Property Insiders - Why Should Expats Invest in Australia? (with Dave Petrevski)

Performance Property Data

“If you are looking at heading over there, if there’s any negotiations in your contract talks, US dollar is always the main one to go for.”

The Daves (Misters McMillan and Petrevski) are back with another chat about the investment options for Australian expats. However this time the tables have turned somewhat, with Petrevski taking the lead in asking the questions. And the biggest question of all is “why should expats invest back in Australia?”

Both the Daves believe in the importance of educating Australians who are heading overseas about what their options are in regards to investments. This is why they both make regular trips to expat hotspots to share their knowledge. And they do this the core understanding that the overwhelming majority of expats, at some time, will return.

Whether an expat should invest back in Australia will largely depend on their answer to the question “where do they eventually want to buy their principal place of residence?” Another important question is “where are they going to send their kids to school?” Wealth building and investing should occur in the same market as the answers to these questions.

Dave McMillan tells a story of a recent client - a pilot based in Hong Kong - who plans on returning to Australia in ten years time. When he does so, he wants to live in a $3million property in Balwyn, where he can send his daughters to a local high school.

At the moment, however, Performance Property Advisory sees the Balwyn market about to head into a price correction, so there is no point in investing there. So what they will do for this client is purchase one property every one or two years in markets ready for growth. Once Balwyn is at the bottom of the cycle - in about 5 or so years time - they will buy into the area so that he has an investment in the local market he wants to live in. When he returns in ten years, he will have grown a sizeable deposit for the dream $3million house.

Such a strategy is wise, as a lot of expats are building their wealth, but are not wealthy yet. What they need is a wealth building strategy that is going to set them in good stead for when they get home.

For expats living in the middle of nowhere, one big thing the banks look at is currency and currency risk. Dave Petrevski has found a lot of reticence in the banks to fund many of the smaller currencies. Being paid in US dollars or GB pounds is the best, and it would wise to avoid Chinese yuan in the present climate.

About David’s guest, David Petrevski

With over 17 years of experience in the financial services industry, David possesses not only industry knowledge and experience, but also a desire to help people achieve their long term personal and financial goals.

As founding partner of Australian Finance Advocates, David’s role is to help build relationships within the financial services industry that add value to their team of mortgage consultants and in turn provide a flow on effect of benefits to their customers.

About the host, David McMillan

During his 16 years in the property industry David has worked as a property valuer and property adviser to private clients, financial planners, accountants, finance brokers, major banks and governments. He has been involved in more than $500M worth of transactions across Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia & Queensland.

Since 2009, David has been specifically focused on helping medical professionals, expats, business owners and busy executives build effective property portfolios.

David is a fully licensed real estate agent in Victoria, South Australia and Queensland (CEA), Certified Practicing property Valuer (CPV), Qualified Property Investment Advisor (QPIA) and most importantly is an active property investor. David joined the Australian Property Institute in 2001 and is now an Associate (AAPI) and in 2009 became a member of the Real Estate Institute. David currently sits on the board of Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA) to promote ethics in the property investment industry.

‘Property Insiders’ is one of three segments you will hear on the Performance Property Data podcast. Released fortnightly, they are conversations between David McMillan (Director Acquisitions - Performance Property Advisory) and industry leaders offering knowledge and expertise.

‘The Property Pineapple’ is released monthly and is hosted by Sharon Taylor (Research Analyst - Performance Property Advisory). The show presents listeners with stories from real investors, discussing their wins, and admitting their losses.

And ‘Performance Insights’ are released every Wednesday and Friday, giving you technical information and the lowdown on key property markets around Australia. These episodes are also available as short videos at our youtube channel.

For more information about how Performance Property Data can help you maximise your investment dollar, head to www.performancedata.com.au to become a part of the Performance Property Community for access to exclusive content.