How to save thousands and stop the banks getting the upper hand!
As a landlord and property investor there seems to be so many things that are out of your control. Floods, storms, bad tenants, market booms, market busts and interest rates.
Many investors look at their property portfolio as a retirement plan that they “hope” will eventuate into a pot of gold by the time they want to retire.
Unfortunately, this is rarely the case and many investors “retirement” portfolios end up costing them more in the long run.
Insurance that doesn’t quite cover the roof damage, not putting the rent up because you don’t want to upset the tenant, not having a depreciation schedule, buying in the same suburb you live and staying with the same bank too long are all ways that your golden nest egg turns into a money pit.
But here is the KEY.
Change the way you think about your investment properties.
You are not just a property investor you are actually a business owner. The Tax office allows you to make deductions as if you are running a business, so you need to have that mind set as well.
As a business owner you must ensure your business is running at its optimal capacity. That means pulling certain levers to maximise your profits. Depreciation schedules, finding a great property manager, ensuring your insurances are in place and increasing rents with the market are all ways you can fine tune your business efficiency.
And the number 1 lever you can pull to maximise your profits is ensuring your home loan is market competitive.
This lever alone will save you thousands a year and take years off your loan.
Banks are fully aware that people get complacent. They know that after you set your home loan up and if the service is ok you will forget about your home loan and maybe occasionally glace at your interest rate,
This complacency will KILLL your property/business profits and turn a cash flow positive property or portfolio into a negatively geared one.
I see this every day, so don’t let yourself fall into the same trap. After two years banks will NOT give you the lowest interest rates that they give “New Lending” (New Customers).
As they say you need to “vote with your feet”. Take your business elsewhere and SAVE. I regularly see savings of $2,000 a year just by switching to a new lender with a better interest rate. If you carry out an optimization check every 12-24 months on your home loan you can potentially save $60,000 over the life of your loan and pay out your loan 4-5 years early.
Its time to look at your portfolio in a different way. Pull the biggest lever you have at your disposal to supercharge your profits. Optimize your business so it is performing at maximum capacity to give yourself every chance to enjoy that golden nest egg.
Kind Regards
