Professionals Real Estate 
First time investors have been urged to focus on smaller more compact properties during 2018 according to Shane Kempton, Chief Operations Officer for Professionals Real Estate Group in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
Mr Kempton said that the credit squeeze currently being imposed by the big banks meant that first time investors needed to lower their expectations and start at the lower end of the property market.
“The big banks have been increasing interest rates for investors during 2018 while at the same time imposing tougher guidelines for the buy to let sector.
“It is fortuitous that the Perth property market has currently a large supply of very affordable properties where first time investors throughout Australia can start their journey on the property ladder.
“In particular, there are a large selection of older style units and smaller three bedroom one bathroom homes in Perth that can be purchased for under $450,000.
“First home property investors should understand that smaller sized rental properties that are priced under $450,000 can deliver high rental returns because they are in high demand by renters.
“This trend is highlighted by a recent ABS survey of more than 2.2 million private rental properties in Australia found that over 60% had an excessive number of bedrooms required by tenants.
The 2017 Housing Occupancy and Costs report found that only 7.4% of homes had insufficient bedrooms for tenants while 30.1% has an adequate number.
Survey Results on Housing Utilisation
1 or more bedrooms needed 7.4%
No extra bedrooms needed 30.1%
1 spare bedroom 38.5%
2 spare bedrooms 19.6%
3 or more spare bedrooms 4.8%
*Source ABS Housing and Occupancy Costs
“One of the biggest mistakes property investors make is to buy an investment property they would like to live in themselves without taking into account the demographics of the rental market.
“The reality is that many people who rent are aged under 35 years of age and are single or just couples.
“These people require only one or two bedrooms and do not want to be burdened by the maintenance of larger homes.
“For property investors in Perth, they have to appreciate that it may make more financial sense to buy a smaller more affordable home rather than a larger home which may not generate the level of rental returns as a smaller home.
“Property investors who buy an investment property with too many bedrooms can be effectively paying a huge amount of additional money for rooms that will never be needed for prospective tenants.
“This trend towards smaller homes will accelerate due to important social changes in our society with family sizes getting smaller as few people decide to have children or not as many children as in previous generations.
“Top areas in Perth where first time investors can purchase affordable smaller properties in Perth include Balga, South Perth, Como, Victoria Park, Bentley, Queens Park, Kenwick, Kwinana and Rockingham,” he said.
