Yep, agree with all that Kay. Marrickville is losing its Greeks and Vietnamese, which is a pity.

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Hi Kay,
It’s been interesting having a friend wanting to buy a unit – it’s a long time since I really looked at the Sydney market.

Yes, Rockdale is tragic. Hurstville will go the same way – the lure of established shopping precincts and good transport.

Green Square is another one of those ‘manufactured’ suburbs. Like Wolli Creek, it has a new…[Read more]

I suspect those low rise blocks like yours Skippygirl do better than the high rise ones – the big ones are sort of the Wolli Creek landmarks and are visible from miles away. The high rise (up to around 18 stories) would have much higher ongoing fees, too. And the great views that buyers are paying for now are going to be built out, too. Wolli…[Read more]

Liz is talking about Burnie, Tasmania – that other island in this part of the world.

Tax Depreciation Schedules
Australia wide service
1300 660033
scott@depreciator.com.au
http://www.depreciator.com.au

You don’t necessarily need someone near where the property is. I would look for someone near where you are to make things easier for you (that’s assuming you’re in NSW)
Scott

Tax Depreciation Schedules
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Or is it because people assume property will always go up in value (cars usually won’t) so they don’t worry as much about a property purchase?

Tax Depreciation Schedules
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scott@depreciator.com.au
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We do lots of work in Brisbane and South East Queensland. All the big QS groups are represented there.
Scott

Tax Depreciation Schedules
Australia wide service
1300 660033
scott@depreciator.com.au
http://www.depreciator.com.au

Thanks Redwing.
We get alot of people coming to us for their second schedule.
Of course our constant challenge is getting people to come to us for their first schedule. It’s tough when we don’t really attempt to compete on price – ‘service’ is a hard sell. Oh well.
Interestingly, more than 50% of our business now comes via accountants i.e. they’ve…[Read more]

Yes Jenny, we are all getting busy. June is our biggest month as people want to pay for their schedule (100% deductible) before the financial year ends.
We have a new facility for clients we have done schedules for. It’s an on-line portal that allows them to amend their schedule when they have made changes to the property. The cost is $49. If it’s…[Read more]

Definitely time to talk to your accountant.
Strictly speaking, if you purchase a property, renovate it, and then rent it out, the cost of the renovation becomes a ‘cost of acquisition’ when calculating your capital gain i.e. it’s not depreciable.
The fact that you are going to be doing this work over a period of 6 months and a part owner will be…[Read more]

There are loads of people doing ‘pre-purchase inspections’ these days. You’ll find them in the phone book. They have to be licensed these days. The cost would be around $300. A property manager wouldn’t do a thorough enough inspection. For example, I’ve done the odd inspection when friends have bought properties. One thing I always do is take a…[Read more]

Those assumptions are correct.

Remember also that it’s only depreciation claimed on the building that impacts upon the CGT calculations. Depreciation claimed on the fixtures and fittings doesn’t come into it.

And remember that any property purchased after May 13 1997 must have the eligible depreciation claimable on the building deducted from the…[Read more]

Lots of councils struggle with records going back past the early 90s.

In addition to redwing’s idea, sometimes it’s also possible to find a date on the electricity meter board. Some sparkies date them when they do they put them in.

I believe in some states, the water meters may be date stamped. This stamp would be the date of manufacture of the…[Read more]

I have Greek next door neighbour who gives us food in exchange for me fixing things around her house (her husband, Zoy, isn’t very handy). She gets olives from another local Greek, makes cuts in the side (that’s Zoy’s job), then soaks them in jars with salty water for about 6 months. Then she rinses them in lots of fresh water (to get rid of the…[Read more]

I would have to do some research, but the trees should be depreciable if it is a genuine commercial venture. Grape vines (and their trellises) are, too. From memory mango trees, for example, have a 20 year ATO determined effective life.
Also, in 1999 (the Ralph Revue?) fences on properties were made an item of ‘Plant’ i.e. a Depreciating Asset. We…[Read more]

We’re currently planning a Kalgoorlie run (out of Perth). It will likely happen early May. We normally wait till we have around a dozen jobs there to spread the travel cost across them.
Scott

Tax Depreciation Schedules
Australia wide service
1300 660033
scott@depreciator.com.au
http://www.depreciator.com.au

Yes, under the self assessment rules you can use your own reasonable estimate. I’m happy to talk you through this over the phone. On the ATO site you would find the list, but I think it’s about 1500 items long. Again, a quick conversation will save you having to find this list and wade through it.

Scott

Tax Depreciation Schedules
Australia wide…[Read more]

No, I don’t think they can complain just because you block their view, though you’ll probably have to work out shadow lines. But they are likely to get pretty bitter and twisted, so everything about the application will be scrutinised. Most councils canvass people in properties immediately impacted upon by a development and get their feedback.…[Read more]

Take Marc’s advice about not doing the job yourself. I did it once 15 years ago and saved bugger-all. It took me ages, too – especially the edges. The finished floor looked okay, but I could definitely see where the machine got the better of me – that big belt sander takes some wrangling. A mate of mine was doing the floors in his family holiday…[Read more]

It depends on what you actually own. Big complexes with golf course, roads etc are tricky. Although your unit might be situated within a golf course etc and you may have certain rights to use it, you may not actually own it. You may not own much beyond your building. In some cases things like a golf course may be owned by a seperate entity. This…[Read more]