Help me to Retire

Struggling to get through the day?  Need some more energy to get you started on your next investment or business plan?

Try this site - 15 Instant Energy Boosters

Came across this article today. Some good ideas that can help us all out.

Check it out - 101 Ways to Save Money

According to depreciator.com.au 80% of property investors don’t take advantage of depreciation. To claim depreciation, you need a Tax Depreciation Schedule put together by a Quantity Surveyor. A Tax Depreciation Schedule is a report on all the items in your investment property that are going down in value. Basically with property it is the land component that is appreciating and the house and most of the things in and around it that are losing value.
Some examples of what items you can depreciate are:

• Hot Water Systems
• Carpets and other floor coverings
• Heaters
• Stoves
• Air Conditioning
• Curtains

A Tax Depreciation Schedule cost between $500 - $800 to prepare, but the years of tax return bonuses this could create for you should well out way the initial out lay.

Check out depreciator.com.au for more info.

Following on from yesterdays International Living article, I came across this great site today as I was on my daily where in the world would I love to own a place hunt.
Amberlamb.com is a great resource for information on property ownership in most countries around the world. Under each areas section they provide news on the local property markets and most importantly a buying guide, property investment potential and an investors guide for that country. For instance these sections will tell you weather foreign ownership is permitted in that country and how to go about it, or if other options are available to control property etc.

The site also has a small section on international mortgages for France, Spain, Italy or Portugal or another popular European destinations.

Anyway if you’ve fallen in love with a place you recently visited or you want to know what the latest international property hotspot is then Amberlamb.com could be the site for you.

Thought I’d mention this great site that I receive daily emails from and have subscribed to their print newsletter before also.
It’s International Living. A site dedicated to overseas living / retirement / traveling and investing. I often get my daily postcard from these guys and look at picture that comes along with it (often a white sandy beach in a perfect tropical setting) and start dreaming. It’s actually a great motivator to get my self financially free ASAP!

International Living offer some free reports and many you have to pay for, but prices are reasonable. The IL team have people in many countries around the world for in country support for people looking to move / buy property there.
Countries include:

• Argentina
• Ecuador
• Honduras
• Ireland
• Mexico
• Nicaragua
• Panama
• Paris/France

Some of the free reports available include:

• Worldwide Tax Summary
• A New Life on the High Seas
• How to Manage Your Overseas Property
• How to Prepare For a Move Overseas - A Checklist

I must say when you recieve an email that has a title of live in paradise for $19 a day, it gets your attention.  This is the type of information you receive. Info on up and coming Real Estate markets around the world, that are cheap, safe and have all the modern facilities that you need. A lot of the prices quoted are very low as compared to our first world prices, which make buying something all the more tempting and all the more within reach.
So if your interested in starting your global property investing or retiring overseas in a new culture for much less than it would cost you here, head on over to http://www.internationalliving.com 

I came across an interesting article today that goes against a lot of peoples thinking in regard to this matter.

“Many people are saying that baby boomers will pull money out of stocks for their retirements”, dragging stocks prices down with it. “That’s nonsense, Roberto! In the long run, stock prices don’t change because of such reasons. They fluctuate because of the ability of corporations to create wealth.”

My favorite quote from this article….

“Supposedly learned analysts have warned for years that big-spending boomers haven’t saved enough to support their retirements. Really? This implies that when the poor little boomers reach retirement, they won’t have three cents to pull out of stocks. The analysts can’t have it both ways. If baby boomers haven’t saved enough, they won’t have many stocks to sell, will they?

Besides, boomers who haven’t accumulated enough savings won’t retire at 65. They’ll continue working, generating wealth that causes stock prices to rise.”

Anyway, I’m not convinced either way, only time will tell…   To read the full article at the Pasadena Star-News click here.

The Defence Housing Australia Website is great place to go if your after a hassle free investment property with a long term lease for security. Once purchased everything is handled by DHA (Rent, Property Management, Maintenance etc).
DHA offer large newish properties at non-negotiable prices with long leases of between 6 and 12 years with offers of 3 year extensions after that.
The main problem with these properties especially for the first 3-5 years is the bad return they offer rent wise. The rent offered is what I consider quite low for the price of the properties. The other kicker is the Defence Housing Authority charges a monthly management/maintenance fee of 16.5 per cent (inclusive of GST) of the gross rental income for houses, or between 12 and 14 per cent (inclusive of GST) for apartments, units, and most townhouses where a strata/unit development or similar entity is responsible for exterior maintenance. This is very high as compared to the management fees normal Real Estate agents charge..  (between 7%-9% usually). The trade off you get for these high fees is complete hassle free property investment (well that’s what they say).

So if you are after a hassle free, great quality new/newish investment property and your keen for a decent amount of negative gearing then the Defence Housing Australia Website  might be one for you to check out. You can sign up for emails to be sent to you with their latest properties too.

This month CMC is once again putting on its free seminars to tell us all about their CFD platform and as their special incentive this time around all attendees receive a signed copy of the CFD book Real Traders, Real Lives and Real Money by Eva Diaz, (value $29.95).

Eva Diaz will also be there to talk about the trading techniques of full time CFD & FX traders interviewed in her book which may help you to improve your skills as a CFD trader.

In addition you will:

• Receive an introduction to CFD trading
• Learn how to place trades, track positions on the award-winning CFD Marketmaker® software
• Learn strategies for trading CFD’s over Australian & global Shares, Indices, Sectors, Treasuries and Commodities
• Understand how leverage can increase your profit potential, as well as potential losses
• Understand the risks of CFD trading and how to mange those risks

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I thought I’d talk a bit about buyers agents as I’m currently looking for one myself.
A buyers agent works on the side of the property purchaser rather than the seller.  Typically buyers agents are former real estate agents. This is great especially for inexperienced investors when out purchasing their first investment property as buyers agents do a whole heap of research on your behalf that could save you from making a costly mistake. They also know all the tricks of the trade that Real Estate agents can employ against you. This could save you thousands of dollars at negotiating time.
Reasons to use a Buyers Agent:

• Your looking at buying in an area your not familiar with or Interstate
• Access to the whole market, not just properties listed with a particular agency
• Property investment knowledge
• Time. They save you time
• Market research. Using the best research tools available to give you the best information, Residex predictions, REIQ sales data, Matusik snapshot, Midwood Report, PDS LIVE property sales database and others.
• Security and peace of mind in the knowledge that you have a trained property professional on your side.

To help you locate a buyers agent in the area you are looking to buy, realestate.com.au has a buyers agent section.