SUCCESS STORIES

Phil Swalwell

Phil Swalwell is 42, married with two children. Phil started investing in property in 2001. He now has two investment properties and a third is in progress. Phil used the equity in his home to purchase his first property for $492 000. Now five years later valued at approximately $600 000 which is a capital gains growth of 22%. It is a two bedroom unit in Chatswood and only cost him an out of pocket expense of $60 per week.

When Phil started he was a real novice and had no idea how to invest. His parents received a flyer from R.E.I.N. in the post and handed it to him, knowing he was interested in investing but not having a clue where to start. After attending the R.E.I.N. seminar Phil was really impressed with Jim's integrity and genuine personal service, glad that he had been educated in the whole process from start to finish.

"When I first went to R.E.I.N Jim made me carry around a notepad and I had to write down everything I spent, even if it was a paper or a cup of coffee. I did this for 2 weeks until I knew where all my spare money was going. It helped me see what I could afford on a weekly basis. Now when I am in the position to save some more money we buy another property. We always buy off the plan, not only because it is more profitable but it gives us two years to plan for it. When I first started I was nervous, and couldn't sleep thinking my God! I have just put myself into $500,000 debt! What am I doing! But with R.E.I.N. holding my hand and guiding me I am so much more relaxed and actually enjoy buying property. My advice to anyone thinking about it is budget, budget, budget! Stay focused and remember that when you do the analysis the undercurrent is property which equals profit, let's face it the banks wouldn't loan on it otherwise. I feel relieved that I am going to have something to retire on".

Dean Grima

Dean Grima is a young 47 year old IT Systems Administrator. He is married with four children. He has been with R.E.I.N. since1997. He now has four properties. Through R.E.I.N. Dean has bought in Oxford St and Chatswood the later being the most profitable he has made $260,000 out of the Chatswood unit since he bought it in 1997. Because Dean had paid off his home he used the equity in his home to buy his first investment property. Before using R.E.I.N. Dean had done his own research into investment and had gone to several seminars to find out what was available in the market.

"I had gone to other places that were recommending properties but I didn't feel they were trustworthy, there are a lot of sharks in this business so you do have to be cautious. Then I came across R.E.I.N. I felt they were honest and have ethics, you can tell they really have their finger on the pulse of the market. Over the years they have really expanded to include a one stop service for their clients including accountants, planners, lawyers and gathering information on other products like superannuation they are very well balanced about the data they collect and compare. I would highly recommend anyone starting out to go along to one of the R.E.I.N. investment briefings to educate themselves more".

Louise Graham

Louise Graham is 26 years old and is in Apartments Sales for a living.

Louise started investing early on, using equity in her parent's home to assist her buying her first unit in Pyrmont. In six years her capital growth is 26%. When she started she had a neutral cash flow until a few years ago when interest rates went up. Louise since has purchased a second property in Kent St Sydney, between both she is out of pocket $180 per week, which for two inner city apartments is still a bargain!

"I found the support, knowledge and education that R.E.I.N. gave me was invaluable, it made such a huge difference to my sense of security. If I could give anyone advice about investing I would say, don't stress!! Don't take negative press to heart and know you are in property for the long term, not the short. Keep going and feel secure as you rarely loose in property. Don't let it affect your lifestyle and surround yourself with people that will make the journey easier, like property managers who get you the right tenants, the investment should be ticking over in the background slowly making you money, not something that you should be a daily stressing about".

David and Vicki Cass

David and Vicki Cass purchased their first investment property with R.E.I.N. in July 2005. To get started they used the equity in their home and purchased an apartment in Chatswood for $444,000 which is currently valued at $450,000. Out of pocket expenses are $100 a week.

Before David and Vicki purchased their first investment property, they were extremely nervous. "At one stage they even said no" and pulled out. However, Jim helped them to clarify their understanding of the long term investment purchase. Jim's experience and genuineness gave them the confidence to invest and they haven't looked back. In fact, David & Vicki are currently in the process of trying to purchase their 2nd investment property for their 19 year old son.

R.E.I.N. helped David and Vicki to overcome any questions and fears about investing. All the information they needed about property investing was put together in a comprehensive package. All the economic scenarios were presented to David and Vicki and they were able to see that investing was affordable for them. "Working with R.E.I.N. not only gave us the confidence to invest but a clear, achievable goal to work towards" David said.

Advice for other investors? "Go and speak with the people at R.E.I.N., and see what they have to offer. No doubt, even if you go and look at what competitors are offering, you will go back to R.E.I.N. I highly recommend R.E.I.N. to anyone who is considering investing."

"Working with R.E.I.N. not only gave us the confidence to invest but a clear, achievable goal to work towards." David

Gwen and Bill

Not sure if you can create wealth through property?
Don’t think you can afford to invest?
Well, meet Gwen and Bill. In the last 10 years they have created wealth – they never dreamed was possible. They own their home and have a property portfolio valued at over $1.2 million, and they are looking forward to retiring early and enjoying their wealth.

Gwen says "Bill and I come from modest, working class backgrounds. I never thought it was possible for us to create this much wealth."
Gwen is a Customer Service Manager for a Shipping Line and Bill has a clerical position on the Waterfront. They started investing 10 years ago, to prepare for their retirement.

So, how did they get started?
They had been looking for an investment unit for a while, when they went to one of Jim’s  investment seminars. They could see Jim had a system that made the process simpler. "It doesn’t take away all your reservations, but we were able to receive valuable advice, thorough research and industry knowledge and that made our decision easier."

With Jim’s help Gwen and Bill purchased their first investment property at Rushcutter’s Bay in 1997. It was a 1 bedroom apartment for $283,000. It is now valued at $440,000 and rents for $430 per week. This investment is almost revenue neutral.

Their second investment was purchased in 1999 in Pyrmont. With a purchase price of $280,000, this property has also had great capital growth, and is now valued at $450,000. It is a 2 bedroom apartment and rents for $450 per week.

Their third investment was in 2000 at Strathfield. "I had just received a pay rise, so called R.E.I.N to organise the next purchase. I remember being so apprehensive with the first investment, but by our third investment, I was much more confident, and it just took a phone call to get it started" recalls Gwen. They purchased a 1 bedroom apartment for $293,000 it is now valued at $320,000 and it rents for $320 per week. This apartment has not grown as much as the first two, but Gwen and Bill are not concerned. It does not cost much to hold and it will increase as the Sydney market picks up.

Their most recent investment is a luxurious, over 55 years, lifestyle apartment in Wollongong that they plan to retire to. They have purchased this off-the-plan, and it is still being built. "It costs a lot – but we can afford it!"

"To create our wealth we had to be prepared to take calculated risks. We also had to change the way we think. We come from a generation that believes you can’t afford  something  unless you can pay cash. Owing money was very uncomfortable. We had to change our way of thinking – and recognise the difference between good debt and bad debt.” Gwen says that it was much easier then she would have thought. She is not struggling to meet payments, in fact she lives more luxuriously than she has ever lived. “I often have to pinch myself, with my upbringing, I never thought I could be this well off."

Gwen’s Advice for other investors
Recognise that it is normal to be apprehensive and have reservations. Be prepared to take calculated risks. Doing nothing is really the biggest risk you can take. Procrastination does not build wealth.

Gwen and Bill are looking forward to early retirement in 2009, and Gwen is considering doing something she never had the opportunity to do – going to university!

SUMMARY

Ages                                      51 and 57
Started investing                     1997
Number of Properties               3
Purchase price (combined)        $856,000
Current Value (combined)         $1,210,000