As a Developer or Investor … What Should You Expect from Your Project Manager?

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EVERY CONSTRUCTION or refurbishment project is unique, in its specific requirements and challenges.

Accordingly, each project requires a broad range of skills and experience — which a professional project manager needs to be able to deliver.

So what is it you should be looking for, when appointing a Project Manager? [Read more…]

Be Wary of Bank Bills

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Part 2: Remain in Control of your Destiny

LAST WEEK, we made a start on understanding the pros and cons of Bank bills. But you also have other options.

Non-bill facilities are available through the big four banks, but are generally priced in a way as to only be competitive at smaller loan amounts.

While the big four banks are generally able to price better than smaller lenders, there are other factors considered to be important than merely the cost. And for small business, the interest rate on their borrowing is a relatively small consideration, in the overall scheme of things.

Far more important is access to credit, and flexibility of being able to draw up and down on that credit. Because, having this ability will reduce your overall interest costs in the longer run. [Read more…]

FAQs About Depreciation

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AS WE APPROACH the end of the financial year, many Commercial property owners often seem rather confused as to all the Depreciation deductions they might be entitled to.

To help you, here are the most commonly asked questions — purely to highlight just how depreciation can significantly bolster the overall cash return you can extract from your Commercial property.

1. What actually is Depreciation? [Read more…]

How to Complete a Building Project on Time & on Budget

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AS YOU DISCOVERED last week, carrying out a proper due diligence is vital for any significant Commercial property purchase.

And that’s part of our role … assessing the overall structure, along with the various building services — simply to ensure they are all in good order.

However as time goes by, you may well have the need to upgrade or extend your building … if only to meet the changing needs of your tenants.

Yet this is where many investors seem to get into trouble — by undertaking something well beyond the limits of their capabilities. [Read more…]

Be Wary of Using Bank Bills

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Part 1: An Understanding, plus the Hidden Costs

WHENEVER YOU ARE financing a commercial property investment or a business, the types of funding can be broadly classified into two categories: bill facilities and non-bill facilities.

The Concept

Bill facilities are charged as a margin over the inter-bank lending rates, published each day in the Financial Review as commercial bills; while non-bill facilities are charged as a straight interest rate.

The funds for these facilities may also be raised through the money markets, but they are priced on a simple interest rate basis over a loan term. [Read more…]

Proper Due Diligence is Vital

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MANY PEOPLE will make the mistake of not carrying out a due diligence study BEFORE they acquire their Commercial properties.

But this can end up becoming a very expensive process — because you’ll can often miss out on the property, if someone else snaps it up, before you’re able complete your study.

Therefore, the secret lies in ensuring you negotiate a deal — where your due diligence occurs AFTER you have tied up the property, under a binding contract of sale.

Anyway, here are the 5 Key Elements you need to investigate … [Read more…]

How Quickly The Mood Has Changed For Commercial Property!

Has The Penny Dropped?OVERALL, people appear to have returned from their Christmas break with a renewed sense of confidence — certainly as far as Commercial property is concerned.

In a recent article, I covered the reasons for this change.

However, investors are also being buoyed by the past two weeks of solid economic data — including a welcome boost to Australia’s trade balance, as well as retail turnover increasing by 0.9% during January. [Read more…]

How Good a Commercial Property Investor Are You?

InvestSOME WOULD-BE investors never get around to taking the plunge into Commercial property.

They certainly know quite a lot, because they read plenty of books and regularly attend seminars. But even so, they remain what are affectionately called “Armchair Investors”.

How to Cure Procrastination

There is a certain hesitancy that sometimes accompanies the transition from Residential to Commercial property investing. [Read more…]

The Anatomy of a Commercial Property Deal

SO LET’S GO right back to basics … and just break down a Commercial property investment into its fundamental components.

You see, very few investors seem to spend enough time to fully understand what’s involved.

>>>>>Your Investment = Equity + Debt + Ideas + Time

And you may care to explore each of these aspects in a little more detail. [Read more…]

Commercial Property Investing: How to Uncover a Good Deal

Discovering a Good DealIT’S TRUE … every deal will always be different. But that does not mean you can’t use a series of simple measures, to help you sift the “wheat from the chaff”!

Only then, are those properties entitled to make it through to the next stage of detailed analysis.
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How to Quickly Shortlist Your Properties [Read more…]

Top-End Commercial Property in Demand

Top-end Offices now in DemandOVER THE PAST several months, I have been recommending you refrain from trying to pick the bottom of the Commercial property market.

And certainly not wait for overwhelming evidence of prices being “on the up”.

Anyway, last week you were probably given the best confirmation you needed in an article by Carolyn Cummins (The Age, BusinessDay: 24 Jan 2013).

In the article, she talked about high net-worth investors having now joined institutional investors & sovereign funds, at the top end of the Commercial property market.

Driven by lower interest rates, demand has increased for health-care properties and large-scale shopping centres; plus traditional offices and industrial property. [Read more…]