Forum Replies Created
Author is Ron Forlee. I did a google search on it to find best price and more info on it as it was difficult to find on bookshop shelves. It’s a step by step guide on site selection, finance, getting advice, working with contractors, councils consultants and solicitors, costing, marketing and selling. He has another book An Intelligent Guide to Australian Property Development which was his first book that I haven’t read. Something else I’ve found helpful is talking to real estate agents in area and Town Planner in the local council. Some councils may have restictions such as with a subdivision all properties need street frontage, old house at front may need a carport and lock up area built in same materials as house. If you don’t know much about R Codes get info off council or google search. That will tell you about how much land is needed plus site coverage etc. I hope that helps.
A brilliant book is Australian Residential Property Devt. It gives you templates to work out every single cost to see if it is viable.
Hi, I’ve spoken to a few developers in Perth. One was Craig Turnbull (6PR and author). He recommended open plan 3×2 with double carport or double garage. Two recommended going for a couple of extra courses to make ceilings higher instead of creating dog boxes. Another developer I know (he has about 30 properties) is currently building open plan 3×2 with theatre rooms in Landsdale.
Some excellent points Wayne. In the past week I’ve summed up some thoughts as to where Perth is heading. I think investors have had enough of high stamp duty costs, low rent returns, and high property prices so everyone has stopped buying. The Govt relies heavily on private investors to house people. With the shortage of workers and amount of work planned for Perth this is going to be a huge problem. The govt is going to be forced to lower it’s outrageous stamp duty. Rents are going to rise. Investors will come back into the market. This week alone I’ve got friends moving to Perth from Kempsey as they’ll be earning twice as much money here. One lot of tenants I have who came to Perth from NZ just got a job on the mines and is earning twice as much money. I know my husbands got years of work lined up for him in construction industry. I met some people from England on weekend who moved to Perth last year due to skills shortage. They love it and were with some friends that are trying to get sponsorship to move to Perth also. They were saying they could sell their homes in England for $500,000 and buy here for $350,000 and live it up in the sunshine. I think Perth is being discoved, with a little bit of help from the resources and employment boom. What do others think?
P.S. I was joking about, “Does anyone want a new PM?” Looking after our 2 properties is enough for me right now.
Property rental
Renting out your property – an owners guide is now available. This publication contains the Tenancy notes as well as other information which will assist private landlords in the management of their rental properties.
Dee Dee, Here is some info from Department of Consumer and Employment Protection for rental properties in WA. You used to be able to purchase Landlords Handbook from newagencies but now it is free. Website http://www.docep.wa.gov.auYou can request a copy of Renting out your property – an owners guide to be sent to you by calling 1300 30 40 54.
Bond Administration – A Guide (85kb PDF)
Renting a home in Western Australia – A Tenant’s Guide [PDF 639kb]
Renting out your property: An owner’s guide (600kb PDF)
Information relating to the changes to the residential tenancies regulations 1989I’ve managed my 2 properties in Asfield and Eden Hill for 3 and 2 yrs. I thought of using a property manager but found choosing a pm to be as much work as finding a tenant. I am thinking about becoming a pm, after doing the courses and starting a business to manage my partners properties, reduce his tax, and earn a small income. Anyone need a new PM in WA?
Did you have many suitable applicants for your property?
With your PM are you able to carry out some of the work yourself eg. property inspections to save money, photos?I heard a Perth property author/spokesperson say a couple of weeks ago to for a DHA property if you want a secure tenant and property looked after and don’t want to stress too much about your property. The payoff is though that you get less rent.
What does MB mean? And Nodoc style loan?
I know someone with over $1mil in equity and finance has become difficult because they’re low income earners.
My first property was a 2 br unit in Brisbane. I rented out one bedroom, furnished and lived in the other. I rang the ATO on a few occassions to find out if I needed to declare the income or if I could negative gear. Their response was that I could claim income and expenses or treat it as a personal nature and not claim. I chose to negative gear which meant when I sold I was up for capital gains on 50% of the property. CGT has changed since then (it used to be indexed with inflation) so at the time I’d estimated I wouldn’t have to pay CGT so this method worked for me. I found the unit worked well for me too as insurance and maintenance was looked after by body corporate. I didn’t have a huge mortgage and after a couple of years I had made extra repayments and reduced my loan from 25yrs to 9yrs. I think this could also be achieved if you had a 3bed house and rented out 2rooms. If I’d bought a house at the time the house would have gone up heaps more in value. I paid $95k for the unit in the boom and sold in the bust 5 years later for $104k. My neighbour bought at the same time for $105k and sold a few months before me for $95k. Buying and selling smartly is also important. Having a bit of decorating flair helps also. If your buying a unit make sure you check for maintenance issues outside the unit and how much money is in the sinking fund for repairs so they don’t come out of your own pocket. The owners of the unit before me had to pay towards painting and when I sold there were concerns about a retaining wall collapsing. I agree with the reading material already mentioned plus reno kings material, smarter property improvement, and Australian Property Development.
Thanks for your reply Condog. The sharemarket crash is something that sits at the back of my mind. I don’t bother much with the sharemarket, I prefer property. I figure people are always going to need a roof over their head, and when prices are too expensive to buy there will be greater demand to rent so there is a win-win situation.
I have some excellent tenants who have payed $170/wk for my IP for past 2 years. They do a bit of small maintenance on the property and are happy to pay for it unless it’s major. Currently the rent appraisal is about $240/w. The tenant has a new job is earning an extra $70,000/year in the mines. Do you think it would be rude to put their rent up $40-50wk?
Marc, Are you talking about the predicted stock market crash due to the baby boomers retiring? I’ve read some Kiyosaki books, tapes, etc, attended a seminar. Approx 3.5 yrs ago he was saying Aussie’s should sell their real estate – everything was pointing to a crash in property in Australia. (He may have even specified Perth) If I did that I would be a lot poorer and have to go back to work.. As for his advice on the sharemarket crash, I think he’s got a point, but may not be right. A lot depends on peoples confidence and emotions at the time and many other factors – war, disasters, resources booms, etc. I have also wondered with compulsary super that the government increases every year plus more people trading in the share market is it really going to make any difference. Also, I think people now have more flexibility with their investment options in super so I can’t see a major crash all at once. Maybe the baby boomers will shift their money into a safer superannuation cash fund before 2012. I agree with his basic tips but I don’t hold much faith in what he and some other wealth creation writers say. I just take a bit from everybody and think about what business plan and goal is the author trying to achieve. Why are they really writing this book? And I must say 80% of the books and content I’ve read are brilliant.Try Members Equity. They work really well for me. I’ve never had to pay any fees with them apart from solicitors fees. I’ve used them for 4 mortgages.
I’m in a similar position as you with an IP 3X1 with a games room and semi enclosed outdoor entertaining area addition. My idea’s are to turn the games room into a forth bedroom. This could easily be achieved by leaving a hall way and getting a suitable wardrobe from IKEA or have it built by a professional and it will serve two purposes. I’d probably also include a couple of bi-fold doors to save on space too. Then I would add windows and a door to the outdoor room and make that the games room. Maybe something like that would work for you also?
Thanks for all your advice. My parents own half the property and want to sell. I’ve been contemplating buying their half, or selling the house and completely pay off my mortgage. The property is now cash flow neutral and I have a $70k mortgage on my own home. I’ve had an offer from another family member to buy my parents half. It is a riverside suburb 10ks from city surrounded by good schools and shopping facilities. A large area of Eden Hill is being turned into parkland along the river bend and it is expected to become a tourist destination similar to Kings Park. What would other investors do in this situation? We purchased the property for $185K and it is now worth about $390k. (It’s not exactly Dalkeith but it’s affordable). Thanks
