Dont like to disagree with Mick but these days it is not that easy and financiers are wary about 99/1 or 95/5 shares when buying as Tenants in Common.

A DFT with a single property and No Corporate Trustee will not cost you anything like $2500 per year in Accountancy fees and would be done by the average tax agent as a simple return.

I have 5 Trusts in which i hold 45 properties and whilst our records are precisely done and presented to my Accountant (Steve Hodgkinson who is a forum member) dont pay much more than what Mick has quoted and that includes a SMSF and Company return for the business.

Yes in certain States Trust's do not get the land Tax exemption however LT is only based on the Land value.
One of the biggest advantages is the flexibility of income distribution when buying in a DFT as remember what is negative or neutrally geared today will be positvely geared in the future.

Any serious investor should be considering a Trust Structure.

One thing which will slow you down for upto a year is your age as it is illegal to enter into a mortgage or be registered on a title until you are 18.

In saying this dont let this put you off as if you intend to utilise the FHOG and go to contract prior to 30th June 2009 you will still qualify for the FHOG Boost.

Serviceability maybe an issue but without further information it is difficult to comment on this.

All depends how much equity you have in your other properties.

Couple of other 100% investment lenders still in the market but it is horses for course.

Hi aaabbbccc

The DFT needs to be established prior to going to contract so normally take around 24-48 hours to prepare.

We charge around $665 + GST for a simple Trust with Personal Trustees compared to $$$$ charged by some of the major firms as GOM has mentioned.

Dont go the Hybrid route as finding someone to finance the deal can be extremely hard in the current climate.

Flexibility is the key with anything as circumstances change between settlement and 5 years down the track.

No way of reducing the Stamp duty payable as it is calculated on the Transfer value but within reason they could agree to sell the property to you at a discounted price.

Whilst in this case the duty maybe payable on the valuation rather than the Transfer price i think if you could support your arguement with a valuation you should be fine.

Must admit the last people I would listen to is a Banker.

13 out of the 14 Investment houses including the 5 major banks had Babcock & Brown as a Buy recommendation in Dec in 
FN Arena. Hard to believe that only 1 out of 14 got it right.

Warrickel

I wont comment on the fact whether a regional property is a good investment (although personally i think you get good value for money in a lot of the smaller towns) however i would just pull you up on your opening sentence.

I am on the verge of drawing on the equity of my house to buy my first investment property .

Just make sure that you do this correctly as if you redraw the funds on your existing PPOR loan you may find apportioning the interest expense difficult and end up not being able to claim the interest as a tax deduction.

Your mortgage broker should be able to suggest ways to structure and fund the loan without issues and also how to avoid cross collaterlising the 2 loans.

Problem is that these Special Offers come and go and you need to be on the boil to take advantage of them.

5.94% for 5 years is as about as good as it gets at the mo.

Hi Futuro

You are still entitled to receive the FHOG if you purchase an investment property initially and all other qualifying criteria is met however have you thought about how you are going to finance an investment property purchase in a Unit Trust.

The number of lenders who will lend to either a UT or an HDT is diminishing by the day and those that do have specific post code area they will and will not lend in.

Too many variables to give you an accurate answer.

Depends on :

Whether you need both incomes to show serviceability, will the property every be rented out, future earning potential the list goes on and on.

One thing to be aware of get it wrong and it will be expensive.

Your mortgage broker should be able to shed more light on the plus and minuses for you.