Hiya Gizzy

A real estate agent sells property. A property manager looks after your rental. So they're two different roles.

However, a lot of real estate agencies have divisions devoted to property management.

Cheers

Jamie

Hiya Gizzy

I don't know of them personally but if you do a search on the forum (top right) you'll probably come up with some results.

Cheers

Jamie

Agreed with Catalyst – that's crazy money for a reno. You could almost put up a new house for that.

To put into perspective, I've just carried out a pretty major reno on the PPOR – almost everything but the bathrooms, added a nice big deck and there was quite a lot of structural changes. It's cost around the $50k mark – if it was an IP, we would have done it a fair bit cheaper. 

The only work I've done is a bit of painting.

Cheers

Jamie

Hiya

A pretty good description is available here http://www.bmtqs.com.au/tax-depreciation-schedule

Cheers

Jamie

I'm guilty of this….accross a few properties too. I should really pull my finger out and get onto it.

Cheers

Jamie

If you won't need to alter the loan at all in the future then they might be ok.

If you decide to access equity, etc you may find it difficult.

Cheers

Jamie

I don't know the area. Personally, I'd spend the money elsewhere.

Cheers

Jamie

Like anything – you get what you pay for.

If you've got a couple of properties under your belt and/or are thinking of growing a portfolio then I wouldn't be dealing with the online cheapies. Their rigid policies will set you back.

Cheers

Jamie

Finance structure is hugely important. The wrong structure can ended up costing you – both in monetary terms and in lost opportunities.

Lender selection is important. When investing, you want to use lenders that aren't too difficult to deal with when it comes to equity releases.

You also need to choose the right lenders at the right time so you don't burn your borrowing capacity too early.

Access to upfront valuations is important too – especially if tapping into equity. That way you will be able to find out exactly how much equity you have available to you before submitting an application.

Whether you set up the loan as principle and interest or interest only also has important ramifications. Generally speaking, my preference is interest only on all loans with an offset linked to one – and that's usually the owner occupied loan if there is one.

This article I wrote explains the concept in more detail.

All in all, if you get a good finance person on board – they'll explain all of this to you and ensure that your structure is set up correctly now and into the future.

Cheers

Jamie

Hi there

Welcome aboard.

At a minimum you'll need to save at least a 5% deposit and enough funds to cover costs such as stamp duty, etc.

If buying new, you may be eligible for certain concessions and the FHOG in NSW.

Cheers

Jmaie