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The popularity of property investment is rising, according to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), with record low interest rates driving confidence.
The latest housing finance figures from the ABS show the value of investment home loans rose by a seasonally-adjusted 1.1 per cent to $81.4 billion in April 2013 – suggesting that investor confidence may be rebounding in the property market.
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Empire CEO Chris Gray believes that low interest rates have given the market a welcome boost in confidence.
“With interest rates currently at 53-year lows, an increasing number of investors may be seriously considering their next property purchase,” he said.
However, Mr Gray believes that waiting for property to bottom out is not an effective way to invest.
“Many people try to wait until the market is at a low before buying. Long-term investors know that timing the market is for speculators, not investors," he said. “If you can afford to buy and hold onto your asset, now is always the right time to buy.”
Mr Gray said he had assisted clients for two decades, negotiating and renovating investment properties, and has identified a number of ‘rules’ for investing, including refinancing instead of selling.
“Many investors believe that they need to sell in order to realise capital growth that they've gained in a property, but this process incurs selling costs, taxes and often re-buying costs," he said.
“Refinancing, on the other hand, allows you to access the profits while still keeping the appreciating asset. It works similarly to a reverse mortgage.”
