Latest news with #NathanBirch
Daily Mail
29-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
I own more than 300 properties... but I'm angry with myself for missing a life goal when I turned 40
A property mogul who owns more than 300 homes worth nearly $250million has claimed he still doesn't believe he has enough. Nathan Birch, 40, said he was not completely satisfied with his achievement because he had not yet become a billionaire. Mr Birch said he was planning on buying another 100 properties in just four weeks to grow his empire even further. 'I wanted to be a billionaire when I hit 40,' he said. 'That's not going to happen, but I will get to a billion at some point. 'My goal is to have 10,000 properties one day. It's for grandkids. I hope that when I die, my life will be like a corporate entity.' Mr Birch knows his ambition will make some Aussies cranky given the cost-of-living and housing crises. He acknowledged people will say he's part of the problem when it comes to rising property prices. 'There will be a whole bunch of people who won't like it. Some people will say "how dare he",' Mr Birch said. 'I've just come to accept that not everyone agrees with it. Even my mum, when I got to 200 properties, she said "don't be stupid, don't buy more". 'The thing is, my actions are based on numbers. This is what keeps me focused.' Mr Birch grew up in a single-income household in Mt Druitt in western Sydney and made his first investment at 18 with money saved from working while he was still at school. He's planning on buying his next 100 properties by exploiting a banking mechanism known as 'leverage'. His strategy is to draw out equity from his other properties through refinancing deals, which fund the costs of buying new homes - many of which have been bought for just $200,000. The properties are generally rented out for a higher price than the loan repayments so banks are happy to give Mr Birch credit for his deals because the holding costs of his portfolio are low. He will also buy properties in low socio-economic areas, which helps him buy under the market value. He said buying under market value made his loans low risk to the banks and meant he had instant equity which he would use to 'leverage' into another home. It helped him buy 200 properties by the time he was 31, but he said buying so many properties was not an easy task. 'I got to a point pre-Covid where banks wouldn't lend to me,' Mr Birch said. 'I had to pay in cash. Over time, it caught up with me. I had to sell off a few in 2017 and 2018. I had to swap a lot of properties and there was a lot of land tax. 'There have been days when I vomited up food because of the stress, and I usually handle stress really well. Sometimes it gets to you.' He said family members had tried to tell him to stop buying more properties. 'My mum is fearful. She was excited for the first few properties but then she said 'you'll go bankrupt',' he said. 'All this noise from people who loved me were thoughts. They weren't real. Many of my family members didn't know how all this debt stuff worked. 'Now my mum says "I don't know how you do it, but you know what you are doing".'
Daily Telegraph
29-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Telegraph
Aussie who owns more than 300 homes drops bombshell
Australia's most prolific real estate investor has dropped a bombshell. The Western Sydney-based investor, who owns more than 300 properties worth nearly a quarter of a billion dollars, has admitted that he doesn't believe his staggering holdings are enough. Nathan Birch said he was disappointed with the size of his portfolio because, having just turned 40, he is not yet a billionaire – a goal he was hoping to achieve before reaching this age. And now he wants more property. Plenty more. Mr Birch, who started his empire by snapping up large tracts of rundown homes in some of Australia's poorest city areas, said he is planning to remedy his situation with another home buying spree. The plan is to buy 100 properties in a month. MORE: Aussie fast food worker turns $40k wage into 5 homes 'I wanted to be a billionaire when I hit 40,' he said. 'That's not going to happen, but I will get to a billion at some point. 'My goal is have 10,000 properties one day. It's for grandkids. I hope that when I die, my life will be like a corporate entity.' Mr Birch added that he understood that his plans will likely divide opinion and that many would accuse him of elevating the housing crisis by snapping up homes that could be going to first-home buyers. 'I've been quiet for a while but I plan to buy much more this year,' he said. 'There will be a whole bunch of people who won't like it. Some people will say 'how dare he?' 'I've just come to accept that not everyone agrees with it … Even my mum, when I got to 200 properties, she said 'don't be stupid, don't buy more'. 'The thing is, my actions are based on numbers. This is what keeps me focused.' MORE: Aussie couple in 30s turn $60k into $153m He added that he relished the personal challenge of trying to find good investments. 'It used to be about ego,' he said. 'I used to take w*nker photos in front of cars. I became a brand in a way. 'Ten years ago, I realised that kind of stuff wouldn't improve my life. 'I've always just loved property. When I was 13, a lot of the other guys my age would look at magazines full of girls. I just paged through pictures of houses.' The investor, who grew up in a single-income household in Sydney's Mt Druitt area, once popularised as 'Struggle Street', said he did not have a huge inheritance or wealthy family to support his ventures. Mr Birch explained that he made his first investment aged 18 using money saved from various high school jobs and gradually built up his portfolio with some clever buying tactics. MORE: Cheeky way landlord gets tenant to fund travels MORE: Aussie landlord's horror after 12 homes stolen He later established a highly successful buyer's agency and property management business that supported his investments. 'If you include everything for clients, I've bought about 20,000 properties,' he said. But his plan is to purchase 100 properties over a month in a similar way to how he built his property portfolio in the beginning: exploiting a banking mechanism known as leverage. HOW AN EMPIRE WAS BUILT Rather than stump up cash for each deal, he instead draws out equity from his existing properties through refinancing deals, which then fund the costs of purchasing new properties. Most of his properties are cheaper than the norm, with many bought for around the $200,000 mark. These properties usually rent for a high price relative to the cost of his loans – normally to the point where the rents cover the full costs of repayments and other ownership expenses. It's usually enough to satisfy the banks, who continue to provide him credit for his deals because the holding costs of keeping his portfolio are low relative to his income. MORE: Bold moves that got Albo $8.8m property empire MORE: Trick Aussies are using to get $200m+ mansions Another key pillar of his methods is that he targets homes in low socio-economic areas that are selling through rushed off market sales. This allows him to buy under the market value. He said buying under market value makes his loans lower risk in the eyes of lenders, but it also means he has 'instant equity' upon purchase, which he can later use to, again, leverage into the next property. Armed with these tools, Mr Birch used to be one of the most prolific property investors in the country, buying up 200 properties by the time he was 31 years old. THE DEBT POSITION He said he has slowed down in recent years and shifted his focus to snapping up large motels (paid in cash) – and he has used the profits from these businesses to pay down much of his debt. Mr Birch credited this approach to reducing the bank debt on his properties to just $16 million. He has an additional $11 million in other debts, leaving his total debt position against his properties at about $27 million. 'I've spent a lot of time restructuring my portfolio and that's why my net worth is high compared to the debt … soon I will be pulling out a lot of the equity to buy more.' MORE: Scary way Aussie went bankrupt after teacher insult Mr Birch said buying over 300 properties was not easy. 'I got to a point pre-Covid where banks wouldn't lend to me. I had to pay in cash. Over time, it caught up with me. I had to sell off a few in 2017 and 2018. I had to swap a lot of properties and there was a lot of land tax. 'That's why I got into motels – to improve my cash flow, but it crippled me. It's been a wild ride. There have been days when I vomited up food because of the stress, and I usually handle stress really well. Sometimes it gets to you.' Mr Birch said family members had tried to talk him out of growing his investments over the years, just because of how large his holdings had become. 'My mum is fearful. She was excited for the first few properties but then she said 'you'll go bankrupt'. There was some kind of Britney Spears intervention stuff. 'All this noise from people who loved me were thoughts. They weren't real. Many of my family members didn't know how all this debt stuff worked. Now my mum says 'I don't know how you do it, but you know what you are doing'.' MORE: Loophole that got club DJ $16m, 15 homes
News.com.au
28-05-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Aussie who owns more than 300 homes drops bombshell
Australia's most prolific real estate investor has dropped a bombshell. The Western Sydney-based investor, who owns more than 300 properties worth nearly a quarter of a billion dollars, has admitted that he doesn't believe his staggering holdings are enough. Nathan Birch said he was disappointed with the size of his portfolio because, having just turned 40, he is not yet a billionaire – a goal he was hoping to achieve before reaching this age. And now he wants more property. Plenty more. Mr Birch, who started his empire by snapping up large tracts of rundown homes in some of Australia's poorest city areas, said he is planning to remedy his situation with another home buying spree. The plan is to buy 100 properties in a month. 'I wanted to be a billionaire when I hit 40,' he said. 'That's not going to happen, but I will get to a billion at some point. 'My goal is have 10,000 properties one day. It's for grandkids. I hope that when I die, my life will be like a corporate entity.' Mr Birch added that he understood that his plans will likely divide opinion and that many would accuse him of elevating the housing crisis by snapping up homes that could be going to first-home buyers. 'I've been quiet for a while but I plan to buy much more this year,' he said. 'There will be a whole bunch of people who won't like it. Some people will say 'how dare he?' 'I've just come to accept that not everyone agrees with it … Even my mum, when I got to 200 properties, she said 'don't be stupid, don't buy more'. 'The thing is, my actions are based on numbers. This is what keeps me focused.' He added that he relished the personal challenge of trying to find good investments. 'It used to be about ego,' he said. 'I used to take w*nker photos in front of cars. I became a brand in a way. 'Ten years ago, I realised that kind of stuff wouldn't improve my life. 'I've always just loved property. When I was 13, a lot of the other guys my age would look at magazines full of girls. I just paged through pictures of houses.' The investor, who grew up in a single-income household in Sydney's Mt Druitt area, once popularised as 'Struggle Street', said he did not have a huge inheritance or wealthy family to support his ventures. Mr Birch explained that he made his first investment aged 18 using money saved from various high school jobs and gradually built up his portfolio with some clever buying tactics. He later established a highly successful buyer's agency and property management business that supported his investments. 'If you include everything for clients, I've bought about 20,000 properties,' he said. But his plan is to purchase 100 properties over a month in a similar way to how he built his property portfolio in the beginning: exploiting a banking mechanism known as leverage. HOW AN EMPIRE WAS BUILT Rather than stump up cash for each deal, he instead draws out equity from his existing properties through refinancing deals, which then fund the costs of purchasing new properties. Most of his properties are cheaper than the norm, with many bought for around the $200,000 mark. These properties usually rent for a high price relative to the cost of his loans – normally to the point where the rents cover the full costs of repayments and other ownership expenses. It's usually enough to satisfy the banks, who continue to provide him credit for his deals because the holding costs of keeping his portfolio are low relative to his income. Another key pillar of his methods is that he targets homes in low socio-economic areas that are selling through rushed off market sales. This allows him to buy under the market value. He said buying under market value makes his loans lower risk in the eyes of lenders, but it also means he has 'instant equity' upon purchase, which he can later use to, again, leverage into the next property. Armed with these tools, Mr Birch used to be one of the most prolific property investors in the country, buying up 200 properties by the time he was 31 years old. THE DEBT POSITION He said he has slowed down in recent years and shifted his focus to snapping up large motels (paid in cash) – and he has used the profits from these businesses to pay down much of his debt. Mr Birch credited this approach to reducing the bank debt on his properties to just $16 million. He has an additional $11 million in other debts, leaving his total debt position against his properties at about $27 million. 'I've spent a lot of time restructuring my portfolio and that's why my net worth is high compared to the debt … soon I will be pulling out a lot of the equity to buy more.' Mr Birch said buying over 300 properties was not easy. 'I got to a point pre-Covid where banks wouldn't lend to me. I had to pay in cash. Over time, it caught up with me. I had to sell off a few in 2017 and 2018. I had to swap a lot of properties and there was a lot of land tax. 'That's why I got into motels – to improve my cash flow, but it crippled me. It's been a wild ride. There have been days when I vomited up food because of the stress, and I usually handle stress really well. Sometimes it gets to you.' Mr Birch said family members had tried to talk him out of growing his investments over the years, just because of how large his holdings had become. 'My mum is fearful. She was excited for the first few properties but then she said 'you'll go bankrupt'. There was some kind of Britney Spears intervention stuff. 'All this noise from people who loved me were thoughts. They weren't real. Many of my family members didn't know how all this debt stuff worked. Now my mum says 'I don't know how you do it, but you know what you are doing'.'
Daily Telegraph
27-04-2025
- Business
- Daily Telegraph
Exposed: suburbs with highest tenant damage, rent loss claims
They're the suburbs around the country where owning an investment property has become riskier because of extreme weather events, more tenants defaulting on rent and malicious property damage. Exclusive insurance claims data from Allianz has revealed the capital city suburbs that had the most landlord insurance claims over recent months, pointing to a growing problem for landlords. The study, which examined claims across NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, indicated some of the areas with the highest rental returns and most accessible prices also attracted more frequent claims. Tenants in these areas were reported to be more likely to skip on rental payments or inflict property damage, while some areas were often frequently in the line of natural disasters. MORE: Aussie landlord's horror after 12 homes stolen Nathan Birch, director of property management firm Blink, said the reward for buying homes in many of these riskier areas was better capital growth. 'They tend to outperform the market,' he said. 'You may pay more in repairs but the owner can make more when they sell. It's not a (clear cut) thing.' The Allianz data showed the most common landlord insurance claims in each state were for storm damage, burst pipes, malicious damage and lost rent. But there was also great variance in the types of landlord claims made across areas, with each state seeing unique trends emerge in the types of areas where claims were higher: VICTORIA See the Victoria suburbs with the most claims Victorian landlords were making vast numbers of insurance claims across some of Melbourne's most investor-heavy suburbs, with increased rental protections being blamed. Allianz data showed more landlords were looking to recover financial hits on their homes in affordable areas like Hoppers Crossing and Frankston. With the insurer revealing unpaid rent was among the top reasons for claims, industry experts have warned it's adding fuel to the state's property investor exodus. MORE: John Howard's hidden homes shame Separate data from Ray White showed landlords were selling up at a significant rate in many of the suburbs. Property Investors Council of Australia director Ben Kingsley said most of the places with high claims were outer or regional areas known for relative affordability, meaning in many instances tenants were in more fraught financial situations — making claims for lost rent more likely. However, with Victorian investors also now facing an increasingly difficult task to move tenants on if they stopped paying their rent, Mr Kingsley said many landlords were selling instead. 'Government (is) choking the private rental investor out of this market,' he said. NEW SOUTH WALES See the NSW suburbs with the most claims Cheaper Western Sydney and regional NSW suburbs have become some of the riskiest areas to be a landlord despite being increasingly popular with property investors due to the higher rental returns. The data from insurer Allianz laid bare the more challenging markets to be a landlord at a time when still elevated interest rates have been encouraging many landlords to exit the rental market. Suburbs with the most landlord insurance claims tended to be in gentrifying lower socio-economic areas. There were also a mix of new development hotspots with higher claims and where rents were relatively high. insurance expert Tim Bennett said landlord claims tended to be larger for older homes, which often had 'hidden risks'. Areas where renter turnover tended to be higher also attracted more claims as moving tenants created more wear and tear, Mr Bennett said. 'Socio-economic factors can play a role,' he said. 'Places experiencing economic stress may see more incidents of missed rent repayments or tenant-related damage.' SOUTH AUSTRALIA See the SA suburbs with the highest claims Many of South Australia's riskiest markets for landlords were areas regularly featured in property investment hotspot lists, suggesting hidden traps for investors. Four of the five SA suburbs flagged by Allianz as attracting the most landlord insurance claims were located in Adelaide's northeast. It's a market where investors have been chasing positive cashflow over recent years, with new landlords often attracted to low median purchase prices and higher rental returns. Tenant-related claims were the most common in parts of Adelaide, according to Wayne Johnson, EBM Property Insurance state manager SA. 'The main areas of concern in those places is rent default,' Mr Johnson said. 'Then there's tenant damage and then there's legal liability, where the tenant hurts themselves, or worse.' Mr Johnson said that areas such as Elizabeth had suffered socio-economic decline over the years since major employers such as Holden scaled back operations or closed down. QUEENSLAND See the Queensland suburbs with the most claims Cyclone claims rated in the top five most common claims for Queensland, according to Allianz. But Brisbane claims were often for lost rent and suburbs with more affordable home prices tending to attract more claims. Bold Property Management director, Alison Farrell said from her experience in the Brisbane market, at least 80 per cent of landlord insurance claims were for rent arrears with a value between $2000 and $5000. 'We see more claims in low-to-mid-range rentals in outer suburbs,' she said. 'Higher income tenants will not rent in lower socio-economic areas generally, so landlords can only select from applicants that actually apply. The pool is what the pool is.' Ray White Collective principal Haesley Cush said claims for houses tended to be higher than for units. 'Since 2011 we've also faced a number of weather events that have contributed to the number of landlord insurance claims,' he said.
News.com.au
26-04-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Exposed: suburbs with highest tenant damage, rent loss claims
They're the suburbs around the country where owning an investment property has become riskier because of extreme weather events, more tenants defaulting on rent and malicious property damage. Exclusive insurance claims data from Allianz has revealed the capital city suburbs that had the most landlord insurance claims over recent months, pointing to a growing problem for landlords. The study, which examined claims across NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, indicated some of the areas with the highest rental returns and most accessible prices also attracted more frequent claims. Tenants in these areas were reported to be more likely to skip on rental payments or inflict property damage, while some areas were often frequently in the line of natural disasters. Nathan Birch, director of property management firm Blink, said the reward for buying homes in many of these riskier areas was better capital growth. 'They tend to outperform the market,' he said. 'You may pay more in repairs but the owner can make more when they sell. It's not a (clear cut) thing.' The Allianz data showed the most common landlord insurance claims in each state were for storm damage, burst pipes, malicious damage and lost rent. But there was also great variance in the types of landlord claims made across areas, with each state seeing unique trends emerge in the types of areas where claims were higher: VICTORIA See the Victoria suburbs with the most claims Victorian landlords were making vast numbers of insurance claims across some of Melbourne's most investor-heavy suburbs, with increased rental protections being blamed. Allianz data showed more landlords were looking to recover financial hits on their homes in affordable areas like Hoppers Crossing and Frankston. With the insurer revealing unpaid rent was among the top reasons for claims, industry experts have warned it's adding fuel to the state's property investor exodus. Separate data from Ray White showed landlords were selling up at a significant rate in many of the suburbs. Property Investors Council of Australia director Ben Kingsley said most of the places with high claims were outer or regional areas known for relative affordability, meaning in many instances tenants were in more fraught financial situations — making claims for lost rent more likely. However, with Victorian investors also now facing an increasingly difficult task to move tenants on if they stopped paying their rent, Mr Kingsley said many landlords were selling instead. 'Government (is) choking the private rental investor out of this market,' he said. NEW SOUTH WALES See the NSW suburbs with the most claims Cheaper Western Sydney and regional NSW suburbs have become some of the riskiest areas to be a landlord despite being increasingly popular with property investors due to the higher rental returns. The data from insurer Allianz laid bare the more challenging markets to be a landlord at a time when still elevated interest rates have been encouraging many landlords to exit the rental market. Suburbs with the most landlord insurance claims tended to be in gentrifying lower socio-economic areas. There were also a mix of new development hotspots with higher claims and where rents were relatively high. insurance expert Tim Bennett said landlord claims tended to be larger for older homes, which often had 'hidden risks'. Areas where renter turnover tended to be higher also attracted more claims as moving tenants created more wear and tear, Mr Bennett said. 'Socio-economic factors can play a role,' he said. 'Places experiencing economic stress may see more incidents of missed rent repayments or tenant-related damage.' SOUTH AUSTRALIA Many of South Australia's riskiest markets for landlords were areas regularly featured in property investment hotspot lists, suggesting hidden traps for investors. Four of the five SA suburbs flagged by Allianz as attracting the most landlord insurance claims were located in Adelaide's northeast. It's a market where investors have been chasing positive cashflow over recent years, with new landlords often attracted to low median purchase prices and higher rental returns. Tenant-related claims were the most common in parts of Adelaide, according to Wayne Johnson, EBM Property Insurance state manager SA. 'The main areas of concern in those places is rent default,' Mr Johnson said. 'Then there's tenant damage and then there's legal liability, where the tenant hurts themselves, or worse.' Mr Johnson said that areas such as Elizabeth had suffered socio-economic decline over the years since major employers such as Holden scaled back operations or closed down. QUEENSLAND Cyclone claims rated in the top five most common claims for Queensland, according to Allianz. But Brisbane claims were often for lost rent and suburbs with more affordable home prices tending to attract more claims. Bold Property Management director, Alison Farrell said from her experience in the Brisbane market, at least 80 per cent of landlord insurance claims were for rent arrears with a value between $2000 and $5000. 'We see more claims in low-to-mid-range rentals in outer suburbs,' she said. 'Higher income tenants will not rent in lower socio-economic areas generally, so landlords can only select from applicants that actually apply. The pool is what the pool is.' Ray White Collective principal Haesley Cush said claims for houses tended to be higher than for units. 'Since 2011 we've also faced a number of weather events that have contributed to the number of landlord insurance claims,' he said.
