invest. Assess.

Plan:
A well-developed investment plan considers your short, medium and long term goals, your appetite for risk, how much you are prepared to invest and over what period of time.

Prepare:
Prior to purchasing an investment property it is important to ensure you’re clear about how you plan on financing and structuring the finance of your purchase.

Invest:
At Rosie & Rosie we start our research with consideration to which market represents the greatest potential for growth and yield at the time you’re ready to invest.

Assess:
Assessing the performance of your investment involves looking at ways to increase the rental yield as well as the capital value of your property.

If you follow all four of the above steps you’ll be on the path to investment success, doing all this in your twenties will maximise your investment ability and with a little discipline and patience you’ll be able to own your first investment property before you’re thirty.

If you’re looking for further guidance or you’re ready to start investing contact Rosie & Rosie today, and together we’ll put you on a path to investment success.