Unlocking your borrowing & building passive income through commercial property, with Scott O’Neill – Ep. 90

In this latest episode of the Geared for Growth, Mike is joined by commercial property guru and Founder and Director of the Rethink Group of companies, Scott O’Neill, to talk through the advantages of the commercial sector and explain why the lack of available education has held investors back from accessing the potential that the market has to offer.

 

As a former civil engineer, Scott transitioned from residential investing into commercial and became financially independent by the age of 28. Passionate about helping others he founded Rethink Investing, which has expanded to include Legal, Finance, Insurance and Renewables. He is also best-selling author of Rethink Property Investing.

 

In this conversation, Scott dispels some of the myths surrounding commercial property, and explains why it can be just as lucrative, if not more so, as residential if you know what you are doing. Mike and Scott discuss the lack of available information, and how that is now changing through books and podcasts, and Scott’s plan for more educational courses.

 

Scott explains the relative advantages of the commercial property sector and talks through the yield and growth opportunities that are potentially available. He also covers some of the key factors to be aware of, such as future leasability, accounting for vacancy and understanding the changing trends in retail, industrial and office space.

 

This episode is ideal listening for anyone wanting to build on their passive income and seeking to understand more about the commercial space. With residential becoming trickier with increasing interest rates and rising costs, this conversation is not only inspiring but offers highly practical advice to expand your property knowledge.

 

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In this latest episode of the Geared for Growth, Mike is joined by commercial property guru and Founder and Director of the Rethink Group of companies, Scott O’Neill, to talk through the advantages of the commercial sector and explain why the lack of available education has held investors back from accessing the potential that the market has to offer.

• Historic lack of educational standards for commercial property
• Difference in lending criteria in the commercial space
• Unlocking your financial capacity through commercial borrowing
• Quantifying the levels of return compared to residential
• Importance of quality tenants and the leasing outlook
• Leveraging residential assets to overcome barriers to the commercial sector
• Breaking down the myths of commercial property
• Scott’s key advice for getting into the sector

“My broker was basically saying there’s a different lending avenue through lease doc loans and basically the income from commercial was significantly higher too which contributes to easier lending” Scott 1:43

“My whole goal with investing was to replace my income of my wife and myself. I was an engineer working horrible hours and my wife was literally following me around the country as I did the new next project so I said I can’t live like that forever” Scott 3:35

“There’s just a lack of experience in this space and I think that it is kind of in the too hard basket for most Australians” Scott 6:56

“When they hear doom and gloom (they say) maybe that’s just the CBD office market but we understand logistics is booming, healthcare’s booming, you don’t need to explain that to people now which is a refreshing change” Scott 9:30

“That’s why I do think it is good to start with residential and you know that’s the reason why I’ve always kept our residential arm of Rethink Investing,” Scott 11:42

“That’s why I like it, I feel like I’ve got a genuine advantage when I buy commercial property because I’m not dealing with hundreds of emotional buyers that feel like they know better” Scott 17:06

“Buy the best quality asset you can, quality is the key word, it’s not about spreading your risk to find different assets for quality cheaper ones, it’s about buying the trophy asset if you can and it would be the last property you ever sell outside of your home that you live in” Scott 24:12

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