In light of the unexpected events we have seen recently in the world, it’s not hard to argue that just about anything can happen in the future to throw us off our chosen path.

While you might not be able to prevent the next global pandemic, there are some ways to mitigate certain risks in life.

This is particularly important in the early days of building your property portfolio.  Positive cash flow properties can cover their own expenses but usually not your home repayments or general living expenses in the first few years of ownership.

I spoke to Victor Idoko from CFV Financial Services about the ways you can protect your assets.

Who is Victor and what does he do?

Victor is a Financial Planning Specialist who creates opportunities for people to achieve their financial goals and objectives. He specializes in strategic and holistic planning for individuals which involves wealth creation, wealth management, and wealth protection.

How long do planning sessions take?

Planning sessions range in duration depending on complexity.  For example, if a client is seeing a planner for the first time and the goal is complex, it can take anything from 4 hours to 10 hours face-to-face time. And what happens at the back end takes more time – about two to three times that. Simple advice can be split over two meetings, but it really depends on client requirements.

How can people protect their assets?

There are two main ways to protect your assets. One is being self-insured – that way you have enough funds to replace your house or replace the car or replace your income if you can’t work. The other way is outsourcing. Most people would tend to outsource because it’s a relatively more flexible way. You can do what you want with your funds and know that someone is there to actually help you with some protection. And that’s when you use something like an insurance company to actually help you.

How much asset protection do I need?

The protection is tailored depending on your needs. The more assets you have, the more protection you use. Ideally, you will get to a point where you have enough assets and you do not actually need to outsource that protection. What that means is that your assets can actually protect themselves because some of them don’t need you to be there. A classic example would be if you invested in cash flow positive properties as they don’t really need you to do anything.  If the property rental returns cover the costs of the property, it works for itself and eventually provide you some income protection as well.

How can you help people decide what they need?

We have tools that help us choose what protection or what insurance is best. In terms of helping the clients in coming up with what they need, because some clients would have about 10 objectives, we actually sit down with them and we put their goals them into a priority or hierarchy.  This way they can make decisions to know which comes first and know that what they need to make sure they get what they want.

For example, for someone that doesn’t have enough physical assets yet, you need to protect that ability to earn money. With that protection and with that peace of mind you’ll be able to do everything else and begin to build wealth so you can reduce the outsourced insurance. To sum up, hierarchy and priorities are the main thing.

What trends or changes do you see on the horizon?

Increased complexity and increased specialization. This includes looking at your Super or looking at an investment or buying a property – everything is becoming more complex than it used to be.

Increased specialization and tailoring will help deal with complexity.  To ensure you efficiently meet your goals, you should have the right professionals behind you. It’s very important to work with specialists that meet your needs.  One person cannot do everything for you so it’s important to have a good team depending on what you want to achieve – this should include a good property specialist, accountant, finance broker, lawyer as well as financial planner.

Tips for people who are trying to build wealth through property, whether it’s just their home, or a couple of investment properties.

Get a trusted professional by your side. There are so many things that you may not think about, or you may not know how to do, but that a professional will do for you. This is particularly important when it comes to building wealth because experienced professionals will be able to help you achieve your goals more efficiently. 

For example, if you max out your borrowing capacity for property, there’s other avenues to channel your funds. You’re not just limited to one aspect in growing your wealth but you have other channels. There are so many things that can be done.

If you want to reach out to Victor, visit https://cfvservices.com.au/.  You can also follow CFV Services on LinkedIn and Instagram.

About the author

Debra Beck-Mewing is the Editor of the Property Portfolio Magazine and CEO of The Property Frontline.  She has more than 20 years’ experience in buying property Australia-wide and has extensive experience in helping buyers use a range of strategies including renovating, granny flats, sub-division and development. Debra is a skilled property strategist, and a master in identifying tailored opportunities, homes and sourcing properties that have multiple uses.  She is a Qualified Property Investment Advisor, licensed real estate agent and also holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Master of Business. As a passionate advocate for increasing transparency in the property and wealth industries, Debra is a popular speaker on these topics.  She is also an author, podcast host, and participates on numerous committees including the Property Owners’ Association.

Follow us on facebook.com/ThePropertyFrontline for regular updates, or book in for a strategy session to discuss your property questions. 

Disclaimer – This information is of a general nature only and does not constitute professional advice.  We strongly recommend you seek your own professional advice in relation to your particular circumstances.