Sorry, yes I over generalised….
I have no problem with people/businesses charging a fee for a great job. In this case though I couldn’t see the value for money for what was on offer.

I made a few enquiries through US Invest and decided against going with them.
The bloke on the phone was nice enough, pushing their product for very little information. I think it was more of a feeling I had rather than factual info I could share…
The push on getting my credit card info before I got any real information about what they provided…[Read more]

http://www.owner.com.au/ is popular, not sure about the traffic statistics, but there are always signs posted around town…

M

Personal opinion, but Something I would stay away from.
Whilst its ‘guaranteed rent’ They decide on the price of the rent, they organise the repairs and send you a bill, they decide if a rent increase is warranted. Maybe this is just me being a control freak, but they are just a few of the decisions I would like to make as the landlord.

I’m sure…[Read more]

Hi Keenan that would be great!
I’ve got afew things on the go at the moment so any thoughts would be great.
Your profile won’t allow me to send you an email, so let me know when you are here and we’ ll catch up for coffee.

I’ve been here 30+ years and never thought of stockings over the fan blades – that’s a fantastic idea!
We usually just get the old ladder out and get covered in dust to try to clean them… Not a great job!

With the a/c we have a split in the main living, but each of the bedrooms have the box style, they all still work fine but would it be…[Read more]

I have been involved with houses that have been sold at “lock up stage” meaning completed enough for the occupancy certificate but none of the “bells and whistles” as yet.
Not really sure if its still done, but This was popular a few years back with first home buyers not being able to afford a fully completed house so flooring, painting, robes etc…[Read more]

I agree, the kitchen and bathroom are high on the agenda!!

I’m looking at things like outdoor living areas, do they add value to the proprty? In Darwin (I think) they are a must so perceived rental value will be higher, just not sure what valuers actually take into consideration.

If I were to spend say, $Xk on a deck & covering, would it…[Read more]

The house was built about 1985 and nothing has been done since.
I’m looking at floors, kitchen, bathroom, paint at a minimum.
Garden has absolutely nothing in it but lawn.

I guess I’m just looking for some opinions on how to raise the value without going overboard.
There is a lot of work to be done, but nothing structural, house itself is sturdy,…[Read more]

Sorry, no – no gold toilet seats, just ridiculous rents. In saying this though, ridiculous house prices to go with it…
There are comments nearly on a weekly basis of tenants going off at the “greedy landlords” for charging so much, but really as an investor who wants to foot the bill for someone else living in your house?

As for interiors,…[Read more]

I thought I’d just bump this one up as there has been no comment.
Does this mean don’t touch Portugal investments, or no one has tried?

To live or invest in…? Big difference between the two…

I’m probably a little biased but palmerston is the go to live, as with any areas there are good and bad. Steer clear of the older suburbs (moulden, driver) newer suburbs are nice, but over priced (belamack, roseberry) nice houses available in Bakewell, durack, gunn.
If you are looking at…[Read more]

As I’m in the NT info will probably vary from place to place, but…
I wouldn’t touch timber framed houses, steel only, brick even better.
Tin roof over tiles.
As for windows aluminium all the way!
We have a strict building code here due to cyclones & hassles with termites, so I think it’s the area and cost of build rather than preferred options…[Read more]

I don’t think it really matters where it comes from, it’s going remote NT so fairly central to all manufacturers around Australia…

Transport costs obviously are a factor, but quality & reliability more so…

No idea on planning myself, just throwing out options…
Could you combine titles, get the approval for rezoning etc then advertise the lot as a package deal.
You would get the higher valuation as it is now ready for development.
Benefit of this would be you could both still live in PPOR whilst all this is going on…

From what I understand by keeping funds separate is makes the split between personal and investment easier at tax time.
If you put the money to the investment loan, then redraw it for personal use, you can’t claim that portion of the interest as a tax offset.
If you put the cash in an offset account, you get the benefit of less interest whilst…[Read more]

I had a similar situation with units I bought last year.
Purchase price was $500k for 4 x units loan for $530.
Valuation came in at $475k

We looked at the rental opportunities and made the decision for purchase from the figures.
Taking up the equity on other investments has slowed us down for a while as we are “maxed out” according to the banks.…[Read more]

If someone is willing to share their set up I would be very interested!!
At the moment we have 6 properties (hopefully) soon to be 8.
Each of these properties werent really planned through very well in the early stages and i have continued with my ‘ad hoc’ way for 6 years now. I have a separate spreadsheet per property so I could see the…[Read more]

We have a property in Portugal we are about to start renting out. Previously it has just been our private house for when we visit family.
To now turn it into a claimable investment, will it just be a matter of claiming income & expense, or is there some other notification we need to do?

Jamie M wrote:
Hi thereA trust isn't going to solve your serviceabiltiy issues.CheersJamie

Just thought I'd clarify… It's the lenders tests of serviceability not the physical ability to pay the loans…