Great thanks Steve, appreciate it.Have a great Easter!Matt

*bump*

I am sure that the book is still in print, I'm re-reading it at the moment.

Thanks for responding Terry, I will try to get a copy from someone else, if I have no luck in the next couple of months I will come back to you.Cheers,Matt

Judging by today's lack of movement from NAB and CBA, don't count on interest rates going much lower.

Expect conditions to continue to tighten over the next few years and not let up for decades. (until the next generation that forgot the mess we are in now thinks it would be a great idea to lower lending standards again).Greater regulation and stricter lending controls will become the norm internationally. It will be the price we pay for the…[Read more]

Hi Shanematt,I would recommend that you try to live off positive cashflow from rentals, rather than relying on equity increases to fund your living expenses.There are many people that get this wrong and in the current environment could really come unstuck ending up owing more than they have in assets.Cheers,Matt

I should have added that with significant FHBGs available for new home buyers, a 5 year old home appears significantly less attractive than a new build to a first home buyer. It will be a trap for many who lose equity on new homes. Why buy an older one when you can get the max grants for a brand new one. Until they stop building new houses, new…[Read more]

A new house won't be new in 20 years, but the other house will still be 100m from the beach. It may depend on your investment timeframe and the views of each. A big difference between:1. 100m from the beach and 2. 100m from the beach and views over the beach and water

Any other comments / questions from those who attended the sessions in other centres?

Can anyone tell me why Westpac's fixed rates dropped in Australia while going up in NZ at the same time?

Wow, people will now actually have to demonstrate they can save money to be able to purchase houses for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

I just found a great article which supports my theory on the impact of the FHBG on the Sydney market.http://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/IMG0015_23249406.PNGYou will clearly see the impact of the FHBG from 2000 and the bottom of the cycle where FHBs are exiting the market was the peak in Sydney in 2004. It seems to be a…[Read more]

I was at a property auction this evening in Sydney's lower North Shore. There were 5 properties for sale.3-4 bidders on the properties which sold for under $700k, not one bid on the other 3 which would have been over $1 million and were passed in.Seems to reflect what I am hearing, bottom end of the market is booming, top end isn't selling.

Yes, all costs to get your net return, gross means nothing.

I work at the head office of a major bank in Sydney. My department is currently restructuring and for my role 9 of us have had to reapply for 7 jobs. Should hear at the end of the month if it affects me personally.On the plus side I am waiting for property prices to drop and interest rates dropping have helped too. I wasnt even thinking of…[Read more]

I'm pretty sure Steve prefaced the 1% rule by saying "when its time to buy, this is the rule you should use in a low interest rate environment".

What you are suggesting is actually what I heard Steve recommending.He said don't try to pick the bottom of the market, wait for the bottom to be confirmed, (expecting we would only know 6 months after it has happened) and that would be the best time to enter, at the start of the next growth phase.My concern is more how much potential growth is…[Read more]

Its the same story in the luxury rental market in the CBD.I have been looking into 2 bed apartments to purchase in the 550-600k range.At the weekend I went to a rental open home to see what demand was like, it had been on the market 2 weeks at $720/week and I was told that they would take $680 per week. I was the only person at the open home.It…[Read more]

If they put the court order in place you will never get them into a retirement home, they will fight you to the death (most likely theirs given their age). You need to figure out if the price is cheap enough, combined with the tax benefits of negative gearing of the property are enough to make it worth holding for the next 30 years. Also keep in…[Read more]