I've called mine "God's waiting room" but seriously 1 & 1a works for me. If all else fails, there is information on the Austpost website.

Overseas deals QM – what is your tolerance to currency risk on top of site unseen (unless you're prepared to travel).

Good area, previous govt has shifted a few departments up that way to shore up votes – so there is plenty of work. Mines are kicking ahead but watch out for effects of carbon tax on coal miners/power generators.

Not quite unbiassed education if they are selling a product Graeme.

Hi QM, follow my linky thing to my blog – quite a few commercial property topics there to enjoy.

It depends on the agent and the vendor motivation Michael. vendors who want to get their hands on the inheritance or agents just looking for a quick sale won't do a great deal to get the highest price at auction.

Not a myth but many agents are reluctant to do one-offs, would you for a couple of hundred $?Iniyially it is often worth having a pm just so you can see what is involved. It comes into its own when finding a tenant, managing arrears, repairs, or a bad tenant at the tribunal.

Sure can, but you'd need to keep a log book.

Alternatively (and depending upon your cashflow tc) you could consider insurance bonds, need to be opened with an initial deposit then you can only add a certain amount annually. As they are for 10 years +, there is no tax payable on interest earned. Definitely worth looking at especially for long term investment horizons.

Were you thinking of this one?  Millars List

Marcus, if you are getting no capital growth your total return is limited to the income generated from the property, over time the asset value might decrease (building depreciates, land stays neutral/slight increase) but overall no growth.So you will need to generate better returns over future years in order to get an acceptable overall return.

Register your abn & for gst. Make one remittance each year. Not that hard. Should take less than 1/2 hr if you keep your records properly.

use the existing floor as formwork & pour a couple of inches of concrete over it. Watch door & ceiling heights.

Only if it was previously your ip

Take it up with the Licensee, if they are aware of how incompetent their PM is (at the risk of losing business) something might be done about it.

I am a little confused John. Are you approaching homes as a buyers agent (with client agency agreements in tow) or as a selling agent hoping to snag a sale?

Either way, letterbox drops do have a low hit rate.

The thing to note is that there are different land requirements for duplexes as opposed to villas/town houses/units – it will depend upon what council will allow in the area. You would be best served by a local planner as they will be more familiar with TP issues in the area whereas a Brisbane based planner may need to acquaint themselves with the…[Read more]

Drop me a pm

There is a large untapped market for 'pet friendly' housing. You may be able to consider charging a premium for 'pet friendliness' and also look towards some special conditions in the lease eg steam cleaning of carpet (but you are probably better off with hard flooring).

Just remember that the usual fundamentals apply for a commercial property – carry out your due diligence, check out any plant & equipment (engage appropriately qualified professionals to prepare reports), if you decide not to use the premises how easy will it be to lease out the premises? What other developments are approved/are these competition?…[Read more]