Archive for May, 2010
Glad I’m not a developer in Perth
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In the Perth news yesterday is a fascinating article around property developments that have stalled in WA.
Glad you’re not involved in any of these
Swanbourne Hospital, sold to developers for 6.6 million. Vacant for 24 years, unable to get council consent to develop.
Old Fremantle wool stores. Bought by developers in 1998 for 10 mil, 12 years vacant and unable to get council approval.
The same article lists quite a few government owned buildings vacant for up to 30 years literally rotting away because of no ability to redevelop including the East Perth Power Station, (pictured), vacant for 29 years and valued at 200 million.
So the next time you’re having a bad day think of the guy servicing 10 mil of debt for 12 years trying to get local council to be reasonable, then buy yourself something to celebrate it ain’t you
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Wandering Investor
We don’t know how lucky we are mate!
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Yes OK I am showing my age by quoting Fred Dagg. So for everybody under 40 he is an Australian comedian who became a NZ icon as a good old kiwi bloke.
Watch it HERE.
But the reason I quote it is I couldn’t help but think this about our lives in this day and age.
In the last week I have helped over 200 people create immediate cash-flow businesses online without the need for products or clients. This was impossible when I was young.
Then this morning I flew from Auckland to Sydney on a plane that had an in-flight movie, another pretty amazing innovation. But as I had seen the movie I was able to pull out my Macbook and watch 2 movies myself, all while enjoying surprisingly good quality hot food at 32,000 feet.
I am as I write this sitting in Sydney Airport waiting to go to Perth and I can write this blog and publish it without leaving my seat.
I mean seriously it is just absolutely incredible the tools we have at our fingertips today. It may be a sad world in some ways but we have more tools to change our financial positions and live our dreams and communicate than any other generation since God created the globe.
So if you aren’t moving towards those goals in your life, why not?
Now there’s a question for a Friday!!
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Wandering Investor
The Irish Millionaire
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Mick from Dublin appeared on ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ and towards the end of the program had already won 500,000 pounds.
“You’ve done very well so far,” said Chris Tarrant, the show’s presenter, “but for a million pounds you’ve only got one life-line left – phone a friend. Everything is riding on this question, will you go for it?”
“Sure,” said Mick. “I’ll have a go!”
“Which of the following birds does NOT build its own nest?
A) Sparrow
B) Thrush
C) Magpie
D) Cuckoo
“I haven’t got a clue.” said Mick, ”so I’ll use last lifeline and phone my friend Paddy back home in Dublin .”
Mick called up his mate, and told him the circumstances and repeated the question to him.
“You’re joking Mick!” cried Paddy. “Dat’s simple; It’s a cuckoo.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m $*#(@*# sure.”
Mick hung up the phone and told Chris, “I’ll go wit Cuckoo as my answer.”
“Is that your final answer?” asked Chris.
“Dat it is, Sir.”
There was a long – long pause, and then the presenter screamed, “Cuckoo is the correct answer!
Mick, you’ve won 1 million pounds!”
The next night, Mick invited Paddy to their local pub to buy him a drink.
“Tell me, Paddy? How in Heaven’s name did you know it was DA Cuckoo that doesn’t build its own nest?”
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.
.
.
.
.
“Because he lives in a %#@)%* clock!”
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Wandering Investor.
Commitment
Posted by: | CommentsAs I travel around the country this week I am meeting a lot of new clients and friends who have embarked on their new cash flow journey using SNI.PR.
And the thing that impresses me the most is that more and more of my clients are finally “getting” what I’ve been telling them for a number of years now:
“The Secret is between your ears”. Get your thinking straight and your attitude right and become teachable and you’ll succeed at anything.
Last night I had friends who are afraid of turning a computer on right through to experienced internet marketers all loving the opportunity they have received to replace their active income with passive income.
And whilst the application and training are first class they are really the difference to their results.
We all have people in our lives, or meet them at least, who we just can’t wait to get away from because their negativity drags us down right? So what happens when you are that person? Well generally everything goes badly for you. In fact they could be described as a black hole because they suck in light and let none of it out.
I had one new client like this recently who couldn’t wait to send me his next problem. Eventually we parted company because I couldn’t ever get them to stop looking at problems, entirely non existent problems I might add, and start getting results.
I was discussing this particular situation with my wife and we were very saddened but also stumped. When someone gets so victim focused and so negative you can’t even get them to listen to a word you are saying. They become fully convinced that their world is a real place and we must all enter their land of disempowerment.
So my friends give yourself a mental checkup today and be really honest with yourself. Are you a light bringer or a black hole??
And if the latter, what are you going to start to do to change it?
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Wandering Investor
PS: Please come and say hello tonite in Wellington and tomorrow in Auckland, you’ll learn heaps and great chance to network.
Clear as ???
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I guess it is too much to ask for any new legislation to be clear and understandable, but I do still have to ask why the new budget changes are as cloudy as they are. Most things are clearish, however the changes to the treatment of LAQC’s is downright weird.
Initially from the public speech it appeared that LAQC’s would become fashionable again because of their tax rate being lower than trusts.
Since the speech however industry heavyweight Matthew Gilligan has been in discussions with IRD and researching the fine print of the legislation and basically things could go either way. There are a number of things “subject to submission” that could make an enormous difference to an investor and make an LAQC a good thing or a terrible thing
.
Right now it is impossible to say whether we should use LAQC’s or not, which is ridiculous in my opinion.
I’ll get Matt to give us all a heads up as he sees a clearer path ahead but this just goes to show that there will always be work for lawyers as long as we have politicians.
It’s similar to my discussions with the REAA asking for a clear opinion on their new rules surrounding traders. I have been waiting since January for that response but the legislation is so poorly drafted (or complex I’m not sure which), that we are still waiting.
So make sure you get very good advice before doing any new or restructuring around property. Even if you have good lawyers and accountants this area is a potential minefield. I would spend the money to get anything reviewed by somebody like Matthew EMAIL HIM before I signed anything
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Wandering Investor
Excuse of the Day
Posted by: | CommentsI was speaking this weekend in Melbourne and it reminded me of a weekend in October 2004 when my wife and I attended a similar event. We had spent 7 grand we didn’t have to attend and it forever changed the course of our lives because it got me started in property investing. In fact it is amazing to think that in 6 years I have made and lost a fortune or 2, met and trained thousands of people on 3 continents and now am able to bring what I’ve learned to bear to assist myself and others with whatever their chosen wealth creation vehicle is.
As I was sharing yesterday the difference in my life was applying enough pain to myself, in my case financial pain, to force me to take some different action to get a different result.
When I was looking for a way to give more in Fiji it took investing 7 grand we didn’t have to learn the skills to generate wealth through property.
And as the recession hit it took spending over 20 grand we didn’t really have to learn about alternative cash flow streams through online businesses.
I’d like to say it has all been “beer and skittles” so far but that would be a lie. It has taken a lot of hard work, discipline and loneliness to get the results I have and it is not a journey for the faint hearted, but as we are able to affect those less fortunate than ourselves and give them hope, education and the ability to support themselves, for me it is 150% worth it.
To be able to not only teach others how to to change their financial lives but also offer them hope, peace and life in God it is 200% worth it.
The journey is far from over and it started with voluntarily applying enough pain to my life to force change.
So what about you my friends?? Are you changing into who you want to become? Are you getting the rsults in your life that you want? Are you planning the life of your dreams or avoiding the nightmare on Elm Street?
Maybe what you need is a good dose of pain to push you towards the things you love.
I’ve tried it, it’s worth it
Or maybe you’re too busy/tired/sad/poor/overworked/misunderstood/afraid/fillintheblank to get control of your life????
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Wandering Investor
PS: Please come and say hello in New Zealand this week and Australia nest week on the Cashflow Tour.
BUDGET 2010 FIZZ BANG WHIMPER
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Hi Everybody, trust you are hanging in there as we digest the Budget and get used to winter.
In fact it seems we are all waiting for lots of things at the moment. Will the EU save Greece, will America survive its ongoing financial dramas, will Thailand descend in to total chaos, will there be any sea life left after 2 oil disasters and will that darn volcano ever decide what it is doing??
At least no one can say the world is boring at the moment I guess.
So stay tuned as we watch our futures unfold economically and set pathways through the rubble that seems determined to descend on various economies.
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean

PROPERTY UPDATE BY DEAN LETFUS
Well we finally got the budget delivered. Here’s the main points for you and I.
So Bill English has shown a complete lack of historical research or common sense in attacking the tax base so aggressively and stating hearsay as fact in the budget. Still he has the Microphone so we just have to bend over and obey.
1. Personal income tax down across the board. A carrot to offset item 2. Top tax rate down to 33% which helps the rich invest more so that is good for finders and traders. Company tax down by 2%, which is better than a poke in the eye. Trusts left at 33% to attack property investors
Overall this is designed to keep votes.
2. GST up by 2.5%
Will unintentionally increase poverty and has no benefit to NZ at all except to add to government coffers.
I think this is a tragedy for poorer NZ
3. Depreciation gone completely for any property that is expected to last more than 50 years. A stupid nonsense approach designed solely to attack property investors. Cash-flow pretax is now King, Kong and Superman. Also a 20% decrease in depreciation rates on new chattels.
4. No mention of ring fencing etc. so that is good
5. Whilst not made clear at the budget reading there have been changes to tax treatment of LAQC’s making them virtually useless as a vehicle. They are now being treated the same way as limited partnerships for tax purposes.
SUMMARY
LAQC’s are basically over as useful vehicles and we will have to move to trusts or own name ownership.
Fewer tax breaks for investors through depreciation but we knew that.
Property a cash-flow play now meaning likely increases in rents.
Nothing in budget to attack housing values.
Overall pretty good for anybody already doing what I have been recommending for the last 12 months!
So get out there and buy your next investment before the market recovers.
CASHFLOW ALTERNATIVES
As many of you know I have over the last 2 years or so spent a lot of time and money getting educated about online businesses and the internet. As a 47 year old my idea of the internet was all about porn and spam and I never really took it seriously until I learned more about it.
I have to say I was truly stunned to discover this huge world online that I didn’t even know existed. And the money washing around in it is amazing.
For example in 2010 Americans will but $157 BILLION worth of travel related services off the internet. And there are 1.8 BILLION people online all able to buy products and services without geographical boundaries.
I am telling you this because I am now making as much money through a couple of simple websites as I do through owning a $300,000 property. There is unbelievable opportunities online but it can take some time to get your head around it if you are over 20 years old.
I am finding it to be a rock solid alternative for cashflow and if you take a shine to it you might not ever do property again
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You can buy and hold online businesses, you can trade them, renovate them and develop them, ALL WITHOUT MORTGAGES.
I am serious enough about this to engage the services of Shaun, who many of you know, who help me show you how this all works. (If you don’t know Shaun is a leading interet marketer who retired a multi millionaire at 22, no bull)!!
So if you’re in NZ I’d love to catch up with you next week, details HERE
And if you’re in OZ I’ll be there in a couple of weeks, details HERE
So if I can’t talk you into continuing to invest in property, at least come and find out about an alternative retirement strategy that ANYBODY can do!!
MINDSET SCIENCE BY DEAN LETFUS
I saw a comment from someone recently that blew me away. They had joined a programme that had a strong educational component and as they got educated they would create pretty significant income. It was a sound company and the income was pretty much guaranteed, it just took some time and education as I said.
So this person was 2 weeks in and decided he was going to “chuck it in” because it “didn’t work”.
I literally couldn’t believe that this level of victim and poverty mentality could reside in one person at the same time.
It highlighted to me just how deceived we can get if left to our own frame of reference without the intervention of reality.
It’s a bit like my online stalker who rants and raves about total nonsense. I literally laugh out loud as his feckless babbling but I am so sad for him that his world is so tiny and dark that his only way to cope with his pain is to tell lies to nobody about me.
So given that we all will have areas where our view of reality is wrong how do we identify those things and start to shift them?
Way easier said than done I have to admit but let me give you an underlying principle to get you started.
We are designed for intimate relationships. We are meant to have close friendships with people who know us well and who speak into our lives. This means that when we are getting off track those who love us can tell us so we can be corrected.
Sadly few of us have this. Nearly all of us isolate and in modern society it has become possible to have no close relationships at all thanks to technology.
So if you want to find out those areas where you believe lies or are just plain screwy you must start by developing a close friendship with your spouse or other significant person and give them permission to speak into your life. In fact it is impossible to have a close relationship where you don’t both speak into each others lives so this will happen in time.
For example my ex friend stalker is the butt of jokes amongst everybody I interact with. However none of them are close enough to him to tell him how weird he has become. That is tragic for all concerned.
I friend who loves you enough to tell you the truth will forever change your life and your world view.
Want to avoid deception, get into a truth relationship as quickly as possible and learn to listen
You know the rules, stay INSPIRED and Stay SAFE OK??





