http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/itaa1997240/s118.145.html

Like a doctor needs to see patients before they are sick to keep them healthy, brokers ideally need to see clients before they max out. This can help longevity!

You can generally assign most things or appoint someone as you agent (in the legal sense, not real estate sense). If you appoint an agent they are acting on your behalf, so you would still bear the tax etc.

But with real estate there are various licences needed if someone is going to act as a property manager. I am not sure how you would go.

Maybe you could lease it some someone and give them permission to sublease it.

What are you trying to do?

You pay the management fees to an agent managing the property usually. I guess if you still need them then you will need to pay the fee.

If you entered into an agreement to sell the property often there are clauses which mean you have to give them a commission even if you find you own buyer or another agent sells it. I think in Victoria it is standard on the contracts down there to have to pay a commission even if an option was sold on the property – you should have struck this out before you signed.

I would probably just keep on buying investments and then store spare cash in a offset account.

When you want to upgrade sell the existing one, CGT free and use the cash in the offset.

that sounds like advertising!

Negatively geared properties will one day be making a profit (otherwise there is no point!). It they are owned personally there is little you can do to reduce the tax.

Your property becomes an investment as soon as it is available for rent. ie you can start claiming deductions. You can still treat it as your main residence for up to 6 years and have it CGT exempt in certain circumstances.

It shouldn't matter when you do the repairs as the damage was existing. Depending on the nature of the repairs you may be able to claim the depreciation of the building works. eg if you replace the deck.

You don't really need a valuation, but it may come in handy at a later date if your circumstances change. You should do it when the property is available for rent.

Although your wife will have rent coming in this is likely to be totally offset by the expenses and she may have a net loss which can be carried forward to offset future profits.

Its going to cost you a fortune for a solicitor to manage that for you. The other party shouldn't be worried about paying to you as they have your money so this arrangement won't really affect them. Documents can be held by a lawyer without this arrangement. The way you have set it out seems too complicated to me.

Whether you handle it or a solicitor handles it, there will be no different in taking action if they breach the agreement.

I should also point out that banks don't like lending for these vendor finance type arrangments.

In Prudential Insurance Co v IRC [1904] insurance was defined as existing where one person undertakes, in return for a premium, to pay another person a sum of money, or other benefit, on the happening of a specified event, the occurance or timing of which is uncertain.

Sounds like Ozinvest is charging a premium and will undetake to pay a sum of money if some event happens.