Briana McDonagh — Mortgage Adviser
First investment property checklist
A practical, tick-as-you-go list for everything to sort before and after settling on your first rental property.
Before you commit
General groundwork, before you're looking at a specific property
Pre-approved for finance, so you know your real budget, including where you sit on LVR and DTI for an investment purchase
Researched Healthy Homes requirements, so you know what a property will need to meet before it can legally be rented out
Reviewed a repayment calculator against likely rent in your target area, so you can see how the numbers work in principle
Researched local property managers, even if you're planning to self-manage, worth knowing your options and typical fees upfront
Spoken to an accountant about how best to structure this purchase, before you sign anything
You've found a property
Due diligence, once you have a specific property in mind
Order the LIM report and builder's report for this property
Insurance quotes obtained for this specific property
Rental appraisal obtained from a property manager or local agent for this property, so you know realistic rent, not just an estimate
Council rates for this specific property checked and confirmed
Final unconditional approval obtained from the bank
Lawyer engaged and due diligence completed
Around settlement
The week either side of getting the keys
Landlord insurance in place from settlement day
Rates and any body corporate fees transferred into your name
Getting it tenant-ready
Before the first tenant moves in, your property manager is the right person to guide the detail here
Property manager engaged, or self-management approach decided, based on the research done earlier
Property confirmed compliant with Healthy Homes and smoke alarm requirements, via your property manager or an inspector
Tenancy agreement and bond process sorted, following current Tenancy Services guidance
Ongoing, once tenanted
Habits worth setting up from day one
Separate bank account for rental income and expenses, makes tax time far simpler
IRD notified of the new rental income source
Records started for expenses you can claim, rates, insurance, interest, repairs and maintenance
Reminder set for your next fixed rate expiry, so refixing is never a surprise
Your progress is saved in this browser, so you can come back and pick up where you left off.