By Jill Fraser, as first appeared on CompareShares.com.au

As the sharemarket stagnates and returns on property investments slide it may be time to follow the lead of a growing number of lateral thinkers who are diversifying into non-traditional asset classes.

The alternative investment universe presents many weird and wonderful options ranging from first edition comic books and antique toy collections, to football and military memorabilia to car parking and boat mooring spaces.

Once considered the province of the wealthy due to the level of risk involved, alternative investments are now being sought after by mainstream investors who are disillusioned with returns from portfolios of traditional investment vehicles.

Alpaca Farming

Referred to by one breeder as “a stress-free investment that you can hug”, alpacas are in high demand, insurable and can provide numerous tax benefits derived from deductible expenses.

Not restricted to rural dwellers alpacas are commonly purchased by city folk and agisted. Large breeders are often willing to incorporate agisted animals in breeding programs, which leads to the fast recuperation of the buying cost.

Females sell for $1,500 to $50,000 depending on the genetics and quality of the fleece.

President of the Australian Alpaca Association, Richard Bowden suggests that from an investment perspective males, which go for $40,000 to $80,000, are best because the fee for servicing ranges from $1,000 to $2,500 and induced ovulation in the female means that a continuous cycle exists throughout the year. 

Car Parking Spaces

The mounting scarcity of car parking spaces in Sydney and Melbourne is giving quite a boost to the niche investment parking space market.

Brett Matthews, joint CEO of Secure Parking, which operates and manages around 180 car parks around Australia, says that some parking spaces in Sydney CBD have sold upwards of $80,000. The average cost of one in Kings Cross or Ultimo would be $50,000.

Sold through real estate agents, car park spaces give a consistent return of 6.5% to 8%.

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