Hi,

Some people will be winners in all this.

If you are trying to buy a first-time PPOR in Sydney, the abolishment of stamp duty may help a bit, but the reality is that with a median house price of over $475 000, most (all?) decent houses will be above the cut off limit anyway.

However, for young families/first time buyers who live in regional centres and country towns this will be surely be great. These people have been forced to sit back and watch their local prices boom out of their price range as they get swamped from out-of-town property investors keen to add another + cashflow property to their portfolio. (pls note this is not a criticism of PIs, merely a commentary on how the system works).

Having said that, I think that before the government can slug extra taxes they should be able to account for their financial (mis?)management over the past few years. Is it too naive to demand that they publish a tally of total government expenditure? I think all governments should be made to do this after each fiscal year.

As PIs are about to become possibly the most taxed population group in this state, I think we have a right to know where ALL the money goes!

Anastasia

Hi Interface,

My partner has a 2 bed, 2 bath unit at Teneriffe that was valued at $320 000 last October. It’s 3 yrs old and a/c but has no views. If you have water views, and the place is a decent size and in good condition 300K sounds pretty good. We recently put the rent up from $260 to $270, but I think you have to be a bit careful with this in that area, (particularly if you have a good long-term tenant) because there are so many units going up in the areas of Newfarm (eg near the Powerhouse) and Teneriffe – meaning that there is plenty of choice for tenants if they don’t like your price.

Re buying in that area, another plus to keep in mind is the new development going in down the road at Newstead, on the old Boral gas site. This is going to include riverside walkways/parks, shops/restaurants and more apartments – most likely this will add to the value of the surrounding areas.

I lived in Teneriffe for three years – it’s one of the more cool places to live in as far as Brisbane is concerned – personally I think it’s a great suburb to buy into.

Ciao,
Anastasia

Hi Melbear,

If the tce is in Ok condition and has either a carpark or 3+ bedrooms, OR is a 2-bed in top notch condition I would say $800K is an OK price for the area, but you wouldn’t want to pay much more unless it is in an outstanding position. I think you are always going to pay more in Paddington in the short to median term (equivalent properties would go for at least 50-100K less in some other trendy inner Sydney areas eg inner West like Eskineville, Newtown).

Paddington is going to be a popular place to live for a long time to come – you can’t beat a location that is 5 minutes by car from the beach, the city and the harbour. Not to mention all the great shops, pubs and bars. So I don’t think you’d ever have a problem getting tenants.

However, someone made the statement earlier that they aren’t building any more terraces – this is true, but
there are HEAPS of cheaper ones less than 10 minutes away just waiting to be done up in currently not-so-trendy areas such Darlington, Redfern, Chippendale and Everleigh. These suburbs are the Surry Hills of tomorrow. I’m willing to bet the growth in these areas will out perform Paddington in the next few years.

For rent prices – I have two different friends who each live in 2 bed terraces in Paddington (nice condition, no parking) – they pay rent for these of $490 and $450 respectively.

Just some thoughts,
Good luck with your purchase
Anastasia

Hi Strw23

If you go to realestate.com.au there is a section where you can order an online property report on a particular property. It costs $49.50 and the report arrives within seconds of ordering it. I have found this to very useful when you’re serious about a property – it lists the entire sale history of the property for the past few years, including dates and values of any sales, as well as unsuccessful attempts (eg passed in at auction, withdrawn from the market etc). It also provides recent sales figures for properties in the surrounding streets. Good value for money.

Ciao,
Anastasia

I have to agree with Kimmy1 that lately, the agents do seem more inclined to chase buyers than in recent months. In the last three weeks, I’ve had 3 agents call me up after I’ve inspected one of their properties – each one wanted to take down exactly what I was after to buy plus my email address and promised to email when something suitable came up. Time will tell if they actually follow through, but it does seem to indicate that they are realising their dream run is ending and that it’s time to start putting in the hard yards……
Anastasia

Hi Caz,

I think it helps to keep in mind the type of prospective tenants you are likely to get in the area your property is in. Eg retirees/elderly, young families, professionals, students, “trendies” or others – these groups will often have different wants/needs. This can give you an idea re what renovations to undertake.

In general though:
-if you have decent wooden floorboards under the carpet, I’d be polishing those up, instead of paying to lay new carpet down that will end up looking shabby after a couple of years tenant use anyway. This is always a cool look and is very trendy at the moment.

– agree with Bryce re sprucing up the kitchen a bit. I would forget the spa, but if the type of tenant you are after is likely to have young kids, definitely consider having a bath, not just a shower – and also do the fence.

– if the place is dingy – add light whereever possible – eg clever lighting doesn’t have to be expensive, light piant etc. Timber blinds, while very chic, may not necessarily help with this.

– finally, if security is an major issue in that area, I would consider the carport door and the security system, depnding on what your budget can stretch to.

Have fun,
Anastasia

Hi Online (or is it 8???)

When relying on students as tenants, my first thought would be how do you get the rent paid during Nov – Feb when they all take off for some home cooking or head to the beach???

However on this same issue, my tax acc. recently told me about one of his other clients – this guy bought heavily around Wollongong Uni (NSW) a couple of yrs ago and has no trouble getting (and keeping) reliable student tenants. His strategy is to actively pursue/advertise for O/S students – he gets them to sign up for a minimum 12 mth lease and sometimes even pay up to 3 mts rent in advance. Appently parents worried about their offspring being in a foreign country by themselves all yr are willing to pay upfront for longterm and reliable accommodation – even if it isn’t used all yr round. I guess this is a “win-win” situation, so long as he isn’t just cashing in on parental fears and charging above-rate rents.

Anastasia

Hey Jules,

Just to clarify something – your last response seemed to indicate you want to use the FHOG as part of your deposit for an IP??? You can’t do this UNLESS you are planning to live in it within 12 months of buying the property (can rent it out until then if you want). Also, as Elysium has already said, you may be able to claim it retrospectively for the property later on, if you decide in the future to make it your PPOR. (not 100% sure about this latter point as I don’t know anyone who’s done this).

What the rule IS saying is that if you buy an IP today and don’t intend to ever live in it, you haven’t blown your chance to claim the FHOG if and when you buy a property to live in. Assuming of course, that the gov. doesn’t scrap the grant anytime soon….

Ciao,
Anastasia