[jo b]

Maybe this one is for Beach or anyone else in the know

We are looking to invest some of our hard earned cash and I was thinking of buying a property to let.

What pitfalls does this have in NZ. Is it full of red tape.

Is it deemed as an investment in NZ.

Any advice would be welcome.

jo

[veronica]

the red tape is not as bad as the UK and there are landlords and tennents associations on the web, give 'em a look up. Their is money to be made renting out in Uni areas by the room as well as the conventional family rental.

[Beach Kiwi]

What pitfalls does this have in NZ. Is it full of red tape.

Not much red tape. The main pitfalls being finding good tenants, ones who'll look after your property and pay the rent. The laws governing rental properties are a bit tighter these days, which means both landlords and tenants are better protected.

Basically, all you need to do is buy a house, find a tenant, get them to sign a tenancy agreement, get the allowed bond and rent in advance - usually two weeks rent for both - and that's it. You do, however, need to declare your income from the property to the tax department, and do any maintenance on the property - but not things like lawns and such, as the tenant usually takes care of those things.

Some detailed information on renting, both for the landlord and the tenant, can be found here (http://www.dbh.govt.nz/housing/tenancy/Renting-and-You/English/eng_home_new_edition.html), here (http://www.dbh.govt.nz/housing/tenancy/default.htm), and here (http://www.minhousing.govt.nz/tenancy/Renting-and-You/english/eng_s5.html). Check out the other links on the site for even more information.

Is it deemed as an investment in NZ.

The returns on residential properties aren't very high at present, typically between 5 - 10% in the main centres of population. The lower end of the scale being more usual. However, the capital gains are quite high, especially over the last three years, so you shouldn't lose out on the deal.

[Beach Kiwi]

Here's (http://www.landlords.co.nz/) the 'official' landlords and property investors website. :cool

The site seems to be running slowly, for some reason. :?

[Junnifer USA]

How high are capital gains?
thanks,
Jennifer

[Beach Kiwi]

^ On average, over the last three years, they've got up by 20 - 30%. Some areas, like coastal property, have gone up even more.