30 years unit
- Thread starter blahblah
- Start date
2nd floor apartments
First post for me! I am considering buying a second floor apartment in a group of 29. There is no lift, only stairs. Is this a big put off to prospective tenants? The 2nd floor is also the top floor.
Any feedback would be appreciated.
Install a fridge in the apartment so then the tenants don't have to worry about moving a fridge up and down when they move in and leave. That can be a real turn off for some people in situations like that. The same could be said for any whitegoods too. (If you did install such whitegoods, then you could potentially charge more for rent)
Also, depending on aspect and location, the top floor apartment may be rather hot in summer and some people do consider that.
One other thing and this depends on the demographics of your suburb and potential tenants, but you may most likely not get any people from the older generation interested in your apartment because of the stairs. You may need to keep this in mind if a large portion of the suburb are made up of such people.
One little trick i like doing when considering apartments like you describe - if the apartment is already furnished by the existing owner and the furniture is in good condition and you like that furnitiure, then offer them an amount that includes the furniture in the purchase price of the apartment. Then the existing owner will have a much easier time in moving out as they don't have to worry about lugging furniture down 2 flights of stairs, and then you can rent the apartment out as furnished (and charge premium rent).
Just a thought.
g
First post for me! I am considering buying a second floor apartment in a group of 29. There is no lift, only stairs. Is this a big put off to prospective tenants? The 2nd floor is also the top floor.
Any feedback would be appreciated.
Install a fridge in the apartment so then the tenants don't have to worry about moving a fridge up and down when they move in and leave. That can be a real turn off for some people in situations like that. The same could be said for any whitegoods too. (If you did install such whitegoods, then you could potentially charge more for rent)
Also, depending on aspect and location, the top floor apartment may be rather hot in summer and some people do consider that.
One other thing and this depends on the demographics of your suburb and potential tenants, but you may most likely not get any people from the older generation interested in your apartment because of the stairs. You may need to keep this in mind if a large portion of the suburb are made up of such people.
One little trick i like doing when considering apartments like you describe - if the apartment is already furnished by the existing owner and the furniture is in good condition and you like that furnitiure, then offer them an amount that includes the furniture in the purchase price of the apartment. Then the existing owner will have a much easier time in moving out as they don't have to worry about lugging furniture down 2 flights of stairs, and then you can rent the apartment out as furnished (and charge premium rent).
Just a thought.
g
Hi Blahbla,
Not sure if you know, but to claim the full depreciation on units it would need to be built after 87.
Personally I think there is nothing wrong with buying a unit 30-40yrs old, it can allow you to buy into a more desirable area, and after a cheap reno can be marketed towards the higher end, and achieve similar rent
Not sure if you know, but to claim the full depreciation on units it would need to be built after 87.
I think you may lose a small portion of prospective tenants (elderly, disabled, and the extremely lazy), but unit blocks with lifts will have higher strata fees - which is something that needs to be considered.
Personally I think there is nothing wrong with buying a unit 30-40yrs old, it can allow you to buy into a more desirable area, and after a cheap reno can be marketed towards the higher end, and achieve similar rent
It all depends on the quality of the unit and its current condition. There are some complexes a lot younger than this that suffer from ongoing problems, and other Art Deco blocks, for example, that still have original fittings and no leaks.... it's not the age of the building, but the condition.
Get a strata report done and you'll soon find out the issues.
Get a strata report done and you'll soon find out the issues.
Is it ok to get the strata report after I put my offer in? "subject to strata"
Do I find out from the agent who the strata manager is and then give them a call and buy the report? Is that how it works in Perth?
I am currently interested in a unit. Everything looks ok. And I plan to sell it after 10 years. However it is about 30 years old now.
So is that too old for a unit? Normally how old a unit could be?
I have one set of units that I would say are 70 + years of age.
It has been positively geared since day one and has gone up 6 fold in price in 7 or so. Even with maintenance costs I would be at 25% + yield and is the second best returning property I ever purchased.
Age is not a issue. Condition and maintaince costs / time are the things to look out for.
I'm not hijacking... this is related...
Just reading this thread and thinking that I have been searching for newer (post-87) properties because of the depreciation benefits… is there something to be said for older units being better value in the long term?
i.e. is the premium I'll be paying for a newer unit and the depreciation benefits outweighed?
It does seem that things just arent made as well as they used to be
Sam
Just reading this thread and thinking that I have been searching for newer (post-87) properties because of the depreciation benefits… is there something to be said for older units being better value in the long term?
i.e. is the premium I'll be paying for a newer unit and the depreciation benefits outweighed?
It does seem that things just arent made as well as they used to be
Sam
Just make sure you understand the connotations of that word - depreciation - it means the property is LOSING value..... If one property has a higher depreciation than another, it's losing value at a greater rate than the other....
Cheers,
The Y-man
It's really something for your solicitor / conveyancer.
Probably means 'you can't re-develop this'
Hmmm...... perhaps I dont
I was under the general impression that the buildings depreciated and it was the land that appreciates? Furthermore depreciation could beclaimed as a loss against tax...
Kim 5
I have units in Perth and I always put in the contract: "subject to the buyer being satisfied with the minutes of the last two AGMs to be provided at the sellers cost"
They will try to charge an arm and a leg for a bit of photocoying if you don't put in the bit about the cost and if there are any looming problems with the building this should show it up. If you have any worries you can then back out of the contract.
Hope this helps.
I have units in Perth and I always put in the contract: "subject to the buyer being satisfied with the minutes of the last two AGMs to be provided at the sellers cost"
They will try to charge an arm and a leg for a bit of photocoying if you don't put in the bit about the cost and if there are any looming problems with the building this should show it up. If you have any worries you can then back out of the contract.
Hope this helps.
what about the chattels?
kitchen, bathroom, carpets, blinds, paint, furniture (if any), whitegoods (if any)......more to depreciation than the building.
of which would be negligible anyway even if it WERE built after 85 (between 85 and 87 is 4% dep, not 2.5% after 87) because of it's age and inflation since then.
oh ok i havent heard of this before. thanks
To my understanding, you can put anything you like in there. "Subject to vendor's fluffy white dog being painted pink."
Its just a matter of whether the owner accepts the conditions and whether your conditions are a deal breaker. Request for AGM notes is probably fine, pink dog, not so much.
Wouldn't you get AGM notes when you get a strata report done anyway?
Cheers
Greg
Attrill, I've got a copy of the last minutes for an apartment I'm looking at but it's only for the last year.
The property is going to auction, should we be asking the agent to have the vendor supply further previous minutes or should I contact the Owners Corporation Managers directly and get it from them? Assume this would incur a small fee?
I bought 2 strata town houses last year and the conveyancer recommended getting a strata search done as the searcher copies all of the records and looks for any major capital works that may be on the cards (and cost you money if you buy). She then did a report on it. I think it cost a few hundred dollars.
I was actually a little peeved at the final cost as I was charged per kilometre for her travelling from her home to where the strata management company is located. The searcher lives way way out of town, about >100k away and the strata company is in Newcastle. Maybe it is standard practice to charge for travelling but I fail to see why it is my problem that she chooses to live that far out of town. Anyway the travelling cost more than the search. Was not happy with the travelling charge but I suppose I got a 2 for 1 search as I was buying both in the same complex (although the searcher didn't know that).
Having said that I'd definately make sure that the strata finances are in order- I have heard of a block of units in Port Stephens where the owners are being charged around $300 per week to prop up the sinking fund for some major works, wouldn't want to buy into that would you?
I was actually a little peeved at the final cost as I was charged per kilometre for her travelling from her home to where the strata management company is located. The searcher lives way way out of town, about >100k away and the strata company is in Newcastle. Maybe it is standard practice to charge for travelling but I fail to see why it is my problem that she chooses to live that far out of town. Anyway the travelling cost more than the search. Was not happy with the travelling charge but I suppose I got a 2 for 1 search as I was buying both in the same complex (although the searcher didn't know that).
Having said that I'd definately make sure that the strata finances are in order- I have heard of a block of units in Port Stephens where the owners are being charged around $300 per week to prop up the sinking fund for some major works, wouldn't want to buy into that would you?
