What is a dual occupancy home?
If you’re looking into investment property possibilities and you’ve come across the concept of dual occupancy homes, otherwise known as dual key homes, you might be wondering what these style of properties have to offer investors, and the difference between a dual occupancy home and a duplex.
It’s no surprise that dual occupancy homes are sometimes mistakenly assumed to be the same as duplexes, they do include many of the same features. Both offers two residences within a single build, both offer two rental income streams. The key differences between a duplex and a dual key home is down to strata title.
A dual key home includes two dwelling separated by a soundproof firewall build on a single block of land, and tenants or owner occupants access the residence via seperate entrances, they do not share any living spaces, and have different electricity and water meters. Each has their own letterbox. The dwelling is not able to be subdivided, but does retain the option to be transformed back into a single residence dwelling in the future if required.
Why invest in a dual occupancy home?
Rising costs of living, added strains on families relying on paid childcare for both parents to be in the workforce, and property purchase prices have made it more difficult to get ahead for the everyday Australian. Simply working hard and saving your pennies is no longer a feasible way to ensure your financial security. Investing in property is a historically low risk strategy that can result in passive income streams that can help bring about more security for your financial future and into retirement.
Investing in a dual key home can offer additional benefits to a regular single resident property, and there are a number of reasons why choosing this type of investment can be a smart strategy.
You could save on stamp duty
Stamp duty comes with buying property, but if you’re able to minimise this, your initial investment is smaller. When you choose a new build as opposed to purchasing an existing property, you will pay stamp duty on the price of the land only; not the building contract price. This can mean that when it comes to stamp duty, you could see an automatic savings of up to $10,000 (or even more in some cases).
Council rates
Thinking about building a duplex? Two rental income streams is a desirable outcome, allowing you to pay off your property sooner in theory. The issue with duplex builds is that you will be liable to pay two sets of council rates, eating into the amount you can make on your repayments. A dual key home on the other hand, offers two separate tenanted residences but with only a single title, and therefore one set of council rates to pay.
Get ahead
Dual occupancy homes require certain approvals and specific conditions for builds, and Dual Key Homes are experts in the field. Let us help you negotiate not only finding the suburb, land, and arranging the build in order to optimise your returns, but our team mortgage broker can assist you with finding the right mortgage loan to suit your needs and maximise your returns.
Recent Comments