Everyone wants to have a secure financial future, whether it is for your retirement, a back up plan or simply to get to that next stage in life. Regardless of why you are saving and investing your money, it is a good feeling to know you have funds should you ever require them. Below are five smart investment strategies that you can implement into your financial plans to potentially secure your future and grow your wealth.
Your Investment Choices
Property Investments
Do some research and look for an investment property which has regular positive cash flow. This means that the income gained from renting the property out will be greater than the expenses of maintaining the property and paying back the mortgage. Tax plays a major role in investment properties and a popular alternative to saving money from a positive cash flow is to negative gear your properties. Negative gearing can be briefly explained as paying more in interest than you receive in income from your investment. At the end of the financial year you are able to claim a deduction for the interest that you have paid so essentially you will still be making a small profit margin over the course of the year. However, from week to week, or month to month you will be operating at a loss.
Negative gearing is obviously not for everyone which is why it is important to seek advice for your specific situation before making any significant financial decisions. Having a proactive tax agent can make a big difference to the ongoing costs and liabilities of your investment property as well as the capital gain.
Give your money an international flavour
This can be a risky game but also has the potential to be really rewarding. By investing in a variety of currencies you can ‘hedge your bets’ and have a “back up” in place if one currency decreases in value. It is important to note that you should always seek professional advice and actually have the physical currency on hand rather than a derivative.
Buy gold and silver
Invest your money into physical assets such as these two precious metals which will always be in demand. Generally as the dollar goes down the value of gold will rise, this can certainly be a good way to protect yourself should our economy take a turn for the worse. Also, since silver is regularly used instead of being stashed away like gold the supply will slowly decrease over time which makes it a perfect long term financial investment.
Start a business
If you’ve ever dreamed of owning your own business what better way to invest your money and time than into something that you love? And it is not necessarily all just for the love of it, but if you play the market right you can also start to see some big bucks coming in the door. Whether you have a great idea for a business or you are looking to take over an existing operation or franchise, having accurate information about your business’ legal obligations, industry, market and finances is vital to building and maintaining a successful venture.
Gain Interest
For the rest of your cash it is important that you keep it in the highest interest bearing savings accounts. So research what the banks have on offer and find one that most suits your needs and has the highest returns then put your cash in there. This is a safe option so why not get extra interest where you can?
You should always seek professional advice before making any major financial decisions.
Here at The Quinn Group our experienced team of lawyers, accountants and financial planners can provide you with a range of advice; from financial planning, tax advice, property investment and the legal requirements to start a business. For more information on anything mentioned in this article submit an online enquiry or call us on 1300 QUINNS (784 667) or on +61 2 9223 9166 to book an appointment.
