There are many reasons that Australians are so into property. Over the past 25 years, median house prices have increased by 412% and median unit prices have gone up 316%. That compares to a return from the ASX All Ordinaries index of 261%. And the size of the capital required means that it is an ultra-long commitment, and almost always involves leverage.

A house is an asset that goes onto your personal balance sheet. But if you take out a mortgage it is also a liability, and any liability will also negatively impact your cash flow into the future. Since your primary residence is an asset that generates no inflow of cash there is no offset. But a house also meets a basic human need since you live there.

However, property can also be an investment. There are a separate set of considerations when you think of housing in this light.

Understand the tradeoffs between residential property as a place of residence and an investment vs. an investment in other asset classes with the resources below.

Ever wondered whether you should invest or pay down the mortgage? We explore the considerations for both paths in this episode of Investing Compass. Mark has also written an article that goes through the considerations.

Shani speaks to one of Australia’s top buyer’s agents about how to successfully pick an investment property.

What if you never bought a house to live in? Mark speaks about his experience and why he’s happy renting for the rest of his life in his two part article (Part 1 and Part 2).

James Gruber writes about the future returns on property, and how Australian stocks will crush housing over the next decade.

Two-thirds of Australian wealth is held in property. As the intergenerational wealth transfer happens, it is likely that many of us will come to own more property. Here are the options when you inherit a house.

Shani goes through her reasoning for purchasing a house as a place to live in, and thinking of a property as a home rather than an investment.

This article looks at how to consider the family home as part of a retirement strategy.


Graham Hand runs through the 10 reasons why owning your home beats super in retirement.

Q&A: Property as an Investment

A house is more than an investment. However, we have had multiple readers ask how you would calculate a return on residential real estate – as either your home or an investment property.

Below are the four components necessary for calculating the return on your primary residence with two additional components for an investment property.

  1. The “forced” savings from principal repayments
  2. Price appreciation
  3. The impact of leverage
  4. The cost to maintain your home and sell it
  5. Investment property: Rental income received (including the impact of negative gearing)
  6. Investment property: Fees paid for property management

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