You do have to lodge bond money within 7 days in NSW with the Rental Bond Board, check with the appropriate authority for your state. Hope you’ve drawn up a lease and have the appropriate landlords insurance. Usually 4 weeks rent as bond, plus 2 weeks in advance, drawn into the lease. Try Commonwealth Bank for bond lodgement form. If the tenants…[Read more]

Hi Glenn,

Had a busy weekend. I’ll email you and let you know about our renos. I’ve posted a bit on the forum and don’t want to appear to be duplicating it all.

Anna

Agree with C2. A few years back we borrowed all + costs, it wasn’t a good purchase as we got caught up in one of those deals where the property was overvalued at the time and of course it has since had a bearing on purchasing. We have since bought a number of other properties though.

We have just signed contracts to sell the above property and…[Read more]

Hi Denise,

Airfares and accommodation are claimable – keep your receipts. Also if you drive, mileage is claimable as well. Keep a diary with everything relating to your property so your accountant has everything at tax time.

Also going to Q shortly, a few days to inspect, including 2 we have not yet seen.

Anna

Hi Deborah,

I certainly wouldn’t sell for all of the above reasons. They sound like a great investment. We have renovated a few units and once they are stripped out, even if the kitchen doesn’t need a complete replacement, it’s amazing what a good clean, paint, carpet, light fittings and blinds will do, and a gain in equity. And like someone…[Read more]

Hi everyone,

I agree with the above. Auctions have become rather theatrical – a bit like Parliament!! I was interested in a 2BR unit at Ryde that was going to auction today and which was expected to for a little over $200,000 but couldn’t make it. Agent said it was really bad. Anyway, it sold at auction for $285,000. It needed a complete…[Read more]

You could try the local council. Don’t know if there is a charge or not.
Anna

I keep a manual file for all of our properties which I start as soon as we pay the deposit. Also has a photo or in the case of internet purchase, what I have printed out. I separate the file into sections such as purchase/settlement, bank,
insurance, property management, and pages where I note any phone calls with managing agents or anything else…[Read more]

Eighteen months or so ago, places like Singleton, Muswellbrook, Branxton areas were good buying. Maitland as well as it is within commuting distance. Prices have skyrocketed, but there is still the odd good buy.
Anna

Hi Glenn,

Good to see that you’re keen to start early. You might consider a reno on a unit as they’re cheaper and easier to renovate. We have done two in Sydney in the last year, and with the first, as soon as we got the keys in the afternoon, we pulled up the carpet, cleaned the walls and had a coat of paint on before midnight, had sleeping…[Read more]

Well, congratulations, Powmow!!

Work in the most professional manner and you’ll do well. Keep a diary of what you do, phone calls you make, travelling, R/E agents you visit and keep your buyer up to date with what you are doing. Good luck, it’s exciting.

Anna

Jessica,
ou’ve achieved a lot in a short time doing up your house. I’m really sorry there are people like that who just destroy someone’s dreams. I’m sure everyone feels for you, and we know you’ve got the strength and motivation to keep going. We are usually a bit nervous about locking up and going home at the end of the day. Last house we…[Read more]

Re the porta-loos, I’ve found a deal on those cool plastic seats that have colourful dolphins, butterflies, fairies, ingrained in them. I think it will be so good for mums as the kids will want to stay inside longer – gives her time to have coffee in peace till the bus arrives.

Anna

I believe SEQ is still a good place to invest but really check it out carefully. Don’t forget you will have B/C as well as rates if you buy an apartment and that can be probably anything upwards of $25 a week, a lot out of the rent. Some of those big towers in Surfers are very large B/Corp rates.

You would need to be aware of just where the area…[Read more]

Casey, seeing you have a property manager and you say there is an occupant of the property whose name is not on the lease, ask your PM to write to the tenants re the “boarder” moving out. I’m surprised the PM admitted knowledge of a person not on the lease living there. Or else change your PM as they are there to work for you, you are now the…[Read more]

Redlynch is a pretty popular suburb up there, about 15 minutes drive from CBD, but maybe ring up a couple of agents in Cairns and say you are interested in purchasing property round the Redlynch area, just ask their opinion. I have found most Cairns agents helpful. Have a look at houses in the area on realestate.com, get a map of Cairns area and…[Read more]

Have had septic systems for the last 20 years on four different properties, all rural, one of which we built. Never a problem. We’ve been here 4 years, don’t intend to move from this 80 acres near Maitland which has same type as previous places, with a transpiration area. They are now regulated by the council so you have to pay what they call…[Read more]

Bellasmum & JBC, we went to an investment seminar a couple of years ago in Newcastle put on by Sast Accountants on the central coast. Found them very informative and now with all our IPs, they are doing our tax this year. Ph 43961022, Sean James, and they are easy to find at Toukley.
Anna

Not meaning to put you off tomorrow night’s meeting, but I would also be inclined to contact one of the brokers on the forum and get a second opinion. They seem to have a wealth of knowledge and are investors as well. We have used a couple of brokers in the past who were a bit like a couple of the bank managers we spoke to, they weren’t…[Read more]

Peter, just looking at April/May API while tidying up my magazine shelf, back cover, an ad by Cameron Bird re Cairns properties, namely Souhern Cross Atrium Apartments. They say “one 2BR apartment but can also be used as two 1BR self contained apartments boosting income streams”. I’ve noticed similiar comments a few times. When you think about…[Read more]