If at the end it all turns nasty – let the ATO know he has recieved a profit not derived from a PPOR – then at least he has to pay tax on it. Poor consolation I know. So all the very best and seek good council.Mick

Hi Terry,As always your comments are thought provoking and informative. Do you know of where I can find more information on this? I was of the understanding that there were certain documents that needed to be included for it to constitute a contract (eg council searches etc). Just curious.Thanks,Mick

I tried to find a few address and kept getting "unable to find that property". Tried substituating surrounding suburbs in case it was entered incorrectly to no avail. Oh well.

"i  trusted a group to build some town houses and  lost  six hundred thousand dollars"?Home owners warrenty insurance? Is it applicable to this venture?Valuation – if you disagree with the valuation you can always get your own independant one and submit it to the lending institution.Mezzinine finance – Personally I do not know details of this bu…[Read more]

Have you tried talking to TICA?

Try offering another incentive,suggestions- 2 weeks free rent- $$$xxx petrol voucher-$$xxx grocery voucherIf a prosepective tennant percieves your place as one where they are getting something for nothing then the time will not be an issue. Less detail is required. Youare only offering a 6 month lease. Why  is your concern, no one elses. I am not…[Read more]

Rudi,You are right, there are no crystal balls, just educated (or in a lot of cases, uneducated) guesses. Some areas will remain stable and others will go up even in a nationally declining market, that is the nature of statistics and humans. At the end of the day, it is only your butt and $$ on the line, so that is why you must carry out and be…[Read more]

keep pushing the banks. Even once you have written approval, keep pushing them so they are able to settle on time. I have just gone through both a  buy and a sell where I had delays that cost me money, in both cases it was delays on behalf of the bank. No one taking responsibility, documents waiting to be signed , blame game (sydney does the d…[Read more]

Talk with your accountant, perhaps if it is viewed as an investment, it could be considered a capital loss to be written off against future capital gain, making the loss not quite so painful. Just a thought and please not I am not an accountant.

Hi jjsl,Whilst you cannot claim the interest on land (unless you can show that his is your trading stock, ie you are a land developer and it is your main source of income, then the CGT discount wont apply), you will be able to add it to the cost base when you sell so all is not lost. Dont be pressured in to jumping into the market as you feel that…[Read more]

without question, YES.

FHO,I have plenty of support for a would be FHO. However, most should be realistic with their expectations. The McMansion complete with 40 months interest free furniture looks very impressive when keeping up with the Jones. However, that is not what the majority of investor purchase. I am tired of the continual "poor me – I cant find a house"…[Read more]

Undoubtably there are are alot of people who have made a little money and probably a few who have made a lot of money, but as mentioned above, there are far more that didnt make any or even lost money due to the product and promotional (motivational) purchases. You mention you were invited to a "business meeting", why, because if you were told…[Read more]

sq metre of land or house size?

As you are looking at being at uni and being based I assume in the one area, consider the possibility of something that will make good student accomodation. You can manage whilst you live there and will have an ongoing investment. Check of course with an accountant, but if it obviously your PPOR prior to any rent, then you have 6 years after it…[Read more]

Even on a sq m basis, it is still not like with like if one has budget inclusions and the other top of the line. That is why you need to be an expert in th earea you wish to invest in. Know that the price increase on $60K on property A is not due to capital growth, more due to the $50K they spent on their reno, which is not reflected in the…[Read more]

In the mining towns I have invested in I researched the $$ spent on infrastructure. Outside of the game, we may find it difficult to make the call on what world coal prices will do, I certainly dont pretend to understand the economics behind it all, HOWEVER, I collect confidence from the confidence of the big players in the field. That is always a…[Read more]

first stop is the council, they will tell you if you can and then run through all the thinngs you will nedd to consider. Then cost it out and see if the numbers work. It is a lot more involved if it is a rental preoperty and not just a teenage retreat for you eldest. What I am getting at is although it may be OK  to compromise if YOU want to…[Read more]

I forgeot to make an obvious point. Assuming you are a couple that is looking at the long haul, whilst it may not be on the cards, pitter patering little feet have been known to cause a huge reduction in income and increase in costs. They certainly have a habit of coming along before that loan is paid off. My point, dont forget to factor in these…[Read more]

Call the PI office, I am sure they will give you the details of the charity. It certainly does exsist and has certainly assisted those that need some help.mick