Maybe we should stay away from names regardless of the definitions . I'm far more interested in the decision to sell and rent .
It's not something I would do however I can understand how someone in different circumstances might .
I have a parcel of blue chip shares that pay fully franked divvies and it is a pretty reliable source of income . It wouldn't be the end of the world if I sold all my property and bought more of those shares . Paid straight into the bank a couple of times a year without having to get out of bed and the franking gives them the edge . Yes , I remember what happened in the gfc and you would simply have to factor that in to your risk strategy .
That said , here's the thing with property for me . Firstly , it doesn't bother me doing a bit of maintenance occasionally and if you manage it properly , it isn't expensive if you pay someone to do it for you . It's more about management and experience .
Secondly , I like to have a place that is a home . Good long term neighbours , a sense of community , a shed space for all the toys and you can modify the place to suit yourself as you like . That's priceless for me .
Thirdly . Even in the event of a gfc if your home happened to halve in value , it's still yours . Living costs are low so all you have to do is earn a bit of spending money . Makes it very easy to sleep at night .
So in summary , I'm biased toward owning property however I wouldn't lecture anyone for making a different choice . I'm just more interested in how they came to that decision in the first place .
