One of the main reasons that residential property investors sell their properties is that they are impatient to see the fruits of their investment.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes this causes them to sell at an inopportune time \u2013 say, when the market is slow or before they have held the property long enough to see serious capital appreciation,\u201d Bellarine Property managing director Christian Bartley said.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo use a culinary analogy \u2013 if you take a cake out of the oven before it is properly cooked, not only will it not rise (capital appreciation), it may even sink (capital loss)!\u201d Mr Bartley said investors should never sell.<\/p>\n
\u201cAstute investors keep buying more properties as their borrowing power increases.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes people think selling is the way to realise a profit.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the most effective way to enjoy your increasing wealth is, paradoxically, to borrow more.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you buy your first property, you are usually stretching yourself just to get a foot on the investment ladder and there is little money left over for luxuries.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs your portfolio grows in size and your equity increases, you can have your cake and eat it too.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou simply hold your investment properties for optimum capital increase when you need it (usually on retirement when income from work ceases) and use further borrowings to enhance your current lifestyle according to your interests.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Bartley said the best strategy for most investors was to embark on a program of planned property investment at their earliest financial convenience \u2013 usually when the equity in their family home reaches a fairly high level and after consulting their accountant.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you keep adding to your portfolio, you escalate your assets to the level of wealth you desire.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe longer you hold onto the properties and the more they increase in value, the more you are in control of your own financial destiny.\u201d<\/p>\n