Nothing wroing with that I have done the same in South Africa. Of the 30 properties i bought, i only ever phsycally went into 2 of them.. and some of the properties were located 30 mins drive from my house!

To answer my other questions, how did you go about valuating these properties?

Back home in South Africa, there was 3rd party sofware which would run reports on all the sales data in a specific area and gave you estimated market valuations based on the market, sales history in area, sales price per square meter etc for the specific property in question. This Computer Aided Valuation (CAV) really helped in terms of giving you a idea of a market value.

This report cost about R40, which is about $6.

Do you get anything similar in Australia?

Thanks Paul..

How did you find the course and how long did it take you to complete?

Thanks for the information Paul, much appreciated. I will have a chat to Craig.

So after completing the CPP40307 Certificate IV in Property Services (Real Estate), will this allow me to deal in real estate without working under an real estate agency?

Hi Anthony,

Thanks for the reply.

Firstly, my posting was on the requirements needed to be able to buy, sell and trade property. By getting my Estates Agents Licence this will give me alot of information on the rules and regulation of the property market in Australia, plus allow me to source my own property and act as an independnt estate agent. 

So.. is there anyone out there who can guide me in terms of getting my Estate Agents Licence?

Anthony, back to your posting.. I have no intention of selling my properties in South Africa, nor do i plan to bringing any large sums of money over to Australia.

I actually dont want to 'rebuild', but rather just 'build' in Australia. I am in no rush, so even if i buy one property, it will be a stepping stone for many more to come.

Look forward to hearing from you guys.

Regards,
Robbie

Hey,

I just wanted to make contacts, share ideas which i have, and perhaps get some advice on investment areas in Australia.

PM me if you are interested.

Thanks,
Robbie

Hi Jamie,

I will be living in NSW, but I wont be limiting my investment area to this state.

What are the rules regarding the Government's First Home Owner Grant in NSW?

Regards,
Robbie

Hi guys,

With regards to this topic..

Lets say you managed to source a property for $150 000, which is worth $200 000. You agree with the seller that you will offer them  4-5% more, lets say $160 000 BUT the seller is then liable to pay for:

Stamp Duty
Govt fees such as registration of mortgage etc
Building and pest (optional)

This will be stipulated in the Offer To purchase, so nothing is hidden from the bank or attornenys handling the transfer. If you are lucky enough to get a 100% bond, when the funds get distributed by the attorneys, the seller gets his $160 000 LESS all the expenses he agreed to pay you end up buying a property without using any money.

I have structured a few deals like this in South Africa, I was just wondering if you could do the same in Austrlia?

Regards,
Robbie

Hi guys,

Just wanted to let you know I'm back on the forum and looking forward to learning as much as I can about the property market in Australia.

I will be making a permanent move to Australia on the 19th March 2011. My plan it to find a decend IT job (as I'm an IT professional) and get settled, with the intention of building a small property portfolio in Australia.

With this in mind, I would like to get familier with the market, areas, etc. I intend to source my own property deals, so I am going to need the following:

1: Some sort of spreadsheet to evaluate a deal which takes into consideration your rental income, monthly/weekly bond repayments, property expenses etc etc. I currently have a spreadsheet I use to evaluate my South African deals, so I would be keen to see what you guys are using.

2: An Australian Offer to purchase. I currently have my own Offer to Purchase I use in South Africa, but this document obviousy wouldnt be applicable in Australia.

Look fordward to hearing from you guys.

Regards,
Robbie