Yep Mike is right.  The buyer name on the contract of sale needs to be either:

– The bare trust name
or
– Yours or another name "AND/OR NOMINEE" (eg Bob Smith and/or nominee)

If you didn't sign the contract under one of these two names then your smsf is not going to be the buyer.  You might have to have a conversation with your solicitor about the implications of this

Yes people it is all doom and gloom.  If you own property and you hang onto it you will implode.  You really should get out while you can.  Sell me your houses for 20cents.  I shall then rent them to people who require accommodation (since nobody will own their own home they will have to rent) for whatever price I fancy.  Mwahahahhahhah.

So your agent says there is plenty to rent in the area… Have you researched this claim? How much stock is there advertised for rent on the realestate websites? Why not ring a few other agencies and ask their view on demand. Tell them you are an investor considering byying into the area

Solid informative post Kristin, thanks for sharing

Are they actually wood?  They look like a veneer.  I am unsure if you able to paint over veneer.  If you can then I'd imagine it'd be a matter of using an undercoat specific for the purpose (Zinzer brand has several different kinds for different purposes) and then paint over the top.  Print out the photo and pop into your local paint shop and ask.  Asking at two different paint shops would get you feeling confident in the responses you are getting.

I have also seen writeups suggesting the revenue offices are considering:

– Aggregating land holdings nationally and taxing them accordingly (in other words, dodging land tax by having a property in each state would no longer work

– Aggregating land holdings regardless of entity they are held in (so for exampe if you hold one property in your own name and another in a trust for which you are the director, the two properties would be "added together" and you would be taxed accordingly)

Neither of these initiatives have come into force yet but keep in mind that the greedy powers that be are considering it. 

You might care to look into purchasing property through your own self managed superannuation fund (smsf) which gets its own land-tax-free threshold. 

There shall be a global bonfire at which all money on the planet shall be burned.  Yee-hah, let's break out the marshmallows and make a good show of it.  All houses shall be demolished so we'll need to live in tents which is good as we'll be in the zone for camping after the toasted marshmallows. 

Oh wow…. had no idea about that little nugget.  Thanks for sharing Terry!

It simply isn't so that there is no capital gains in any regional properties at all.  Certainly more remote towns might provide less capital growth, but I have no issue with major regional cities.  I'm enjoying capital growth in the suburbs of Geelong VIC, and also yields that make the property close to cashflow neutral at time of purchase without lifting a finger.  Then you renovate and/or put the rents up at the one year mark and bam you're cashflow positive.  Why not take a look at regional cities that have hospitals and universities and are within an hour's drive of a capital city, and take a look at the stats pages at the rear of Australian Property Investor magazine to see how the growth has performed historically.

Listen to Terryw.  He is a lawyer.

Don't bother going into the office or making calls.  All you will achieve is getting yourself all angry and emotional and it will make you look like a crazy person.  Do things in writing.  Consumer Affairs will know who the director is and to where a letter can be sent.

As Terry says you can go to small claims tribunal (VCAT in Victoria).