Hi aaabbbccc

Sounds like you need some professional help.

Having 2 directors of a company is not a good idea.

Working as a director of someone else's company is also a very dangerous proposition. If you have any assets now you should take measures to protect them thoroughly. Watch out for personal guarantees, when applying for credit they often ask the director to guarantee. Remember most companies go down and if you are director and it goes down you will probably have problems getting finance for the next 5 years.

As for changing trustees you should read you trust deed and see how it is done. It is usually up to the appointor to appoint the new trustee and the old trustee resigns. This needs to be done properly with a minute of the meeting etc.

Also with finance you can get someone other than a director to guarantee the loan. There is no need to have 2 for finance, and you shouldn't. Watch out for naming beneficiaries on your deed too – although yours sounds like it is already set up.

If your trust has assets already you will have to arrange for title to be transferred to the new trustee too.

Might be better to just set up a new trust and keep that one for shares?

How do you know it wasn't paid?

You are buying an item. This is normally GST inclusive. Whether the seller is doing their bit is up to them, not you.

The other major drawback with CC is not being able to sell one property when the remaining one has dropped in value – which happened to a friend of mine and resulted in bankruptcy.

Damn, if only you didn't cross the loans you would have had another $100,000 to play with.

I think you should set up another 100% offset account attached to one of the remaining investment properties and park it there for the meantime. You may need this account long term anyway as your PPOR will essentially be paid off.

If you will be down to one wage, then it may work out better to park it into a high interest account in the name of the lower income earner – though bear in mind the CG may make it not too good this financial year.

Or you may want to set up a discretionary trust and gift the money to the trust and keep it in the bank until you purchase the next property or shares etc.

I wouldn't pay off any investment loans because once you have the money is trapped unless you withdraw it for further invesmtents. If you pay down a loan and then reborrow for personal use you will have adverse tax consequences.

Not sure what you mean by the DSR. Are you saying the bank is reducing the limit on your loan because of one stopping work?

You certainly can claim a cash payment.

I assume you also mean there is no invoice. I would still claim it. write down diary notes of as much as you can about the transaction, things you would have received on the invoice. Claim it and argue it if audited.

If the other company wants to avoid tax it is up to them and they may get into trouble if audited.

see this from ATO

How does the Tax Office deal with missing or invalid tax invoices?

In November 2004, we issued a practice statement that explains when we will treat a document that is not a tax invoice as a valid tax invoice.

If you claim a GST credit without a tax invoice or with an invalid tax invoice, we may:

• treat your tax invoice as being valid or
• treat some other document as a valid tax invoice.

Our decision to allow your claim will depend on the details you provide.

http://www.ato.gov.au/businesses/content.asp?doc=/content/50913.htm

I can't see it mattering whether you had a business created or not, the deduction will be with the owner of the land.

I assume only half of it would be deductible anyway since part is used for the PPOR, and even then it may be a capital cost which means you could only claim 2.5% pa or off the CG when you sell.

Why not just pay cash and claim it too? just get their ABN and make a diary entry and claim it.

I don't think it is a grey area. If you are staying there then you cannot claim for this period. If your friends are staying there then you cannot claim, or have to account for market rents, if it is vacant and you are looking but cannot find tenants it should be claimable.

You just have to keep track of it all.

Try to work out more accurately what the CGT will be.

eg. The gain was $67,000 each
take about the buying and selling costs (stampduty, legals, agents fees etc)
say $10,000
= $57,000

then apply the 50% discount
= $28,500

This then goes on top of your partners other taxable income.
say she will pay 20% tax, that is nearly $6000 in tax

So you might get $60,000 in your pocket.

You can then use this to pay down your PPOR loan
@ 6% interest that is a further saving of $3,600 pa in non-deductible interest. This will also have a compounding effect too as you will save interest on interest.

At the same time you can set up a LOC on the owner occupied home and buy another investment property and claim the interest on this portion. But you will need to pay stamp duty again on this one.

So you are selling half a property and will be paying down non-deductible debt and maybe buying another investment property.

I suggest you sit down with 2 pieces of paper and more fully work out both scenarios – buying out the other half or selling. and see which makes sense.

Hi Blissy

I think Richard may have been talking about the next loan there.

For this one I would suggest you ring St George and say you wish to change over to IO and set up a 100% offset attached. Sounds like you may not be on the professional package and you may be on their cheap loan – the basic maybe? The offset account is only available on the stndard variable loan which is a higher rate, but you do get a discount which will bring it down to similar or less than what you are paying now, but you will get all the added features such as a free variaition per year. So ask about the package.

Even if it costs you I suggest that it is worth doing as otherwise you will be digging yourself in deeper the way you have set it up and it will save you money in the long run if you change now.