Hi Jamie,If I were in Canberra, I'd be coming to see you (or are we able to do all this via email???) – I think the mortgage broker who I got my first loan through has now gone on to do something else, and I haven't had a good experience with the few others in my area… So in the meantime I'm going to have to do a bit of leg-work – hence trying t…[Read more]

Just to clarify, you guys would recommend taking out a LOC against my first IP, drawing out the money to pay for the deposit, stamp duty and any minor cosmetic changes on 2nd IP, with a new separate loan to finance the rest of the 2nd IP? As this is all deductible debt, is it worth putting my "rainy day" cash into an offset account?Many thanks…[Read more]

Bear in mind that Radiata Pine is quite soft – easy to get scratches and depressions in the surface that will stand out like crazy if it has a dark stain over it. Dark stain to increase the perceived value? Most likely, yes. Practical long-term? Not really.

Freehold means you own the building and the business, leasehold means you lease the building from the owner but own/operate the business (accommodation/restaurant/bars/pokies etc.)

Thanks Jamie – I'll suss them out… My previous experience has been pretty good, but if they tell me it can't be done or seem confused I will look elsewhere.

One more question…Online Stamp Duty calculator is telling me I'll be up for about $8000 – is this correct?

Thanks guys, much appreciated!!!I will go and see the bank this week to see what they think…

I've got a property (2BR unit) that was entirely exposed brick inside – putting Gyprock up was a relatively inexpensive exercise – as catalyst said, Gyprock is pretty cheap and to fix a sheet in place is much less labour-intensive than rendering a similar sized area. You could probably do the sheeting yourself if you're confident enough or can ge…[Read more]

IDV8, you're on a much better train of thought now! Zimby has hit the nail on the head – don't over extend yourself. If you qualify for a $600k loan, you don't necessarily have to take it, and don't let the banks talk you into it. Of course they want you paying interest on $600k, but if you find the right property at $300 or $400k that just needs…[Read more]

A couple of the other people responding on this thread have touched on it already, but my first concern reading your post was your desire for your first purchase to be your dream home…If you can honestly picture yourself living in this "dream home" until you retire, then go for it – I sincerely wish you all the best. On the other hand, if you…[Read more]

Hi John,It's not property specific, but George S. Clason's "The Richest Man In Babylon" is a must-read for anyone interested in creating personal wealth – it covers the basic principles in plain and simple terms – basic principles that most people don't even think about. Your teachers comment reminded me of the lesson in the book where a man g…[Read more]

Haymes paints are fantastic – I haven't done any renovation work recently, so I'm not sure where they fall with regard to price, but definitely worth checking out.

Another way to increase the yield once you've made the changes you want to make: Furnish the place. I did this with an older 2BR unit I own in a large regional city. It's close to the centre of town, but the block was prone to attracting the odd undesirable tenant from time-to-time. The extra $80 a week I got for it as a furnished unit not only…[Read more]

Thanks Richard.Much appreciated.

After a little more research, can I assume that I might be able to refinance my current IP, up to 80% of it's value, taking $80k ($100k equity) and borrow about another $250k?

Ah, yes. Thanks Jamie.Back to the topic… Can anybody advise what my maximum borrowing capacity would be if I eliminated that CC debt, saved a $15k deposit, earning $45k p.a. with around $100k equity in another IP, no dependants, no other debts with the loan to buy a property making between $300 and $350 p.w. in rent. Existing IP making $290 p.w.…[Read more]

Sorry Michael – I may not have explained myself well enough (bad habit of mine sometimes) – my credit limit is about $22,000, but I currently owe just under $7,000 and most of this has just been transferred to a new card on which I'm only paying 0.99% interest for 9 months.So… Assuming I can pay this off and save $15,000 as a deposit in the…[Read more]

Thanks again Michael,Am I correct in assuming that a line of credit, much like a credit card, will reduce the amount of money I can borrow on the loan? If I've got no credit card and no line of credit, wouldn't I be able to borrow more than if I had a line of credit? I'm essentially trying to maximise the amount I can borrow to purchase another…[Read more]

Thanks Michael,No dependants, no other debts at all, might be able to get a stat dec for my living arrangements, but let's assume my circumstances change (or those I'm living with) and that I have to find a place to rent. I could, in the current market, find a room to rent for $150/week in my area – certainly much less than $290.My current total…[Read more]