Forum Replies Created
Ha !
Always good for a laugh, thanks for posting. It sounds like an average banker's IQ has to match the average bank interest rates
Hi Ladybird,
Some of the energy efficiencies will be down to the tenant (use of applicances, TV etc). However, a lot of the efficiencies are built in, so you have a lot of control over how efficient the homes will be. Depending on how far you are in the process, the properties will have an energy efficiency rating (using a software tool called FirstRate5) applied to it. The rating will depend on things like; building orientation, materials, insulation etc
Depending on what you're going to include in the build, you have control over the dish-washer, cooker, hob, air-con so make sure these meet the latest efficiency standards. Check out the ratings on this website for more guidance; http://www.energyrating.gov.au/appsearch/default.asp
Also look at the lighting you're planning to use, there are now things like CFL downlights available that have different wiring to the standard downlights (standard downlights have a 240v to 12v transformer, this is not used in the CFLs at the moment) which will save a lot of electricity usage.
You also have control over the water devices such as dual-flush toilets, the WELS rating for taps and showerheads, aerators on taps etc
Anyhow, that's all I can think of, off the top of my head. Good luck with the project
Hi Scotty,
Electric hot water units are the latest target due to their poor efficiency, especially storage tanks. The efficiency is not good, they warm up the water whether it's used or not. Instantaneous electric water heating (i.e. turn on the tap and the water heater starts up) will still be OK though. Obviously, if you already have an electric storage system installed, you can still keep using it but new or replacement units won't be available after 2012.
I suspect that over time these hot water systems will become scarce, as will people with the ability to keep servicing them!
You can always change over to gas if your property is connected, but depending on where you live, you can get rebates for installing solar hot water (usually with a gas booster, so you need to be connected to gas) if you live in VIC, or still get rebates for installing PV cells.
Hi Vita,
Our staging is for a 2Br apartment, and we're paying around $2,500 for 4 weeks in total. The staging is done before the photoshoot and runs through all the open inspections. Looking at the photos we have, it looks a lot better with furniture than just being empty.
We also chose to stage because people very often look at apartments and can't work out how to use what they consider to be limited space (the place we're selling is approx 80m2). I think this is an Aussie thing, people are used to having as much space as they like and never think about how things 'fit' into the apartment. Both me and my wife have lived in the UK and Hong Kong, where space is at a far greater premium, so we know what can be done with a bit of thought.
We're actually using the 'Finishing Touches' lady (sorry, but I can't remember your name, Finishing Touches Lady) who we'd seen at one of Steve's conferences.
Hi Fredo,
Are you still looking at staging ?
If so, let me know. We're in the processof selling a two-bedroom apartment at the moment, and have decided to stage. In initial reactions are good, the property is an off-the-plan property and looked a bit bare. The effect of staging the place well is definately a positive one. Reply to this and I'll let you know how things go is you're interested.
Hi Karen,
Haven't gone through the sales process yet, but we bought from Professionals Mackay, the RE agents name was Robyn Land. She was very professional, answered calls promptly and generally did a very satisfactory job. A good place to start if you're looking for a start place.
Hi Salina,
Yes, they seem to be. Whenever me and my wife go to a viewing, agents always talk to me and generally ignore my wife. The fact that she's small and asian also seems to reinforce this attitude.
This is great ! As people have already mentioned, you can use this to your advantage. Once we realised this, my wife would walk around taking notes on whatever she wanted, knowing that she wouldn't be bothered. My wife also does all the negotiations when we do property deals, this is what she does for a living and generally deals in figures far larger that the average property during the course of her work. To be honest, I think she enjoys playing with the estate agents.
I suggest you try and take advantage of this. My wife always says that she never actually says anything to reinforce this stereotype, she just let's people jump to their own conclusions based on the assumptions they make due to her physical appearance (small, petite, female, asian). She then knocks them out when negotiating. It's also fun for me, watching the estate agent having rings run around them………
Hi Ladyo,
We have a property in Rockhampton, and about a year ago changed to use a lady called Lyn Hansen who works out of an estate agents called Livingston & Molloy RE (they're part of the 'Professionals' chain of RE agents). She's always been quick to respond to any queries, and is very professional and knowledgable in the dealings we've had with her. From memory, she's been in the business for around 20 years and knows the area very well. Their phone number is 07 4921 4999, or their website is http://professionalsrockhampton.com.au/
I hope, after all that, that they're not the ones you're currently using!
Hi Blackjack,
Sorry to hear about the problems you had. We had a similar situation about a year ago. Our tenant left but the place was left in an absolute state, fleas in he carpet due to the tenant owning a dog, dents in the internal plasterboard walls because the son played soccer indoors, broken windows due to the soccer games, etc. Our PM returned the bond before doing the inspection, so we were deeply out of pocket.
You can't reverse the situation but you can have a 'lessons learnt' session, look at what happened to get to where you are now, and if there's anything or any decisions you would do differently. Given what you've said, I'd have a serious look at getting a different PM. We went up to our IP in Queensland, got a list of rental property managers from the REI website (www.reint.com.au for the Northern Territory), a list of questions to ask them (think about what you want from a PM, and base your questions on those requirements) and phoned around for an hour or so. In our case the end result was a new PM that we've never had a problem with!
Hi Talis,
You're right, I do sound like my Dad ! I must be getting old……
When I got a margin loan, I calculated a 50% LVR (basically, borrow a dollar for every dollar you put in). What I also did was make sure that I had a further 20% in cash that could be put into the margin loan account in an emergency. For example, for every $10,000 you borrow on the margin loan make sure you have a further $2,000 in cash at hand in case the worst happens.
If the worst does come to the worst, and you get a margin call, you have two choices; either sell the shares or put extra money into the account. When I was watching the selling on the stock market through the end of 2008 into early 2009, I suspect that most sellers were forced sellers (the one thing you don't want to be, whatever type of investment you have). I was able to put some of my 20% into the margin account and didn't have to sell a thing.Hi Talis,
You can do what you say, but may I issue a word of warning. If you've been following the news recently, the people who invested through Storm Financial were encouraged to do pretty much what you're suggesting (i.e. take equity our of their PPOR, use that to leverage into shares) and a lot of people got completely wiped out!
Obviously, there are other factors involved, for example the fact that most Storm investors were retirees with little alternative income, but doubling up your gearing can be very risky. When share prices go down, generally all share prices (whether Blue Chip or not) get sold down. Try and think of the worst case scenario, such as current share prices dropping by 50%-60%, which is what happened to most blue chips between 2007 & 2009, and see if you'd get a call on your margin loan.
I'm not trying to disuade you from investing, I have a margin loan for shares myself, but when the market falls you have no control over what happens and if you have to sell, you may be selling at the bottom of the market
Without pushing too hard, I think you should be making something of an issue of this. I'm not sure of the rules for accountants, but it's a requirement for any company with an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) to monitor, provide and record training for their employees. Is there anything similar inn accountancy circles?
Hi Andlim,
That's understandable, from what I understand there are quite strict measures as to what consitutes urgent repairs, there's a list of situations and scenarios starting on page 16 of the CAV guide that you can find here and may be useful;
There's only two ways that the money can be spent without your knowledge or approval; 1) through the agent authorising the work, or 2) the tenant can arrange and pay for work if they can't get a response from the agent / landlord. To avoid having money spent without your knowledge, it would be worth discussing your concerns with your managing agent. If you have a good agent, he should be willing to listen to your concerns and be prompt in contacting you if any urgent situations arise. If he doesn't, I'd consider finding a new agent !
Hi Andlim,
The figure of $1000 is mentioned in the Residential Tenancies Act of 1997 (Section 72), but you should be aware that it's only applicable to urgent repairs (defined as safety and security repairs by Consumer Affairs Victoria). Section 32 also mentions 'landlord or agent', so the agent is authorised to act on oyur behalf.
So, in answer to your question: In my opinion, i'd be very surprised if you can change this clause.
Is there any particular reason why you'd like to change this clause?
Hi Cataldop,
In short, i think the answer will be 'no'. In Victoria, the payment is a 'net' payment i.e. any electricity generated by the solar panels will be used in the home first, and any surplus will be fed back into the system at the $0.60 kWh. As far as I know, there's no exceptions.
Hi Elmondo,
This is a property website, but I'd be surprised if everyone only buys property. Either that, or I'm the odd one out…….
Diversification is definitely the way to go. Spend time with a good financial advisor on how to spread the asset allocation and don't make any hasty decisions, remember the old adage about the deal of a lifetime coming along once a week. Also, depending on your age and responsibilities (given a pre-schooler is mentioned), decide what you're willing to risk. This would also affect your asset allocation. One of the lessons of the last couple of years should be that assets do go down as well as up !
As far as I can tell, all figures seem to have been covered but in my experience your figure for holding costs may be a little low.
Think of it as a 'money-in, money out' timeline i.e. you first put money in as a deposit, maybe wait 30 days for settlment, do the reno work, put it back on the market, sell the property, then wait for settlement (another 30 days maybe) which is when your money comes back out again.
If you can achieve this cycle in 60 days, that would be fantastic, but I feel that 60 days may not be long enough for this. I normally work on at least a 4 month 'money-in to money-out' timeline, and don't forget rates, utilities etc.
Good luck with the project if you decide to go ahead !
A few other people have already posted this type of question. I suggest you search for "cashflow capital" in the search box at the top right hand side of this page and see what people have previously said…..
Hi Joyce,
Try the following link;
http://abs.gov.au/websitedbs/D3310114.nsf/home/Census+data
to get to the initial page of census data. If that doesn't work, try the keywords 'Census Data' and you should be able to find your way to the same page.
We've purchased through them in the past, and they've found good properties if you're looking for positive cashflow (although CF+ properties are easier to find at the moment). A lot of the properties they list are available on sites such as realestate.com.au etc but they also have buyers agents in certain areas that get properties before they go on the open market. If you subscribe (or buy Gold Membership, I think is their phrase) they send out emails before posting them on their website, so the only properties appearing to general website viewers are properties that haven't been sold to the subscribers.
If you're buying away from your local area (we were buying in QLD but live in VIC) they'll also negotiate on your behalf. Our buyers agent also inspected the property before we made an offer, estimated the price range we should be offering, and did our negotiating. They charge a percentage of the purchase price for this, but in our experience they negotiated a good price, did a good job and earnt their fee !
It may be a 'lazy' way, but if you don't have the time or don't know an area, they may be for you.
