Investing in the environment.
Going green wasn’t an optional extra for South
Australian couple Dee and Henry;
it was an integral element of their property
investment strategy.
‘I’ve always had a passion to live more green,’
says Dee. ‘I have faith in the fact that we will
have to go that way eventually – so the sooner
the better. I thought that green property was a
clever way to go, not just out of my personal
enthusiasm, but also as a timely investment. People are more ready for it now than they ever
have been.’
Dee admits that Henry, while interested in
green issues, saves most of his enthusiasm for
good investments. This has actually been an
asset – she has to show him that her green
initiatives will pay for themselves financially. ‘I’m working on going as green as I can within
the realms of affordability,’ says Dee. ‘I have to
understand it and prove it to him.’
Learning and doing
When they first started investing, Dee like most
of us, wasn’t particularly educated in how a
property could be greener. The couple’s first
investment property had no specific green
credentials, but by the time they were ready to
invest in their second, Dee had done her
research and found the ideal combination of
growth potential and sustainability.
‘We are building the display home at ‘Beyond’,
an environmentally sustainable development
near Victor Harbour,’ she explains. ‘It’s a
lovely development in itself and only half of
the 100-acre estate will be developed. The
other half will be wetlands, bike paths and
native vegetation, including a native seed farm.'
The houses themselves will be designed to
reduce energy use on heating or cooling –
sometimes known as ‘passive design’ where the
house is oriented in the best possible way to
maintain a comfortable temperature. All the
homes at Beyond will have solar energy and
hot water, as well as collecting the maximum
amount of rainwater.
Inspired by this purchase, Dee made sure that
their third property, currently being built at Strathalbyn, offered as many environmental
benefits as possible. ‘I concentrated on the property’s alignment,
placing it to best advantage on the block – the
living areas face north, rather than east-west
because of gaining and losing heat. I upped the
insulation and made sure it had good rainwater
capacity and native vegetation. Practicality was
important too, keeping resale in mind.’
Growing a green portfolio
Smartline Adviser Cathy Anderson has been
involved with the Nieuwenhuis’ investment
portfolio since the early days when she met
them via their daughter, who Cathy had already
helped to buy her home.
‘I had studied property investment and come up
with a framework to follow,’ says Dee. ‘I had
in mind what I wanted to achieve, but needed
someone to advise us on what to do. Cathy
gathered our thoughts, put them on paper and
clarified the situation.’
Cathy’s involvement has continued as the
Nieuwenhuis’ portfolio has grown from one to
three properties.
‘Originally I set up a professional package with
lots of lines of credit to give them flexibility,’
she says. ‘Now, because one lender can reach
saturation point, I’m spreading the finance to
different lenders to build a strong portfolio. We
can reduce costs by accessing different
products and getting the best from each lender– e.g. a construction loan from one, a loan for
an established property from another. The idea
is I help them grow, but still safely.’
While Dee takes care of the properties and their
green credentials, she trusts Cathy to find the
right finances.‘Cathy has been fantastic, very supportive. She
feels like a lifelong friend already!’ says Dee. ‘It
would be too much to handle everything. I like to
concentrate on building and sustainability, so it’s
great that we’ve got that faith in Cathy to look
after the financial side. She understands where
we want to head and how we can get there.’
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buying my first home
