Cashflow positive vs cashflow negative

Cashflow positive means the rental income, after all expenses INCLUDING the loan repayments, leaves you with cash in the bank each year. Cashflow negative means you're tipping in money each year just to hold the property. Cashflow positive is different from positive gearing - gearing is a tax concept (income vs deductible expenses), while cashflow includes the principal portion of loan repayments and excludes non-cash items like depreciation. A property can be negatively geared (tax loss on paper) but cashflow positive (cash surplus after the tax refund), or vice versa. Investors targeting freedom often chase cashflow positive; investors targeting capital growth tolerate cashflow negative.