Property Investment

5 min read7 Oct 2026

Case study: It took 5 years. But this couple just bought their first investment property. Now they’re aiming for 3 more

It took Steve and Vicky 5 years to buy their first investment property. Here's how they fixed their income, then their equity, and why they're aiming for 4.

Couple takes 5 years to invest in property

Author: Andrew Nicol

Founder, 20+ Years' Experience Investing In Property, Author & Host

Book a session with Andrew

Reviewed by: Dennis Schipper

Financial adviser for 3+ years. Helped nearly 500 Kiwis buy property.

Copied

It took them 5 years, but Steve and Vicky have now bought their first investment property.

When they first approached Opes Partners in 2021, they had plenty of equity (deposit). They just couldn’t get the income to get the mortgage approved.

But that didn’t stop them. They both changed jobs and increased their income.

And a few years later, they tried to invest again. But at this point they earned enough. But property prices had fallen. So they didn't quite have enough equity (deposit) to get their first investment.

After all that, it would have been easy to give up.

But finally, 5 years after they started out, they're about to settle on their first investment property.

And they're not stopping at one. Their goal is to own 4 investments in total.

Here’s how they did it.

Top Takeaway:

Sometimes your next step in investing ISN’T buying a property today. It’s figuring out what's stopping you, working on it, then trying again.

Why did they want to start investing in property?

Steve and Vicky took a while to come around to the idea of property investing.

But every conversation came back to the same question: “How do we get ourselves into a good situation in retirement?”

They'd also seen family members reach retirement without enough money – fighting every week to pay the bills.

Some of those family members were still renting. Others had to think twice about whether they could afford petrol to visit their grandchildren.

That made Steve and Vicky think seriously about their own future.

Vicky isn’t originally from New Zealand, so she wanted enough money in retirement to travel overseas to see family.

But they also wanted to help their kids with things like education or buying their first homes.

They didn't want to reach retirement and realise too late. Or find out too late that KiwiSaver and NZ Super weren't enough to fund the lifestyle they wanted.

That’s why in 2021, they met with their Opes Partners financial adviser to create a Wealth Plan.

Why couldn't they invest straight away?

Steve and Vicky had bought a “huge do-up” property in 2018.

By 2021, during the property boom, their house had gone up in value. They had a lot of equity. They had enough deposit to use the No Cash Needed Method and invest.

But there was a problem. They didn't earn enough to get the mortgage approved for the investment property.

"We got off that call [with Opes] probably a little bit deflated," Steve says. "How do we actually earn more money?"

Not an easy problem to fix. But within a week of each other, both Steve and Vicky changed jobs.

Vicky's new job came with around a $25,000 pay rise. Steve's added roughly another $15,000.

Together, they initially increased their household income by around $40,000 a year. Since then, they've both moved into higher-paying roles again.

They also put all of their efforts into saving for renovations on the house, rather than borrowing more.

Then, in 2025, they went back to Opes to see if they could finally invest.

This time, they had the income… but now, there was another problem.

This time they had the income, but not the equity

While Steve and Vicky had been increasing their incomes, the property market had changed.

Their home had shot up in value during the boom. But as house prices fell, some of that equity disappeared.

So when they spoke to their Opes Partners financial adviser, Dennis Schipper, the situation had flipped.

They now earned enough to get the mortgage approved. But they didn't have enough useable equity.

"We thought we'd fixed the income, but had an equity issue," Steve says.

The Opes Mortgages team looked at different options.

They explored a Split Banking strategy, rather than keeping everything with one bank.

That helped get the numbers closer.

But Steve and Vicky were still around $16,000 short of the cash to get them over the line.

So they signed a contract to buy their first investment property. And gave themselves another goal: save $16,000 before the property was built.

How did they save $16,000 in a few months?

Steve and Vicky admit they have very different relationships with money.

Steve is the saver, Vicky … is not.

"When I see money in a bank account, I see it as a target to spend it," Vicky laughs.

But then, by accident, Vicky found herself unable to access one of their bank accounts.

It happened when they refinanced their home a few years earlier.

Sure, they could have fixed it. But they decided not to.

Instead, it gave them a way to turbocharge their savings. Vicky's income went towards their bills and expenses.

Steve's paid the mortgage, and the money left over got saved.

"You've just got to find a system that works for your lifestyle, your busy-ness and your personalities," she says.

Using that system, they went hard on saving and pulled together the extra $16,000 they needed.

Now they've got the money. And they’re about to settle on their first investment property.

Here’s how Steve and Vicky plan to have 4 investment properties

Their first investment property isn't the finish line.

Steve and Vicky aim to own 4 investment properties by the time Steve turns 62.

He's just turned 50, so that gives them around 12 years.

The current plan is to look at buying their next investment property around two years from now.

Eventually, they want the option to sell some property, pay down their home mortgage and head into retirement mortgage-free.

From there, their remaining investments could provide income to help fund their lifestyle.

Their goal is to eventually build towards around $100,000 of passive income.

Steve says they want to "live rather than live for someone else”.

This is what investors need to learn from Steve and Vicky’s story

It took Steve and Vicky 5 years – from their first meeting with Opes Partners to owning their first investment property.

But throughout that time, they never got put off. They figured out what was holding them back, set a plan and kept going.

Like them, you might speak to a financial adviser and find out you're not ready to invest.

That doesn't mean you’ll never be ready.

Sometimes the first step isn't buying a property … it's figuring out what needs to change so you can.

As Steve says, "If you think that you need to do something, then don't give up."

Andrew Nicol

Founder, 20+ Years' Experience Investing In Property, Author & Host

Andrew Nicol, Managing Director at Opes Partners, is a seasoned financial adviser and property investment expert with 20+ years of experience. With 40 investment properties, he hosts the Property Academy Podcast, co-authored 'Wealth Plan' with Ed Mcknight, and has helped 1,894 Kiwis achieve financial security through property investment.

Book a session with Andrew View Profile

Ok, now for the legal bit:

This article is for your general information. It’s not financial advice. See here for details about our Financial Advice Provider Disclosure. So Opes isn’t telling you what to do with your own money.

We’ve made every effort to make sure the information is accurate. But we occasionally get the odd fact wrong. Make sure you do your own research or talk to a financial adviser before making any investment decisions.

You might like to use us or another financial adviser

Property Investment

Should I invest in property in NZ in 2026?

Should you invest in property in NZ in 2026? We weigh up house prices, interest rates, rental demand and rising costs to look at the pros and cons.

OM 6921 How much money can I make from the buy and hold strategy

Property Investment

How much money can I make from a buy-and-hold property investment strategy?

How much can you make with a buy-and-hold property strategy? See how capital growth and rental income can build wealth over 15–20 years.

Opes

Where does Opes Partners recommend buying an investment property? [2026]

Where should you buy an investment property in NZ? See the areas Opes Partners recommends in 2026, including Auckland, Christchurch and Canterbury.

Best places to own rental in christchurch

Property Investment

How is the NZ rental market going?

Find out the latest trends in the NZ rental market. Learn about national rent changes, regional differences, median rent statistics, and expert insights from property managers in Auckland and Christchurch.

Property Market

What is the average house price in New Zealand?

Find out the average house prices by council area in New Zealand in 2026. Here's everything you need to know including what factors make house values go up.

Mortgages

Debt-to-income ratios – Everything you need to know about DTIs

Find out what DTIs are, why banks have implemented them and how they will affect you in 2026.

Property Investment

How to buy an investment property in NZ (2026): A step-by-step guide

Property Investment

How many investment properties do you actually need to retire?

How many investment properties do you need to retire in New Zealand? See how your retirement goals, age and investment strategy affect the number you may need.