Noob,A strategy is a very special thing, you need to develop it your self. Be very wary to get it from somebody else even if they say they tailor made it to your specific needs. A strategy needs to accommodate your long term goal, your risk appetite, your income, your savings / spending pattern, etc.Having said that, I cannot give you the fool…[Read more]

HelloI have been thinking about this as well. It's never too early to start preparing. I bought a house near a busy road where restaurants and supermarkets are. Retirement plan is to convert the house into a (Gloria Jeans??) cafe and sell bits and pieces on the side too.  The bits and pieces would be mementos I bought during travel or ethnic s…[Read more]

Hi Nooob,Wow… your finance is really awesome. Am green with envy.I agree – never get financial advisors, they are just waste of money. Same thing with tax accountants and accountants in general. But then again it's my personal opinion and plus I know most of the things they know. I work in Banking and am an accountant. I do all my taxes and my…[Read more]

Thanks, Terry.Much appreciated. <br /:)” title=”>:)” class=”bbcode_smiley” />co

Hi Cana05,The ultimate objective of property investing is to have positively geared properties. Besides, all properties will end up positively geared unless you keep increasing the mortgage. When your property becomes positively geared and you still want to be negatively geared, then it is time to invest again. Plenty of options – maybe buy…[Read more]

Hi Terry,Yes I could do that, unfortunately my equity was not enough to cover the 20% deposit + expenses. So I had to borrow the rest. But I'm back below 80% now…  phew…. Hi Tim, Thanx for calling me crap. I know I was 'creative' but I challenge your claim that it was illegal. There is no law saying that you have to disclose everything to the…[Read more]

Hi Richard,Thanx for the input.Westpac may have seen PL inquiry at Veda but inquiry is just inquiry, not necessarily materialise into a loan. If they had followed up with Citibank they would have known about the PL. So it was a calculated risk.I paid off the PL as quickly as possible because I want to get down to 80% asap. Besides, I like to h…[Read more]

Hi Carlin,Don't really understand your position: so you're saying your equity in your existing PI or PPOR is 65% and you are buying another PI of $180k. Probs is, the lender may slap you with LMI?I'm not sure whether you think the hassle associated with getting a PL is worth it. I'm sure you're also very good in money matters. Given your time…[Read more]

Hi Carlin,I was able to show my accountant that 100% of Citibank loan went into the mortgage as suppose to paying lawyers fees, stamp duty etc. He let me have it as a deduction. He says it doesn't matter what loan you have, as long as the purpose is for investing. If you are "stupid" enough to invest with the more expensive loan… The catch is,…[Read more]

Hi Carlin,I did this and it was sweeettt………  Was buying IP worth $950k. Borrowed 80% from Westpac, borrowed 20% as personal loan from Citibank.Interest rate on citibank loan was obviously much higher than Westpac. I furiously paid off the citibank loan. Just finished paying citibank off 3 months ago. In total, LMI would have been in the…[Read more]

Hi Terry, Thanx for the reply. The 1 day bit is interesting, because apparently it is 6 months for FHOGs or they have to give the money back.Another question though, how do I evidence that I have lived in that property? Bank statements come to mind, but mine are all electronic statements now. Same goes with utility bills.Thanx again Terry, Catt

Ummester:As far as I know (could be wrong) you cant. But usually in the contract there's a subject to finance clause?Dgabriel,I do think it is risky to borrow 100%, unless you are very very confident with your cashflow. However, if you can stomach the giddy feeling: I did use the facility with Westpac. My case: I only had 90%, so I needed another…[Read more]

Well,As far as I know you can only get FHOG on your first property and that property must be your PPOR. Otherwise you don't get FHOG.Whether LOC is the best option depends on your circumstances and investment strategy. I personally don't like LOC as it is providing bells and whistles I don't need. Unless you have lots of IP that managing your…[Read more]

Hi Richard,Thanx for the response, however I still am confused.So even if the 5% owner has not paid anything nor received anything and totally separated financial arrangement, he/she is still entitled to 5% of tax deductions?Many thanx,Cattleya

And most likely NAB will recognise this 'idea' of hers when it is time to re-finance.Why not just negotiate better rates with NAB? Given their 3 loans with NAB, I'm sure your friends can do this.Good luck,Cattleya

C2 wrote:
Steve has never said his plan was the best or perfect but quite a few people have followed what he said and are now quite successful property wise.  People who have attended Steve's seminars etc have received more detailed information regarding his plans and methods.  People read 130 properties and automatically think all these p…[Read more]

Hi Guys…Sorry, have to respond to Milly first. I have very strong education background in accounting and finance. I've held senior position in auditing department in 2 of the biggest banks. I do not have my own business. I hope that clears Milly's comment – yes, property investors do need accountants with strong property background but I'm no…[Read more]

Hi Foundation,Interesting theory and statistics. Interesting does not mean anything if the data is unreliable. Would you please tell us your credentials, where you got the data from etc… etc… so we know whether to believe in you.This is an article from the RBA (ie. very very reliable…) Sure it's 1 year ago, but still is relevant. It speaks…[Read more]

Hi, Don't know much about lending practice in UK but I'm suggesting you finance it from where you earn your income to avoid foreign exchange risk.Forex risk: You buy property in UK using a bank in LondonMonthly mortgage payment is GBP2000, of which GBP1000 is paid from rent income. The remaining GBP1000 is paid from OzYou live and work in Ozy…[Read more]

Oh well…. that's it, Steve has left the room.From Steve's post, I think what he says is:1. Steve gets his deposit from selling his existing property(ies) that's ripe for harvesting. Well, my properties are still far far away from being ripe. And the ones already ripe I don't want to sell because the exit costs are too high. Steve obviously has…[Read more]