It's funny how 'they know' they will get you a 100% return… 

Letter to Santa:

Please give me the Crystal Ball this company has so I can know what returns I will get in the future.

… sorry already getting smashed with xmas music in the shops…. im already loosing it.

Personally I would only invest if i knew the area like the back of my hand. It's funny they are marketing to you (I assume your not in WA) for property in WA. Just something to think about. 

yeah agreed Terry. but we outsource this to solicitors, or the client's solicitor sets this up

Hi Creasy23,

firstly, $7k is far too steep for set up. We are closer to the $2,200 mark for property set up with limited recourse borrowing ability, legals and fees.

Your super balance is not the final decider We have both set up SMSF's and helped people invest in property for less. From a lending point of view the bank will take into consideration your (and partners) age, employment, wages and more importantly super contributions. Also the rental appraisals you get done on the potential property to see if it is viable.

Someone with $70k in super could look at property in SMSF if they earn $150k+, can salary sacrifice and choose a high rental yield property.

with a low balance in play you almost need to work backwards from finding the property, to then satisfying the lending criteria. If that makes sense. (where as outside of super you might go to the bank, find out how much you can borrow, then go find your investment… you need to find your investment property, get the rental appraisal and then look at finance).

as a guide:

At $90k balance with an average income (2 partners working/contributing) I would be looking at low end townhouses possibly… $300 – $320k.

Not wanting to slag anyone off… (and biting my tong over their name)

You can quite effectively utilise sites like 'on the house' and real estate dot com for their search filter Australia-wide to suss out your own potential investment suburbs. 

• Make a list of your top 10 suburbs (Australia-wide or state-wide) and then Pro and con each. 
• Go to each's local council and state gov website and find out planned infrastructure, new schools, shopping centres, hospitals etc… Even ring local burocrats, they love it. the do nothing anyway. Narrow it down further.
• Research that suburb. Visit it. it may only cost $200 for a return flight and $50 car hire to fly their for a day and suss it out yourself. (minimal considering what your investing and could potentially lose).
• Talk to local real estate agents. They love to talk  

If they have 'Integrity', essentially this is all they are doing on your behalf. If they are not integrous … they are just flogging excess stock under the guise of 'mentors' like N@than said ^

Either way it pays to do your own research

Good luck!

Agreed with Mark.

Personally i purchased my first home 9 months ago and opted for a 35+ year old brick and tile place. building and pest came up immaculate. I even had my brother who is a structural engineer laser-level measure the block and the house had moved 4mm in 30 years. We just had the driest winter in a while on the Gold Coast and now im dealing with structural movement in my house + recent down pour pulled off my guttering and discovered cracked tiles. all up a $5k fork out.

luckily it is my PPOR not IP so i can pace myself and space out the work, but with tenants they would be down your neck for repair ASAP.

The upside of NEW (with everything… don't even get me started on my car) is building warranty.

We rented in a new estate before buying our own place and the actual builder had a full time maintenance guy in that area for the first 12 months to fix anything (almost the same day) – no expense to the owner as apart of the build warranty. ie. we had cement and crap clogging up our pipes weeks after moving in and it was fixed the same afternoon we complained about it… and was told no expense to the owner.

But flip side:

we bought in a growing area on a 600sqm block with subdivision ability so long term it will be good for us.

I guess the risk with OLD is cash flow and ability to meet unexpected expenses. 

Good Luck!

Don't laugh @qlds007 we received at least a dozen phone calls over the past 12 months from under 30 year olds with $30k in their super wanting us to set them up an SMSF to purchase the new Toyota 86 with every justification under the sun that 'it's guaranteed to be a good investment'. 'It will definitely go up in value'. 'I promise i wont drive it'. ' can i store it at my house?'… ok how bout my mates house?

SMSF is certainly not the space to 'creatively invest' or push the boundaries of the ATO… especially when they are looking to make examples of people, real estate agents, brokers, accountants and financial planners who are assisting people to do so.

From my understanding, yeah your right, I think you would be up for stamps on both 1 and 2. And you would be right with exemption on 1 given its your PPOR and discounted over time on 2.

But perhaps someone with a little more Dev experience could shed some light. I'm keen to follow as personally the wife and I are considering this on our PPOR.

If you dont mind me asking, how big is your block? and what builder are you considering using?

I have seen MASSIVE variances in price and offers from builders here on the Gold Coast. Some offer free demolition with duplex packages. Some offer huge assistance getting council approvals and others nothing at all.

No problem.

A good financial adviser would look at your whole situation. Not just try to find you the best loan like a mortgage broker.  

@jamie M – true, however on the flip side, I highly doubt a mortgage broker would ever advise someone not to take out a mortgage… where does their income come from? and a Mortgage broker cannot give any Financial Advice, unless licensed to do so.

It is unfortunate that a lot of people have negative experiences with Financial advisers. I think in a lot of people's minds the negative press and experience with 'property spruikers'  has been misconstrued for 'financial advice' and financial advisers have been caught up in this.

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Don't discount the benefit of seeking independent financial advice. Have a licensed financial adviser prepare you a statement of advice based on your goals. 

No one would buy a house without a pest and building inspection, but it amazes me how many people invest without seeking licensed financial advice.  – and its about the same price.