Property Turnaround

Helen lives in Rosewood, west of Brisbane and was working full time for the federal government and spending too many hours away from her home and her kids.

She had four rental properties, which required her to be on a high income to support the costs. She did some lateral thinking and decided to sell the rental properties and sink her resources into one property, renovate it and rent out rooms, with the goal to run a bed and breakfast.

She raised her 121 year old Queenslander home and built in underneath. She built 4 bedrooms, one central family room/kitchen and a bathroom.

She now charges $120 a week per room, fully furnished. The income is therefore $400 per week after electricity expenses on a renovation that cost her $140,000. The interest on $140,000 would be around $200 a week.

Most people would agree that this is a good investment from a cash-flow angle and to make it even better her home is now worth more.

Doing this has allowed her to take a less stressful job with less income only 10 minutes away from home.

She said 'I like that I still have an investment in bricks and mortar and love the fact that I am earning money from home. Now, to work on the bed and breakfast side of it; then I can always work in and from home.'

There you have it - I call that a Success Story!

It was a 5 way gain. More income, more value to her home, new job with less stress and closer to work, and to top it off more time with the kids.