The thing with buying in areas you don't know or haven't been to is that you don't know the good/bad streets/parts of suburbs etc.I did a lot of research on a town in NSW. Looked at 8 properties coming up for auction. Decided on 3 I would bid on but when I visited it was a different story. One place which the agent was raving about turned out to…[Read more]

brmiau wrote:
Who knows…. maybe I'm thinking to far ahead. Should just concentrate on paying off the mortgage then take it from there. Have an extra $1000-$1400 a week to live it up.

I don't think you can ever look to far ahead. Keep looking, reading and you will find something that suits you. I grew up thinking that it's important to own…[Read more]

I just buy whatever makes money. People have to live everywhere. Not everyone can live in the city (even if they wanted to). There will always be demand for houses in the suburbs of large cities. But you post is more about where "you" want to live. I'm looking from an investment perspective. So where I want to live is irrelevant.

brmiau wrote:
Hrmmm…. it may be a floored plan then i spose.We are going to try to pay $1400 (hopefully) a week off our loan as of march. Lots of stuff inbetween like our wedding and honeymoon. The US for 4 weeks, cant wait!! Anyway, that means the house will be payed off in just under 5 years. Meaning we'll be 31.

Congrats on the…[Read more]

Die Hard wrote:
Can anyone help with the following-If you take a bank loan to renovate and then claim the renovation loan as an investment expense, can you additionally also claim depreciation if you're renovating using a loan???

Is it an investment expense or are you just claiming it is? If the renovation is on an investment property you are a…[Read more]

Either way works. It's just what you are comfortable with. If you plan to buy more the extra equity will be handy. But if you are paying down your mortgage quickly you'll have extra equity anyway. Depends how fast you want to expand and your risk profile. Also you should have a cash buffer for when things don't go to plan. LMI is tax…[Read more]

How can they apply for the loan in the son's name? Unless they are also on the loan? If the son is on the loan he is liable (not the parents).

OK so assuming an average of 2% inflation per year (which is low) your $110,000 (assuming retirement at 55) is worth $73,000 in todays money. As mentioned, this is taxed at the normal rate. Also the cost of living will be a lot higher. 20 years ago I could live on $25,000 a year. Ok so you retire at 55. What about the next 30 years? Remember your…[Read more]

brmiau wrote:
Thanks again for all the info. Have done some calculations with a compounding interest calculator online and it seems thats the way where going to go. Pay off the mortgage by 34, continue to pay $1000 a week into a compounding interest account. By the time we're 55 we'll have $2,200,000 in the bank earning approx $110,000 a year…[Read more]

Think and Grow Rich® Property Entrepreneur Conferences Melbourne: Sat 25th – 26th February 2012 Sydney: 3rd – 4th March 2012 Brisbane: 24th – 25th March 2012 Perth: 31st March – 1st April 2012 Adelaide: 28th – 29th July 2012 Tickets for these events are currently FREE To Register y…[Read more]

Hi, it really depends on the house itself. Is it structurally sound? There are so many variables that no-one knows. eg does the house need rewiring? Is the roof OK? Do the windows need replacing? Are the floorboards usable or need replacing? Do walls need moving/replacing?This could vary by many thousands.This is all before reno costs. A basic…[Read more]

I think it would be worth your while to make a trip to Sydney for a few.

I have never had any good come from talking with financial advisors (tried for years) but a mortgage broker can help prevent common mistakes (cross collateralize etc). This can cause lots of problems and restrict your ability to move forward. Having your loans set up correctly is very important. Also talking to a property savvy accountant about…[Read more]

Why would you want to pay $70,000 more for a new unit? In 5 years time they are both older units. So you are willing to buy something that is almost double the median of the area. Very risky.  Be VERY careful when buying off the plan. For $330K you can get a house in Liverpool. Do some more research.

We looked at one in Sydney 3 years ago. It looked very attractive (money wise and visually). We ended up buying a VERY small 1 bed unit instead. It has risen 50% in the last 3 years. The serviced apartments have gone up less than 10%. Because there are a lot of them there are always a few for sale so whatever the lowest price someone is willing to…[Read more]

JacM wrote:

Catalyst wrote:

JacM wrote:
i use AAMI building + contents insurance plus landlord insurance with tenant protection

Why do you get contents insurance? Is it furnished?

No not furnished.  However you do need SOME contents insurance to cover things such as the window coverings (curtains) and carpets.  Believe it or not, they a…[Read more]

There are a LOT of books. Don't get too bogged down though, otherwise you end up with analysis paralysis. Saving is always a good start. There are other ways but you need to get educated in those areas to put them to good use. Seminars are a good way to hear different strategies just don't get caught up in the hype. I think the Think and Grow Rich…[Read more]

Property investing is very broad. There are MANY ways to procede and it's different for everyone. I'd suggest getting a few books Here's some discussions on good books. http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9652  Also borrow some property magazines from the library and read some stories about how people got started etc. While doing t…[Read more]

homersyd wrote:

Catalyst wrote:
You mean Zaki in this months API? I don't know about the debt but he used a buyers agent to buy under valued properties and reno them. He did a LOT of the work himself so saved lots of money there. He revalled properties and withdrew the equity to buy the next one. Because they were neutrally geared (or just…[Read more]

888Genie wrote:
Hi,I am pretty sure this guy did some JV's, which makes a difference.And it is true, I have been a subscriber to API for over 5 years and some of the stories are a bit stretched, especially when it comes to the approx vals of the properties, bit of overstating there I think

His first was vendor finance which was how he could do…[Read more]