I'm biased but you should probably start with speaking with a mortgage broker that deals with property investors. He/she will be able to assess your situation and advise on how much you can borrow to purchase yourinvestment property, etc. This shouldn't cost you anything (most of us are paid a comission from the lender you decide to get your loan with).

There's plenty of books (Jan Somers, Margaret Lomas, Michael Yardney, Steve McKnight to name a few) that are worth reading. Forums like this also offer a wealth of information.

Once you're clued up, you'll have a better understanding of what you're looking for in an investment property. You can then either search for it on your own or enlist a buyers agent (which will cost you some money but their expertise may land you a better deal than you could find on your own).

Cheers

Jamie

Agree with the above posters. The LMI you pay now is likely to be insignificant in terms of the long term growth your property is likely to achieve. It's also a deductible expense

Cheers

Jamie

This question is perfect for Terryw! I'm sure he'll be along to answer it soon.

I'm no legal expert but I would have thought if the unapproved structure was brought to the attention of the buyer then the onus would be placed on the buyer after settlement.

Yep, that's the reason – all of these facilities cause the BC fees to be quite expensive. At least you've identified this now instead of later on down the track…..some investors don't take BC fees into consideration and jump straight into the purchase….imagine getting that first $1k BC bill for the quarter

Cheers

Jamie

 
Hi Tong

The information your broker has given you is incorrect. You can have two loans with the one bank and avoid having them crossed. You can access some of the equity in your townhouse and use this as a deposit towards your next home (using the same or another bank….depends on where the best deal is for you).

Cheers

Jamie

Hiya Shwing

Read the post, understood the post….didn't mean to upset.

Personally, I really couldn't be bothered with working it out myself when I can pay a $200 deductable fee to a company that will do it all for me….their also likely to pick up on more deductable items than I could.

Cheers

Jamie

Agree with much of what was said above.

We just advertised an IP for rent and the phone hasn't stopped ringing.

12 months ago the same property was professionally managed and it took them three weeks to find a tenant…..we already have 20 to choose from. It makes you wonder what sort of effort they actually put into finding a tenant.

Hi Ricky

I use Corpred – I usually just get the 'silver' package. Instead of having a quantity surveyor visit my IP's, I provide them with all the info as well as images and they provide a depreciation schedule.
 
I quickly fill out their online calculator and have an estimate sms'd to me for free (you should try it out – that way you'll have an idea of how much you can depreciate).

My clients get discounts on the schedules and all have been happy with them so far.

Cheers

Jamie

 
That seems quite excessive!

You can start investing without a cent, providing you have equity. It doesn't even need to be a lot of equity – my wife and I used $50k worth of equity in our current home to kick start out portfolio.

There's a write up about how we done it in this months December issue of Your Investment Property if your interested.

Cheers

Jamie

Cheers Ben, that's handy – I didn't know you could do that.

Welcome Dara – what do you actually need help with? I'm assuming it's property related, otherwise you're really struggling.

Cheers

Jamie