If it is a separate loan, the loc, then that is good. You must have equity to do this thenGood that they have a license too.But who is the lender? 6.6% is very high at the moment. I hope the main loan isn't a LOC.Not sure about the fees being deductible up front. Seek your own tax advice.

If it operates like a redraw that concerns me even more. That would result in a mixed purpose loan so how do you distinguish the interest deductible.Also make sure they are authorised to give this sort of advice – AFSL licence or an authorised rep of a licence holder.Also what are their fees?

i would be concerned that it is not tax effective.You would probably be effectively paying cash for an investment. If you could instead pay all the loan amount off the loan and then borrow the extra money to invest into the same share investments then you would be paying off the non deductible home loan faster.The 'Gap protection' will probably…[Read more]

Very difficult to find a lender willing to allow vendor finance of 20%.

Get a valuation done. Agent's listing price usually doesn't bear any relationship to value

Pat007 wrote:
On a related note, if used for an investment type purchase is the debt interest on a credit card claimable against Tax in Australia ?

In Australia if you borrow for investment or business related purposes the interest is generally deductible. This includes credit card interest.But with a credit card often there will be a mixture…[Read more]

You can refinance a SMSF loan, but St George is a good one as you don't have to provide a personal guarantee.

Trust Magic is a great book and I would recommend it over Renton's for beginners.

See Special Purpose companieshttp://www.asic.gov.au/asic/asic.nsf/byheadline/Special+purpose+companies?openDocumentAnnual fee is a mere $43http://www.asic.gov.au/asic/asic.nsf/byheadline/Schedules+of+corporations+fees?openDocument Actually, you are asking about the custodian trustee aren't you. Now I am not sure if these could be special purpose…[Read more]

Yes it can.But if the company is already doing something – such as trading or acting as trustee etc then it shouldn't be used.You can get special purpose companies set up for the sole purpose of acting as SMSF trustee and they have lower asic fees so it may be worth setting up a new one anyway.You need to consider a few things when setting up…[Read more]

I was just going to suggest a trust structure too – should at least consider it.In some states the transfer of units in a unit trust are not subject to duty. In NSW the rate of duty is currently 0.6% but it will be abolished from 01 July 2013. That means that 2 people buying property together could purchase in a unit trust structure and when one…[Read more]

I've changed my signature!

Thanks for the kind words..

Just pay all the bills such as rates, insurance, water etc. Don't let your property manager pay them for you!

Banks don't accept credit cards for loan repayments.

That would be classed as a cash advance which would not give you any points or interest free period – and probably higher interest rates too.

LCYou are still confusing different issues I think.1. CGT.A main residence can be left vacant indefinitely and be free of CGT.2. Income Tax A residence can be left vacant for any amount of time, but you could not claim any costs unless it is available for rent and you are actively looking for a tenant.

I am a solicitor and have studied trusts and asset protection for years. I would suggest you couldn't do it yourself without exposing yourself to so many 'things' you hadn't thought of or weren't aware of.There are trusts set up which are invalid, trusts which have been drafted in a way that stamp duty would be payable on the full assets if the…[Read more]

And you might find that a valuer may think what you paid is market value. Start collection details of comparable sales (sales not just listings)

You could possibly claim it or part of it to the extent that it was used for income producing purposes.