+1 for Jac M.

Cheers

Jamie

BA's are great.

A lot of my clients use them, particularly for interstate purchases.

Like any industry – some will be better than others. 

Work out where you want to invest and then hone in on a good BA that specialises in the area.

Cheers

Jamie

I've had a fair few clients who purchase interstate – then take a month off after settlement, fly to the property and live in it while they renovate. It's not something for everyone – but it does work for some.

Cheers

Jamie

MikalHoward wrote:
Hi all,

I have just received a letter from my Property Manager for the contract renewal. Over and above anything else, they have increased their fee from 8% to 8.8%. We have not discussed this, its just printed on the new contract for me to sign.

Quote:

Good post from Jac M above – agree with all of it.

How much rent is…[Read more]

Hi Bunjie

Welcome aboard.

Yes – they exist. Especially with the historically low rates that we're experiencing in Australia at the moment.

If you do a search on the forum for "positively geared" "cash flow positive" "CF+" etc  – you'll find heaps of posts.

Cheers

Jamie

I'm with Ten – rarely do they make for good investments. There's certainly better options out there.

Cheers

Jamie

Hi there

The only way you're going to get an accurate idea of how much your house is worth is by getting it valued by a certified valuer.

Depending on the bank you're with, you might be able to arrange this for free without submitting an application.

Otherwise, you can always commission your own independent valuation – might cost a few hundred…[Read more]

Hi Aivers

Welcome aboard.

For the time being – just continue educating yourself.

Read widely – get an idea of the different IP strategies investors use. Here's a list of good books https://www.propertyinvesting.com/forums/community/heads-up/6845

Frequent forums like this one – they're full of up to date information.

There's also a couple of…[Read more]

BrentL wrote:

1. Is there any way to be able to obtain a mortgage and therefore buy my first property (currently looking at apartments around $100K) without having a lot of savings to go towards a deposit?
2. Is this a good idea, or would I be better to focus my investing somewhere else for the time being? (I'm not too worried with putting my…[Read more]

coolestwolf wrote:
thanks for your replies. So if I go for a smaller deposit do I save the rest in a savers account or offset?

Offset account linked to the loan.

Jamie

Hi Ellifent

Welcome aboard.

Sorry to jump on the bandwagon – but I'm not a huge fan of OTP either.

One of the biggest issues is finance.

These aren't the types of deals that you approach with only a 5% deposit. Ideally, you need a decent deposit so if there's any issues with the valuation or hurdles with bank policy – a larger deposit will…[Read more]

Hi Elenor

Welcome aboard.

I think they're wise words from your PM.

Instead, maybe wait until Christmas and send them a hamper or movie tickets – something like that.

Besides, looks like you're already compensating them for the problem.

Cheers

Jamie

I don't think this will be the last we hear of this…….

Cheers

Jamie

Hi and welcome aboard.

Personally, I think it's best to leave family out of the picture when investing.

If you do decide to use your own funds to cover the deposit/costs – perhaps look at using a smaller deposit and leveraging LMI.

This way, you won't throw all of your savings into your first deal – and will retain some for future…[Read more]

Yeah it's there one year fixed rate – it's down to 4.79% 

Probably more of a marketing ploy than anything. It rolls into their SVR with a measly 0.7% discount  after the fixed year.

Cheers

Jamie

Nope – they rarely match up.

Jamie

Don't fix in an attempt to beat the variable rate – it doesn't usually pan out that way. Instead, fix your loan (or a portion of it) if you need the certainty of what your loan repayments will be each month.

Having said that, sub 5% rates are quite low and we're seeing a lot of clients fix at present.

It's hard for anyone to guess where fixed…[Read more]

Cheap with a high rental yield doesn't necessarily equate to a good investment. I can't see there being a lot of growth – especially given that there's so many properties for sale. What is the vacancy rate like? A strong yield is useless if the property is hard to rent. Also, lenders requiring a 20% deposit also suggests that they see it as a…[Read more]

Hi Corie

no worries re the advice about the valuations.

I agree 100% with freckle – tread carefully.

Cheers

Jamie

Radicals wrote:

So my question is: Where is a guy to begin?  I see those seminars pop up all the time by famous "investors" and I find it hard to tell which ones are genuine people wanting to help educate others and which are just sales people giving the hard sell.

Hi Radicals

I think the best place to start is by educating yourself. I…[Read more]