The property market has experienced recurring cycles with periods of flat growth, slow growth and accelerated growth, with the long term result of an upward trend. Due to the power of compounding, the time it takes for a property to double in value can be calculated using the Rule of 72. This rule states that “72 divided by the compounding growth rate equals the number of years it will take to double in value”. This means that when a property increases at a rate of 10% it will double in value every 7.2 years. It will quadruple in value in 14.4 and in 21.6 it will have increased in value 8 fold. As an example: If an investment property is purchased for $250,000 and held for 21.6 years with a 10% growth rate it will increase in value to $2,000,000 (increase of $1,750,000). This averages out to a growth of $81,018 per annum.