How To Make Granny Flats A Good Investment Strategy

By Author: Ben Wall
Total Articles: 40
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Granny flats are probably the best thing to happen for baby boomers nearing retirement age and those elderly relatives who want to stay as close to their families as possible and can’t really afford the high costs of living in aged-care facilities and nursing homes. While the latter may ensure that they get round-the-clock care and attention, nothing beats being taken care of by your own flesh and blood.

Also, the economic crunch that has resulted into lack of affordable housing also contributes greatly to the rise of granny flats. It would’ve risen sooner except that there were laws in place that didn’t allow all states to build granny flats because they didn’t meet zoning requirements for the local districts. Other problems that were also encountered were the lack of proper permits and that most granny flats didn’t adhere to the local building codes. You can find out about what requirements you’ll need to start building your granny flats on sites like www.valleykithomes.com.au if you want to do research on them.

However, in recent times, there has been a resurgence of granny flats that is primarily ...
... contributed to the 2009 NSW government policy of enabling 10-day approvals for secondary dwellings on a property but this doesn’t mean though that you can just go ahead and build one in your backyard. First off there are still regulations that you need to adhere to and they are as follows:

• Your granny flat must be constructed within a residential zone, with your block measuring a minimum of 450 square meters. Each residential unit as well is limited to one granny flat only.

• The owner of the granny flat must also be the owner of the main residence.

• While a granny flat can also have carports, patios and verandahs, it must have no more than 60 square meters of living space.

• They can either be attached to the main residence or constructed as a separate unit.

• They cannot be built on unoccupied land or those that are being used for commercial purposes.

• They must also have unobstructed pedestrian access if you are planning to convert part of your house as a granny flat, they must have a separate entrance from that of the main house.

• Granny flats also cannot exist on strata, subdivided or community title property.

More and more people as well, find it financially rewarding to build their granny flats on the same block as their main residence because not only does this add resale value to your property, it also gives you a substantial rental yield depending on where you live. For example, if you spend about $100,000 on a two-bedroom granny flat in the suburbs and charge a rental fee of about $450 a week with an interest rate of 7%, you can pay off your mortgage at $200 a week. This means a gross rental yield of 23% or a cool $13,000 easily each year. Not bad right? Check out granny flats Australia and see for yourself what kind of investment you can make when you consider building one. To start reaping the benefits of your potential investment, you need to make sure first off that you research information and learn everything you need to know about building granny flats, with emphasis on areas like council, demand and costing.

You will need to contact your local council with regards to what you can and cannot do, including asking questions like how much frontage you’ll need, zoning requirements and of course, whether you can legally build a granny flat on your property. You can check the ValleyKitHomes website for what you need to ask and what you need to know about building granny flats. It also helps to get council involved during the early stages so that you lessen the chances of being rejected later due to small technicalities that could’ve been avoided.

Of course, it also helps if there are actually enough people who’ll want to rent your granny flats once it is built. To know about tenant rates in your area, you will need to speak to real estate agents and find out how many are actually looking to rent and how much rent you can expect to get. You can also check online rental sites and the ads in newspapers to get an idea of your area’s tenancy rates.

You can also take a drive around popular rental areas to get an idea of what types of granny flats are highly rentable to know exactly what type you should build. Properties located in corner blocks are ideal because the main house can face one direction and the granny flats at another, minimizing any potential privacy issues. You can check Valley Kit Homes to browse through many types of granny flats that are both modern and functional in design.

And last but not the least, there’s costing. It may be important to note that while building with granny flats kits are cheaper, it doesn’t mean you automatically save a lot, not in all the time anyway. The price of granny flat kits actually just includes the weather-tight shell because you will still have to outfit the inside of the house with the necessities from plumbing to the light fixtures.

Granny flat manufacturers usually supply a third and the homeowner controls the remaining two-thirds. Call reputable manufacturers like Valley Kit Homes and get quotes on construction work and other building aspects, and call real estate agents as well for estimated market appraisals so you don’t end up wasting money. Learn more about valleykithomes.com.au so you can easily get help when you need it.