When planning your first purchase, you want to be sure you’ve developed a sustainable property investment budget and one that you can realistically follow. Budgeting is a simple concept and is vital in property investment, as it helps ensure you are spending less than you are earning. It helps you balance your income and expenses and ensures you take a positive, proactive approach to managing and building your portfolio, whilst treating your property investment as a business. Here is a list of seven budgeting tips to help you achieve financial success in your first property investment, which can set you up for a long and prosperous property investment journey.

Australian technology company Real Estate Investar today announced it has won the Xero Emerging Add-on Partner of the Year Award at the annual Xerocon event in Melbourne, Australia. Real Estate Investar’s add-on integration called Portfolio Tracker gives Real Estate Investar members and Xero partner customers the ability to synchronise their property investment portfolio data, valuation data and financial accounts. The result, enjoy real time portfolio tracking and simpler, stress free accounting.

I’m going to extol the benefits of investing in property and why you should take it up. Just like I did. Previously, I’ve written about the things that could go wrong when investing in property. To give you a balanced perspective, you should also hear about the merits of investing in property, even if I appear to contradict myself a little.

Dual occupancy properties (AKA Duplex) refers to two premises on one lot of land - the premises can be attached or detached. Dual occupancy can be a good strategy for new property purchases as they often provide increased rental yield over single occupant properties. The SWOT analysis below gives you the essential information you should be aware of when considering the purchase of a dual occupancy property.

Property investors aiming for long-term tenants and favourable rental returns must ensure their investment property appeals to local tenants. Enhancing the property's appeal and boosting rental income can be achieved by investing time and resources into its presentation and upkeep. This approach is likely to yield a favourable return on investment over time.

Ahead of the Reserve Bank's board meeting on Tuesday, economists have offered their views, often understandably equivocal, on the outlook for interest rates:

When it comes to credit scores and files, there's a wealth of misinformation around what will and won't leave you with a black mark next to your name. Here's a guide to help you separate fact from fiction and ensure you will keep the banks saying 'yes'!

This case study is from Real Estate Investar subscriber John Le Brun, and how he used Real Estate Investar to apply the discount property investing strategy. I have subscribed twice to the Real Estate Investar tools, the first time lead me to the best deal I have ever found.