Daniel, 

you need to see an independent lawyer, pronto!

Q. What suburb did you buy in?
Q. is the land registered and has construction started?
Q. did you buy a house and land with TWO contracts or one? ie separate land contract and separate HIA construction contract.

Also, it doesn't sound like you purchased through a buyers agent, but a…[Read more]

Hi Siewlin, 

as everyone has pointed out already, the properties purpose is for you to live in it until at which point it becomes income producing from an arms length transaction. Therefor you will NOT have any tax deductions until you rent the property out. You cannot rent the property to yourself. Some investors use convoluted trust structures…[Read more]

Hi Jamie, 

by looking on the councils website you should have access to the town planning code which will guide you when looking to build dual occupancies and multiple dwellings. From here you will know if the project will be code assessable or impact assessable. Code assessable means you shouldn't have a problem as long as the dwelling is…[Read more]

The figure used is arbitory, its all a part of the negotiation with the vendor. Somehow you will need to flip the property without settling on it (within a pre-negotiated timeframe usually). It can be done with land, houses, units etc. 

I use $2000 – $10,000 deposits for development sites, get the DA through (ranging from $3000 – $15,000) and…[Read more]

Hi Gafeey, 

if you plan to pass the property on to your kids then a family trust may assist with this. If you are self employed or have other sources of income outside of PAYG then a trust could minimise your tax if you can put profits into there to soak up the losses and depreciation (if there is any).

As Jamie said, a good accountant will help…[Read more]

Hi Brad, 

for all of our clients we strongly recommend using a mortgage broker when looking to borrow to invest. More than often a bank lender does not understand investing or understand what you're trying to achieve. Your property investing team must be on the same page as you and get all the numbers!

Sorry for the push Jamie, but Brad, even…[Read more]

Hi Ben, 

What's your strategy for the property you are considering fixing?

Hi Sam, 

holding property in your SMSF is designed to allow an investor diversify their assets for retirement. Putting all of your eggs in one basket defeats this purpose. However, many people still choose to do it. You will need to ensure you have a very thorough understanding of property and your investment strategy.

Also, it will depend on…[Read more]

Hi Brad, 

The available equity can be used as you wish (well, within reason obviously). How much of your equity you use as your deposit is up to you and will depend on your desire to pay LMI (loan mortgage insurance). A 10% deposit towards your new property could be achievable so you may only need $35,000 plus purchasing costs (stamp duty, legal…[Read more]

Hi Brad, 

Jamie has the equity scenario down pat for you, so I would like to comment on your strategy. 

1. Interest: Your calculation seems a little high, you could would not be paying that much. However allowances/considerations for increases is advised as rates are quite low at the moment. 

2. Return: Your gross return is not even 4.5%. that…[Read more]

The body corporate should be set up which essentially takes care of most of your insurance. You will need to look after contents insurance and landlord insurance if it is to be an investment property. 

you will need to assess the Body Corporate fees and the sinking fund. 

Hi Chris, 

it would be worth conducting a risk analysis for yourself first. This will allow you to identify what you perceive as high risk and allow you to stay away from those strategies to start with. Secondly, identifying an investing strategy to assist in buying structures to allow for asset protection and also future tax minimisation. 

You…[Read more]

The construction of new houses is not really an indication of a booming property market, it is more an indication to the success of property marketers. 

Terry is right, anyone can ask for payment. 

In this instance I would be saying bad luck, you paid them to get it right, maybe it can be reimbursed from the legal fees you paid for not performing.

Hi, 

1. For Investment Purposes:
Your next move will really depend on the research you have done on the area and the property. No doubt you believe the area and property will provide a good return and or capital growth, otherwise you wouldn't be buying it. if this is the case you could get the repairs quoted and negotiate the amount by the quote…[Read more]

Nathan, 

it was done a lot in the mining towns where this difference was huge, buyers can see through it pretty easily by analysing the current rentals on the market and comparing them to what the property is receiving. if theres a difference, they will factor that in to their negotiations. 

Often the psychology can work better in the opposite.…[Read more]

Daniel, 

your solicitor will be the best for this. Sometimes a breach of contract can be found on very minor technicalities when issuing the contract for example. However 18 months later it can be hard. 

OTP contracts are generally executed fairly well as developers dont want buyers to be able to change their mind half way through. the sunset…[Read more]

You may not be able to get freehold as there is a joining wall. It will be best to talk to a local town planner. If you need one PM me for the brisbane area. 

If you can exit from the body corp management agreement that may be in place since it was only set up about a year ago you could use the two lot scheme that came into effect in QLD a year…[Read more]

Hi Se7en, 

Just being a sceptic for a moment, if you have had several valuations and are in the middle of the building process yourselves which ensures bottom dollar build rates and the val is still $44k short, is it the best investment? maybe the land could be sold and your friend could research better areas to invest?

Out of interest what are…[Read more]

Re-iterating Nigels Comments, when 'mentoring' programs are too cheap the company HAS to make money from you somewhere else otherwise they would not be able to operate. Be wary of FREE mentoring also. 

Advice is always worth what you pay for it. A good property investment advice firm will be able to assist you no matter how or what you want to…[Read more]