Aussie multi-millionaire reveals property strategy that made him rich: 'Don't sacrifice'
Ever dreamed of living by the beach, in the inner-city buzz, or nestled in a leafy suburb that feeds your soul, however, felt that doing so would kill your chances of building wealth? You're not alone. And the good news is that you don't have to choose between lifestyle and financial freedom.
In fact, for over a decade now, I've built my personal wealth, and helped thousands of Australians do the same, through a strategy called 'rentvesting', which is renting where you want to live, and investing where your money will work hardest.
RELATED
Buying a home still a 'stretch' so young Aussies seize on 'rentvesting' property trend
$4,400 ATO car tax deduction that most Aussies miss: 'Easy win'
Centrelink $1,011 cash boost for Aussie farmers doing it tough: 'Get back on track'
Let's say you want to live in Bondi, Byron or Brighton. The cost of buying in these blue-chip areas is sky-high, and with the majority of homes owner-occupied, the rental yields are often extremely low - sometimes just 1-2 per cent. That means if you purchase, you're sinking hundreds of thousands in a deposit and absorbing a massive mortgage for a property that's probably underperforming from an investment standpoint.
But what if you flipped the script?
Instead of tying up your capital in a lifestyle property, rent in the area you love and invest in high-yield commercial or regional residential real estate. At Rethink Group, this is our bread and butter. We're talking 5-6 per cent plus yields, strong tenant demand, and, in many cases, net cash flow positive properties that actually cover your rent and still leave surplus income to reinvest.
It's a wealth-building flywheel that, when set in motion early, can dramatically fast-track your journey to financial freedom.
I started my own journey this way. My wife and I wanted to enjoy the lifestyle we loved, but we didn't want to sacrifice our future. We began investing in strong-yielding residential property and later moved into commercial, an area where we've helped many of our clients truly accelerate their portfolios. The result? A multi-million-dollar portfolio, flexibility to live where we want, and most importantly choice.
One of the underrated benefits of rentvesting is agility. You're not locked into one market or one lifestyle location. You can move for work, lifestyle, or family without the friction of buying and selling. Meanwhile, your investments can remain in high-growth, high-yield areas across Australia, whether that's an industrial property in Brisbane, a regional centre in WA, or a medical tenancy in Adelaide.
You're also less likely to make emotional decisions. Buying your 'forever home' too early often means compromising your investment strategy. Rentvesting keeps you focused on returns, not renovations.
At Rethink Group, we work with clients every day who want it all; lifestyle and legacy. And the truth is, with the right strategy, you can absolutely have both.
Our approach is tailored. We build high-performance property portfolios using both residential and commercial assets, engineered to deliver strong yields, smart tax outcomes, and future-proof wealth, all while our clients live exactly where they want to be.
Rentvesting isn't for everyone, but if you're serious about wealth and value lifestyle, it's a strategy worth exploring. Because the best time to build wealth is now and the best place to live is wherever makes you feel most alive.
Scott O'Neill is a prominent Australian property investor featured in AFR's Young Rich List three years in a row. He is an entrepreneur and Founder & CEO of Rethink Group a premium property investment group, host of the top commercial property podcast "Rethink Investing's Inside Commercial Property'', co-author of "Rethink Property Investing'' Australia's number one commercial property investing book.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
Tradie's 'cheap and easy' solution to Aussie housing problem
The ongoing housing crisis is a topic of conversation on the tip of most Australians' lips, whether you're a renter or a property owner. Many are quick to point to high demand, low supply and skyrocketing prices as causes of the problem, but few can come up with solutions that keep all stakeholders happy. A former tradie has been quietly working away on an answer to the problem, which costs under $100,000 and takes just 12 days to build. Brad Busuttil, an electrician turned business owner, transforms shipping containers into homes. The low-cost alternative to traditional housing won't be right for everyone, but select Aussies are snapping them up to put on their land, and freeing up housing stock elsewhere while doing so. Brad, from Victoria, told Yahoo News he built his first shipping container home "for a little bit of fun" before realising just how "cheap and quick and easy it was to do". With a background in affordable housing, he decided to offer the product to the public and has been astounded by their popularity. He now sells container homes to Aussies around the country through his business, Deluxe Tiny Homes, which cost between $45,000 to $70,000 to buy. This year, he's already delivered 15 tiny homes to clients around the country, with his main customers fitting into three different demographics. "There are investors, so people who have plots of land they don't know what to do with and don't want to do a half-million-dollar build," he explained. "There are then people who are about to build a new home, and rather than rent out another property for 12 months, they pop it in the backyard and live there. The third one, which is most common, is people with elderly parents close to retirement age," he said. Brad explained that the container homes are built "exactly like a normal house", with the same set of standards as a new build house. "That way we have no issues," he said. The shipping containers are brand new, and are "heavily insulated" and water sealed before framing, plastering, floorboards, as well as a kitchen, laundry and bathroom are installed. The entire build is done off-site, and delivered, where customers are given instructions on how to connect the electrical and plumbing. With the housing crisis an ever-present threat, he believes it's a short-term option for those in need. "People can't get into houses, this is a good short-term solution," he said, explaining that while the homes are "comfortable", they're " not massive". Despite admitting they are not going to be a long-term solution for most people, Brad believes his tiny houses will "outlive any of us". "There's a misconception they'll rust and fall apart, but a lot of people forget these containers are designed to spend their entire life out at sea with corrosive water," he said. 🏡 Aussie council makes major caravan rule change to tackle housing crisis 😳 Aussie homeowners warned after destructive find in roof 🥶 American expat exposes biggest problem with Australia Dr Peter Davies, a leading sustainability researcher at Macquarie University, told Yahoo News tiny houses have a place in helping Aussies afford housing. He'd like to see the concept used as "part of a suite" of solutions, but not a "reactive response" to a lack of housing supply. Davies believes that one factor exacerbating the housing problem in Australia is that, for the most part, people want larger homes. But smaller, and even tiny houses, are "generally something that needs to be explored more fully in the suite of housing solutions", he said. Davies said he wouldn't underestimate the value of the low time and financial investment needed to build a tiny home, but what he doesn't want to see is it being used as a "substitute for poor planning outcomes", and a longer-term solution is still required. So, what would a longer-term solution look like? Dr Heather Shearer, an engineering and built environment academic at Griffith University, believes that this comes as an increase in medium-density zoning in Australia's big cities. "It's what they call the missing middle," she said. These properties include smaller townhouses and duplexes as opposed to larger family homes or apartment complexes. "Suburbs need to have higher density but not vertical sprawl high rises," she explained. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Aussie multi-millionaire reveals property strategy that made him rich: 'Don't sacrifice'
Ever dreamed of living by the beach, in the inner-city buzz, or nestled in a leafy suburb that feeds your soul, however, felt that doing so would kill your chances of building wealth? You're not alone. And the good news is that you don't have to choose between lifestyle and financial freedom. In fact, for over a decade now, I've built my personal wealth, and helped thousands of Australians do the same, through a strategy called 'rentvesting', which is renting where you want to live, and investing where your money will work hardest. RELATED Buying a home still a 'stretch' so young Aussies seize on 'rentvesting' property trend $4,400 ATO car tax deduction that most Aussies miss: 'Easy win' Centrelink $1,011 cash boost for Aussie farmers doing it tough: 'Get back on track' Let's say you want to live in Bondi, Byron or Brighton. The cost of buying in these blue-chip areas is sky-high, and with the majority of homes owner-occupied, the rental yields are often extremely low - sometimes just 1-2 per cent. That means if you purchase, you're sinking hundreds of thousands in a deposit and absorbing a massive mortgage for a property that's probably underperforming from an investment standpoint. But what if you flipped the script? Instead of tying up your capital in a lifestyle property, rent in the area you love and invest in high-yield commercial or regional residential real estate. At Rethink Group, this is our bread and butter. We're talking 5-6 per cent plus yields, strong tenant demand, and, in many cases, net cash flow positive properties that actually cover your rent and still leave surplus income to reinvest. It's a wealth-building flywheel that, when set in motion early, can dramatically fast-track your journey to financial freedom. I started my own journey this way. My wife and I wanted to enjoy the lifestyle we loved, but we didn't want to sacrifice our future. We began investing in strong-yielding residential property and later moved into commercial, an area where we've helped many of our clients truly accelerate their portfolios. The result? A multi-million-dollar portfolio, flexibility to live where we want, and most importantly choice. One of the underrated benefits of rentvesting is agility. You're not locked into one market or one lifestyle location. You can move for work, lifestyle, or family without the friction of buying and selling. Meanwhile, your investments can remain in high-growth, high-yield areas across Australia, whether that's an industrial property in Brisbane, a regional centre in WA, or a medical tenancy in Adelaide. You're also less likely to make emotional decisions. Buying your 'forever home' too early often means compromising your investment strategy. Rentvesting keeps you focused on returns, not renovations. At Rethink Group, we work with clients every day who want it all; lifestyle and legacy. And the truth is, with the right strategy, you can absolutely have both. Our approach is tailored. We build high-performance property portfolios using both residential and commercial assets, engineered to deliver strong yields, smart tax outcomes, and future-proof wealth, all while our clients live exactly where they want to be. Rentvesting isn't for everyone, but if you're serious about wealth and value lifestyle, it's a strategy worth exploring. Because the best time to build wealth is now and the best place to live is wherever makes you feel most alive. Scott O'Neill is a prominent Australian property investor featured in AFR's Young Rich List three years in a row. He is an entrepreneur and Founder & CEO of Rethink Group a premium property investment group, host of the top commercial property podcast "Rethink Investing's Inside Commercial Property'', co-author of "Rethink Property Investing'' Australia's number one commercial property investing book.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Certain Aussies the ATO is targeting this tax time: 'Don't think they won't notice'
The ATO has listed capital gains tax as a particular focus area that it will be examining this year when it reviews people's tax returns. ATO data indicates that many taxpayers are either not recording taxable disposals or under-declaring the proceeds from sales. This is backed up by a wide variety of third-party data, most recently loan information received from mortgage lenders and information on cryptocurrency ownership received from Australian designated service providers (DSPs). This information is used to identify the buyers and sellers of assets and quantify the related transactions. It isn't just property and cryptocurrency that the ATO has in its sights. Also included are share sales and managed investment transactions. RELATED ATO data reveals $830 tax deductions millions of Aussies miss out on: 'Nothing' $4,400 ATO car tax deduction that most Aussies miss: 'Easy win' Centrelink payment change happening next week: 'Will increase' As a reminder, CGT comes into effect when you dispose of assets. It is calculated based on the difference between the amount you paid for the asset and the amount you disposed of it for. Any profit is subject to CGT, which can potentially be discounted by 50 per cent if you hold the asset for more than 12 months. Your capital gain is worked out like this: Deduct the cost base from the sale proceeds. The cost base is the price you paid for the cryptocurrency plus incidental costs. Next, take away any capital losses you have. Then discount the gain. Individuals are entitled to a 50 per cent discount. The asset must have been held for 12 months or more for the discount to be available. The resulting figure is your net capital gain. This is subject to tax at your marginal rate. To ensure you are meeting your obligations and paying the right amount of tax, you need to calculate a capital gain or capital loss for each asset you dispose of unless an exemption applies. The main CGT exemption is in relation to your main residence. However, if you have used your home to produce income, such as renting out all or part of it through the sharing economy, for example Airbnb or Stayz, or running a business from home, you could still find that CGT applies to the part of the property that was used to earn income. It is vitally important that you keep records of the income-producing period and the portion of the property used to produce income to calculate your capital gain. Another exemption could apply in relation to any business assets that you have sold. The small business CGT concessions are available to reduce or, in some cases, totally eliminate capital gains arising where small businesspeople dispose of their business or part of it. There are four CGT concessions that may apply on the disposal of a small business: The 15-year exemption The 50 per cent reduction The retirement exemption Roll-over of the gain Broadly speaking, the concessions are available provided you run a small business (which for these purposes is one with a turnover of less than $2 million) and the assets being sold are active assets, which basically refers to assets which are used in a business. Shares in a private company can also be active assets if the underlying business of the company is trading in nature, rather than investment-driven. It's worth mentioning, in addition, the general 50 per cent discount which is available against most capital gains arising on the sale of assets, including shares, property and business assets. You will be eligible for this discount – in effect halving the rate of tax – if you have owned the asset for more than 12 months. The main features of the discount are as follows: The discount is available to individuals, trusts, partnerships and complying superannuation funds but not to companies. The rate of the discount is 50 per cent for individuals, trusts and partnerships and 33 1/3rd% for superannuation funds So, don't fall into the trap of thinking the ATO won't notice if you sell an asset for a gain and don't declare it. However, do be aware of the various concessions and exemptions which can reduce your gain. It's always worth talking to a tax agent if you think you are liable to capital gains tax. They will make sure your tax return is correct, complete and that all transactions have been properly disclosed. They will also make sure that you claim any discounts, concessions or exemption available to while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data
