Hi Truska

Did you guys buy these as a business or company or anything?

If you bought as individuals I would guess that whoever buys the letterbox claims the deduction (if it was maintenance and not an improvement).

No doubt someone else can give you an exact answer.

Regards
Judi

Hi Bec
Are you really financially supporting your boyfriend? Unless he’s caring for your kids, I’d change that arrangement. Plenty of other good ideas have been mentioned in these replies.
Good luck
Judi

Hi Bert
I had a carpenter friend do the building and pest inspection for me recently. There’s no recourse if he missed something but it’s a brick building and I was pretty confident I didn’t need to pay someone for a written inspection. I did the conveyancing myself. So no solicitors fees. There’s a conveyancing kit you can get from the newsagents for $100 which takes you through step by step. It’s really not that difficult for a simple residential property transaction. Everyone from the vendor’s solicitor, to the agent to the lender will tell you need a solicitor. It makes there job marginally easier if you do. I think there’s a whole “fear” factor around buying property that is designed to make us spend lots of money unnecessarily. You don’t have to subscribe to it.

The lender’s solicitor (which you pay for) will make sure the documents are in order at settlement as they have a vested interest. Their valuer, whom you also pay for won’t let you buy a lemon.

Everyone will tell you not to scrimp on costs for the “biggest purchase of your life”. I would say “use your common sense and decide for yourself what is needed”.

Someone mentioned elsewhere on the forum about conveyancers. They specialise in conveyancing but are not solicitors so don’t charge as much. You might want to look into that.

I’ve made an offer on a property that already had an independant building report done as the vendor didn’t want to waste time everytime someone made an offer. There were a lot of things wrong with the property. I wonder if you can negotiate for the vendor to do the inspection? If there’s nothing majorly wrong, then you pay for the report, otherwise they do and you walk away. Has anyone done that?

Regards
Judi

Hi Celivia
It’s not unusual to have cracks that are not structural. It can happen as the building “settles” soon after it is built. They can be very easy to repair as well and the improvement in the appearance can be dramatic. If it looks like a good property in other regards, it could be well worth getting an inspection.

If you’re really worried about wasting money on the inspection, check out some other brick buildings in the area of about the same age. If the cracks are because of clay content, you’ll see others in the same condition.

I’ve made an offer on a property with some cracks. An independant building inspection was supplied as other buyers were scared off by the appearance. It could be a good opportunity.

Regards
Judi

Either or. If you make an offer in writing, you may include the conditions but it’s also usual to agree on the price first and then don’t sign the contract until you make sure all your conditions and dates are written in.
Regards
Judi
PS: It can be a good idea to make the inspection, finance and settlement dates “x number of weeks from receipt of confirmed contract from vendor”, rather than a fixed date. What happens is that you sign the contract and then it goes to the vendor to sign. You need it back before you can arrange finance etc.

Hi Trisk
“O to 130 properties in 3.5 years” is Steve’s book. You can order it through this site or get it at a bookshop. Very informative and a good place to start. Do a search of the forum boards for some other recommended books. I think there’s a booklist somewhere.

Don’t hesitate to ask questions on this forum.

Regards
Judi

Gee, sounds good doesn’t it? I’d definitely want to know where bogabilla is. The owner wants to rent it back at $130 pw and is selling for 48k? To me, that sets off some alarm bells. How many reasons can you think of for that to happen? Let us know what you find out.
Regards
Judi

Hi Trisk

“I look forward to reading the obviously informative discussions on this site and last but not least, for $99 Steve’s buyer beware looks like a great tool and cheaper than some others i have seen, how many people use it?”

I recently bought buyer beware and my intitial reaction was one of disappointment. The templates in particular were far below what I had expected from the advertising. Although I haven’t bought many properties, I have looked at and analysed quite a few, so a lot of what is in buyer beware is not new to me. Also a lot is just extrapolating on the book (0 – 130…..). However, as I worked my way through the book, I did find some pearls of wisdom which, I think, made the purchase worth while. As such (and because the templates are much more nicely formatted than mine and I want to use them), I have kept the pack. It sounds like it will be useful to you as it seems you have not looked at many IP’s, but the fact is, whether or not it will help you depends on your past experience and knowledge and prior reading. This is a risk free investment though as it comes with a money back guarantee. I feel confident in recommending this pack to you.

Regards
judi

Hey Sis

I see what you mean. I guess the challenge is to learn to remain unaffected by his attitude/actions. My first boss was a bit similar to yours. He used to not only stand by and watch me work, but also drink a stubbie while doing so!

Take it easy
Judi

Hey Sis
Why wait till retirement to tell your boss off and quit? I’ve done it lots of times [:p]

OK, not lots but once or twice. Don’t you guys think it’s important to be happy in your job?

Regards
Judi