This is the Investor's Edition, and the timing is awkward in a useful way. On Wednesday the ABS releases the September quarter inflation figures, and on Tuesday 3 November the Reserve Bank decides whether to lift the cash rate for a fifth time this year.

The banks don't agree on what happens next. ANZ and Westpac both expect a rise to 4.85%. CBA's base case is a hold until the middle of next year. Nobody knows, so this edition runs every listing against today's rates and shows you what one more rise would do.

Meanwhile the rental market is heading the other way. SQM Research has national vacancy up to 1.4% in September, the highest since December last year. Cairns is nowhere near that. And with prices slipping nationally, Cotality has national gross rental yields at 3.85%, the highest since August 2019.

One honest note. Higher yields nationally are partly a sign of falling prices, not just rising rents. A good yield on a property that's losing value isn't a win. Keep both in view.

5.2%. According to the RBA, as reported by Landlord Weekly, the average variable rate on existing investor loans was 6.5% in August. Borrow 80% of the price at that rate and the interest alone costs you 5.2% of the purchase price every year.

Here’s the simple version. For every $100,000 a property costs, it needs to rent for about $100 a week just to cover the interest on the loan. So a $500,000 unit needs about $500 a week. If the rent is less than that, you’re topping it up out of your own pocket every week.

Keep in mind, that’s only the interest. Body corporate, council rates, insurance, management and repairs all come on top. So make sure to use this as a guide, not a rule…

If the Reserve Bank were to lift rates again on 3 November, the rule goes up to about $104 a week for every $100,000. Check any listing against it before you fall in love with it.

Manoora has the highest house yield in Cairns, and this is the Manoora house that's had the most money spent on it. It's sitting on the Edge Hill side of the suburb, close to Piccones IGA, and the renovation goes well past a lick of paint: stone benchtops, a butler's pantry, a new bathroom with a walk-in shower, and air conditioning throughout.

Out the back there's a covered patio, a level grassed yard and a separate garage and workshop of about 9.3m by 4m, with an electric gate out the front. Tenants with a boat or a trade ute will want it.

The agent's rental appraisal is $700 to $750 a week, which is $36,400 to $39,000 a year. At $659,000 that's a gross yield of 5.5% to 5.9%, so it clears the 5.2% test. On an 80% loan at 6.5%, the interest is about $659 a week, so the rent covers it with something left over for rates and insurance.

You are paying for the renovation, though. The median Manoora house is $550,000. The upside is that a freshly renovated house should mean fewer repair bills in your first few years. The agents are The Ray Murphy Team at Ray White Cairns.

A two bedroom townhouse at the very back of Balmoral, a small complex of eight, set well back from McLeod Street and about 800m from the Esplanade. It's been updated with a new kitchen and laundry, has a private paved courtyard, a balcony off the main bedroom, Crimsafe screens and a 6.6kW solar system.

The rental appraisal is about $600 a week, or $31,200 a year. That's a gross yield of 6.9% at $449,000, which looks great. But body corporate is about $6,720 and council rates about $3,500, so a third of the rent is gone straight away. After those two you're at about 4.7%, under the 5.2% line before insurance or management.

The building is from about 1974, and the sinking fund has more than $35,000 in it. That sounds like a lot, but across eight townhouses it’s only about $4,400 each, and in a building this age one big job like a roof or a repaint could swallow it. Before you offer, ask for the sinking fund forecast and the last two years of body corporate minutes. You want to know what major work is coming up and whether there’s a special levy on the way.

And notice the word "NOW" in front of the price. After 18 days on the market, the guide looks like it's been changed. Ask the agent what it was before. The agent is David Hall at Explore Property Cairns City.

As one of eight townhouses in Freshwater Terrace, behind a white picket fence, with French doors, a timber staircase, balconies off both bedrooms, a 5kW solar system, an EV charger and a pool in the complex. Freshwater State School is basically across the road.

Here's the investor's story. This exact townhouse sold for $220,000 in March 2021. It's now asking offers over $540,000, which is about 145% more in five and a half years.

The listing doesn't give a rental appraisal or the body corporate fees, so ask for both. To clear the 5.2% test at $540,000, it would need to rent for about $540 a week. The agent is Nickoli Obersky at One Stop Property.

A first floor one bedroom apartment in Marlin Cove Resort, a few minutes from Trinity Beach, with 10 acres of gardens, a saltwater lagoon pool, a lap pool, spa, sauna and tennis court. It's being sold fully furnished, it has new carpet, and there are onsite managers.

According to the listing, the current owner is getting $650 a week net from the onsite managers. That's $33,800 a year, or 6.8% gross at $499,000. Take out the $7,284 body corporate and you're at about 5.3% before council rates and insurance.

Here's our question. AirROI says the median one bedroom short stay in Cairns brought in about $32,400 in the 12 months to September, and that’s before cleaning, platform and management costs. This listing says $650 a week net, which is $33,800 a year after costs. That would put it above a typical Cairns one bedroom.

It might be true, but peak season runs June to August, so ask whether that $650 is a 12 month average or what it earned over winter. Ask for 12 months of owner statements before you offer. It can also be permanently let or lived in, so you’ve got a fallback.

A two bedroom apartment in Drift Palm Cove, at the southern end of the Esplanade, with a lagoon pool, heated spa, gym, restaurants in the resort and onsite holiday letting. It can be lived in, holiday let or rented long term.

One thing the listing doesn’t tell you, but the floor plan does. The second bedroom is only about 2.1m by 3m, and you reach it through the main bedroom. That’s fine for a couple with a baby or a toddler, or as a study. It’s not much use to two adults or two couples sharing. So whether it’s a holiday let or a long term rental, think of this as a one bedroom with a nursery, and market it to young families rather than friends travelling together.

The rental appraisal is $650 to $700 a week. If it sold for $350,000, that's a gross yield of nearly 10%. On a headline basis that is a very impressive yield..

…Then you get to the body corporate: $22,136 a year, which does include water and the electricity for the air conditioning. Add council rates of $2,800 and you're paying about $480 a week before you've earned a dollar. That leaves $170 to $220 a week, or about 2.5% to 3.3%, before insurance and management.

The agents are The Ray Murphy Team at Ray White Cairns.

Listed on 23 October, so it's brand new. A two bedroom townhouse that's been freshly painted, with a brand new kitchen and appliances, new ceiling fans and lights, an upgraded switchboard and an enclosed courtyard. The work a first-time investor would have to do has mostly been done.

Domain has the median two bedroom townhouse in Manoora at $418,000, selling in an average of 12 days. So this one is priced under the suburb median.

There's no rental appraisal on the listing. For comparison, a two bedroom unit nearby at 6/4 Olive Street leased for $550 a week in September. If this sold for $375,000 and rented for something similar, that's a gross yield of about 7.6%. ody corporate is about $6,000 a year, which takes roughly a fifth of the rent, but you’re still at about 6% after it. That’s comfortably over the $100 a week per $100,000 rule, with about $60 a week to spare before council rates and insurance.The agent is Tim Winborn-Sharp at Twomey Schriber Property Group.