Recent content by Des

Hi Tye Varsity Lakes around Bond Uni is a great area, and as you probably know, megabucks are going to be spent around the whole Robina area in the future, so it should become even more attractive. We got in reasonably early in the area (2000/01) and have been smiling ever since. Daughter...

Hi Patosan, Good question. You’ve now got me thinking. Family is probably the main reason. Plus I get on really well with Wife’s family, and I’ve always enjoyed Japan, both during my single days when I used to wake up in the gutter in Roppongi far too often, and then married with daughter going...

Hi all. Sorry about joining the thread so late, but I’d just like to relate my experiences with the vagaries of the currency exchange rate. Wife, daughter and I came back from Tokyo about 15 years ago, and kept our free-lance subcontracting work with the same Tokyo company (the wonders of...

Hi Rockyroad We use Excel for OS X for all our IP accounting. Took a bit of fiddling around at the start, but with plenty of finetuning over the years, our set-up is just right for us now. Everything we need to include is in there and calculating the way it should. (Details are included in...

Hi Threes Can't advise on whether you should extend or buy, only you know your full circumstances, but our experience may help. We bought our current house as an investment in 1999 and moved from interstate at the end of 2002. Daughter started uni, we work from home, so the house with 3...

Tom For rough projections, I use costs of 28% (total cash exp other than interest as % of total rent) for our newer IPs, and 35% for our older IPs. Not perfect but generally around the mark, though a heavy maintenance year can throw your numbers out something fierce. Regards Des

We've used Baxters Solicitors at Burleigh Heads three times. Not sure about their performance in other areas of the law, but for simple conveyancing, we have no complaints. Their prices were fair, and things seemed to get done at the right time. Regards Des

Hi Whitt We've taken that step. How we've done it may not suit others, but we're comfortable with it. 18-year-old daughter started her law degree at uni this year, and also a part-time job. We were a bit worried that the money from her job would quickly vanish on the kinds of rubbish that...

Hi Dan We use a set of files for each property. For our last few IPs we bought land and built, so for these the files we use are: Land Purchase (everything to do with, obviously, the purchase of the land - contract, legal correspondence, etc. etc.); Construction (all bits and pieces involving...

Hi Wombat We're going through the process of a major extension to our PPOR with an architect. Your mileage may vary, especially building from scratch, but in our case, there's not going to be too much change from $10,000 (incl GST) for the minimum fee (up to the permit drawings). He's doing...

Hi Lars As with most things, you talk to five people and you're going to get six different opinions. The important thing is that as long as you're satisfied you did the necessary homework and looked at the deal from an unemotional perspective, then you made the right decision. I don't know...

Hi Les Congratulations. And the scenery looks magnificent. What part of the Gold Coast is it? Regards Des

Hi Gra Just to add my tuppance worth: Varsity Lakes is on a bit of a boom. Fortunately we bought land and built 2+ years ago before the place became fashionable (we're Delfin junkies - Golden Grove, Varsity Lakes, and Springfield Lakes), and have seen some strong capital growth. :D Ours is a...

Hi Dr. We've used Currie & Brown (Alan Stanley) a few times - the last in 1999. Their charges were reasonable then, and their reports quite comprehensive. Des