Ep.264: The Difference Between White-Collar and Blue-Collar Investing, with Darren Venter

In this week’s episode of the Geared for Growth podcast, host Mike Mortlock chats with Darren Venter, Buyers Agent and Director of The Investors Agency and Strat Prop, about the distinctions between white-collar and blue-collar property markets in real estate investing.

With fierce competition in today’s market, having a competitive edge is crucial. As more buyers get priced out of major cities, many are shifting their focus to regional areas. It’s critical to understand the various types of markets and the drivers behind them.

What should prospective investors consider when comparing different locations? Darren explains the dynamics of various markets and the types of tenants each attracts. The conversation includes a case study of Byron Bay, tracing its evolution from a bohemian haven to its current status as an internationally renowned but increasingly unaffordable location.

Darren also discusses the link between median income and property prices, noting that high prices aren’t the sole factor influencing affordability. He sheds light on the volatility of blue-collar markets, such as mining towns or areas driven by infrastructure projects.

This conversation offers an insightful perspective on the property market and how investors can analyse potential investments. From considering who is best suited to each market to forecasting what is likely to happen when interest rates finally head south, this episode is one you won’t want to miss.

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In this week’s episode of the Geared for Growth podcast, host Mike Mortlock chats with Darren Venter, Buyers Agent and Director of The Investors Agency and Strat Prop, about the distinctions between white-collar and blue-collar property markets in real estate investing.

• The difference between blue-collar and white-collar markets
• Are white collar markets unaffordable for employees?
• The importance of population as a driver for price growth
• The closing earnings gap between blue and white collar employment
• The correlation between income and house prices and the effect on affordability
• The characteristics that make a market worthy of further investigation
• Which type of market is right for you?

“When you look up those blue collar markets you are looking at a lower entry point markets where you’re to pick the paying a lot less to get into a property and obviously that makes it a lot more affordable” 1:10

“It’s becoming a fight for affordability at the moment and that’s what is driving price and typically like I said that happens at the lower percentile, typically around the 25^th percentile” 9:55

“When you have new employment which is creating new money, it’s new wealth that’s going to then again increase the affordability” 13:59

“You wish there was one type of data that you could pretty much consider the fair for all but you really do need a segmented down and you can’t take white collar and compare it to blue collar, it’s very very different” 19:49

“When you compare all three of those together you get some really interesting data. The data that we are seeing at the moment in accordance to the interest rates being tied to rental rates has an effect at sitting around this sort of 3.8% more so the 3.8 to 5% interest rates is where we saw the biggest amount of homeowners converting to rentvestors, or renters” 24:25

“It is timing the market I know lot of people say it’s not about timing the market but I I’m a very firm believer it is about time in the market” 35:00

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