As an investor, you’ll need to put yourself in the shoes of a potential renter. Some of the things you’ll look for could be as important to attract tenants, such as proximity to transport. Others you could move down your checklist—like proximity to schools.
If there are plenty of attractive properties to rent in your chosen suburb, you might need to upgrade the bathroom or give the place a lick of paint.
Conversely, if there’s high demand then you might not be quite so concerned about updating the décor or fitting a new kitchen if the place is serviceable.
Unlike buying a home to live in, the goal when buying an investment property is to make money via rent and potential capital growth. It’s a good idea to decide whether you’re focused more on earning a steady income, or a longer-term capital growth. Then research the property’s potential for capital growth, rental income and ongoing costs.
You might consider:
current rental yields in the area to see what you can realistically expect from your property
the vacancy rates in the area to find out if there are a number of properties struggling to find tenants.