A little bit of history i own an apartment in a block of 6 units. My brother also owns 1 apartment in the same block. another apartment has just come on the market today. my aim is the eventually buy up the 6 apartments and a neighborer house and develop, but thats a dream. Also i can chose who my neighbor is then.
So me and the owner that selling haven’t gotten on in the past. i have had verbal arguments about her leaving her car on common property where it shouldn’t, leaving her bin under my kitchen window because shes lazy.
Two weeks ago i spoke to her cause i heard she might be selling she said yes she was going to, so i suggested that I’m interested and that maybe it would be better if i purchased the property privately to avoid rel-estate agent fees she said yeah ill come talk to you. She never came to speak to me.
the realestate agent said the property will go Early $400K and rent out for $400-420 a week realistically i think $380 shouldn’t be a problem.
council rates are $1200 annually
water rates $149pq
strata $620pqSo First question how do i determine what is a good price to pay for the property?
Second question whats the best way to go about buying it negotiate myself or get a buyers agent?
Can i remain Annomouyse in the transaction if i got a buyers agent?
Also will that give me and my brother voting power at the strata meeting seeing as we own 3 of the higher paying strata units. Aim is to reduce strata costs on general maintenance costs like getting washers changed on taps in common areas.
thank you for your help
the best way to know the price is to see the price of similar property in the surrounding area. buyers agents usually have better information. so if you are not an experienced or do not know the neighborhood well, I would personally suggest you to get an agent. this will also save you from unanticipated trouble. make sure you choose an agent who is well reputed and in business for a reasonable time period.
stoj wrote:Also will that give me and my brother voting power at the strata meeting seeing as we own 3 of the higher paying strata units.Hi Stoj
Short answer is yes…
When you vote you will simply need to request that the vote is counted by unit entitlement and not by show of hands – completely legal, no problems there.
Only caution, just be careful how you excercise your balance of power, otherwise you will very qucikly put the other owners off side once they realise that you and your brother can dictate how each and every vote goes…
Cheers
Matt
With your voting power it may depend on which State and/or the Body Corporate rules etc as in VIC you will actually need 75% of the vote and not just a simple majority to instigate some changes and for most 'major' works/renovations 100% is required (other than necessary repairs etc).
I don't think you'll have much of an issue with practical considerations like tap washers etc. As previously posted it can be a political game and you don't want to get the other owners 'offside'.Of course your Unit entitlement may or may not give you this 75% but I would assume that with only a possible 3 out 6 of the apartments this would be unlikley
stoj wrote:Aim is to reduce strata costs on general maintenance costs like getting washers changed on taps in common areas. thank you for your helpSeems to me your focus is wrong and some re-thinking is required.
Sure strata costs can be a PITA but provided they are not excessive there are significant all round benefits to keeping the common & personal property well maintained and attractive.
Maintenance costs should be seen as an ongoing investment in your own property, irrespective of whether or not you are an owner-occupier or landlord the principle remains.
Be careful you don't adopt too much of a 'cost cutting' approach which leading to reduced increases in values and/or rent return.
As someone once said to me – you don't buy a car never expecting to send it in for a service. The same could be said for property – you never buy a property expecting things to go wrong.
Derek wrote:Maintenance costs should be seen as an ongoing investment in your own property, irrespective of whether or not you are an owner-occupier or landlord the principle remains.
Be careful you don't adopt too much of a 'cost cutting' approach which leading to reduced increases in values and/or rent return.
Depending upon your strategy, you may wish not to maintain the building (other than to a basic level) in order to erode the value of the other owners. When it comes time for them to sell, you may then be better placed to negotiate a more favourable outcome to yourselves – for the outsiders, it may seem like too hard a task for a newcomer to change the thinking of the executive committee/other owners to pay more for maintenance.
True Scott – certainly an angle I hadn't considered.
Like most decisions we make they should always align themselves with the preferred strategy.
well the strata is extremely high from my view, for that amount all we get is a small patch of grass cut once a month. There is no gardening or cleaning the drain gets blocked at least 3 times a year, they’ve had upgrades like ugly conduit run power points moving the old power points 30cm apart from each other which made no difference, tap washers in common laundry where changed at a cost of $300, $20 in parts and 1 hour labour $80, it should have been and that generous i think.
Seeing as where on the topic of strata a top floor unit had a leaking hot water system while they where on holidays, which caused damage to the unit below. so they had to get someone out to break in get a plumber to fix the problem and the get someone to repair the damage in the lower unit.
Should the strata pay for these repairs or should the owner of the top floor have to i don’t see why i need to pay for his laziness to turn power and water off while being away.
And as for buying it i spoke to another rel-estate agent about general prices they said $360k-$420k depending on the condition of the unit.
the rel estate agent selling it told me $405k they where offered by the first person that saw it which i don’t believe. Any one have any tips for me on how to negotiate with him. How do i get him chasing me to buy it. Sounds weired but i believe its possible right?
This development plan of yours is the driver – the reason you are attempting to buy this apartment. However. Have you run the numbers on such a development? Would it even make money? If not, your motivation to buy this apartment might well disappear.
I'm not sure that re-developing already strata-d units would have enough margin in it. Anyone with this experience care to comment?
Jacqui Middleton | Middleton Buyers Advocates
http://www.middletonbuyersadvocates.com.au
Email Me | Phone MeVIC Buyers' Agents for investors, home buyers & SMSFs.
Developing on this land is just a dream. if i had enough money to buy all 6 units and the house next door i could knock them down and build 12 units easily with great views as the land is at the top of a hill. i think there would be money in it but im in no financial position to do that. the unit is just an investment property and an ability to chose my neighbours at the moment.
Hi Stoj
As JacM said, the desire to redevelop would need to be considered as a sperate project.
In regards to your desire to get your quarterly strata levies reduced, and do some of the basic repairs such as replacing tap washers etc independant of professional services, that should be fairly easy to achieve…
Have you spoken to some of the other owners ? Chances are they feel the same !
I recently took on a fairly active role within the executive for the block of units i have my PPOR in. By volunteering to put the bins out myself, and another owner volunteering to mow the grass strip out the front, we have reduced the gardeners contract by $160 per month…
Not much, but its a start… (Nb. Every owner who attended the AGM was in full support of both this motion and several others i put forward).
Cheers
Matt
What is the zoning for the area? What are the height restrictions? Can you acquire the neighbouring block? What will a new unit your area sell for? Think before buying what may never be a good development opportunity….
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