Hi munmum,
ONLY because of the bump, as I’m not sure these two gents are still active…. both are (were) in NZ.

In NZ, my mind immediately goes to Olly Newland. Wife and I bought our first house from him in the 70’s. I know he has been quite active in education there for decades – he presents, writes books, mag columns, etc.

The other…[Read more]

Hi JL,
You probably need an Accountant to confirm this, but your purchase date MIGHT help you :-

Bought in 1999 for $212k

I recall that a major change occurred (in Sep 2000?) re Indexing of values for CGT purposes. As I recall, for homes bought prior to that date, the owner may CHOOSE whether to use the Indexing method or the new “50%…[Read more]

Hi Sonya,
Welcome aboard !! It is good to hear that you are looking for options – this means you have your future firmly in view. I think a good move for you is to keep on reading, checking, questioning, and working toward that future. A chat with one of the Mortgage Brokers would be useful too – they can take your whole financial situation…[Read more]

Hi Sonya,
Welcome aboard !! It is good to hear that you are looking for options – this means you have your future firmly in view. I think a good move for you is to keep on reading, checking, questioning, and working toward that future. A chat with one of the Mortgage Brokers would be useful too – they can take your whole financial situation…[Read more]

Hi Gayle,
Nice post !! If I were an Admin, I wouldn’t even think of deleting it – such positive stories deserve to be told.

And isn’t it great when those initial fears just melt away and you realise you are on your way. Like you, I find this forum (and one or two others like it) can be a real friend to those starting out. Good luck with…[Read more]

Hi Ben,
Wow – sounds like a problem… and, no, I don’t think i have the whole answer, but wanted to share a couple of thoughts :-

1. The home we bought 30 years ago had a similar thing. No slopes to speak of, but the thing that rocked me was that downpipes were ALLOWED to “splash-feed” onto the ground rather than being piped away…[Read more]

Hi C.George,
Congratulations !! It is always a big step to buy that first investment property. Well done!!!

Re Govt Housing, the only one I am vaguely familiar with is “DHA” (Defence Housing Australia). They provide Management, guarantee a regular rental, fit new carpets and paint after a pre-determined time (6 years?? or 9?? not sure)…[Read more]

Hi Ms New,
Welcome aboard. Anything new like property investing can seem a bit scarey at first, but as you say, there are places that can help (like, right here…).

In case it helps, do check out this link (and all of the links of interest within the…[Read more]

Hi Ray,
and welcome aboard !! :D Sorry, I can’t help much with other calculators. I did have a look at Ian Somers’ PIA (he used to have a trial version on the Somersoft website) but I found I got much more from using Excel and building my own calculators.

That did two things for me – one, I was learning Excel for myself at that time,…[Read more]

Hi Boshie,
I just posted this for another new reader – take a look:-

https://www.propertyinvesting.com/forums/general-property/4349450

That takes you through some VERY useful “first questions (and answers)” and could answer some of your questions straght off. You look to be in good shape and a bit of careful thought, and not rushing into…[Read more]

Hi appg2,
Well done for thinking of these kinds of things while still young. I would say first do a bunch of learning re property – it can be a good friend if you treat it right. Take a look at the link below as a “get up to speed quickly” reference.

https://www.propertyinvesting.com/forums/general-property/4349450

Stick around, ask more…[Read more]

Hi Samson,
Hopefully, Terryw’s links will provide what you need to know.

Re Andrew’s comment :-

Property A will be only partially exempt from CGT since it was rented out for 4 years. A property is only fully CGT exempt if it is your PPOR for the whole duration of your ownership.

…. I think Andrew might be presuming it was a renter from…[Read more]

Hi Callie,
Sounds to me like a chat with your Solicitor (or one on here) would pay dividends. As I understand it, Company title means that the whole apartment block is owned as a single entity. Thus, to someone wanting to buy a single apartment, it is a bit like selling/buying one bedroom of someone’s house !!! ?????

There are $$ to be…[Read more]

Hi yuley,
As with most things in life, it is the people that make the most dramas. Getting a GOOD Property Manager is every bit as important as a good Accountant, Broker, lawyer, etc. Good property managers will usually be found in good RE agents – but not always. We had a cracker PM who worked for a no-hope RE agent. We stuck with them…[Read more]

Hi Terryw,
Ah, of course – I’d missed the obvious…. A marginal Tax Rate of 40% would lead to a HUGE saving when compared to ~5% by using an Offset. Thanks for putting me straight.

Ollie,
Forget what I said earlier – I think I had missed seeing the elephant hiding in the corner of the room…. ;) Good luck with making it happen in…[Read more]

Hi Ollie,
As Terryw said:-

If you want to prepay interest then you have to be charged the interest before 30June of it will fall over next year.

If you were planning on paying a year in advance, this would save you about $800 (based on a $400k loan with a 0.2% Interest saving – I think that is around the norm, yeah?) But, if you were to NOT…[Read more]

Hi Ollie,

I’m currently in this situation on a interest in advance loan trying to get it all sorted before July 1 due to my 13-14 tax advantages,

Do check with your Accountant (of course) but I believe Taxation is based on “Contract Date” and NOT Settlement Date. If I am right, maybe there is less need to rush for a full settlement by J…[Read more]

Hi Steve,
Thanks for shining a light on that one. I’ve never thought to question it…..

It is not like IP’s have an excessive amount of rubbish to be dumped, or need to provide any more water than a similar sized family living in its own PPOR. Parks in the area don’t need any more upkeep because people using it are renters. So WHERE…[Read more]

Hi Davis,
Welcome aboard !! I don’t know the firm myself, so can’t comment. Have you tried a search? Go in with an open mind, but my suggestion is to not sign anything on the day, but take the time to go home and “sleep on it”.

Those companies who are “cowboys” are sales-oriented, and apply pressure tactics to get you to sign. If…[Read more]

Hi Magnet,
Welcome aboard !!! I can’t answer your specific question, but I did do a quick Google search using these keywords – “strata title existing unit blocks” – and it provided a string of possible links.

As Richard indicated, most will depend on the local Council and current bylaws. One of the links did say things like “What applied…[Read more]