How to Select the Best Commercial Property for Your Specific Needs

Commercial property investment and investing

IT DOES NOT MATTER whether you’re an investor or an owner-occupier, there are several important factors to consider when purchasing a commercial property – to ensure you make the right choice.

In a previous article, I shared a handy App to assist you in shortlisting potential properties. If you haven’t already downloaded it, simply click on the HiReturn Filter over on the right to install it on your tablet or mobile device. [Read more…]

Choosing Your “Dream Team” for Commercial Property Investing

SO, YOU HAVE decided to take the plunge into Commercial property investing. Smart move! But where do you start? 

Well, as every serious investor will tell you, having a team of trusted experts by your side is essential for success. These are the people who will guide you and help you navigate the complex world of property investment. 

And lucky for you, you get to pick your own dream team. Here are the key players you’ll need. [Read more…]

Medical Centres – Depreciation Case Study 

THESE PAST FEW years have been challenging for the healthcare industry and medical centres in particular.

Issues with staffing, COVID-19, and larger than normal patient numbers have resulted in rapid growth within the industry.

In 2021 over 1.8 million people were employed in the health care and social assistance industry, which is projected to increase to more than 2 million by 2025.  [Read more…]

Your Due Diligence on Commercial Property

THE QUESTION OF Due Diligence is an interesting one. 

There are two schools of thought. Some people believe they should undertake all the due diligence investigations BEFORE actually making an offer and finalising the commercial terms of the deal.

There are a couple of issues here – number one is: Due diligence, done properly, costs money. Therefore, my approach has always been not to spend money until you have control of the property. [Read more…]

The Importance of Due Diligence When Buying Commercial Property


FIRSTLY, LET’S DEFINE what Due Diligence really means. And then, you need to understand when you should actually consider an in-depth Due Diligence study. [Read more…]

Buying Off The Plan: Developer and Sales Team Communication

Better-Communication

WHEN INVESTORS or owner occupiers purchase off the plan, they can often feel left in the dark throughout the construction process.

Clearly, it is important to keep your buyers informed, updated and as happy as possible… because the reputation of the Builder and Developer is what people remember.

At the same time, the project team can (and should) assist in providing some of the communication. [Read more…]

The Importance of Having As-Built Drawings for your Commercial Properties

As-built-drawings

WHENEVER YOU EMBARK on any form of construction work in an existing building, you’re first request from the Design Team should be for As-Built Drawings — for review, and to form the basis of the design process.

More importantly, the availability and compilation of As-Built documents (after a project is complete) should form part of your due diligence process at the completion of project.

Because, this provides the full scope of work undertaken, and allows for easy assessment of existing buildings — to help eliminate any surprises that may arise down the track, during future alterations. [Read more…]

Different Ways For You To Add More Levels

MoreLevels

WITH VACANT LAND becoming more and more scarce within close proximity to Australia’s major city centres, it has become increasingly necessary to develop or extend existing properties.

However, as a Commercial property owner, how should you to tackle this dilemma? [Read more…]

Floor Loading Traps: Part 2

Floor-Loading2

IN PART 1, you saw how changing the use of a property can affect the loading requirements — and what it can cost you.

Read on to find out who is actually responsible for determining floor loading, Australian Standards, and how to protect yourself. [Read more…]

Beware of Latent Conditions or Undocumented Scopes

Latent Conditions

ARE YOU AWARE of your latent condition or scope of work costs? If you are investing or developing you should have contingency funding set aside for these expenses.

Latent Conditions

Latent conditions can take many forms. You should know what kinds of latent conditions exist so you have a better picture of the possible rectification costs of these issues. [Read more…]

Watch Out for the Hidden “Soft” Project Costs …

Costing2

DEVELOPMENTS generally comprise two types of costs:

  1. SOFT costs being the Designers, Engineers, Planners, Project Managers, Cost, Planning and Specialist Consultants.
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  2. HARD costs, which are actual physical building costs, Builder preliminaries and Contingencies.

Both of these costs need to be managed. But there are two specific traps to avoid when reviewing initial planning soft costs — so that your soft costs do not blow the budget later on. [Read more…]