Do eco friendly properties make better investments?

BMT team — Fri, 08 Feb 2019 04:45:27 +0000

Making your investment property more environmentally friendly not only saves the environment but it also saves tenants money. Eco friendly properties are more desirable to tenants who can save considerable cash on water and energy bills. As Australians are now more environmentally aware than ever, making some changes to your investment property could help set it apart from other rentals on the market and reduce extended periods of vacancy. Here are some ways you can make your investment property more environmentally friendly. Get water wise Fix any leaks at the property to avoid water wastage and ensure the bathrooms are fitted with water saving shower heads and dual flush toilets. Look out for the Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme (WELS) rating and choose higher rated products which are more efficient. Solar assets Consider installing solar panels and a solar hot water system at your investment property to harness the sun’s energy and save on energy consumption. Solar is a huge drawcard for environment-conscious tenants and is a great way to reduce your property’s carbon footprint. Investors who install solar panels on their properties can also benefit from claiming depreciation. Solar assets are classified as plant and equipment assets and can save investors thousands of dollars each financial year in tax deductions. Find out more about the depreciation deductions you’re entitled to. Installing solar assets is a win-win for both investors and tenants and is an essential part of eco friendly properties. Investors benefit from significant depreciation deductions while tenants enjoy improved rental affordability. Insulation Invest in quality insulation for your property to reduce reliance on air conditioning and lower greenhouse gas emissions. Good insulation helps to keep a home warm during winter and cool in summer, reducing the need for excessive heating and cooling. Thermal roof insulation is classified under capital works depreciation as it is deemed to be a fixed asset. Investors can claim a deduction for thermal roof insulation at a rate of 2.5 per cent over forty years. Switch the lighting Replace incandescent and halogen light bulbs with energy-efficient LED bulbs. LEDs use around 75 per cent less energy than halogen bulbs and last around five to ten times longer, reducing replacement costs. Install solar lighting outdoors and consider installing skylights inside the property to increase natural sunlight. Ensure regular property inspections It is important that your investment property is regularly inspected to look for anything that may be draining energy, water or your tenant’s pockets. Look out for things such as plumbing leaks, dripping taps or damaged window or door seals which could cause drafts. Fixing things as soon as they are noticed will avoid the issue snowballing and costly repairs later down the track. Improved tenant satisfaction and the environmental benefits are turning more investors and tenants towards eco friendly properties. Try implementing some of the above changes at your investment property and do your bit for the environment.

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Seven ways to go green in your property this St Patrick’s Day

BMT team — Thu, 16 Mar 2017 22:29:21 +0000

While many around the world commemorate St Patrick’s Day with parades, festivals and perhaps a pint of Irish Guinness, we thought we’d help property owners to celebrate the day by providing some tips and advice to go green around the home or within an investment property. Plant native trees and flowers in the garden The traditional symbol of Ireland and St Patrick’s Day is the shamrock and while some of you might want to spend part of the day searching to find a four leaf clover in the garden for a little luck, it’s also a great time of year to take a look at what has been planted in the yard. Carefully selecting what types of flowers, shrubs and trees you plant in the garden can be very beneficial for the environment. Choosing native options can help to protect local flora and fauna. As an added bonus, often native plants are hardier to the local climate, so they will need less water and help you to conserve this resource. Install solar panels and a solar hot water system Installing solar panels and a solar hot water system is one of the more obvious ways an investor or a home owner can make their property more energy efficient and reduce their carbon footprint. These items can also go a long way to helping home owners, landlords and their tenants to save money. While there will an upfront cost to install the systems and they may require some maintenance, the electricity generated from solar panels is free and any surplus power will feed back into the grid to help offset bills. With the cost of electricity expected to rise to $160 per megawatt hour in Australia according to recent research from The Climate Council, now could be a good time to purchase these assets. For investors with properties which contain solar generating systems or solar hot water systems, there is an added bonus. These are depreciable assets. For a solar generating system which cost $5,500, an investor can claim $550 in depreciation deductions in the first full financial year. A solar hot water system which cost $3,995 will result in $533 in depreciation deductions in the first full financial year. Separate your household waste and compost kitchen scraps An easy way for households to reduce their impact on the environment is to ensure they separate their waste and place it in the appropriate bins for council pick up. Many of us are guilty of being lazy when it comes to performing this task, but it can be as simple as allocating separate containers in which to put your kitchen scraps, plastics and other material. A compost bin in the back yard can also turn kitchen waste such as eggshells, food scraps and spoiled vegetables into a great fertilizer for your garden. Remember, any waste you manage to avoid will help to ease the amount of household waste and landfill created. Complete repairs to leaky taps and faucets quickly Dripping taps and leaky shower heads are extremely common in households, but we can all do our part to ensure that water is not being wasted when it shouldn’t be. Whether you’re a home owner or a landlord, try to arrange for leaky taps and faucets to be replaced quickly. Before renting your property, it is also a good idea to ensure that any taps and showerheads are up to current standards. Most new homes are required to have a maximum flow rate of 9 litres per minute and meet at least a three star water efficiency rating so this is a good guide if you are unsure whether your taps and showerheads are up to scratch. Hang washing outside to dry Most of us love our household dryers as they make completing the washing easier and more time efficient. However, did you know that 2.3 kg of carbon emissions is produced for every hour a dryer is in use? Hanging clothes outside to dry not only saves energy, but it also helps to promote a more active lifestyle. Just thirty minutes of hanging clothes on the line can burn up to 150 calories. Update your insulation Thermal wool ceiling and wall insulation helps to prevent heat from escaping from a property, so it can keep enclosed building areas warmer in the cooler months. For this reason it helps to reduce energy consumption, but it also helps to protect the construction elements of the building against thermal impact and moist related damage. Like solar assets, when found in investment properties, thermal roof insulation can also be claimed as a deduction for the wear and tear which occurs over time. However it is considered a structural or fixed component of the building and should be claimed as a capital works deduction at a rate of 2.5 per cent per year over a maximum of forty years. Property investors should speak with their specialist Quantity Surveyor if they are planning on removing or updating the insulation to see what impact this will have on depreciation deductions before completing this work. Add plants to the decor Living plants can create a cosy nook where you can escape and relax or beautify any living space. They are also great items to have around a work place. In addition to making your living environment a nice place to visit, some plants like lilies, spider plants and aloe vera help to remove formaldehyde found in the air whilst bamboo plants, ivy and asparagus ferns are also known to clean indoor air. If you are installing plants, check they aren’t toxic if you have pets and remember to ensure they get an appropriate amount of sunlight and water to stay green. For a bit of that Irish luck to rub off, consider some plants which are considered lucky around the home such as a money tree, a bamboo plant or even a shamrock plant to honour St Patrick himself.

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» Environmentally friendly homes

Do eco friendly properties make better investments?

Seven ways to go green in your property this St Patrick’s Day