Hi Billy,

Your first move should be to speak with an architect or draftsperson who has experience in designing dual occupancies. You will need a town planning permit, so it is important that the designer understands the planning system.

Whether you will receive a permit or not, and the quality of the end product, will be heavily influenced by…[Read more]

Hi DAB,

If you are using your PPOR as security you should be able to borrow 100% of the investment property. Even if you have no other property you can go interest only on a 100% loan.

This might not be that important for this purchase, but if you want to continue to move ahead, in terms of acquiring IP’s, I suggest you find another…[Read more]

Hi Wazl,

Some banks will lend against the end value if you have a fixed price building contract. Check with your lender, or else get a broker to organise a lender that will do this.

Regards
Alistair

Wizard are great for loans, just like McDonalds are great for food. It just depends on what you are after.

I was speaking with my accountant last week and he mentione that his family own a nuumber of apartment comlexes in Prague (spelling?). Apparently the cashflows are very high.

Regards
Alistair

Hi Craig,

If you want figures go the information victoria web site or shop in the city. They publish a book with median prices for the last 10 years, split up into houses, units/apartments, and vacant land. You will see that performances between different suburbs vary quite widely.

Regards
Alistair

Hi Craig,

I would class quality suburbs as those that people aspire to live in. Just ask yourself a quick question, are there people outside the suburb that would like to live there? What is the reason? If the only answer you can come up with is “Because its cheap” I would class it as a low quality suburb.

In a buyers market there is little…[Read more]

Hi Amerc79,

If you are keen on positive cashflow you will find it difficult to purchase off the shelf unless you look at commercial properties. If you are willing to do soomething a little creative such as vendor finance, development etc you can make positive cashflow.

Regards
Alistair

Hi Hernus,

Two who could try are Roy Halabi from GPS Nework http://www.gpsnetwork.com.au and Nigel Kibel http://www.propertyknowhow.com.au

Both post on these boards. Roy is more into new property and Nigel established.

Regards
Alistair

BRC,

That is not correct. To put multiple dwellings on the property a planning permit is required. You wouldn’t realign the boundaries without first confirming that you can use the extra land.

Regards
Alistair

Hi Bec,

If all the owner has done is submit an application to council, they have not really added any value. It may be a very good development opportunity, but don’t pay any premium unless he has an approval. Nothing is certain when it comes to the town planning process.

With regard to your question about utility connections. If the property is…[Read more]

Hi Nats,

What you propose would almost certainly require a new application. It’s probably worth a try though. Two years is a lot of time to get a permit by the way, unless he has had to try a number of different applications.

Regards
Alistair

Hi Furnz,

Splitting the loan would not be a problem given the amount of equity you have. You need advice from a good accountant re making sure you legally maximise the percentage of the debt that is aplied to your IP. I’m happy to refer you to a great accountant if you need one.

Regards
Alistair

Hi Terebi,

A unit that small will be very hard to get finance for, and you have no chance of getting a high LVR. They will therefore eat into your equity. If you have plenty of equity and lack cashflow, they may fit into your strategy, but if not you will be placing an anchor around your neck in terms of moving forward.

Regards
Alistair

If you are paying off principle it makes sense to pay off the most expensive debt first. If you have no other debts, this would be your PPOR. If you are going to change from your current PPOR and make it an IP, you are probably better off paying money into an account that offsets the interest on that property, and then paying that amount into the…[Read more]

Have you had a look into finacing your purchase? Often these types of investments look good, in terms of cashflow, but if you cannot get financing at a decent LVR then you can quickly find yourself running out of equity for further investments. I’m not trying to put you off, if equity is not a problem for you such an investment might suit, but…[Read more]

There are actually some very good 100% loans around. You can even go higher to 106%, although interest rates for these loans are much higher.

Regards
Alistair

Hi Jo,

Which State are you in. I have a strong knowledge of the planning system in Victoria and am happy to post answers to your queries, but different States have different systems.

In general zones indicate the type of developments that will be allowed on the block eg if the zone is Residential developmenmts such as factories or shops are…[Read more]

In the current climate you really need to look at commercial property if you want positive cashflow. Read some of Dazzling’s posts if you want some entertaining stories on this subject.

Regards
Alistair

Dobby,

Quiggles is one of the pioneers in terms of investing in US residential realestate. You would do well to take his advice.

Regards
Alistair