Buy-and-hold
Here at Opes Partners, we assume New Builds and existing properties will go up in value by 5–6% a year, on average, over the long term.
But you probably won't make any instant equity when you first buy.
On top of that, the rent you receive might not cover all your costs.
That means you'll need to put some of your own money towards the property each week. These are called top-ups.
As at October 2026, top-ups are usually around $200–$350 a week.
So, with a buy-and-hold strategy, you mainly make money through your property going up in value over time.
Renovations
Renovating a property gives you another way to make money.
For example, you might spend $50,000 renovating a property and increase its value by $100,000.
That's $50,000 in extra equity, before buying, selling and other costs.
If you keep the property and rent it out, you could also benefit from its value going up over time. Here at Opes Partners, we assume 5–6% a year, on average, over the long term.
But the rent might not cover all your costs. So, just like a buy-and-hold investor, you may need to top up the property each week.
Flipping is different.
Instead of keeping the property, you renovate it and sell it for a profit.
Because you're buying and selling quickly, you're not relying on the property going up in value over time.
You're relying on the renovations making the property worth more.
For example, you might spend $50,000 on renovations and sell the property for $50,000–$200,000 more than you paid for it.
But that's not all profit. You still need to pay for the renovations, buying and selling costs, interest and tax.
And if the renovation costs more than expected, or the property sells for less than you'd hoped, you could make very little money or even lose money.
Development
If you’re developing to rent, you’ll get the long-term capital growth, but you’ll also hopefully get a 10% uplift during construction.
You are still looking at a cashflow loss during the initial period, while interest rates are high.
If you are developing to sell, you don’t get any market growth, but you do get the instant equity of (hopefully) 10%.
