Andrew – Page 6 – Peach Home Loans

How presentation and care affects a property’s value

Sep 20,2012 Leave a comment

There are many reasons as to how properties get their value. A valuer arriving to a specific amount considers a lot of factors. One may not think that a property’s look, care and presentation matter but presentation and care actually belonged to the top factors as revealed by the valuers at propellvaluers.com.

According to propellvaluers’ Top 10 factors affecting valuation (2011), presentation and care was seventh. According to Propell’s article, “presentation and care refers to the quality or absence of maintenance, garden care, suitability and cleanliness of the property.”

For people having properties or for those new home buyers, first home buyers or property investors on the hunt for a property of their own it is best to know which part of the presentation and care mattered to valuers when they come up with the value of a property.

A property’s maintenance is one of the crucial areas considered by property valuers. Although they are not property inspectors, property valuers have been trained on what to look for in the building. Property owners should not set maintenance aside as it can greatly affect the value of the property.

Anything that is rotting is not a good sign so always look for this as one issue can lead to another one. Prevention is always better than cure but nobody would want to pay for costly repairs so avoiding one before it happens should be practiced. Always look at the other houses in the vicinity as it is one of the aspects that valuers consider. Remember that if your property is well maintained, it most likely has retained its value.

Gardens are also a good place to look at. If you’re the only jungle in the neighborhood it could go back to the thought that your property is not maintained so looking after your garden is important. Make sure that it is neat and clean. Pull out weeds and clear out dead plants. Try to be the greener pasture on the next yard. Try to keep making your property look like an inspiration.

Keeping renovations in proportion should also be practiced as the surrounding properties have an indirect effect on your property’s price. Try not be the castle surrounded by peasant houses as it could be a red flag for valuers as it could mean that you are over-capitalised for that location.

The last and most subjective factor affecting the value of a property is cleanliness. Although an objective view is required when coming up with a final price, a dirty property would go back to the notion of the property lacking maintenance. Dirty kitchens or bathrooms for example could automatically lead valuers to think that what is underneath is rotting and dirty as well.

Should you skip the agent? The perils of buying properties online

Aug 23,2012 Leave a comment

There is a new and modern way for property sellers to put their properties on the market as a non-bank lender gets into the real estate market, providing a place where sellers can post what they are selling online.

In an article at www.rebonline.com.au, a platform, that is just like that of eBay, named inTouch Real Estate was born on a notion of providing property sellers and buyers greater transparency, plus the incentive of saving a lot of money as they bypass the need of real estate agents.

Paul Ryan, the inTouch founder, shared the inspiration behind the online selling service, “Having been involved in the home loan industry for 20 years I have seen so much anger, frustration and annoyance from borrowers when it comes time to negotiate on a property. The mystery that often surrounds making an offer, the reserve price and how many other buyers there are can make the sales process an incredibly stressful and unhappy experience.”

A LiveOffer system was developed by inTouch allowing vendors control of the property sale process. Vendors will set an amount or a reserve sale price for their property. Buyers will then post their offers, in real time, online.

“The advantage of the LiveOffer platform is that both the buyer and the vendor know exactly where they stand.”…“LiveOffer allows the vendor to see offers from real buyers and buyers know what other buyers are offering. We believe this new level of transparency will appeal to vendors and buyers alike.”

According to Ryan, the need for real estate agents is eliminated thus nothing will ‘cloud’ the negotiation process. Professionals in the property industry quickly aired their comments on the article about inTouch’s new service, questioning the claim of how transacting online is a better service compared to that of dealing with a real estate agent. One shared his concern as to what will happen to the property should it not get any bids. There is a possibility for a seller who is in dire need of money to just give in to an offer due to frustration or fear of his property not selling.

The presence of something accessible to a lot of people could also do more damage to a slowly recovering property market as many would think, basing on what they see, that a property could not be a good asset, dwindling confidence even further. Sam Joseph also shared a good point of the possibility of the seller having to ask people to make falls bids so as to jack up the bidding process. Brenton Wilson also had another idea that maybe the new service main purpose was for getting inTouch more customers.

Although there may be advantages and disadvantages to buying and selling online, both buyers and sellers should still be vigilant and do a lot of research should they decide to lose the agents. Doing transactions online could consume a lot of time and effort and not knowing all the rules and laws about property can put one in trouble. At least if there are real estate agents, they can be put to blame and can be sued in court should any malpractice happen.

Garages becoming a hot property commodity

Jul 13,2012 Leave a comment

New home buyers and potential property investors should think of ways on how they can make their properties turn into money making assets. News.com.au exposed a story about a garage in Sydney’s harbourside location which has listed with an asking price of $120,000 – to put that in perspective the garage is worth more than buying the latest BMW X5 and the garage doesn’t depreciate.

As cities become more and more crowded, parking becomes a rare commodity that’s why having one could potentially be an asset in its own right or increase the value of one’s property especially when it is in a good location.

Having an extra space in the lot and turning it into a rentable garage could also add more money to the owner’s pocket which could in turn help pay with the home loan. People still paying off their home loans were once advised to add extra rooms in their properties to be rented but for those who are not really into the idea of having someone they don’t know live in close proximity with them; a garage would be a great alternative.

In February, 2010 the most expensive parking spot, which was sold for $240,000 in Sydney, was for a garage in Bondi Beach. The sale proved that there is a market for parking areas, something people and real estate agents never expected. In the eastern suburbs, the going price of a garage on a separate title is said to be from $50,000 to $100,000. According to estate agents lock up garages on separate titles are rare and are highly sought by buyers, selling only in a matter of days.

Laing and Simmons Potts Point’s Nuri Shik on one property. “I sold a studio once which had a parking space and I listed it as a ‘lock up garage with apartment attached’. We’re currently selling a 14sq m car space on Bayswater Rd, Potts Point which is expected to fetch more than $49,000, but a lock up garage could sell for about $100,000.”

Before you run out and start making offers on parking spots talk to your mortgage broker as there are many implications in arranging finance for this kind of property.

Australians holding on to properties longer

Jun 25,2012 Leave a comment

New figures from RP Data Property Pulse reveal a growing trend of Australians holding on to their residential properties for longer periods of time.

Data showed that before selling properties, Australia’s house owners hold on to their houses for an average nine years and 7.7 years for unit-holders. The longer time of holding on to properties was said to be due to the higher prices and costs of buying and selling a property.

Cameron Kusher, RP Data’s research analyst, stated, “The average hold period for houses and units was fairly static until late 2005 and actually began to decline during the 2001-04 property boom, however, it has since consistently increased.”

At the same time last year, houses were held for 8.5 years and units 7.4 years. Compared to other capital city markets, Melbourne holds the record for the longest average hold period for its houses at 10.4 years and units at 8.3. Sydney house owners kept houses for an average 9.8 years. In the year 2000, houses in Melbourne were held for an average period of 8.4 years and 6.3 years for houses in Sydney.

Kusher shared, “Given that Sydney and Melbourne are the most populous capital cities as well as two of the most expensive, it’s no surprise to see that they also have the longest tenure. It appears that home owners are increasingly likely to keep their current properties rather than upgrade due to the significant cost.”

“The trend towards longer tenure is apparent across each capital city market – all of which are showing an increase in the average hold period of both houses and units over the past year. Currently, the average hold period across each capital is much higher than it was five years ago and substantially higher than they were in 2000.”

In the context of buying and selling properties, it is obvious that it is now more expensive because of the fact that properties cost higher nowadays not to mention higher costs of stamp duty and commissions for real estate agents.

In addition, the times have also made it harder for property values to accrue like they used to be as evidenced by another survey from RP Data showing capital cities home values falling 5.3 per cent in the 12 months to April 2012.

Kusher shared that instead of moving, home owners would rather upgrade their existing properties. “Affordability barriers mean that people are more likely to choose to upgrade their current home rather than purchase a new one.”

Areas to renovate which add value to a property

Jun 25,2012 Leave a comment

Despite the fact that times seem to be harder nowadays especially with ongoing pressures brought to the global financial market by the Eurozone, an article at news.com.au written by Anthony Keane stated that more than half of Australia’s homeowners are planning to renovate their properties in the next four years.”

Renovating a property in the right way could mean not blowing the budget and finding the right place in the house to renovate is always a good choice.

Appliances Online conducted a national survey and it was found that the prime focus of renovators are usually the bathrooms but experts say there still are other places where one can better spend money for.

According to the survey, “South Australians are the most likely of all people to renovate in the next 12 months, at 34 per cent, with 37 per cent targeting the bathroom and 28 per cent planning a kitchen upgrade.”

John Winning, chief executive of Appliances Online said that if one were to choose between renovating a kitchen and a bathroom, the kitchen is always the good place to start.

Winning shared, “Clean the bathroom and renovate the kitchen. It’s really obvious if you have an old kitchen.”

Adding on some items to one’s kitchen like soft-closing drawers, self-closing cupboards, classy benchtops, steam ovens and induction cooktops are the features that usually impress people and the good news is that prices for these items have dropped recently.

Winning added, “Never go cheap on the rangehood. Everyone tries to save money on it but it’s the most important appliance for the longevity of a kitchen.”

Tim Thredgold, a Toop & Toop sales partner shared that another renovation that is within budget and could add value to a property is a new paint job. Thredgold shared, “A good paint-through will change a home, clean it, brighten it, and lighten it.”

Thredgold stated that people who plan to do major renovation projects should focus to those which add value. He listed, in order, renovations which add value to a property like a “family room addition, outdoor living spaces, kitchen, and then the bathroom.”

Thredgold shared a tip to renovators saying, “Pay attention to the money areas, kitchens and bathrooms. A change of fittings, taps and towel rails can give a lift if they match. Appliances in a kitchen can give a mighty lift.”

It is also vitally important to make sure you have sufficient finance in place before you start knocking holes in the walls. Renovating almost always costs more than you think and we regularly have clients calling for an urgent home loan refinance in order to complete the job. The problem is that most lenders won’t touch a property that is not full habitable, what’s more if your credit cards are maxed out then lenders credit scoring is going to be very hard on you. Plan ahead and speak to your lender or mortgage broker to ensure that you have access to funds in place just in case the budget blows out.

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