Real Estate

Expert stylists at Coco Republic give us their take on the biggest styling trends this spring that are sure to get your property on every buyers radar.

Styling for Spring

The first and critical objective in selling your property is to grab the attention of the potential buyer while online. In this social media soaked world, we are so spoilt for choice and sometime an amazing property can go unnoticed purely because it didn’t stand out from the crowd. Other than the obvious, de-cluttering, cleaning, fresh paint and landscaping, we suggest the following trends to style your home for sale this spring.

‘Greenery’

The use of indoor plants instantly re-invigorates a space and gives a freshness that we all associate with Spring. Indoor plantings soften a space and bring life to interiors. Giving an indication of the space being occupied and loved.

Play with textures and scale with greenery. Don’t be afraid to mix foliage or bring large plants inside. Plants to look for include; Ficus or ‘Fiddle Leaf Fig’, Monstera or ‘Swiss Cheese Plant’, Snake plant or ‘Mother in Law’s Tongue’ and Ficus Elastica or ‘Rubber Plant’

‘Black on Blonde’

Characterised by dramatic contrast, mixing dark and light timbers will bring more depth, tone and texture to a space.

Raw exposed timbers soften the space. The focus is on rich, smokey blonde rather than yellow toned Scandinavian Oak.

‘Contemporary with Character’

As Spring approaches we are experiencing high demand for modern and contemporary styling in heritage homes. In Queensland for example, this is a fusion between our beautiful character-style Queenslanders, contrasted with a raw, more modern interiors.

Our clients are looking for cleaner, more edgy styling rather than the traditional “Hamptons” look we have become accustomed to in recent years. This modern contemporary look is achieved with the use of materials like concrete, brick and “live edge” timbers. Black steel features also create a strong and industrial look.

We are noticing more and more renovations and new developments are delving and experimenting with these techniques in their design.

As these spaces are generally quite raw and cold, we soften these interiors with natural textures like rugs and leathers, as well as contrast with dark furniture pieces, and large statement art. The visual contrast of black and white will provide a sense of balance and boldness to the feel of the home while lending it a graphic punch for your marketing collateral.

‘Staycation’

A quintessential Australian palette perfect for our outdoor lifestyle. In today’s busy world, our homes are more than ever becoming our sanctuary.

We are shifting away from the classic American Hamptons look, creating our own identity through our interiors.

It’s resort style living with a natural, light, timeless appeal.

When you want to improve your general fitness, you need to get out and exercise. If you want to be a successful property investor, you need to work at it. Here’s what you need to do to become property fit and become a successful property investor.

Mindset

Property is expensive: you generally must have the deposit to put towards the purchase price being 20%. Therefore, you will need to borrow money from the bank of up to 80%.

Here is the first shift in thinking. Don’t
be scared of debt; it can be your friend if managed correctly when you’re a property investor. I agree that some debt is bad like credit card debt, short term loans
 for cars and holidays. However, good debt is applied to gain leverage in a solid performing asset like property.

Deposit

Work hard and save, save, save. There is really no other solution to getting a deposit together which amounts to about 20%
of the purchase price. If you’re earning $45,000 after tax, you should be able to put aside at least $20,000 per annum, which means in five years you will have accumulated at least $100,000. If you have a partner, that’s a combined $200,000 that can be used as a deposit on your first property.

Bank

This is the most important partnership
in your quest to become a fit property investor. You will generally only have 
a 20% deposit of the purchase price, therefore, you will be asking your banker
 to lend you 80%. You need to convince your banker that you have a track record of steady employment and saving so they will feel confident in lending you the money, knowing you have a culture of saving and working and being able to make the monthly mortgage payments.

Establish a team

As a property investor, your team should be made up of a banker (assist with finance), real estate agent or buyers’ agent (assist with buying and managing property), lawyer (assist with purchase contracts), quantity surveyor (assist with depreciation write-offs) and accountant (assist with tax and structures and cash ow with tax savings). Negotiate on the purchase price of a property but don’t skimp on the costs of the services of your team. If you don’t get the right advice it could cost you thousands.

Research

Not all markets and properties perform the same. You need to understand how demand and supply works and look for areas that are in high demand with low supply. These are areas where the bulk of people want to reside, they are usually close to the centre of major cities with transport links, good schools and shops.

You will need to meet with your accountant before you exchange a contract so that he or she can explain how negative gearing will impact your cash flows.

Find the right manager

Once you have settled on the property, you need to secure ongoing cash flow by sourcing the right tenant and ongoing management of the property. The best property manager will manage your property on your behalf to ensure rents are collected on time, minor repairs and complaints are handled on your behalf giving you peace of mind.

This is general advice. Seek advice for your particular situation before acquiring an investment property to see if it will suit your current financial situation.