How do I fid out the age of a property being sold online? I have emailed a few of the agents selling the properties to ask for this information and I get little response. Is there a better way? – See more at: https://www.propertyinvesting.com/forums/help-needed/4349360#comment-297270
The local council may have your answer. Ours only go back to 1975 though.
RP data has that info is the place in Sydney? If it is ill look it up for you. I have subscription for Sydney metro.
just send me a private message with address.
I really appreciate that, I am looking in my home town of Mandurah in WA though unfortunately.
Specific information is rarely free unfortunately so unless you have a subscription to a historical records provider you'll invariably have to pay. You generally don't progress to this stage until you've done a fair amount of DD and the target property is looking like it could make the short list.
You can access all the info via Landgate for a reasonable fee
Hi Patterson,
Most RE agents can give you "an idea" based on the look of the place (e.g. "Looks like 80's style") or, if they have been in that area a while, will know when certain pockets were built.
As Freckle said, this kind of detail usually comes later.
Once you decide you want to "go for it", then your DD can include finding this level of detail. The vendors may have old plans, documents, etc. Or try the Council. When you go look at the place, there might be a few more clues – e.g. a plumber's final inspection ticket under the kitchen sink, or a sparky's note in the meter box, etc.
Benny
Local tradies and building inspectors are a great resource for this. The ones that have been around a while can identify a proprty’s age by the materials used, or the style of brick used in their local area. Sometimes they can recall when homes in a street were constructed. I had a building inspector reminisce about having been an apprentice on a job when a particular property was originally built! He even remembered what the original subdivision looked like and where the services were underground
Jacqui Middleton | Middleton Buyers Advocates
http://www.middletonbuyersadvocates.com.au
Email Me | Phone MeVIC Buyers' Agents for investors, home buyers & SMSFs.
God when i was growing up they weren't even using brick …….
Cheers
Yours in Finance
Richard Taylor | Australia's leading private lender
I'm suprised to be honest. As part of the research of wether the property works out on paper I would have thought this detail was essential or at least very worthy. It's probably obvious but I am looking to find this information so that I can work out an idea of what depreciation schedule I can expect on the property and therefore what its cashflow might be and as a result wether or not I would continue with persuing that property.
Am I doing it wrong? Surely you guys look at this information when looking at the cashflow of property. It can take a negatively geared property into being a cash flow positive property with good depreciation can't it?
Quote:Am I doing it wrong? Surely you guys look at this information when looking at the cashflow of property. It can take a negatively geared property into being a cash flow positive property with good depreciation can't it?Yes it can !! Many would say though "Tax relief is more a bonus than a reason to buy" and would crunch the numbers without too much thought re depreciation et al. A deal should stand without too much dependence on Govt largesse – because who knows just when that largesse might suddenly become "smallesse" :p It wouldn't be good to depend on depreciation, or tax relief to MAKE a deal initially.
Also, if you were to lose your job, all the tax deductions in the world won't make one iota of difference to your income !!
Of course, when getting to that time when you are working your "short list", and you are IN a property and looking to put in an offer, you would take note of the state of the stove, dishwasher, etc – just to get a rough feel for whether depreciation might be high or low. There may be obvious, major capital works that "pop up" when walking the block too (a new patio, or Titan garage, etc). Again though, these are more of a "sweetener" than a reason to buy. Do check the limits of "Capital Works" with your accountant too. Not everything is included, but it is worth knowing what is.
Re Capital Works for older properties, do keep in mind that any depreciation is on "the build cost at the time". So, you might be buying a $300k home today that was built in 1990 for a cost of $50k – thus the depreciation is not huge – but it's a few $$ a week better in your pocket eh?
Benny
PS I do relate to you wanting to understand the numbers – it is exactly how I started out – and, yes, depreciation $$ are every bit as sweet as the other $$. No-one says you HAVE to buy positive geared properties anyway, and those deductions can increase cashflow into positive territory even if negative geared. It's all valid, and all a choice.
I have always called the Council.
As usual when calling a council you might have to 'push' a little bit to make the person understand that you actually do want their help with something, but somewhere there will be able to access these records.
Carl
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