[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 22, 2008 - 2:43 am

Badges
I think you will find that there is not Aust. Gov. backing or gaurantee on your money in the bank. Rudd was asked a question on TV last night re. are Aust. banks save, and he never said they were Gov. backed only that they needed to meet certain criteria and need to have funds in reserve. Do you remember Pyimide Building society, that was backed buy the state Gov. Bob Jolly and I lost a shit load of money, Ive still got the letter to say it was all OK.

My point is we all seen to think our money is safe in the back, but look at the USA now. Also banks are offering very good cash rate on TD 8%. I feel its to get money in the door as reserves are low they have lent too much out, to home loans. Lets know mate what you find out.
Cherrs
T………………..

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 21, 2008 - 9:26 am

I am aware that the Government provides guarantees but it’s only up to $20k per person max. 

Badgers

Im intrested in this also, who told you that the Aust. government guarantees bank funds and the 20k only intrest me also. Currently I feel Im not the only one concered about our money in the bank. Lets know your source for this info. if its possible.

Kind regards

T…….  

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 20, 2008 - 1:36 pm

Thank you both for your input.  K  I beleive you are correct but how does the purchaser know what the " not taking offers under figer is" the true one that is.  Yes buy passing them does piss them off, strange breed real estate agents. May I ask why you said

Make sure you have got a copy of the Section 32 before you sign any contracts. I would think any offer made with out the purchaser seeing and signing a copy of the sect. 32 would be void and not binding.
I will pass on the info to my friend, who I may say is learning fast.

Thanks for your replys

Regards
T……………

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 19, 2008 - 1:37 pm

Calvinci

The contract is a major part of any deal. Unfortunitly some times people dont keep their word. I soulds like you are having a bit of a problem with this beam, may I surgest a couple of Jim Beams and a few deep breaths lol.  Im sure after you move in and the place has settled it wont be a major issue. However, you are intitled to be satified with your purchase and if she agreed to have the beam replace in total then she should have. Having said that a builder will do only what they have to or are paid to do, and in this case I bet the cheapest option was to brace it.

Getting the contract ammended to include the replacing of the beam was a must. Most agents dont like messing round with little things but you must insist that it states "replace".  Depending on the type, position, loading of the beam bracing it may be seen as "satifactory" to a building inspector, thus not major at all.  Remember the cost involved and the stress why not just enjoy your new purchase and see how the bracing goes as the vendor is paying and if its not up to par replace it latter.

All the best, hope it all come together for you.
T……………….

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 18, 2008 - 3:31 am

Problem 2. Worried about putting in a offer in case they laugh at us.

My dear friend, problem 2 is not a problem. The agent gets paid to laugh at your offer, he/ she wants to make you feel as uncomfortable, foolish, inexpirianced, uninformed as they can. After all they dont work for you they work for the vendor.  If you think they laugh at your offer now how hard do you think they will laugh when you pay too much for the place. " he who laughs last laughs the longest". (Sorry had to put that in, its an oldy but a goody. ) You are already in trouble if you are thinking like this, someone mentioned confidence in your offer is the key. You do not even have to justify your offer to them, let them laugh and then remind them that if you dont get a formal reply to your offer (that you must make in writting, and at this stage no bull shitting around, you are makeing a formal contract if your offer is excepted) You will forward it to the vendor your self or via your solicitor.
Most agents will fold like the cheap suite they ware, when you let them know you mean business.

In my opinion there is far to much intimidation and pressure placed on purchasers by agents. Rermber you are the buyer they do not own the place they are only an agent. Bring on vendor selling as the norm for a faired deal all round.  Hope Ive helped to boost your confidence when and if you make your offer.

Cheers
T……………..

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 10, 2008 - 9:45 am

quote=mackar]IMO,  most purchasers believe the house they wish to purchase is overpriced… !!
[/quote]

Yes Mackar I think you are right . This is what Ive expirianced in the past, but it eventually sells ( to someone elles). I may be forced to pay the extra they are asking and be done with it.

Jon

My offer was going to be totally unconditional. I feel this combined with a low offer may have indeed lost me my credability. However, I always say talk is cheap but money buys the drinks.  It seem vendors will hang out for a few more bucks on conditional contracts. I also think power is taken from an agent when an unconditional 30 day offer is made, some may feel they are loosing some of their weight.  Thank you for your comments I found them usfull its good to see from an agents perspective.

I now have the 32 but no contract. Is it safe for me to use a standard contract note, after all, its offer, deposit, settlement date. No special conditions, I cant get into the office as I have to work. Let me know if you have any more thourghts.

Thanks to all who replyed, much apprecated.

T……..

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 10, 2008 - 1:35 am

bespocke

To me it sounds like you are doing your home work and thats the most importaint thing. Its only you and your partner that need to make the desishion. The good thing is you have not siged anything yet. Gut feel can be a good indicator as long as you dont get emotionally involved with any of the properties. Do your sums and consider if you have the time to renovate and the true cost involved. Some times even after we have done the home work we tend to be unsure I think you will find in time your choice will be the right one. Both sould ok I like the No 1. myself. You may be able to bargan a bit harder on the 2nd as they made ok money on it, use the rising damp and repair cost as a tool. 
Good luck with it all.
T………

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 10, 2008 - 1:04 am

 Adam & kathlynv

kathlynv wrote:

IMO people want to see a trend of drops before they really start to believe it enough to go out and buy a home / houses – the next 12 mths are a great time to go shopping for property – in 2013 you'll look back and say "good job I went shopping"!!!

Hysight is a great thing, I think most people look back (inc. myself) and say I should have brought then.  I also think we can agree that real estate has had a positve trend over a long term.  So speculating when it will go up or down on a micro scale is very dificult.  The property mags. are OK for general info but you can get the same opinions down the pub, mentioned everyone as there own agender.  Ive listen to all types of people on the matter and all have confliction opinions. Up , down, flat, buy shares.

Intrest rates are only part of it a new word has entred the conversation " Unemployment" Inflation was getting a bit stail.  If we look at what drives prices up IMO they are
Ability to borrow ( low rates)
Ability to service that loan ( employment)
Avalability of stock (land) supply
Demand ( new badies & imigration)
Opertunity costs ( better returns in other investments)

So lets think about it !!!!

Seems pretty sure rates are on the way down. (some of the highest in the world, pressure to get inflation down)
Unemployment ????  not to sure about this one, IMO still just OK. Comes down to how you spend what you earn and your savings skills. 2 wages or 1. So I dont think we need to head to centre Link just yet.
Supply & Demand,  Im convinced there seems to be limited stock out there. If its there its over priced. Ive made several cash, unconditional offers and no go the vender will hang out for a few more 1000.
Imigration is still high from OS and interstate, most people are still looking for a place to live. Vacancy rates are low.
Opertunity costs, well if you like to sleep at night shares may not be the answer, see there proformance of late. Open a business consumer confidenc is  too low, imports too cheap. Many small Business are closing (hence the Unemployment )
 
After all that IMO propery may not be great but all considered it may be safer more liquid and in demand than other investments. Dont expect to get rich, your a bit late for that, long term, long term slow growth.

Lets know what you think & good luck to all.

T………..

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

September 8, 2008 - 2:25 am

Chris

Good question mate. IMO as was mentioned .25 will make no diffrence its like 60 per month on a 300k morgage, $15 per week. So do the sums 1 % may start to make things move a bit.  Dont forget bank shares are very low can they afford to lower home loan rates just because the reserve bank says they should, IMO no.  People have too much debt and not inflashion at 5-6% people are hurting, try doing the shopping just to see it for your self. Its great fro RE agents " rates are dropping so you best buy now before prices go up" lol.  It will have a phycological (spelt wrong, I wish I was smarter) affect on some and they will start to buy again.
A few key point to remember are:
Inflation is still high ( can people afford to go and borrow not that house prices are already bloody too high).
The banks are not run buy the reserve Bank.
Imigration still is high.
Property prices is most areas are not proforming like they have in the past ( see Domain, sundays age)
Rental property forget it, why would anyone perchase a rental even for cash, you still looses money every week, because the price of the property is too high.
At the end of the day we can only speculate, no one knows. Do your own reaserch and stick with it. Long tern the trend has been up so invest for the long term not the short.

Just my opinions and as always Im open to hear others. One thing for sure Aust. is no longer the lucky country or the land of milk & honey.    Good luck Chris.
T……………..

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

August 21, 2008 - 3:16 am

calvinci

Congrats on your new purchase. I think you need to look at things as they are. A few hair line cracks, the place is 30 years old man. This is common even in younger houses. Larva damage, your inspector should give your the correct info, as your are paying him/her. If its not major, only 2k, so its not major at all, you just get it fixed. 

As to pulling out of the contract:

Will you find another property for the same price?

Cancell, You may not be able to, as it for ony major structual faults. You can put in your own wording as " as to purchasers satisfation".

Why not try it on with the agent. I have not seen your contract but. Say you may not take the place but are willing to do so if the vendor pays the 2k.

Are you sure you want the place some time we get cold feet and look for the negatives in a place. After all its only 2.5k.

All the best to you, hope all works out.

Cheers

T………..  

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 24, 2008 - 8:25 am

Scamp

Mogagee in posetion will not take offer before Action. Yes Im with you in some cases. Ive seen people do some strange sh#t at actions, specialy morgagee. Im doing a lot of work before the action and setting my max. and i will stick to it. Unless I get it for 1/3 of CMV in not intrested.  With todays Inflation figures higher than expected I think there will be a lot more to choose from in the next year. 

Cheers
T…………………..

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 17, 2008 - 2:01 pm

Re    Singapore

  "  With a maximum of 20% tax rate in Singapore, ZERO capital gains tax on property OR shares, and NO ESTATE DUTIES, it is extremely attractive as a place for wealthy investors who are savvy enough to see the benefits."

Not to mention the babes.

Maybe we should chip in and buy Kevin Rudd a plane ticket so he can get a few new ideas.  

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 17, 2008 - 1:52 pm

Sponge
I will be the devils advcate here just to create a diffrent view.  You have 70k in equity in you home.     "We also have a small amount of money saved, about 20K" Not to be rude but 20k not much nowdays. As investers we all agree on the following Intrest rates are going up. Property is flat or going down (even real estate agent cant hide it) Given these facts why do you want to spend all you 20k, empty the bank account and suck the equity out of your home given the current market. Your paying $425 pw on your current loan.REnt on the I.P. will be negative in fact you will have to top it up or add to it out of your pocket. All this for say a minium of 7 years to make what? Why not wait & save up at least 50k get you home loant down & wait till you find a property that a bargan in say 2.5 years. It hard enough to make money from I.P. even when your paying cash.  Just some food for throught.
Good Luck
T……………..

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 17, 2008 - 1:28 pm

Sav
Mate, dont be disapointed. Keep a clear head and dont get sucked into this property investing thing. Focus on the facts, it was a shit hole ready to be condemded. If you had of "fixed it up" the tenants have the right to live in a livable & safe house. You would have been there every weekend fixing things up. Sav 25k is a small deposit then you would have had no cash at all in your kit.

If in future you see a property you may like get the sec 32, dont take shit form the agent they have to give it to you. See if you can find out if they own it or under finance how long they owned why are they selling it etc. Do you know how much the same size block is selling for 12 km down the road, I dont think so, try $180-190k. You pay stamps on that old house for nothing. If you cant live in it why buy it. 

Dont be disapointed just because it sold fast does not mean it was a bargan. Go with your gut feel man. As far as a land bank goes if your paying 9.5% intrest in a softing market it may be a long time before you even get close to covering your intrest payment. There's 20k intrest before expences if you held it for 5 years only,  you would have to sell it for 330k before costs just to break even.

Could you have afforded $385 per week in repayments.(intrest only) Keep an eye on it Sav just because it under contract DOES NO MEAN ITS SOLD.  Important to remember dont rush into the next one because you missed this one. To find a bargain takes a hell of a lot of work in the current market. Have a look at some of Scamps listings a bit exagerated but none the less true.

Cheers
T…………

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 17, 2008 - 12:49 pm

K

Thanks thats what I felt was the situation. I know im cristal balling a bit but I dont want to live next to units. I feel the council will say YES to any development. These blocks are large and anything over 1000m draws the attention of developers, most First home and owner ocupirers dont want a 1000m up block. There are others in the area the same size which have also not been built on and I feel they are holding them till the covenant expirers.

I may buy it or wait and see what happens. I will check with council as to whats what with size etc.

Thanks heaps

T…………

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 16, 2008 - 5:09 pm

Sav
Hang around the shopping area for a few hours at night and tell me how you feel. Yes I can see some positives in Deer Park and it location to CBD also, but it has a few downers. Its reputation is not that great (but as an investment is this something that we can account to $$). Demolishing is costly so basicly you have a 700 2m block in the west for $255k with an old house on it that will cost you around 5-8 k to get rid of, then you have got a vacant block. Try reselling it.  If you can fix the old place up and get say 180 -200 p/w it wont be the Hilton but plenty of people & student out that way may think its OK. Also look at how long its been on the market for, may give you some idea if it such a bargan.

T…………  

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 15, 2008 - 3:05 pm

dosq
Should I stay or should I go. Lets have a look: You paid $397,500 (you did not say if this was inc. stamp) morgage 253000 your imput was 144,500 of you own cash.  Lets not forget your opertunity costs, @ 8.4 T.D. at the bank this will get you $12,138 pa no risk before tax.  Rent income 1,897 expences 1,874  a mega $23 positive before tax. If the hot water system gives you a bit of trouble and you need a plumber forget a positive rent income for the year. Fact is you are not making any rent income. If you want to keep it you have to look at a C.G.  Mate dont forget you are loosing 12,138 pa thats 1,011.50 per month in bank intrest with no running costs. You have only had it 2 years think of the selling costs. Its inner city also. Dont panic sell but if a good offer was made take it, if not I dont think you can go too far wrong.

Cheers
T…

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 14, 2008 - 5:08 pm

Matt007

If you learnt anything from the get rich quick seminars it should have been to start running your own, print up some pie charts graphs, some nice business cards and just talk a lot of shit even employ an ex realestate agent to help out. Mate most of these things are run my sales people not academics. The money you spent could have been put to a Degree in Business (Financial management) or a similar TAFE course. If these people can tell you how to get rich, they wound n't.  Learn some finacial analisit skills, modles and how to use them. Learn how to use a spread sheet. Yes its a pain but mate knowledge is not a hard thing to carry round. And it soon puts the bull shiter back in place when you can talk the languge better than them and even correct them beleive me they dont like it.  Confidence and trust in your ability is importain. No easy way to make money, on honestly anyway. I waist a lot of time on apprasing investments. But its not a waist of time it will save you in the long run.

I had an accounting lecturer at Uni that once said to me " persevirance always pays off"  her drove a new BMW, had an incredable sexy wife and a great house and was a realy nice guy. So I guess the moral of the story is keep you money, keep away from the snake oil sales people, educate yourself and do your own home work.

Cheers all the best.

Tony….

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 13, 2008 - 3:30 pm

woogy wrote:

Im going to sum this up simply. From a quote i read.

"The best time to buy is before tomorrow"

Woogy

Was that book writen by a realestate agent by any chance.

[Tony BMember@tony-bJoin Date: 2008Post Count: 130]

July 13, 2008 - 2:36 pm

Scamp
I had the same thourght today Im buying into a falling market. I sat on my hands when it was going up and now I need a place as a PPOR.  I lost money not buying 5 years ago and now I may loose again if they go down further. I know you are 100% convinced they are going to drop, thats fine Im not that sure. As an investment  it makes no sence to buy realestate now but peopoe still need a place to live PPOR.  Inflation is around 5-7% building materials have gone up steel & cement the most. So I see existing property being priced inline with the cost of rebuilding the same house.  Ive costed it out to build the same place minus replaceing the inside carpet etc then marked the house down $50 -60 K because its what I think a buyers market.

I think if you can pay your morgage then why are you selling it. If you are forced to sell you have to take what you can get or what its worth on the day. Im hoping they get what Im willing to pay. If not I wont be hart broken or sleeping under a bridge. Im easy and can live in any city or state and the realestate suplement in the local paper is getting thinker every week. From a sellers point of view they have only one house to sell as a buyer I have many to choose from. Most kids Ive spoken to have had to drop there asking price down $10 -20 -30 k and some agents have told me they tell vendors to try another agent as they wont to much. They feel "it owes us that much" many mum & dad self claimed investers are starting to see that there property is not going up in value and is not covering their intrest only repayment.  If a place is on the market in the outer suburbs
is on the market for 500,000 does that mean I can rent it out for $500 a week, no way. It means the place is over price. But try telling mum & dad who think they can add the 80,000 intrest they paid over the last  3 years to the sale price. It called negative equity. The thing the bank & the real estate spruker forgot to mention.  If I miss this one no problem as you said there is one next week to go to and a lot  more over the next 2 years.
Cheers & thanks for your comments.
Regards

Tony………………….