Short-term letting reforms: What the changes mean for you

New short-term letting regulations are set to commence.  What do they mean for investors (hosts) and guests?

If the property owner lives in the property, they may use a room/s in their home for short-term letting 365 days a year without submitting a development application to Council.  They may also allow their entire home to be let short-term while they are away on holidays.  However, if the property is not the host's principal place of residence and the home is located within the Greater Sydney area, the host will be limited to renting out the home for a maximum of 180 days each year, and under strict regulation that is designed to ensure that hosts / investors can continue to gain from the economic benefits of short-term letting, while protecting neighbours from anti-social behaviour such as noise, disturbance and damage to common property.

What will the changes look like?

1. Owners corporations may adopt a Special By-Law with a 75 per cent majority vote to prevent property owners who do not live in their unit from short-term letting their property. In other words, with a 75% majority vote, an entire unit block can prevent all owners from short-term letting their units: now and in the future. The cost of making and changing a Special By-Law means that once set, a Special By-Law is not likely to be changed in the near future. The presence - or absence - of such a By-Law may impact property prices in that block (positively or negatively, depending on the mix of owners, long-term tenants and short-term tenants).

2. Properties where the owner does not live in the property may only be available for short-term letting 180 days of the year (Greater Sydney area). If the owner lives in the home, there is no limit on short-term letting.

3. A mandatory code of conduct will be established for both hosts and guests to address impacts on neighbours such as noise, disturbance and effects on common property and shared spaces. A two-strike policy will be introduced, where if hosts or guests seriously breach the code twice within a two-year period, they will be banned for five years and placed on an exclusion register. This would mean that online platforms and agents will not be permitted to offer services to any person (or dwelling) that is listed on the exclusion register. A complaints register will be established and complaints will be assessed by independent adjudicators who will be required to make decisions on evidence and after giving both complainants and respondents a chance to put forward their case.

Impacts

The majority of properties are owner-occupied, and it's owner-occupiers that drive up property prices.  It's reasonable to believe that owner-occupiers will be attracted to properties that do not allow short-term letting; this may result in lower demand for properties that allow short-term letting and hence devalue those homes; alternatively, if fewer homes allow short-term letting, the investor demand for such properties may increase. 

Investors who wish to let their properties on a short-term basis may need to consider leasing the property long-term on a 6-month lease in quiet times and transferring to short-term letting for the busy period.  However, most tenants these days do not like 6-month leases: the trend is towards long-term leases, so investors may need to discount the rent to get a 6-month lease.

Higher rates for short-term letting: the reforms are likely to impact on supply of short-term accommodation, particularly as some owners corporations act to rule it out in their blocks.  The impact may be diminishing supply of short-term accommodation and hence an increase in rates.  This could be a positive move to restore balance to the long-term rental market.

Melissa Maimann is a Licenced real Estate Agent and Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Buyer (without a Buyer's Agent) Beware

Buyer beware.  We hear it often in relation to purchases we might make.  Generally speaking, the onus is on the purchaser to ensure that their purchase is suitable for their needs, yet time and again, we hear of people who regret their purchase: real estate or otherwise.  People who are looking to buy a home are sometimes caught up in the emotion of their purchase, while people seeking to purchase an investment property can tend to be less discerning about the particulars of the property, focusing on price and rental return.

I take the view for all of my clients that a property is a significant purchase, and we do take the time to do the right checks before a purchase goes ahead.  This helps ensure that down the track, the property will continue to meet my client's needs.

Often times the simplest of measures can be neglected, such as relying on a friend / family member to review a contract for sale, rather than engaging a property lawyer or conveyancer, in attempt to save on costs.

More frequently, people may neglect to obtain a building and pest / strata report for their property, only to find major issues later, such as structural damage, termite damage, a strata committee in disarray or looming large special levies.

I enlist the services of experienced and professional colleagues to review contracts, attend building and pest / strata reports because we want the best outcomes for my clients' property purchase.  I ensure that my clients are always fully informed and that they understand what they have been advised, reviewing the advice with the client if need be.  Together, wedecide whether that particular property is going to meet their needs now and in the future, or whether we are best to continue our search.

If you need a hand with your first or next property purchase, I'd love to assist you.  My affordable service often saves you much stress, money and frustration in the short- and long-term. 

Melissa Maimann is a Licenced real Estate Agent and Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

7 Great Reasons to use a Buyer's Agent

1. You are the first to know when a property of interest comes on the market. More importantly, you're the first to know when a property that is not on the market, becomes available. Buyer's agents are the first to be alerted to off-market and pre-market opportunities. Use this to your advantage!

2. All of the logistics of a property purchase are handled for you: the ordering of building, pest and strata reports, ordering the contract for sale, arranging a solicitor, liaising with your finance broker and of course the sales agent - all of this is done for you.

3. All of the property inspections are arranged for a time that suits you - and you know you're only seeing a property that is highly likely to be "the one". All of the properties you see have been inspected by your agent - someone who knows in detail what you're looking for - and you have already received an in-depth report on the property you're going to see, to know that it is highly suitable for you.

4. You receive in-depth information about the properties you're interested in - including information that is only available to property professionals. This information can help to successfully negotiate the purchase price down, much of the time.

5. Access data on the neighborhood, city, real estate conditions and nearby homes and helping you understand all of the information you need to know about your property purchase.

6. Great recommendations for finance brokers, conveyancers, sales agents (if you have a property to sell), builders etc.

7. A buyer's agent such as Melissa has MBA-level negotiation skills to help you secure a property for a lower price.

Maximising the Rental Return of your Investment Property

Today I want to share with you some of the best tips I know for increasing the rental return of your investment property.

Before you market the property

Don't scrimp on professional photography.  A professional photographer will highlight the best features of your property and de-emphasise the worst features. 

Ensure that the written part of the ad makes sense, is free of spelling errors and reads well.  You're trying to attract a certain type of tenant: one who will take pride in your property and look after it.  That type of tenant will be attracted to a professional ad.

Get an excellent landlord insurance policy.  Check what it covers and what it doesn't cover.  If you are in a flood prone area, ensure it covers floods.

If the property needs minor repairs and maintenance - complete these before you show the property for the first time. 

A coat of paint, new carpet, new blinds - these make a huge difference.

After you market the property

Provide excellent service to prospective tenants. Show the property even if it's not open for inspection. Allow tenants to ask questions and answer them honestly. Make sure the property is always well-presented when you show it. It you've chosen a property management company, ensure that they hold high standards for presenting properties during open homes.

When you receive an application, process it as soon as you are able to.  Keep the tenant in the loop as to where you're up to with their application.

If the tenant has a pet, try to accommodate their application.  Many people have beloved pets and find it very hard to find a rental property.  You might wish to increase the rent slightly, and if you do allow a pet, ensure that your landlord insurance policy covers for damage from the pet - otherwiseyou'll need to come to an agreement with the tenant about possible damage from their pet. 

Once the tenant is in

Tenants are normal people, like you and me.  If you wouldn't live there, don't expect your tenants to.  If you wouldn't put up with whatever the tenant is complaining about - don't expect the tenant to.  Generally speaking, if you look after your tenant well, they'll look after your property.

A thorough condition report (including photos) completed by you and the tenant is really important.  If there are any discrepancies, make a time to visit your tenant and discuss these with them. 

"Must-have" property features

What sorts of features are considered a "must-have" in a property?  It's different for everyone, of course.  But if you're buying a property that you want to hold long-term - especially a property that may become an investment property - or even one that you plan to sell shortly - you must consider buying the sort of property that will a) be easy to sell; and b) be something that tenants will love to live in, to minimise your rental vacancy rate.

So what sorts of features should you look for?  Here's a simple list:

• Not located on a very busy main road: the tail end (quieter end) of a main road may be fine, and a back-street is also great.

• Close to transport: within 100-200m of a bus stop, and within a 10-minute walk of a train station - but not so close that the bus stop and train station are right outside your bedroom window.

• An outdoor living space that flows from an inside living space: a balcony / terrace / garden that flows from the lounge is ideal.

• A living space that is proportional to the number of bedrooms.

• A number of bathrooms that is proportional to the number of bedrooms

• Aspect, aspect, aspect. North is best.

• Buy in an area that is in demand, and has always been in demand. A good rule of thumb is to buy in areas where there are older properties and current demand. This suggests an area where there has always been demand, not just now, but also in the past: an area such as this will almost certainly have steady demand into the future.

• Buy an established property. While you may be able to depreciate more on a newer property, you may be in for headaches down the track if there are significant building defects.

• Parking: if the property doesn't have parking, that's ok so long as there's accessible street parking, or you're in an area that is very well served by public transport.

• Cafes and shops: we all like to be able to go to the local store to get some milk; walk to a local cafe for a great coffee; pop around the corner for some wine or a great gift for a friend and so on.

So there you have it: some general ideas for choosing a great property.

Best tips for moving home

Let's face it: moving house is never fun.  It's a huge job in itself.  I wanted to share some tips and pointers to make your next move smoother and easier.

Get organised before you begin

• Clear a space (better still, a room) to house the boxes that you've started packing. This maximises the space available for packing

• Work out what you'll need before you start: texta pens, boxes of different sizes, tape, packing paper

• Label your boxes with the room that they are to go in, and a number (eg kitchen 1; kitchen 2 etc). This way you know which room each box is to be delivered to in your new home. On a separate piece of paper, you can write down what is contained within each box (eg kitchen 1 is the dining set and cutlery), so that when you're unpacking on the other side, you know which boxes to prioritise and which can wait

How to pack

• Pack heavier things to the bottom of the box

• Pack the things you don't need to use, first. Books, DVDs, your summer clothes (if it's winter), the things you rarely need to use: pack all of that stuff first.

• Fill each box well. Half-filled boxes break more easily.

• Use packing as an opportunity to have a sort out and throw out of things you no longer need.

Removalist

Choose a reputable removalist. Seek out references from family / friends who have used the removalist service.  Clarify their prices and exactly what they will do for that fee.  Ensure that you provide all of the information that they'll need to know to give you an accurate quote.  Things like stairs, poor access and heavy / bulky items all inform the quote.  Choose wisely, check them out well and be very clear with what you need.  Where ever possible, speak with the person who is actually doing your move, not the call centre staff.

Timing

The best thing is to have about a 4-7 day overlap between needing to leave your old home, and being able to move into your new home.  Eg - able to move into your new home on Monday, but able to still live in your old home until at least Thursday of that week.  Why?  This gives you time to clean your new home before moving in; it creates a buffer if anything should happen with your pre-arranged removalist service; it allows for things that can come up unexpectedly - eg sickness; and it reduces the stress and pressure of moving.

Cleaning

Most people clean (or arrange to have cleaned) their hold home and also their new home before they move in.  If you're doing the cleaning yourself, remember to bring a few things for you: soap and a hand towel so that you can wash your hands, toilet paper, some coffee / tea / something to drink, a snack to eat.  And of course all of your cleaning stuff.

Moving in stages

Sometimes if you're moving somewhere that is close to where you currently live, it can be a good idea to move in stages by filling up your car with boxes / items and moving them into your new home.  This can be really helpful for moving the things that you won't need right away, or is space is an issue in the place you're leaving.

Consider professional help

Professional help is available, whether you're moving into a home you've bought or are looking fr a rental property.  Enquire here.

Commission vs Fixed Fees for Buyer's Agent Services: Which is Best?

Many buyer's agents charge fees on a commission basis.  What this means for buyers is that the more they pay for their property purchase, the higher their fee will be to their buyer's agent.

I have often wondered - as you might - whether this approach is fitting for a buyer's agent service.  You see, a buyer's agent service is very different to a traditional sales agent in many ways.

Incentives

A sales agent should be incentivised to get the HIGHEST price for their vendor, whereas the buyer's agent should be motivated to get the LOWEST price for their buyer.  A buyer's agent's fee structure ought to reflect this incentive, in the same way that a sales agent's fee structure reflects their incentive.

A sales agent provides an outcome; a buyer's agent provides a service.

To explain further, a sales agent is engaged to sell the home.  For most people, the decision to sell is final, and the only variant that may alter a vendor's final decision to sell is the sales price.  Assuming the vendor is realistic about the market and the likely sales price and that they are motivated to sell, a sale is a reasonably foreseeable outcome.  In this sense, the sales agent provides an outcome, provided the vendor is motivated to sell and has a realistic expectation of the likely sales price.

However, the same cannot be said of a buyer's agent service, which I argue is not a provision of an outcome, but rather, the provision of a service.  The service is the time and frustration that is saved, the research and advice provided, the knowledge and experience that is used, the negotiations and the legwork.  The final decision to buy is not always going to flow from the work that the buyer's agent has provided, for many reasons:

1. Many people who are moving have another alternative (renting) in the event that a suitable new home cannot be found.

2. Securing the right home for someone at the right price is not always a given, because we cannot control what other buyers may be willing to pay for the home that is of most interest to the buyer's agent's client.

3. A standard buyer's agent agreement runs for 6 months. In 6 months, life happens, and sometimes this means that people decide they will not buy. This decision may happen 5 months into the agency agreement and after considerable work has been undertaken by the agent. While an outcome (purchase) has not been achieved, the service has none-the-less been provided: time has been saved, research and advice has been provided, negotiations have been had, experience has been used, and the legwork has been provided.

Therefore, while the  buyer's agent may present many suitable homes to the buyer, the final outcome (the purchase of the home) can never be guaranteed because other buyers may always be willing to pay more (than what the buyer's agent's client wants to pay / than what the property is worth etc), and buyers may decide not to buy after all.  The buyer's agent's role is to protect the buyer from over-paying and from buying a "dud", so in the case of another buyer entering who is willing to pay more than what the property is worth, or in pointing out that the property of interest has many flaws, the buyer's agent has actually done the right thing by their client if they don't continue to recommend the property.  Now, if this means that no purchase occurs, the service has still been provided.  If a buyer's agent was only ever paid on commission for a result, you can appreciate that buyer's agents would be ensuring that all of their clients purchase (regardless of purchase price or the health of the property) - just to ensure that the buyer's agent is rewarded for their efforts.

Fixed fees for Buyer's Agents

Fixed fees work better for both the buyer and their agent.  The buyer can be reassured that the agent is not incentivised to have their client  pay more than necessary for their property.  The buyer knows up-front what the fee will be and when it is due.  The buyer's agent can potentially offer lower fees as the fee is based on the number of hours estimated to complete the service, and all service hours are paid.  Most of all, the buyer knows that their agent has absolutely no incentive to recommend a dud or an inflated home, in order to be rewarded for their efforts.

Melissa Maimann is a licenced Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Is Your Buyer's Agent Independent? Why Does it Matter?

Buyer's agents are licensed real estate agents.  Some buyer's agents are restricted to working as a buyer's agent, while other buyer's agents can work in property sales and property management as well.  Either way, the person who is acting as your buyer's agent ought to be independent.  But what does this mean?

Essentially, it means that the agent should only ever receive fees from one party: either the vendor, or the buyer.  The waters become very muddy when an agent receives fees from both the buyer and the seller.  This occurs in several settings:

1. The buyer's agent assists with the sale/purchase of new developments / off-the-plan developments by introducing the buyer to the developer - and then receives a fee from the buyer who has retained the buyer's agent to act in their interests; and also a fee from the developer, for making the introduction of a buyer for the new development.

2. The buyer's agent who works with a selling agent and receives a portion of the sales commission as a fee for introducing the buyer to the property / vendor

3. Buyer's agents who recommend properties or developments in which they have an interest. Something similar occurred in this case here.

It's imperative that people who use buyer's agent services ensure that their buyer's agent is impartial and independent.  In short, the best way to know if your buyer's agent is independent is to know that the buyer's agent is paid by one only one person: the buyer.  If the agent is receiving income from other sources, be they developers or selling agents or any other source, the agent may have a conflict of interest and may not be acting in the buyer's best interests. 

Melissa Maimann is a licensed Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Purchasing a Property? Consider the Big Picture.

Many people base property purchase decisions on numbers, data, facts and so forth.  And with good reason, too!  You'll need to know such things as vacancy rates, median prices, suburb features, population drivers, rental yield, capital growth and so much more.

However, you can’t go into your next purchase based on data alone.

The problem with data is that it has passed.  No-one can predict the future.  Even the "current" data is not current because it becomes "past data" as soon as it is published.  For example, sales prices might not become available for some 6 or even 12 weeks following a sale.  And if you've ever looked at several data sources to follow movements in median prices, you will have noticed that they all display different median prices and different movements in the median prices.  This is because property data portals collect information in different ways, resulting in variations to the data.

Nothing replaces "feet on the ground" and actually physically viewing the property, the street, the surrounding area and so forth.  Know the important property fundamentals and apply them, but always remember that people live in homes; data doesn't.  Consider the data, but always remember it is not 100% accurate, it does not predict the future, and a real live person will live in the home.  Explore the home, the street and the area with feet on the ground - or better still, engage a buyer's agent to do so on your behalf.  You'd be surprised the number of homes that look perfect on paper and the numbers stack up, but when you go to view it and the street and the neighbourhood, you quickly realise it is a not investment-grade.

Melissa Maimann is a licensed Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Buyers agents and selling agents working together?

Buyers agents and selling agents working together?

Before clients engage my services, they often ask me how buyers agents get along with selling agents, or more specifically, how a buyer's agent is perceived by the selling agent and whether the buyers' agent's presence is viewed as a help or a hindrance.

In my experience, selling agents have been more than happy to deal with buyer's agents.  While naturally one agents works for the buyer and the other agent works for the vendor, both agents bring positivity to the transaction.

A selling agent knows their vendor well.  They know their vendor's price expectations and what is important to them around the sale of their property.  They of course know the property very well, not to mention the real estate market in that given area.

My experience has been that selling agents love it when a potential buyer is represented by a buyer's agent for the following reasons:

1. Not all buyers that the selling agent comes across are ready to purchase now. Some have not arranged their finance, some are intending to buy, but not for 6 months or so, some are just out and about and thought they'd pop into this lovely home that's open for inspection and so on. However, when a client has engaged a buyer's agent, they're serious and committed to purchasing the right property now and a buyer's agent is very skilled in determining that the property they are inspecting is the right home for their client. In other words, when a selling agent has a buyer's agent coming through an open home, they can be fairly sure that a sale is likely to happen.

2. Buyers agents know the market well and have prepare their clients for the reality of the market by ensuring that the client has a realistic and achievable brief before agreeing to work with the client. The selling agent is not needing to educate the buyer, motivate the buyer and respond to exclamations about the property being far too expensive. When a client is represented by a buyer's agent, the buyer's agent has already ensured that the client's expectations are realistic in the market that they're considering, and the selling agent knows that the buyer's agent's client is highly likely to purchase, provided that this is the right home.

3. The collaboration between buyers' agents and selling agents means that off-market property transaction can occue seamlessly, and this saves time and money for vendors. A vendor who is happy with their agent is good news got the selling agent! But off-market sales depend on clients being represented by buyer's agents.

4. Buyer's agent knows the regulations around property purchase and can guide and support their client through this process. The buyer's agent can arrange building and pest / strata reports, contract reviews, due diligence on the property, property inspections etc - relieving the selling agent of this work. The buyer's agent can debrief their client about the outcome of all of these reports and inspections and help them to make sense of this new information. This relieves the selling agent of this process and allows the to focus ore fully on their vendor.

Melissa Maimann is a licenced Buyer's Agent in Sydney.  She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions.  Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate.  If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Why Savvy Buyers Have Their Own Agent

Why Savvy Buyers Have Their Own Agent

A recent report has shown that as many as 27% Sydney property buyers spend more than they had planned to spend when they buy a property.  Frighteningly, 10% exceed their budget by over $150,000!

The reasons cited include:

• Falling in love with the property: most people are prepared to pay more for a home they love

• Underestimating the budget needed to purchase the home

• Being impatient or frustrated with the property search to date

• Falling victim to under-quoting (it still happens despite the laws around this area, because under-quoting can be hard to prove)

• Falling prey to bidding wars in an auction

Of those who went over their budget, 64% were impacted negatively, 28% saw an effect on other financial goals, 27% had to change the way they spent money and 24% suffered emotional stress.  There is clearly an important impact in people's lives when they spend more than they had budgeted for.

Purchasing a property is undoubtedly one of the biggest and most emotional purchases people ever make - and they purchase very infrequently.

The most common issue I find when I speak with prospective clients is that they have unrealistic expectations of what they will be able to purchase with their budget.  With this in mind, it's no wonder that so many Sydney-siders end up spending so much more than they had anticipated.

My service helps these people in several important ways:

1. I ensure that all finance is ready before we start the search process

2. I ensure that only those properties that will sell within my clients' budget are i the mix. This protects my clients from falling in love with the home that is going to sell for more than their means.

3. I ensure that my clients' budgets are adhered to and I keep my clients accountable.

4. I am here to help my clients through the emotional turbulence of a property purchase: I keep clients calm when they are despairing, I use logic and wisdom to reassure, I am sounding board and I help my clients make savvy purchase decisions.

Melissa Maimann is a licensed Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Property Secrets Your Buyer's Agent Can Tell You

Property Secrets Your Buyer's Agent Can Tell You

Many savvy buyers wonder why - with all of the information they can access online - they would benefit from engaging a buyer's agent.

There are generally two types of information available: information that is available free of charge (which is often limited and incomplete) and information that is available on paid subscription (this information is used by banks and the Government to set policies, monitor the market and so forth).  This is the information that a professional Buyer's Agent will have access to.  Even then, there are two main professional data portals: APM PriceFinder and CoreLogic RP Data.  Each portal obtains information at different times, from dufferent sources, and uses different algorithms to determine median prices, price movements, suburb demographics and so on.  So it is useful to actually use both data portals, which is what I do at Melissa Maimann Buyer's Agent.

What information can I find for a client?

In the course of attending property research and due diligence, I review all of the following:

1. Listings that have been withdrawn from the market and properties that have even on the market for a while: these are properties that my clients may be able to secure under market value.

2. Rental history: this is not revealed in strata reports and is essential for investors to know. It means something when tenants never stay longer than a few months!

3. Sales history: how often has the property turned over? High turnover hints that something may not be right about the home; how long has it taken to sell in the past in comparison to the average for the market?

4. Sales and rental history of the other units / apartments in the block: this hints of issues within the building, disharmony between occupants, or signals a brilliant block that people are happy to live in.

5. Previous photos of the property: guides us as to renovations, both cosmetic and structural, to aid in our knowledge of the property and potential issues that may result, eg has a mould problem been concealed? Is there something that indicates there may be a structural issue?

6. Floor plans

7. Suburb demographics and median prices ... where does this home sit in comparison to the median and recent sales?

8. How this property has performed against the suburb's market average?

9. And so much more!

The value of this information is priceless.  It saves people from buying the wrong home and potentially losing thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars.

It saves people from buying the wrong home and needing to sell it again soon, for a loss.

It saves people time and money on unnecessary building and pest reports / strata reports because my research clearly identifies which homes ought to proceed to the stage of ordering reports, and which homes ought to be removed from our search.

Melissa Maimann is a licenced Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

The 6 Things you Need to Know Before you Buy a Property

Don’t buy the first property you fall in love with

Especially if you are new to your property search.  Take some time to find out what is on the market, get a sense of prices and then start to make some harder decisions.

Keep your emotions in check and look beyond the beautiful home styling and presentation.  Ensure a comprehensive and thorough inspection - you can engage a buyer's agent to come with you if you like, for an objective view.

Can't see the forest for the trees?

Sometimes people have a hard time looking beyond the colour of the paint or carpet, or perhaps the layout of the home, or even the odour of the property.  These are all things that can be changed.

Sell before you buy

Avoid the headache and bridging loan!  You will never know what you can get for your current home, until you sell it.  Agents may give inflated appraisals simply to get the listing, and you may be worse for wear if you do not achieve the price you need to achieve for the sale of your property when you have already purchased a new home.  Where ever possible, sell your home first and then buy.  Consider Find My Rental Property to assist in finding yoy a rental property in between selling and buying: it takes the stress out of finding a rental home and ensures you won't rent a property you come to regret.

Deposits

If you borrow more than 80% of the property’s value, you may need to take out lenders’ mortgage insurance, however you can absolutely get a loan with less than a 20% deposit.  Speak with your mortgage broker.  It may be possible to get a loan with only a 5% or 10% deposit.

Buyer beware

Buyers need to do their due diligence - and do it well!  But let's face it: how often does the average person buy a property?  A better option might be to engage a buyer's agent to conduct due diligence on the property you are seriously considering buying.  I say "buyer beware" because you buy a property in the condition in which it is sold.  If you find faults at a later date, that were there at the time that contracts were exchanged, you can’t get a refund or compensation or back-out of the contract.

Other fees?

Don't forget the other costs associated with purchasing: stamp duty, solicitor / conveyancer, insurances and removalists.  Then, once you've purchased, expect to pay for water, strata (if it's a strata unit), council and possibly land tax.

Melissa Maimann is a licensed Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

What Costs are Associated with Buying a Property?

Buying a property can be a costly exercise!  Did you know that as well as the purchase price of the property, there are some other costs to be considered?  Read on to find out more.

Stamp Duty

Stamp Duty is a State Government tax based on the purchase price of the property.  It is usually around 4% of the purchase price of the property, and is paid just before settlement.  Some mortgage brokers are able to increase your home loan to accommodate this amount. First home buyers may be exempt from Stamp Duty or may be entitled to a rebate or concession. 

Strata searches / building and pest reports

These can be arranged through your Buyer's Agent; they record the condition of the property and alert you to any issues you should know about before to purchase the property, for example the structural integrity of the property, disharmony in the Strata Committee and so on. 

Lenders Mortgage Insurance

This is a charge that is applied to your loan if you are borrowing more than 80% of the value of the property.  It is rolled into your home loan and is not generally a direct cost to you at the time of taking out your home loan.

Buyer's Agent Fees

A buyer's agent saves you time and money across the duration of your property purchase.  A skilled buyer's agent advises on the best properties to purchase based on your needs and goals, and helps you to avoid making poor choices for your purchase. A buyer's agent provides accurate appraisals of properties, preventing you from paying too much for your property, and saves you money on unnecessary building and pest / strata reports.  A buyer's agent prevents you from over-bidding at auction and does all the leg work for you in searches and inspections.

Legal fees

Legal fees are incurred for transfer of title, property and title searches and contract reviews.  Many conveyancers structure their fees as a flat fee for the purchase (including one contract review), and additional fees for additional contract reviews.

Need a hand?

At Melissa Maiman Buyer's Agent, we are used to stepping our clients through the maze that is buying a property.  Click here to enquire about our service.

Tips to Make a Small Home Feel Larger

tips to make a small home feel larger

As property prices increase, many people are wondering how they can do more with less.  In my every-day conversations with clients, room size comes up a lot and I often find myself sharing tips with my clients for ways that they can make a smaller space feel larger, or make a smaller space more functional.

Here are a few tips I'd like to share.

White paint

Painting walls white gives an impression of greater space, while darker colours can make a room seem more closed-in.  White paint also reflects all of the sun's light, whereas darker colours will absorb the light.  A brighter room feels more spacious. 

Storage options

Storage that is not built-in is a great option as it tends to be cheap to purchase and install and you can move it around where you need it to be, for example something that is on wheels can easily be moved between the dining room and kitchen if both the kitchen and dining room are small.

Consider using wall space as storage space by installing built-in draws, cupboards and shelves.  Consider fold-down wall beds in rooms that can also be used as a study.

De-clutter

A regular sort-out every 12 months or so will ensure that you live with the essentials that you need.  You might like to consider storage options for the items that you want to keep, but no longer have space for in your home.

Melissa Maimann is a licenced Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Landlord's Insurance

landlord's insurance

Property represents an excellent investment option for most people.  Its value lies in two parts:

1. Rental return

2. Capital growth

In order to generate a rental return, a landlord must take some risk.  The risk that you will be without rent, or the risk that your investment will be damaged. 

Tenants are people, and life happens to all of us.  The excellent tenant who has always looked after the home and paid their rent can come into some bad times in their life and suddenly lose their job, have their marriage break up, fall into depression and so on.  Sometimes the person who was thought to be an excellent tenant is not so excellent, and attempts to terminate their lease are met with retaliatory behaviour.  Almost every landlord will have a story to tell.  And so landlord's insurance exists.  But it's important to ensure that you have the right policy in place because not all policies are created equally.

Here are some aspects of landlord insurance to consider

1. Understand what the policy covers and what it doesn't cover. I suggest selecting a few policies and comparing them all: what do they cover and how much will they pay out against each risk? Some policies will pay out as little as 6 weeks' rent while others will pay out 52 weeks of rent. There's a big difference.

2. Consider a policy that does cover damage by pets. There is ever-increasing demand from tenants for pet-friendly homes, so allowing your tenants to have their pets will increase your pool of tenants. However, you should also confirm that your policy will cover damage from pets.

3. Cyclones and floods: if you are in an area that is prone to this, ensure that you are covered.

Melissa Maimann is a licensed Buyer's Agent in Sydney.  She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions.  Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate.  If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Real Estate and Property Reforms

The Property, Stock and Business Agents Amendment (Property Industry Reform) Bill 2017 was passed by the Legislative Council on Wednesday 7 March 2018.  It represents one of the most significant changes in the real estate profession in a long time!

The aim is to improve licensing and qualifications of agents and provide definition around the roles that can be undertaken at different levels of qualification / experience. 

The changes impact initial qualifications and entry to the profession, progression through the profession and continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.

It is anticipated the qualification, licensing and CPD changes will commence late in 2018.

Some of the changes that we may see are:

1. An increase in the number of subjects that a person will need to undertake to enter the profession

2. Stream-lining of progression through the workforce: the entry level will be a Certificate of Registration which a person must hold for a minimum of one year, and a maximum of three years; a License will require the person to hold a Certificate IV and a License-holder must have industry experience before they can obtain a License; finally, a new category (Licensee-in-Charge) will be created with additional qualification and experience requirements.

3. Continuing Professional Development requirements will be increased and will stipulate a certain number of hours needing to be devoted to regulatory versus elective units.

This is all in the interests of professionalising the industry, increasing consumer confidence in agents and reducing the number of complaints.  It is a very positive move!

Is Property Really All That Expensive? Then and Now.

A recent article has highlighted that, in reality, property is more affordable now than that it was thirty years ago.

Housing affordability depends so much more on purchase price.  Interest rates are an incredibly important factor, as if rental yield, rental vacancy rates, income and lending policies.

As can be seen from the above table, the percentage of an average person’s income needed to meet the mortgage repayments has actually come down over time.  Of course, the sweet spot was around 1995-2000; alas, we often only know the sweet spots in retrospect.  It's certainly more affordable to buy now compared with 1990.

Melissa Maimann is a licensed Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike with an affordable service that empowers you to make smart purchase decisions. Melissa's service is fast, efficient and accurate. If you need a hand with your next purchase, don't hesitate to make contact.

Ever Considered Rentvesting?

Rentvesting.  It's a new trend in property investment / lifestyle. 

Rentvesting is where a person buys an investment property in an area that they can afford and where the fundamentals are ripe for the home's investment potential, while the person rents somewhere they love, in a home they can afford.  A typical scenario might be someone who wants to live in a 3 bedroom house, but they cannot afford to buy a 3 bedroom house, so instead they buy a 2 bedroom unit in a great area and rent it out, while they rent a 3 bedroom house where they want to live.

Other reasons to rentvest?

Rentvesting can allow people to make savvy investment decisions.  Rather than purchasing the home you want - which may not have good property investment fundamentals - you can purchase a home that represents an excellent investment while you live where you want.

Some people rentvest for tax purposes as it allows you to purchase a home and tax deduct the mortgage interest, cost of repairs and maintenance, levies, council and water rates.  Please seek advice from your accountant as to whether this makes good financial sense for you in your situation.

Purchase sooner.  It generally takes less time (particularly if you work with a Buyer's Agent) to buy an investment property than the time it takes to buy a home to live in.  This means that while striving to buy a home to live in, you lose the benefit of capital growth in a rising market.

Downsides to rentvesting

The main downsides to rentvesting are the downsides of being a tenant:

• Property inspections

• Lack of long-term security: your landlord may later decide to sell, move in or renovate and decline to renew your lease

Melissa Maimann is a licensed Buyer's Agent in Sydney. She assists home owners and investors alike. If you would like a confidential discussion about purchasing your next home or investment, don't hesitate to make contact.

How to Buy Affordably in Sydney

Many people believe that Sydney is not an affordable city in which to buy a home, but did you know that there are several options to consider that can make buying in Sydney affordable for you?

Consider buying established properties

New homes sell for a premium, whereas an established home can usually be purchased for less.

Consider homes where you can add value

Your new home might need painting, new carpet, floor boards to be polished, new door handles, or perhaps even a new kitchen or bathroom.  While this may seem daunting, you can often purchase homes that need renovating for less money than what it costs to purchase a home that has been recently renovated.  The other plus of renovating the home yourself is that you can control the quality of the work.

Homes on main roads are more affordable

Some main roads are not too busy, and it me be possible to install double glazing to cut out most of the noise.

Can you go without parking?

Parking does add to the purchase price of the home.  If there is reasonable parking on the street, can you go without dedicated parking?

Use a Buyer's Agent

Melissa Maimann Buyer's Agent is an affordable buyer's agent solution to help you find your next home.  Different packages ensure that help is available whatever your budget or service needs.