Chinese-Australian buyer’s agent Helen Tarrant is Australia’s number one commercial property buyer’s agent. With house prices fluctuating and interest rates continually rising, she believes it’s time Australians end our ‘love affair’ with residential property. Having built a multi-million-dollar property empire herself, Helen is finally unmasking the hidden secrets surrounding the alternative investment pathway – commercial property.
Traditionally, this property market area has felt confusing, inaccessible, and unaffordable for many investors…and this is where Helen’s new book comes in.
This Spring, Helen’s first book Cashed up with Commercial Property: A Step-by-Step Guide to Building a Cash Flow Positive Portfolio, will launch in bookstores Australia-wide. Published by Wiley, the book will be a first-of-its-kind educational guide that makes commercial property investment easy to understand and accessible to all – no matter your age, ethnicity, or background in investing.
Whilst most of us feel like we need to either win the lottery (or have cashed up family members) to get our foot on the property ladder, Helen’s own story proves this doesn’t have to be the case. After migrating to Australia from China as a young girl, Helen’s family had only $70 to their name. She moved house 9 times and worked three jobs to support her family throughout high school. After completing a Master of Laws at university, she founded her own beauty therapy business. She was burning the candle on all ends, yet still felt like she couldn’t save, or find any work life balance. It was during this time that a single moment with her landlord changed the course of her life forever…
“My landlord would show up, collect my rent, and then just go out fishing. That was all he did. His income from the rent of his tenants in our building meant he could live the life he loved. Cue my light-bulb moment…maybe I should look into commercial property. After doing some research I found that commercial property had the potential to halve my investment journey time and help me make ten times as much cash flow than investing in residential. And so, I took a leap of faith and never looked back,” Helen says.
In 2012 Helen purchased her first commercial property, a Japanese restaurant in North Sydney for $395k. Fast forward a decade, Helen’s property portfolio is worth over $30 million. And due to the way that commercial property is geared, during that time, Helen was also able to build her income, earning an additional $20k plus in positive cash flow per week from her investments alone.
These simple ideas and lessons Helen learnt along the way was what eventually inspired her to become a buyer’s agent. Realising there were many misconceptions in the market and no one really educating everyday investors about commercial property, she found a niche providing essential education and strategies for the average Australian seeking to get their foot in the door. Helen now has helped over 1,000 Australian investors find financial freedom through commercial investment, with a total property portfolio worth over half a billion.
Cashed Up with Commercial Property is unique in its category, as it features real life case studies and practical guides for what is required to invest in commercial property. It provides helpful comparisons on investments between residential and commercial, as well as sound strategies that any Aussie can use to generate additional income as they work towards their property/investment goals.
One such case study is Sydney mum Joey. With three kids under five, Joey works as a compliance consultant while her wife, Diane, is a dentist in her own practice. “Joey first approached me when she had 11 residential properties, was negatively geared and in desperate need of some cash flow so she could support her growing mortgages and family lifestyle. Over the past three years we have helped her source excellent commercial investments that would drive a sound return and help her reach her cash flow goals. In that time, we have secured her three properties and close to $100k in passive income, and that’s after outgoing expenses,” Helen explains.
In her book, Helen debunks the biggest myths about commercial property and provides encouragement that no matter who you are or what your property goals are, she can help you on your journey. Three simple pieces of advice her book, includes:
- Embrace the Mindset ChangeTrying something new always comes with uncertainty and a bit of gear-shifting. But embrace the mindset changes and don’t apply the same things you know about residential, to commercial. It’s a learning curve, but the payoff (literally) is worth it.
- Don’t wait!Ever heard the old idiom, there’s no better time than now? Well this is completely true in commercial property. The market is always changing, so no matter who you are, I recommend getting some advice and starting now, even if it’s small, because the longer you wait, the lower the yield. Build the right strategy and don’t be afraid to go outside your comfort zone.
- Allow Yourself to Dream Big!We can so often feel despondent about property – whether you’ll own the dream home or are scared of being priced out of the market. But with commercials, we encourage you to dream big no matter where you’re at in your investment journey. Map out your big-picture goals, and then with the help of your team, we can help you work backward so you can figure out the best way to start now.
Cashed Up with Commercial Property is published by Wiley and is available for purchase through all good book retailers for $32.95. For more information or to purchase a copy, visit: https://helentarrant.com/
This article was sourced from a media release sent by Medianet
