Brian when i was starting out nearly twenty years ago I was looking at two properties in my home town, both of which were for sale by auction. i was buying the property with my twin brotehr, but i was the one who chose the property, went to the auctions etc. ( he was more of a silent partner) the two hosues sold for more than I was willing to pay.…[Read more]

Thanks for that Liz, I might try and see if they have the info online.cheersSonya

It was mortgage watchdog.Sonya

Now, that's not kind, you nearly gave me a heart attack. I trust that any implementaion of changes is handled better than the insulation and BER debacle. I don't think this government could organise a chook raffle!!! Let me manage the budget, as a single mum with three children I can handle a budget and make it stretch further and get value for…[Read more]

Hi the company was mortgage watch I bought the software, however, had trouble loading it and there have been reports of their being some issues with the security of the software.cheersSonya

HI if you are never planning to live in the property then you wnat to get an IO loan. Have you enquired about refinancing your loan on your PPOR. I refinanced and even though i had to pay a ridiculous amount of moeny to do so, i am now sooo much better off with a significant recuction in repayments. I should alos recoup the costs of refinancing…[Read more]

Vicky your comment reminded me of my flatmate from years ago. She is a lawyer and preferred to go shopping after work rather than in her lunch break because she would come home and get her tracky daks on before we hit the shops. the shop assistants would leave her alone to have a look because they wrongly assumed that she couldn't afford the…[Read more]

Put their litter tray in the laundry or less preferably the bathroom or even the toilet where there is a tiled floor. This should limit 'mistakes' I am currently toilet training kittens in our barbeque area, so if they ahve an accident it is no biggie. Anyone wnat a kitten??? LOL

Hi Pat, welcome to the forum, love the photo. I have twin girls who are now 7 1/2 years old, I am starting to feel old!!! I also have a 10 year old. i have started over after my divorce and I am so glad that I found this forum as the people are knowledgable, friendly and have such a diverse range of experiences and strategies.I am thinking about…[Read more]

I think 'D's idea is a good one. I agree that cats can be better tenants than chidlren, having said that, make sure that the cat is litter trained and hopefully not male as they are more likely to 'spray' their scent around.I also agree that you need to ensure that pets are allowed by the body corporate.i have read a number of articles regarding…[Read more]

sorry for the double post!!cheersSonya

Hey, my cousin had a similair experience in ballarat when looking at a property with her husband. my cousin is  the one who does all the buying and renovating, her husband has his own seperate business. As soon as the agent spoke to her husband he said, 'there's no point talking to me mate, she's the one who will be buying the property'.having…[Read more]

Hey, my cousin had a similair experience in ballarat when looking at a property with her husband. my cousin is  the one who does all the buying and renovating, her husband has his own seperate business. As soon as the agent spoke to her husband he said, 'there's no point talking to me mate, she's the one who will be buying the property'.having…[Read more]

HI, i rented with a friedn whose property looked onto the railway line, narrow road in between. the trains were noisy, however i got used to it very quickly. She said that when she and her boyfriend were looking for a property they wanted to uy in inner city Sydney and they tossed up between buying near then airport and being under a flight path…[Read more]

congratulations! it is nice to see that people can have a balance in their life and goalscheersSonya

I always buy three bedroom houses as i have found, and been told by real estate property managers in the areas that i look at that they are easier to rent and retain tenants for a longer term. thus far I have had no trouble getting and retaining tenants. cheersSonya

i pay 8% for my property managers and they also carry out inspections at times  to suit potential tenants . My main property manager even inspected potential properties listed with all agents until i found the best property for CG and rental return. i now pay 0nly 6% to have more than one property listed with themi ahve had only one property…[Read more]

Noted. As blingbling has not specified what size town they were looking at i just wanted to clarify that their are some larger regional areas woth looking at.cheersSonya

There is a difference between buying in a town with a population of 650 and a town or regional city with a population of 30,000, with strong rental demand and steady or growing employment prospects.Sonya

I rented a two bedroom granny flat from people i did not previously know when I seperated from my husband. Admittedly, it was originally built for the ladnlord's mum, but when she moved into a nursing home i rented and then when i moved out another lady and her young child rented. this is in NSW, so don't know the legislation on initial building…[Read more]