Why I don’t agree with Robert Kiyosaki

During your career as an investor, you’ll no doubt read at least a few books from various experts who’ve all created wealth through a pro-active property investment strategy.

One of the names you’ve probably come across is Robert Kiyosaki, celebrated author of the Rich Dad, Poor Dad series that’s inspired and assisted many an investor on the road to their own success.

I’ve quoted Robert on more than one occasion, and hold him in high regard for all he’s achieved.

But I don’t necessarily agree with all of his theories on investment.

And there’s one in particular I find somewhat misleading, which is Robert’s suggestion that your home is a not an asset.

Now I agree with Kiyosaki that most people don’t know the difference between assets and liabilities, but in general, for many Australians, their home is their biggest asset.

Your home as a stepping-stone

In this new age of property investment, when interest rates are accommodatingly low and mortgages so cheap, present day homeowners are actually sitting on a potential goldmine.

Far from being a drain on the household coffers, many of us are taking the opportunity to reduce our mortgages and property loans faster, contributing extra to our continually shrinking monthly repayments.

In turn, some property owners are building up equity at a considerable rate, with the help of an incredibly buoyant market in certain locations.

Think about it for a moment 

Your home is an asset with zero tax liability if you choose to sell it.

But better than that, it could represent the leaping off point to hasten your climb up the property ladder.

Take select pockets of the Melbourne and Sydney property markets for instance, where homeowners have enjoyed significant, double-digit growth on their principal place of residence (PPOR) over the last few years without lifting a finger.

Some of them are leveraging the hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equity they’re literally sitting on (or in) to invest in further high growth assets, while others are cashing in on a rapidly moving rental market and erecting granny flats in the backyard to create quick (and lucrative) accommodation.

Now more than ever, your home can and should be an integral part of your investment game plan.

Homeowners rejoice!

It’s no secret that housing affordability is an ongoing issue for those attempting to break into Australia’s more popular inner urban property markets.

First homebuyers are being priced out of the running, with things only expected to get worse for today’s young tenants who want the convenience and commutability of city living, but just can’t afford the ever climbing house prices.

This is particularly true as the services sector continues to flourish, and a greater proportion of future employment opportunities are centralized within Australia’s major CBD jobs markets.

Many will no doubt become stuck on the rental roundabout, while some are choosing to remain in the city as tenants and invest in real estate further afield, where they can afford the more reasonably priced outer fringe suburbs.

For those of us fortunate enough to have acquired well-positioned property in the past, even by chance in the form of our own home, now is the time torejoice!

For you are sitting on an investment goldmine beyond compare!