If you’re thinking about purchasing a property for your investment portfolio, then it’s important that you’re doing thorough research. However, you don’t want to have to do this every single time you come across a property. 

Instead, it can be good to start with a few basics, and then decide whether the property is worth more of your time. If the property looks promising, you can dive further into your research. Otherwise, you can move right on to your next opportunity. 

Here are just 5 key topics to get you started! 

Median Price

Often a median price is used as a way to assess the property market, and see where people are buying and selling. Unlike an average, which can become skewed from outlier prices, the median price is more reliable. 

Finding out the median price of properties in an area you’re interested in is incredibly important when you are investing. 

From the median price you can gain more knowledge about the property market in a certain suburb, and use this to look at market trends, consumer sentiment and other conditions. 

You may see an increase in property prices over a time period, or it may be very stagnant. This is all useful information in determining whether it’s worth your time and money. 

Median Value 

The median value can be an even more stable metric to measure the property market in a certain neighborhood, because it is based on all properties in an area, not just those on the market recently. 

This can help give you more information about how the bank may view your property value, however it may not show you how the suburb is growing and changing. 

When you compare your median value to your median price, if it is largely different it may be an indication that properties are in higher or lower demand, or that the properties on the market currently are different to existing real estate in your area.

Number of Sales

You can look at the listing volumes and number of sales to help you determine what consumer sentiment is like. 

If people aren’t listing, they may not be confident in getting a sale they’re satisfied with, or it may just be competitive at the time. 

It’s good to know how many people are buying in an area to then know if you need to look into other factors surrounding it, such as the long term viability of the area.

Rental Trends

Many investors are eager for a second passive income with a rental property. It’s good to look at the rental trends in an area to help ensure that you choose the right type of property, otherwise you may end up investing in real estate that doesn’t suit this goal. 

Rental trends can tell you a lot about a suburb, and be a good indicator of the market conditions and future trends.

Vacancy Values 

Your vacancy value can help you determine how reliable your rental income is. If your area has a low vacancy rate, then you will have a higher chance of keeping your property tenanted.

 This is important as it can be a factor in your personal finances and your rental yield, as well as the operating costs of your property, including the time it may take a property manager to find a suitable occupant.  

This is just 5 things you should be aware of and considering when looking at your next real estate investment. If you want to learn more, or would prefer we handle the research, you can contact the DDP Property team here!