This mine worker in the remote Northern Territory had a worry-free investment experience by having the right team of specialists working together with his best interests as their common goal.
45-year-old Matt is often on the move. The fly-in fly-out scaffolder has found his niche among the mining workforce and it’s taken him from a coastal New South Wales lifestyle to the most inaccessible parts of our ‘red centre’.
Matt said it’s a well-paid gig, but there are long stretches on the job where he’s in the field.
He owns a home, but decided it was time to make plans for his family’s future, so Matt began researching the best path to retirement security. His conclusion? Real estate!
“I just want to get a nest-egg started with some solid investments,” Matt said.
He contacted Propertyology and got the ball rolling with a series of conversations about his goals and preferred level of investment.
“They sent me some info and said they could do it [help me invest] at that price point.”
Part of the process was locking in finance before the property search began in earnest, so Propertyology gave Matt a list of recommended mortgage brokers that might be able to help.
“You don’t have to use them but I liked the look of one and called him up and ended up going through him – Peter Trethowan at Astute Wilston. He was pretty good. Really straight up and everything done quick as a flash,” Matt said.
Peter was able to lock in a preapproval at Matt’s preferred property price point, which meant Propertyology could proceed with unearthing the best possible investment.
Propertyology’s national market research did the hard yards by uncovering a gem of a location – a regional city that most punters wouldn’t bother to investigate yet the fundamentals are as solid as any city in Australia.
“They came back to me with lots of research that they’d done on why they chose the location,” he said. “They arranged everything – it was smooth sailing.”
Matt purchased a 4-bedroom, solid brick house for only $269,000 in late-2017. The low maintenance, well presented property returns $300 per week in rent, meaning that he doesn’t need to put his hand in his pocket while he watches the asset value grow over future years.
“It has a park in front of it and a school behind it and is on a no-through road. You can see the ocean from the front balcony – it appealed to me.”
Having a team of professionals work for you really came to the fore during the purchase and settlement period.
Matt said being away working in a remote location meant he was relying on Peter at Astute and Propertyology to keep the ball rolling.
“They were doing everything for me basically – I just had to say ‘Yay’ or ‘Nay’ a few times – print out this, sign that. They suggested a property manager and I took them up on that. Never had a problem with it.”
Appointing a skilled professional for both sides of the balance sheet – asset selection and loan structure – meant that Matt’s best interests were very well represented. It’s the only way!
Matt said he was included in all communications, so he was always involved in the conversation without being burdened by the leg work. “They kept me in the loop with everything.”
Matt’s broker, Astute Financial Wilston principal Peter Trethowan, said mortgage brokers have become increasingly popular with investors.
“We’re finding less people are probably going to banks – our enquiry rate is probably the highest it’s ever been over the last six to 12 months… over 55 per cent of loans are getting done by mortgage brokers,” he said.
Peter said, in Matts’ case, he was able to weed out which of the 25 lenders on his panel would be the best fit, and he could stay across the process on Matt’s behalf.
“Given he operated remotely – by having a broker who’s able to talk to him after hours helped him and also trying to assist him with obtaining different sorts of information that was needed to get the loan approved,” Peter said.
“Then, after the approval was given, we were able to liaise with Matt’s conveyancer and Propertyology to ensure it was going to be a smooth process given he was working away from home.”
Peter said it was great to get a loan done without dramas and working with Propertyology ensured the client was well taken care of. It’s a complete arms-length relationship between Astute and Propertyology.
Peter said another great element of working with Propertyology is their clients are ultimately buying great real estate from a financier’s perspective.
“Their clients want to invest in a property not only with good yield but also potential for capital growth.”
As for our buyer, Matt, he places a lot of value on the teamwork and says it won’t be the last time he calls on Propertyology or Peter. “I have no trouble recommending them to a friend or anything.”
Propertyology is a Brisbane-based buyers agency and (national) property market research firm. We help everyday people to invest in strategically-chosen locations all over Australia. Australia’s only analysts to forecast Hobart’s remarkable recovery before the current boom, our buyer’s agents are actively investing in a few locations that resemble what Hobart looked like in 2014. Like to know more? Contact us here.
