Forum Replies Created
Hi Wayne,
Like you, I have heard both arguments – reeded up or down.Our own house came with decks front and rear, and after we bought it we decided to extend the back deck. Both are reeded side up. The builder who did the extension on the back deck said they were put on upside down, but the house was owned before us by a builder who put on the decks himself. Go figure. He did put water insulation in between the deck pickets and the support beams – no rotting so far.
I think the reeded side down looks better, but not as safe as reeded side up. Having said that, they both slip to a degree when wet, and water tends to sit in the reeding grooves after rain.
As for decking oil; Cabot’s and Wattyl are good, and I’ve heard of another brand called ‘Sickens” but I don’t know much about it. We painted ours with Solargard as we wanted a different look – much less maintenance, but if you prefer the wood look then go for it with oil. You need to re-oil ever year I think.
Our decks were pre-drilled to prevent splitting, but were nailed down with self-screwing galvanised nails. These worked pretty well – sometimes one ‘pops’ and I whack it with a hammer. I would have used galvanised self-tapping screws myself for extra strength, but no doubt it takes longer to build, and maybe the screws are more expensive than the nails?
I think go with whatever preference you like. I don’t think it matters too much. Our decks are still in pretty good condition – we have owned the house for 7 years now.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Originally posted by duckster:at the moment there seems to be a small window till july 07 to be able to invest some of this money straight into superannuation where it would be taxed at a lower rate. It might be worth keeping this in mind when talking to a financial adviser or accountant.
A wise way to invest is to spread your money over various asset classes this is know as diversification or as the saying goes don’t put your eggs in the one basket. Another important point is what your risk profile is. Are you prepared to risk losing your investment and how would you recover from a loss. How much debt is on the other property is it worth paying down debt.Comments are of a general nature and may not be relevant to your individual circumstances. If you intend making any investment, financial or taxation decision you should consult a professional adviser.
I like Warren Buffet’s quote;
“Put all your eggs in one basket and watch that basket very carefully”.By this he means to focus and become an expert in one field, and know all there is to know about it.
Knowledge is the best hedge against risk and loss.Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
What is it with all these investors who must sell as soon as they make a profit on an I.P?? What are you going to do with the money when you get it – reinvest it into other assets or blow it on ‘doodads’ that will be worth zero in about 2 years? sheesh!! [grrr]
By the time you add up buying and selling costs, adding back any depreciation claims onto the cap growth when you sell, then paying cap gain tax as well, you end with a whole lot less.
Not to mention that you miss out on any future cap growth because you don’t own the property anymore.
I think the figures are (please correct me if this is wrong) that only 5% of all investors own more than 2 investment properties, only 1% own more than 5 I.P’s, and about 30% of all investors buy 1 I.P and then sell it and never invest again.
Considering that 90% of the world is broke (most middle class people are 1 paycheck from broke), you don’t have to do much to be in the 10% of rich folk.
Keep the property and use the increasing equity to buy something else that will make you even more rich.
Anyone who is telling you to sell your I.P’s and buy a product that they recommend is giving you bad advice.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
didn’t you know… ‘unethical’ is an aboriginal word meaning ‘real estate agent’.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Hi BRC,
it sounds like your sister lives in SOUTH Frankston? If so, it is very very nice there, and great value compared to next door MT. Eliza where all the wankers want to buy. The longer the friends and others keep on thinking pity about ‘Frangers’ the better for us as there will be less competition for the good properties.
You are right about markets within markets, and the stigma of the Frankston of old is still holding people back – even on this forum alone there has been considerable discussion over the last month which pleases me as we have already bought there and it tells me the interest is growing, but there are still a lot of neg comments about it.
My sister-in-law bought a 3×1 house in “The Pines” in North Frankston about 3 years ago for $91k. The area is ‘crime central’ and all older housing commission homes and druggies. The house is now worth about $185k and it is on a big, subdivideable block. The area will come up as the future development plans and proximity to Melb become known.
We bought a property in Central Frankston 2 years ago – right near beaches, Uni, Hospital, Tafe College, train station and freeway, shopping malls. It is very well located and in a nice quiet court surrounded by other nice properties.
These types of areas are all over Frankston if you look, and now that the rental market is tightening, it is a good sign for the near future for investors in my opinion.
I have posted before about Frangers, and I have lived near the area for several years. It is a great place, has good schools and every other amenity you can ask for, and the new freeway extension from the Mitcham freeway will make it even more accessible to the melb CBD. Get on it guys! (and push my property’s value up even more! ha, ha.)
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
There has been discussion already regarding Point Cook on this forum. Do your research thoroughly on the area as there is a lot of development there right now, and it may be difficult to establish the real value of properties due to the many new housing estates popping up. It may also be hard to get a tenant if there are hordes of investors (which I think there are) buying properties over there.
There is lots of Due Diligence to be performed by you!The stigma attached to the Western suburbs is gone now as the areas out there become developed, however some areas over there will always be low on the socio-economic ladder if you know what I mean.
Basically, all costs associated with an I.P are tax deductible. Properties built after 1987 are more desirable for this purpose because of the building write-off you can claim. You will need to find an experienced accountant who is also a property investor to help you here.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Originally posted by mcollins:I know a place for sale today with a 3 year lease in place rented for $350/week and cost is $149K. Interetsed email fee and I will take a spotters fee of $1,000. [email protected]
Nice rent return – why are they selling??
Some further info please;
1. where is it
2. what is the town population
3. what is the population movement; increase/decrease
4. what is the main source of income/s in the area and unemployment rate for the town
5. what is the current rental vacancy rate in the town
6. how old is the property and construction material
7. what size is the building and land
8. is it on a main road
9. is it near amenities – parks, schools, shopping malls, transport beaches/lakes.
10. is the current tenant a govt dept
11. is it managed
12. what are the total outgoings including insurances and management fees
13. how long has it been for sale
14. what is the zoning for the property.Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
If you are a trader, or flipper, this is important.
If you are cashflow investor (which is me) it matters not. I don’t really care what the market does. Although, you should try to get some good old cap growth with the cashflow if you can. My goal is to maximise both.My 2c worth; I don’t think the market ever really crashed – some sectors that were over-supplied and over priced did go backwards, but the average, across the board, mum and dad, mr & mrs average dwelling still went up (albeit only a little) since the downturn in 2003. It always has and always will ’cause people have to live somewhere.
I’m not bragging, but all my properties have increased in value since 2003. This is due to extensive D.D before purchase and selecting the right properties in the chosen area. It is not rocket science. This approach is not the high-flying, sophisticated, quick money-making path, but it still makes money in any climate.
I think the market will show a slow climb in most areas with some areas staying flat for perhaps all of 2007, while others will go up considerably. If you are optimistic you will find a deal.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
I didn’t think it was hardball myself – maybe I’m too hard on the agents? (I’d doubt it).
I thought this was just standard procedure! Oh well – it’s their chosen profession.Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Shirley,
this is an Australian forum. most people will not be familiar with ‘points’ , and probably not FRM’s and ARM’s .
The other thing we Aussies don’t have in our system is the CREDIT SCORE like you guys have, which, without is very hard (read impossible) to get finance in the USA.
I should know – I have an absolutely flawless credit rating in Aus, and am totally debt free in the USA (no loans or c/c’s in the USA) and I cannot get any finance or credit cards (not that I want any) in the USA as I have no credit score, yet if I had $5,000 debt on a number of cards, but was handling at least the minimum payment due, I could easily get a couple more! Go figure.Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
First of all; why sell to realise the profit and lose a whack of it in cgt? I don’t think you need to do this unless you need the cash to live. Why not keep it and maybe re-invest some of the equity? You choice of course.
Sorry to say this but it sounds like you are a victim of ‘conditioning’.
The agents tell you a lovely high sale figure to get the listing, back it up with big promises of great advertising and ‘buyers waiting’ to justify the commission and ad campaign.
Then over a period of weeks they tell you ‘the market is telling us’ your house is worth less so they can get you to drop your price down (to what it is really worth in the first place). You end up selling the property at the true market value (or lower) and pay out a grand or more in advertising to the agent, who gets an enormous discount from the newspapers for his business. They have a double win and you lose.Arrange a meeting with this agent and tell him/her how disappointed in the results you are and ask for a re-negotiation of the commission – no more than 2%, or put a dollar figure on it, say $5,000 regardless of the sale price(the agents hate this) but in reality they don’t care what it sells for as long as they get a commission.
Failing a re-neg of the commission, you need to get rid of this agent and start again with some knowledge behind you –
1. Write a letter to the agent saying his services are terminated as of now – most contracts will allow you to do this – hand deliver it. If you can’t sack him, then simply refuse all offers to sell unless they are above your minimum and wait until the sale authority expires. The only problem is you may be liable to pay any ad costs incurred by the agency so far. ouch!
2. Get the house valued so you know what it is really worth, or start researching the area yourself to nail down what your house is really worth.
3. Sign another agreement with another agent, pay no more than 2% commission, and make the sales authority period no more than 45 or 60 days with no advertising (agents hate this, but they are not worth a cent more). The reality is that serious buyers are already out there and will be either looking on the internet, trawling the streets looking for “for sale’ signs, and looking in all the agent’s windows for properties. You do not need to spend a single cent on advertising; it’s a total con – the photo on the internet, the sign in the front yard and the picture in the front window at the agency are all free and all you need. Maybe a few fliers for the buyers to take away from the agent’s office at a small cost will be enough. The rest is just a money generating process for the agency.
4. Look at the Neil Jenman website for his book on real estate mistakes and how to protect yourself from agents and their games.Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
By the sounds of the posts on this topic, the U.S.A market on the whole is a lot like Aus right now –
1. Good cap growth areas will have crap rent returns.
2. High rent return properties will be fraught with tenancy problems (and management) and little cap growth opportunity.
3. You can make money through reno’s and then on-selling if you can get the property cheap enough (but in the U.S you can’t see the product and control the reno process if you’re based in Aus).Sounds a lot more sense to look in your own back yard to me
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
welcome to this forum, and welcome to the games associated with buying property.
The agent said “if the competition grows it may go to $300k” – with this one statement he got you to offer another $5k. Don’t offer any more based on the agent’s talk. Wait until you hear from the Vendor before making any counter-offers. I hope you learn from that mistake.
Do you want to pay $300k? I bet not. Let some other poor soul pay that much.
If you know your area and the values, then you don’t need to be intimidated by this tactic. Besides, if you lose this deal, there will be another ‘deal of the century’ tomorrow.
Put your offer of $270k in writing with a holding deposit ($1,000 will do it) and walk away and wait for the agent to come back. If he does; good and you can consider another offer or walk away. If he says it’s sold; too bad and move on to the next deal.
Better still; don’t make any offer and ask again in 4 weeks if the property is still for sale. As it is a buyer’s market there’s a good chance it still will be. If it isn’t sold and there’s been little interest, offer $265k with a deposit ($1,000).
They need/want to sell, and there are a million places for sale. Play it your way.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
“Frankly I think that anyone who buys over the net especially on a real estate agents recommendation is a fool at best”.
Totally agree with Nigel on this.
I have bought 2 properties, and backed out of 3 deals over the net. I still own the 2 properties; they have provided excellent cap growth and the rents have continued to rise. I am very happy with them and still have not seen them after 4 years.
The 2 deals I did do were after extensive D.D where I became a pain in the arse to the agents concerned – asking for photos of the property inside and out, arranging pest/building inspections, endless phone calls about the area, rent stats, maps of the local streets and amenities and so on.
I normally slag agents on this site as most will know, but I have to say the agents I dealt with on those 2 deals were very helpful and professional, but at no time did I take their OPINION as gospel, and that, I think, is the big difference.
You need to act only on FACTS – not OPINIONS.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Originally posted by poperr:I think one person (Peter) has never received so much attention!! I think he has received enough backlash for his comments.
“What do others think about the likelihood of a house price crash?” I would also like to hear?
Rob
And so say all of us! Can we all stop saving him now please.
As for the crash – didn’t we just have it? According to pundits the recovery has started.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Congratulations on your financial progress so far!!
Here are a few basic steps for you to follow, the ‘nuts and bolts’ will come as you go.
First step – read a lot of property investment books, sit on this forum and others and watch and learn what we are all saying and doing.
Second step – set some goals and strategies; eg; how many properties do you want, are you investing for cashflow or cap gain or both?
Third step – talk to a property-wise finance broker, mortgage broker and accountant to establish a plan, the right loans, right structure etc.
Fourth step – study markets, neighborhoods, statistics and economic factors then take action; small step at first.
Fifth step – repeat.Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Like the quote; what about this one; “where’s the first tee, and what’s the course record??”
I don’t know the answer to the question you asked.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
Originally posted by tyrun:I hope I’ve done this correct, so here goes.
I am looking at investing in rental properties. I don’t have much of a clue, but I’m learning lots. I have read that not all ‘Financial Advisors’ are really able to advise because they have not reached the serious investors level, and are perhaps in more debt than anything. How can I know a good Financial Advisor or Share Broker. Why can’t I just follow Steve McKnights methods?If you are interested in following the Property Investing path, you simply must find a financial adviser who walks the walk. If you are reasonably financially literate you may not even need an F.P.
When you ring a prospective F.P to interview them, ask them how many Investment Properties they own or have owned. Ask for referrals to some of their clients.
Ask how they are paid – do they get trailing commissions on loans, or mutual funds they try to sell you, are they paid by the hour etc.The above questions should also apply to your Finance broker if you use one, and definitely your accountant.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
The landlord pays it. Sorry to tell you the bad news. It’s tax deductable maintenance though.
Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
That strategy works well almost everywhere as long as the purchase price is right and the rent returns are right for the area; it doesn’t need to be in Dandy.
Are you looking for a second opinion about your investment, the area, or both?
It sounds good – you could end up with a pos cashflow property AND long term cap growth. Gotta love it.Cheers,
Marc.
[email protected]“we get sent lemons; it’s up to us to make lemonade”
