Rob, this is an Australia focused site. What country are you from?

Be very careful with doing this now. The ATO has recently disallowed the individual claiming the interest with a hybrid trust as (it  appears) the wording of the deed used was not sufficient to justify the individual claiming the interest. Look at this, and keep in mind it is a private…[Read more]

Duckster,That ain't necessarily so. A bank can take both, either or neither of your properties if cross collateralised. The point is, you have given them security so they decide. If you keep your loans separate, then you can decide which one you need to sell.And also bear in mind if a bank gets a court judgment against you, they can then easily…[Read more]

You can claim virtually everthing. How you claim depends on whether a repair/improvement or a capital item etc. Some things can be claimed in full in the year of purchase, others you need to depreciate over a few years.

I think in Vic it is not the case either. The SRO can take the value of the whole purchase (ie all the units) and assess the stamp duty on that – which would be much higher.

I think owner builder licences are meant for people building their own home, it is not really for investors, so they restrict things a bit. However, oneof my clients is building a duplex at the moment as an owner builder (NSW).

Having a company complicates things from a taxation point of view. If a company lends one of its assoicates money there are a whole host of rules which if they aren't applied property will mean the ATO could deem the loan to be a dividend payment and tax you on it!

The trouble is it will cost you dearly to refinance out of them!

Be very wary of Hybrid Trusts at the moment, or any trust that claims to allow negative gearing. I fear some will fair the ATO scrutiny.

As long as you can keep coming up with the deposits you can keep purchasing property. Even without an income. But it does help if you are on a high income and your properties are growing rapidly.

Hi LouieDon't forget the CGT issues.At least if you live in the property initially for a short time you can claim it as your main residence and possible be able to claim CGT exemption even if you rent it out. Plus you can get the FHOG grant and stamp duty exemptions.

La Trobe would do it at 8.5% on a low doc basis happy that they will be sold.

Check out some managed funds. Some have returned 60%+ pa over the past 12 months.

It seems you weren't covered as they changed their policy to exclude the pool when you renewed (cunning bastards). If this is correcct I would probably accept their offer.BTW – how much would it cost to repair?

Having IO means lower repayments. The extra you could have paid can now go into an offset account on your home loan. This will save you non-deductible interest. If you pay down an investment loan, you are reducing your tax deductions. It would be silly to do this while you still have a home loan which you cannot claim.

The best reason of not owning a property in your own name is that if you are sued and go bankrupt, the property could out of reach of your creditors.Tax reasons: If a discretionary trust owns an asset, the income from this asset can be distributed to a wide range of beneficiaries – usually those on low tax rates = massive tax savings.

Sale price of $320,000 lessPurchase price of $233,000, lesspurchase and selling costs, say $40,000, less reno costs of $25,000= profit of about $22,000this is reduced by 50% because you have held it for more than 12 months = $11,000This $11,000 is added to the owners taxable income, so max tax should be around $5,500.(my estimate only: I am not an…[Read more]

Some banks do not require a valuation to be done at all. They will go on a contract of sale if you have purchased through a real estate agent.

Roughly, like this:Selling Price = $282,000less purchase price = $82,000Less purchase costs and selling costs, say $20,000= $180,000Subject this to the 50% discount = $90,000This amount would be added to your income for the year. so the max you should pay is around $45,000 in CGT.If owned jointly, this $90,000 would be divided amongst the other…[Read more]

Oops, Sorry I misunderstood.Maybe there are still ways to reduce CGT by moving the assets into the hands of the lwoer income spouse before the final sale?