With the real estate market gaining traction once again, which is your best option this year?
4 min
For those on the hunt to find the perfect investment opportunity in 2024, two of the main sources of potential investment income to consider are shares, and the property market. The latter, currently, is gaining momentum again in Australia, coupled with stabilising interest rates, and inflation on a downward trend compared to this time last year.
On the other hand, if entering the property market is out of the question right now and you’d rather start small, investing in shares is a great alternative to consider. Naturally, there are always going to be dangers and risks associated with any type of investment, be it property or shares, but with some research and guidance, you’ll be better suited to make a decision.
“One thing all investors should do in the beginning is understand the asset class they want to invest in. If your personal interest is in building a property portfolio, then researching property investing and understanding the ins and outs is key,” David Pelligra, director & mortgage broker at Wealth Point Lending, says.Â
“The same goes for shares. If you are someone who enjoys the nuances of the share market and the inner workings of a publicly listed company, then again, researching that particular part of the market is important. My biggest piece of advice when investing is to speak with professionals that understand the market you are wanting to invest into.”
So, in 2024, which is your best option for starting your investing journey? What are the pros and cons of each? These are the questions you must ask before investing your money in either sector.
The idea of investing in shares as a means for potentially earning high returns has long enticed those looking to increase their capital growth over a long period of time. Shares also present the opportunity for ownership in companies with shareholders enjoying particular voting rights and dividend potential. Those who invest in shares often have a degree of flexibility and control, which is a comfort when investing large sums of money. For example, should you wish to access your funds at any point in time, often you can do so instantaneously. This cannot be done with property.
“Shares are a liquid asset, meaning you can sell parts or all of your portfolio, allowing for quick access to cash,” Pelligra says.
When investing in shares, individuals — novice or otherwise — should consider adding blue chip shares to their portfolio. These are shares issued by a large corporation, often one of notoriety, with an excellent reputation and experience in market capitalisation. Blue chip shares are often safe and risk-adverse, however any financial gain is usually in the long-term.
As Warren Buffett once said, “the first rule of an investment is don’t lose (money). And the second rule of an investment is don’t forget the first rule. And that’s all the rules there are.”
Despite their advantages, it’s essential to remember that investing in shares also carries with it risks, including the potential for the loss of capital. Price volatility is also another important factor to consider — where shares prices rise and fall rapidly over the space of days or months. Those who invest in high risk shares — although seeking higher returns in a short amount of time — have to be prepared that they could lose a large sum of money depending on which way the market swings.
Naturally, when endeavouring to invest in shares, it’s important to conduct thorough research. This includes seeking advice from financial professionals before making large investment decisions.
Somewhat a no-brainer, investing in property offers a number of benefits, from capital growth (should the property rise in value over time), through to reduced volatility (historically, property prices only go up). If you’re planning on owning a property as an investment—and plan on leasing it—you can generate continual cash flow to cover your property expenses. Unlike shares, investing in property is a physical endeavour, in that it’s something people can see and touch, which is always favourable.
For those that are looking long-term and don’t necessarily need the instant cash flow (yield) renting a property can provide, investing in property for capital gain is also a great way to increase your finances considerably. Depending on where you buy, residential properties have the potential to rise in value in a relatively short period of time, and as a result, can offer owners a significant gain should they look to divest at the right time.
“Investing comes with an inherent risk, but the key is to look at past performance. Property, for example, has consistently performed in Australia for the last 30 years, so you could feel quite safe if you were investing,” says Pelligra.
“Property is also a physical asset that you can either live in, or earn an income from if you are to rent it out.”
There are a number of potential pitfalls that come with investing in property. No one can predict where the property market is going to go, whether interest rates will rise or fall, and if you plan on renting your property, whether your tenants do the right thing in the way of upkeep, making regular payments, and so forth. Properties can also have additional costs attached, such as maintenance, repairs and upgrades, as well as insurance. For those looking to gain capital on an investment property they don’t live in, you also need to consider the capital gains tax, which naturally reduces savings and investment incentives.
Of course, there are ways of mitigating the risks of investing in property by doing thorough research, and speaking to the professionals who can assist you on your journey.
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All commentary made is considered general advice. It is recommended to seek financial advice from a professional before making decisions associated with investing.
Article originally published on Kanebridge News Australia
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Gold miners are emerging as a compelling way to navigate market uncertainty, with analysts pointing to strong cash flows, attractive valuations and rising profit margins. As gold prices stabilize above US$4,000 an ounce, mining stocks could offer investors both downside protection and long-term upside.
3 min
Gold is one of the market’s go-to hedges in rocky times. Don’t forget that gold miners’ stocks are too.
The stock market’s gains in 2026 belie the rocky macroeconomic picture: elevated inflation, heightened geopolitical tensions, and jitters about the artificial-intelligence trade. That backdrop, in theory, should be the time for gold to shine. Instead, the price of the yellow metal has tumbled more than 5% so far, after last year’s blistering 65% rally. In part, the U.S. dollar’s recovery has stymied gold, which benefited from the greenback’s weakness in 2025.
Even with the precious metal’s recent weakness, gold mining stocks could be the best way to profit from this year’s uncertainty.
Gold miners “are a valuable hedge against macro risks that would likely be damaging for equities,” BCA Research’s Noah Weisberger and Rishabh Shah wrote this week.
Concerns about the Federal Reserve’s next moves to tackle inflation, the increasingly crowded AI trade, and steep valuations for tech stocks are just some of the drivers that could help gold’s price get on even footing— and lead to even bigger gains for miner stocks.
These stocks’ prices tend to outpace gold’s moves, because the companies have fixed operational costs. So when gold’s price rallies, their profit margins soar, and vice versa. For instance, the VanEck Gold Miners GDX +7.39% exchange-traded fund has fallen 11% this year as the metal has slumped.
Now, gold’s price just needs to stabilize to help miners’ stocks take off, and that seems to be happening. The precious metal has recently found support above the $4,000 level, and has stuck in a narrow range since the end of June. But its price rose ever so slightly in July, ending a four-month losing streak for the metal. Technical analysis also suggests that gold is due for a comeback.
Barron’s recently wrote that the pullbacks for both gold miners and the metal itself are overdone. Senior technical analyst Doug Busch noted that the VanEck ETF is on the “verge of a breakout” and has the potential to hit $11o in early 2027, up more than 40% from its current price.
Gold miners also have more than their role as a market hedge going for them. Their fundamentals are solid, too, says Chris Mancini, portfolio co-manager of the Gabelli Gold Fund.
“Precious metals miners are generating substantial amounts of free cash flow given profit margins of over $2,000 per ounce, and are returning this cash to shareholders through buybacks and dividends,” he said in an email.
“Buying the miners is a cheap way to get exposure to the price of gold,” he added. His fund owns Newmont NEM +6.71%, a Barron’s stock pick last year, and Agnico Eagle Mines as top holdings, as well as miners Northern Star Resources, Endeavour Mining, and Kinross Gold K+8.59%.
Miners are better businesses than they used to be, the BCA team added.
“Capex is more disciplined, margins are high and rising…and they are largely independent of the AI story,” Weisberger, BCA’s head of equities, and Shah, a senior analyst, wrote.
That last part is key. AI is disrupting the software industry and many other services and information-oriented businesses, and investors have piled into AI stocks. But ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, and other large-language models aren’t going to replace the need to mine for metals.
“Equity portfolios can benefit from exposure to quality that is uncorrelated to AI risk, and gold miners fit the bill,” the BCA team said.
They recommend that investors buy the VanEck Gold Miners ETF, which owns top miners such as Agnico, Barrick Mining ABX +7.24%, and Newmont.
An important bonus for big gold miners’ stocks is that their valuations are attractive after the gold’s pullback, too. The VanEck ETF is now trading at just a little more than nine times next year’s earnings estimates. That’s a big discount to its five-year average price-to-earnings ratio of 14, according to FactSet.
What’s more, the ETF is currently valued at a more than 50% discount to the S&P 500 SPX -0.17%, which is trading for about 19 times earnings estimates for 2027. Mining stocks have typically traded at just a 25% discount to the broader market over the past five years. So there is significant upside for the group if valuations move back toward normal levels.
One factor that complicates mining stocks as a market hedge, of course, is if stocks bounce back, which has been the case so far in August.
But both the market and economic outlooks remain cloudy, and investors remain nervous about the Fed’s next moves and AI stocks. Gold miners should do just fine, even if the anxious mood on Wall Street persists.
