Hi Stevo,

I've found Suncorp to be the least resistant. They will allow 95% plus full capitalisation of LMI (so effectively a 99% LVR).
Of the 4 majors Homeside (NAB) don't cap LMI…
The majors also have restrictions to the LVR they will allow you to go to (must be existing customer etc) whereas Suncorp don't.

To echo Banker's statement, I haven't had a single low val for a client who has purchased in the last 12 months (perhaps this might be becuase they've all been in the Melbourne market). The only low vals I've seen have been for refinances or top-ups where some of my client's expectation may be a little too high…

Hi Scotty,

Low vals are a massive pain and sometimes unfair considering what the market is doing.
I asked this question of a valuer in Melbourne as we had this happen with a client recently, and they said that as valuers are liable for incorrect valuations, they won't stick their neck out and give a valuation when they don't have the results on file. The default is to wait for the results to be posted by the Valuer General, who do this after securities transfer (at settlement), and the results can be several months old before the valuers use them.

So with regards to the other units selling at $585K & $642K, what the valuers will do is wait for that result to be posted officially, so the $642K technically may not exist to them just yet…

Some valuers use different data (from peak bodies such as the relevant real estate institutes or selling agents), but it still isn't 100% known.

Do you know who the lender/valuer was who performed the val?

Good to hear these stories as it gives more people the courage to ask for what they want!

I love Carnegie and think it's an absolute gem of an area and if you can find a property within your budget is definitely worth going for. We've found a HEAP of competition for places in that area though so finding a bargain is very hard although we're seeing a slowdown of some sorts with auctions seeing some properties passed in (although this isn't for lack of demand but rather sellers who want too much).

Another aspect of Carnegie is the average family wage is higher than the Melbourne median as younger couples and families with dual incomes are moving into the area and that will also push up prices as they have more to spend than the traditional older demographic the suburb currently has.

Good luck with your search and if you need any help, we run seminars that you might find interesting in the areas of finding outperforming property and investment (just check our website).

When you say you have little super then perhaps proeprty could be a retuirement vehicle for you and you might want to consider buyng and holding rather than flicking for short term gains. Longer term capital appreciation might be a better option for you for wealth building. If you chose that route then my feeling is you'd get a stronger capital growth from anything with a little more land content and perhaps adding value by rennovating, build the equity and then use this for further purchases or upgrades. You just need to be able to service the debt in these times. If you decided to never sell these properties and live on the rent you also remove any GCT issues.

With regards to living at the folks and the lifestyle change, if you think you can get a better return with doing this it might be an option but I've had clients go stir crazy in a very short time!

There are some quantity surveyors who will have a quick phone chat with you and determine if it is worth doing a depreciation report (as you'd be surpirsed just what you can claim!). They should do this call for free. It would be worth investigating as they are the experts and even accountants can miss items.
I'd suggest BMT quantity surveyors if you want to start with someone…

Do you have any outstanding loan against the property?

You should only lose funds in the case of cooling off and not if the security fails a condition.

Always get a good conveyancer/lawyer to look it over as conditions must be very specific and you can only pull out of a contract subject to an item failing its provisions.

You can also get vendors who might dispute a condition if they feel it's not a deterrent. It can depend on the vendor but I've never seen this happen personally.

Looking at a like for like – my preference is to buy existing and rent it out asap to get the rental income. Perhaps with some minor alterations so that I use as little cash as possible.
Building new will give you additional depreciation of the building and fittings which tax wise might be attractive.
Remember building will take time and you forgo any rental income in that time.

You might however find that developing an existing site with a duplex (or other) to increase rent further might be another reason to do so…

Good luck with your investing.

Firstly, as a mortgage broker, I'd always suggest coming and chatting with us first

Some of the questions you should ask a broker are:
* Will they give you full disclosure on their income they receive from servicing you
* What added value & Integrity do they have?
* If a broker represents any lender/s, they should:
      1. Provide clear reasons for recommending these products
      2. Disclose financial information so the borrower can assess any potential conflict of interest
* Do they exceed minimum qualifications?
* Do they practice what they preach?

When it comes to property investing, there are many different goals that will help you decide what you want to do:
*Are you after higher capital growth or a higher income yield (your desire to reduce your tax suggests negative gearing and therefore capital growth)?
*Do you want to add value to the property or simply buy and hold?
*Do you want to buy in the city or country?
*Do you want to get additional tax benefits through depreciation (helps determine older vs newer property)?
*What are your plans with the property long term?

If you live in the Melbourne area, I run workshops on first time investing that you might find useful. You can access the information for these from our website.