Wow.  That was quite a read.  Well, tell the truth, I only got to the bits were the bears were going to fight the bulls in the pub car park.  Maybe each side should chose a champion and let them have at it?  Anyway, for those of you who have the time to read six pages of opinions, here's my two dallars worth.  Firstly, those of you who try and…[Read more]

Hello,You need to do your own homework but, as I have just finished building two units in Tassie (so inflate everything for the over-priced mainland!), here are my thoughts.   Only you know what you can sell your development for so what you need to subtract from that figure (and I wouldn't be banking on any capital growth right now)  is:Land cos…[Read more]

Thx for the advice SNM.  I don't intend to pay for anything and will be discussing the problem with the Building/Plumbing Inspector once everybody has got the joint plan of action together.  I still owe over a $100k to the builders so that should be a fair incentive for them to get everything fixed.As for 35.35 minus 35.2 being 150mm and not 40…[Read more]

Thanks guys. The answers to your questions are:1) The finished floor level (FFL) is marked on the plans as 35.35 above sea level.   From the contour lines on the overall plot layout plan, the highest gradient intersecting with the unit should have been somewhere around 35.2.   Therefore, as the FFL should have been at 35.35, at no point should …[Read more]

Hi,Personally, I read Steve's book when my family and I arrived in Australia a few years ago.  I'd been made redundant in the US and we decided to start again in Oz.  I read the 130 book whilst driving across the Nullabor.  If nothing else, it made that really long strech of straight road less boring.I decided to give it a try, not in tota…[Read more]

Hello,When is the right time to buy property?  The answer is "Now".  It's an old saying but one that is almost 100% correct.  The only time I would not buy is in a dramatic downtun – like in the UK in the late 80's when owners encountered negative equity (where you owe more than the property is worth due to devaluation).  The probability of tha…[Read more]

Crashy,As a former tradie you can only join if you we're struck off for gross incompetence.  And even then, you're not allowed to join if you have ever been a bricky.Andy

Hi,I haven't got a lot of time to reply to your post Jase (as I have a pressing engagement with a ceiling through which a sparky fell yesterday!) but you are of, of course, correct to say that you bank cash not percentages.  What I personally do is this (which I didn't really explain in full): I do look for a 20% profit margin but I then also…[Read more]

Have a go yourself.  They are really quite simple if your land is flat and you keep the design basic.  All you need is a chop saw or circ saw, spade (or a petrol post hole digger if you have a lot of posts), a drill and some time.  Go to your library as most fencing books show how to design and build.  My only other advice is not to mortise the…[Read more]

I'd accept a toblerone for helping but it'd have to be one of those really big ones that you get at Christmas from your big brother (when he was eight – he doesn't get me anything now he's 43).I think you did pretty well for your first outing.  Okay, so you went ahead aiming for a small profit and you ended up making a fair bit more.  The main…[Read more]

I come from the UK – where wages and business expenses are typically much higher.  I had one property rewired completely (a large 4 bed two story house with double brick walls – hard for a sparky).  It cost me 850 pounds or about $2000.  I had a house rewired in Tassie (3 bed two story, weatherboard with easy access) – for cash – and it cost me $3…[Read more]

Hello,I am a full time renovator and I'm not a tradie – and this is my first meeting of "Renovators Who Are Not Tradies Anonymous".  Maybe Crashy could be my mentor.  Christ, I'm dying for a drink… maybe I'm at the wrong meeting?Anyway, I think, before Crashy and Chumpy decided to lay into each other in the pub carpark which is http://www.propertyinvest…[Read more]

I have a possible answer to your problem.  Basically, I agree with most of the comments saying you are going to be overwhelmed if you stretch yourself any further…. that is if if you stay where you are (which I assume is somewhere near or in a major city on the big island).My advice is come to lovely Tassie, get some new jobs (there are lots an…[Read more]

I do the same thing as you are thinking of doing.  I buy lemons (specialising in the dead,drunk, demented or drug addicted!) and do very well.  However, being good with your hands isn't the main part.  It helps but if doing everything delays the sale by more than the mortgage then you are adding less than zero.  Cost everything with someone else…[Read more]

I live in a house (a pub) where a murder took place.  Love it to bits.  Adds loads of character.  The only difference is that the murder took place in 1828 (Bushranger versus landlord – guess who got decapitated?)!  The people around here still know the story.  So, if you can wait a couple of hundred years then go for it!Almor.

Okay, my first question is can you actually do anything in the future with the land (can you strata or subdivide or enlarge the property, what about the access, plot layout, planning scheme etc…)?  If you can't develop the land in the future, it has little to add to the deal (even if it's an acre!).  If you can develop, consider the house m…[Read more]

I have sold houses both through agents and privately.

My advice is, if you are confident that you have the necessary copy writing, marketing and negotiation skills – plus the time – then why not have a go? On the other hand, if you know nothing of the contractual process, are prone to becoming too emotionally involved or are not a good…[Read more]

For what it’s worth, my advice is to go for a relatively cheap kitchen that looks the part if you’re house isn’t aimed at the upper end of the rental market . Tenants will treat your kitchen pretty harshly so after a few years you’ll regret the outlay on the exxy kitchen.

I use flat pack kitchens from Bunnings. Not the very basic one but the…[Read more]

I’ve just bought a small packet of land off a neighbour to allow me to develop a rear yard – two units.

It was relatively straightforward here in Tassie. I agreed a price with the neighbour – no problem there as she wants the cash. The solicitor then drew up a contract of sale contingent on Council agreeing to the boundary reallocation and the…[Read more]

I’m from the Uk too and I bloody hate WB. As nice as it looks finished, its a complete b******d to rub down and paint if you do renos like me. Can add weeks to a job, and its normally rotted here there and everywhere, and in Tassie, a 100SQM house will cost you upward of $5k to get a painter in. I like brick – even if Ozzy brick is as ugly as…[Read more]