Hi all,
Trying to decide on whether it is worth buying out an inherited property, fixing it up and selling it. -OR- Buy out and sell both properties (ours + inherited) to a developer if one is interested. -OR- Selling it as is. -OR- Fixing it up and selling it whilst still part of the deceased estate but then only getting 1/3 of the final amount, whist doing all the work/coordination.
It has been 15 months since the relative passed away, but my mother-in-law is allowed to stay there via the will, but now wants to live with us. We live next door. Mother-in-law not a beneficiary to the house, but on our promise to the father-on-law we have paid all the bills/insurance/rates and do and will continue to look after the mother-in-law.
About the property: The property is in Mitchelton Qld, 5 minutes to the train/shops. Not on main road, but on a dead end street, nice walk to creek walking track. It is a 3 bed / 2 bath / 1 garage house (90m²) on 625m² block. In 2023 it was valued at $975k which tracks to Domain and Moorr report I found online of around $1.2m to $1.55m today. My wife is the Executor and has the right to hold as she sees fit, sell at any price, mortgage, and charge any sum in order to fix the value of an asset to which she sees fit. The house is brick (bottom) and timber (top), recently painted and new roof/car port in 2024. However, the layout upstairs is still what it was before being raised (less the kitchen being converted to the upstairs bathroom), the layout is really awful as it has only 2 bedrooms upstairs and 1 down. Also has a lounge room upstairs that should have been turned into a bedroom (i.e. upstairs needs to be redesigned). Carpet is at a guess 30 years old and upstairs has 50 year old (original) wallpaper that needs to go. The backyard has a structure that was a garage attached to a room where my wife’s brother lived for some time at 18 before moving out, almost a granny flat but needs a toilet and shower. Not sure on the legality of the structure. But it is solid. Ignoring this structure, my guess is that $100k would easily be needed to sort out the problems inside the house. The house is in much better shape than 32 Grovely Terrace, Mitchelton QLD 4053 (sold for $1.4m Jan 2026), and we would like to do something like the following, but to a 2 story house, as what was done to 141 Glen Holm Street, Mitchelton QLD 4053 (sold for $1.6m Sep 2025). I used Domain recently sold website for those as they have sales data and pics.
If we were to purchase/fix and then sell or even rent out, we would follow a current estimate as guide to purchase price, and pay out the other beneficiaries (e.g. if the estimate was $1.2m we would pay out $800k ($400k each beneficiary) [less the proportional cost of a new fence, possibly some other costs]). We currently have enough in stocks to pay out 1 beneficiary completely, but would have to rely on a loan for the other. No mortgage on our own house and I checked online that we should be able to get the necessary loan, but have not spoken to a broker to verify. We also have another investment (not property) I would have sell in order to fix the property. Very risky I know, as we would be all in. So maybe better to just sell and invest elsewhere.
Don’t know what we need to consider, the only thing we know is if sold before end of 2026, there is no CGT if sold in the estate’s name. If we bought it, there would most likely be CGT implications. Any others? Where to start? Who to talk to?
We are in our early 50’s and would intend to buy/hold a rental or 2 if we sold this one, somewhere that has wealth building potential. I plan to have a no hassle life from 70 so any investing would be done before then and just use rent income and/or dividends to live.
All advice welcome.
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