Hailing from Sri Lanka, Kushan and Keem came to Australia in 2004 in search of better opportunities.

Even though part of the reason for their move was because Kushan was taking his PhD studies, he and his wife were drawn to real estate. So, the couple signed up for courses on property and personal development to satisfy their curiosity about property investing.

These courses, however, did not meet their expectations.

At that time, their daughter was only eight years old while their son was two. That meant they had their hands full in raising their kids. So, they struggled to attend all the events that were included in the courses they signed up for.

But that didn’t hinder them from trying their luck in property investing.

Despite their limited knowledge, Kushan and Keem still tried to buy investment properties, with the first being a development site. They were able to borrow $2,100,000 to purchase the property.

While the property was valued at $3,000,000, they weren’t able to earn any profit from it since they incurred additional expenses for its purchase. And ultimately, Kushan and Keem incurred a $36,400 loss from that investment property.

Unlike many property investors, however, they recognised the mistakes they made from that deal.

In particular, they attribute this failure mainly to their lack of due diligence. The couple belatedly realised that they should have conducted a feasibility study before acquiring and investing in the property.
And with this realisation came a decision:

They were putting their property investing plans on the back burner.

…Until 2017, that is.

Because that year, they decided to try their luck with a renovation project.

However, they encountered challenges during the renovation. They expected it to be finished within a few months. But 15 months since the work began… The renovation was yet to be completed.

It was as if history was repeating itself.

What they anticipated as a cash flow-positive property was slowly becoming a nightmare. Worse, the project was starting to take a toll on their finances since they couldn’t get any income from it.

Unfortunately, their woes didn’t stop there.

Keem soon found himself out of work. Then, a month later, his father suddenly passed away.
It was a big blow to the whole family, most especially to Keem.

After all, he saw his father as one of his pillars and a source of strength throughout his life. He had great respect for his father and wanted to make him proud.

With his father’s sudden passing and the difficulties they were facing with their property investment, Keem was at a loss.

…And he found himself in a very dark place.

Just when everything seemed so hopeless, the couple met Dymphna… And they decided to attend ILRE.

Joining ILRE and Their First Steps

Attending Dymphna’s class was the turning point for Kushan and Keem.

See, when they joined ILRE, they fully committed to it because they found the discussions engaging. Also, their trainers were more accommodating compared to those in the previous course they joined. These motivated them to complete all the workshops and training.

More importantly… It marked the start of the transformation in their lives.

With their newfound knowledge and skills, one of the first things they did was negotiate with the PPR builder. That’s because they decided to conduct a review and opportunity analysis of their entire property portfolio to improve their profitability.

As for their first property project, they went back to their development site and decided to renovate the vandalised house to turn it into a rental.

The previous tenants vandalised the property, to the point that the De Silvas no longer made a profit from it. Instead, it made them lose roughly $21,328 each year.

For years, they didn’t know what to do with the property. While they wanted to renovate it, they didn’t have the funds to finance the project. They were also concerned that the renovation would end up being more costly than profitable.

Fortunately, Keen spoke to Raelene about his concerns during one of their sessions. With her encouragement, the couple began renovating the vandalised house via cost-effective methods. And it paid off.

From an annual loss of $21,328, the renovation led to a decrease in the annual loss they incurred from that property – it went down to $1,500.

At the same time, they finally set up a Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF).

The couple then proceeded to secure other investment projects.

Their next deal involved purchasing the SMSF property. It was a house that had 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and 2 kitchens. They decided to renovate and turn it into a dual-income granny flat. It cost the couple $351,000 to purchase the SMSF property and another $156,516 for its strategy cost and equity uplift.

While they have outgoings and interest amounting to $18,316, Kushan and Keem were able to charge rent that amounted to $32,240 annually, giving them a $13,924 profit.

Next, the couple set their eyes on the block they invested in that had 7 units. They used to consider it as a “charity property” since the tenants live there for free without being required to take care of the property.

To turn things around in that block, the De Silvas decided to start by changing the property manager. Then, they renovated 5 units from 2020-2021, the sixth unit in 2022, and they plan to renovate the seventh unit in 2023.

Prior to the renovation, they would incur an annual loss of $15,172. But after the renovation project, they were able to cut the annual losses to $7,500.

They effectively cut their annual loss in half!

The Property Investing Journey Doesn’t Stop

As you can expect, the De Silvas don’t plan to stop after finishing their renovation projects. They’re now planning to construct seven more units in their existing properties.

And since they already learned their lesson the hard way…

This time, they’ve decided to first conduct an opportunity analysis to find out the feasibility of the project.

The processes involved with the development project are going more smoothly than anticipated. After all, they already received the Council’s approval for it and have received the intention to lease from prospective tenants.

Kushan and Keem also expect to collect an annual rent of $163,800 from their newly built furnished units.
The couple is also venturing into leasing the properties they purchased to businesses. In fact, they were able to secure a business deal with three shops in one of their investment properties.

More Than the Financial Gains

Since starting their property investing journey with ILRE, Kushan and Keem realised that there are more important things besides their properties.

Yes, ILRE helped them achieve financial independence – but that’s not all. The lessons they learned from their trainers also helped them find who they really are:

Change-makers.

The couple discovered that becoming property investors also meant that they are able to provide high-quality but affordable housing to their tenants.

ILRE also gave the couple the courage to continue their journey as immigrants in Australia. It has also empowered their family to keep moving forward.

And guess what?

Their passion for property investing seems to have also rubbed off on their children!

Of course, the couple is more than happy to share what they’ve learned in their journey with their children so they can be successful property owners themselves.

“ILRE has given us not just financial tools and inspiration, but also helped us to find who we really are”

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These stories and the results in them were captured at a specific point in time. The real estate market and the investing strategies used to succeed are constantly changing. The achievements and results of these investors may have changed since these stories were recorded. Each of these investors engaged in in-depth training, coaching and mentoring to be able to achieve these results. Their results are not typical and should not be taken as a guarantee of the results you may achieve. Your personal results will be in-line with the training, education and hard work that you personally conduct.

“ILRE has given us not just financial tools and inspiration, but also helped us to find who we really are”