Where have all the great property deals gone?

Although I don’t look like a ‘researching type of guy’, I do spend most of my time researching either for new locations to invest in or for the best property deals within those locations

Now I can’t be the only one to think this – but where have all the good deals gone?

It’s not that I can’t find them, it’s simply that the great deals in Australia are few and far between. We all want low interest rates, but this has increased people’s confidence in investing, and consequently increased the values in many property markets right across the country. This rise in values is due to increased competition, with the current exception of the market in Western Australia. So while everyone was focusing on the eastern states, guess where I was? Exactly!

That said, the deals will soon be all but gone there too. This has directed my investing to another market and one in which the prices are downtrodden (meaning awesome deals) and the yields are mind-blowing – the USA! What I am finding is that thousands of investors are extremely interested in investing in the US. I mean why wouldn’t you be? The numbers speak for themselves. But they hesitate due to lack of knowledge. Well, those days are gone!

I’ve been investing in Detroit for nearly six years now and the property prices have almost doubled in that time. In figures, that means the capital growth has been over 10% every year, with last year seeing 15% growth. The next two years will be the same.

To make this even more attractive, the yields range from 14% to over 22%. It’s no wonder that with growth and yield statistics like that, getting deals in Detroit is now almost impossible.

So this meant I needed to get back to the drawing board and research new locations. And that I did. Having just come back from a research and buying trip I am happy to announce I have three new US city locations that are nothing short of amazing!

Imagine buying houses for under US$80k – that’s just enough to pay a deposit for a house in Australia. Add to that yields of 14% to more than 22%, meaning tenants are paying between US$220 and US$250 per week. Yes, I know – sounds too good to be true. But once you learn all there is to know about the ins and outs you will soon see that the deals are out there – you just need to be looking in the right direction.

And this is the reason why so many SMSF investors are also looking to invest in the US to earn a great passive income. I own six properties in my SMSF in the US, and I now earn over $2,000 in Australian dollars per week in income. Yes, per week – I know, I still have to pinch myself too!

Todd Hunter is a professional property investor (59 properties) and controversial blogger who tells it how it is!

This article first appeared in MPA's sister publication Your Investment Property