Calling home owners!

Looking into getting a house. Checking a few out this weekend, but might be a while before I actually decide on a place.

Wanting to know the kind of thing that you usually only find out AFTER you moved in, and proceed to kick yourself for:
EG Drainage problems mentioned recently, I should look up the town plan for the area etc...

EG Get a building inspection to check for termites

EG Take notebooks with you to inspections, take photos and note pro's con's.

EG Good / Bad soils?

EG Warm / Cold houses?

You get the gist! Anything else that might be useful as well. Is it worth going around to real estates in the area you want and getting them to hunt for you? (Starting to do this)

Find out the price.

Generally, you look for the worst house in the best area, with a little bit of handyman work, you can find a gold mine. Never go for the best house in the worst area.

We're doing the same thing at the moment, dont rely on "previous building inspections which you can pay for". They are old, and not by the builder YOU want to do them.

When getting a building inspection done, make sure they test for pests obviously, but also make sure they check plumbing in FULL, including draining (as you mentioned) and ask for an estimated life span on your current wiring and plumbing. It may be working, but may be 3/4 of its life span gone etc.

Use realestate.com.au and look at the very bottom where the compare places sold recently in the same area, look for a place that looks to be similar to the one your looking at to get a better idea of the value. The price may be set by the seller but its the buyer that pays for it and in the end, ultimately justifies the cost/value.

Oh yea - Asbestos. Its bad if you want to move in straight away, but you can have it removed and replaced. Can work out cheaper if you get a cheap asbestos house, have it removed and replaced - in comparison to buying the same place already done or never having asbestos in the first place.

Hope that helps :)

dont get emotionally attached to something you don't own.

get a building inspection done, you have a cooling off period in the contract, you also have a clause that allows you to back out of the deal if the house is not in a satisfactory condition as per the building report.

1 tip a real estate agent who sold my last place told me, they often like to get the buyer to sign the contract on that day because people often change their mind for any number of reasons............. hold out, don't sign the contract the day you put the verbal offer to them, sleep on it and then decide if you want to go ahead with it.

just remember, the real estate agent is NOT working for you. be a prick, make them earn their money, don't take s*** from them saying that the offer isn't good enough and that it won't sell. the more money they sell it for the more money they make so just remember they're ALL two faced c***s.

I've been on both sides of the fence with the same agent (used the same agent to sell my place that i bought it through), the way she acted to me as a seller was totally different to me as a buyer.

Don't be afraid to offer quite a bit less than asking. I have seen a few houses being relisted. Banks aren't willing to lend the market price in some cases and the financing is falling through. Sellers are a lot more negotiable when they have been dragged along for a month then had no sale.

If you can make up the difference in the price that the banks wont cover then that puts you in a pretty strong bargaining position.

Also what cainer said about the agent, they don't decide what is a good enough offer. They have to give the offer to the seller and let them decide.

we went by the theory..'youll never know if you dont ask'

if you arent in a SUPER hurry and already have pre-approval.
check a lot of places out.
offer crazy prices (pending building/pest)or inspect places you think are too pricey but maybe in the top of your range. you might find a really good place will fall into the higher end of your price range if you make even a verbal offer.


the thing i think is the most important.

Dont fall in love with a place before your offer has been accepted and you are happy with the purchase price. it will cloud your judgement.

we made an offer on a place. thought it was great. got building/pest done. proved there was about 25k work to be done. we offered 40k less than the original offer to allow for the work plus a bit of a bargain. was rejected..

1 week later found a place around same price and a million times better. made 80k just on the purchase price compared to the approx market value.

just remember, the real estate agent is NOT working for you. be a prick, make them earn their money, don't take s*** from them saying that the offer isn't good enough and that it won't sell. the more money they sell it for the more money they make so just remember they're ALL two faced c***s.

spot on man.


i had to pull one of the agents up after he tried to get all matey this and matey that ..and awww cmon mate s***.
this was during one of the building and pest inspections.

i had to tell him to go away. i am paying this guy to do the inspection. you are getting paid by the guy whos selling the house.
i am going to listen to the guy im paying before i listen to you. we didnt have much to do with eachother after that.

Yeah that's it mate, take your time and find the diamond in the rough. when you save 80k on the house your purchasing, that's a dick load of money. i could hold off to save that kind of coin.

check the neighbours!
got a nice house once with commission neighbours from hell!!!!

knock on their door and say "hi thinking of buying in the area how is it?" (don't tell them it's next door)
hang out after hours to check what goes on at night etc....

good luck

Yeah i was just thinking maybe ask neighbours, but good ideas after hours checking as well. I am thinking get up early and do a dummy run to work from the new place, might be stupid traffic or something.

Yeah I am pretty head strong, The agent gets paid IF I put my money (and years of my life) on the line.

Asbestos will be found in a regular building inspection yeah? Or do you have to specifically ask or something crazy like that.

Good point on plumbing and wiring and used life etc.

We have got over the phone approval of 100-150k above what our price range is, and have almost the 20% deposit, so banks should be jumping at us. If all else fails I get my parents to go guarantor (it won't fail). So finance should be good. Getting pre-approval on monday.

Anyone lived near a train station before? There's a nice one, which is 200m from a station (I work AT central station so it's be sweet). But I am assuming there's f*** heads around the station late at night, and crime is increased in the area? Let alone the train noise.

make sure you keep looking
we looked at a heap of places that were terrible value for money, before we found our place, which we figured was excellent value for money

I lived near the Oxley train station. Check if people park on your street to catch the train. The trains always woke me up in the mornings cause the f***ers always loved to blow their horns for no f***ing reason at 5am. Never had a problem with crime or crazy people at the stations.

If you can, definitely check out the street situation before hand at around 9am during a week day.

ive lived on a heap of main streets while renting;

never had a problem with getting used to the noise

yeah true...parking - thanks!

Check flood lines. (If in area that might be affected) Nominal fee for Logan CC, free in Ipswich not sure about Brissie.
Check Survey Plan before you sign the final documents, thats what your actually buying.

similar to spook's advice, do plenty of research and look at plenty of properties - you may need to look at hundreds on the net and maybe 10 in person. create a checklist of qualities you need in your home and then compare all properties.

it's weird though, i have built my career on buying and selling real estate far more expensive than my first home, but when i bought my house i signed the contract the same day i looked at it because it ticked all my boxes.

houses are a long term investment and provided the purchase price is affordable to you and you plan to make a permanent home of it, you will rarely go wrong.

generally the only searches conducted are building and pest, your surveyor will conduct many title and related (EPA, main roads) searches for you.

the main one to be aware of, that is not usual, is development and related zoning changes which is more a political thing than a searches thing as such: are you about to buy into a development corridor, will the road get widened outside your front or resumed for the eastern bus corridor etc.

we are not in the 2000 boom now, prices will not double again any time soon, so be prepared to stay there for some time.

if you visit an agent and tell them you are in the market they will work for you. they will ring you with deals but their duty is to their client, the seller.

last edited by infi at 22:11:23 19/Aug/09

Check out the hotwater system. Yeah sure a super old one aint a deal breaker but its handy to know if like me the hotwater system is older than you are :P!

It can be anywhere from 6-1200 to replace a hw system and you'll want to know before it breaks otherwise you'll be without hotwater for a while!

Asbestos is not the devil. A pain in the arse if you want to do reno's but left untouched its not going to stab you in the heart while you sleep.

put an offer in at least 20% under the asking price - no matter what

^ Yeah....suuuureee like anyone is going to take off even 5% (20k)

Infi: Yeah I have a checklist, and there seem to be a few properties which have everything I want. It's just a matter of inspecting to see how small the house really is (the photos always look so great.....) and the finer details of a house. Got 5 on the list for saturday, just to see what my price range will really get me.....

It can be anywhere from 6-1200 to replace a hw system and you'll want to know before it breaks otherwise you'll be without hotwater for a while!

I wouldn't suggest replacing an old electric hot water system with another electric. A heat pump system is the way to go, they're pricey (about $4k), but you can get at least $800 back in government rebates and they pay for themselves over the years because they're damn efficient.

Yeah thats another bonus for knowing what you're getting in for so you can upgrade before you really need to.

I know from experience as my hotwater system crapped itself and given the urgency because oh s*** now i have no hotwater i just ended up putting the newer model of the exact same electric one in just to get hot water back.

they're ALL two faced c***s

biggest lesson i learned was that real estate agents are the f***ing devil incarnate. do not trust them.

When we bought our house Fireblood that were Asking 570k. We offered 500k which they refused on the spot saying they wanted at least 550k, which we said no thanks to.

We got a call the very next day accepting the offer for 500k.
It's worth low balling them.

NEVER be affraid to make an offer substantially less than what they asking (as long as you are prepared to miss out on the house)

we offered 30k less than what they were asking originally (wifey really wanted teh house), so a bit of a haggle later, we got 15k off the price (it could have been 20 she had let me play hardball)

Be aware that currently "pre-approval" is only a guide and far from a guarentee unless you are a category 1 borrower, in which case they didn't even want to value the property or see the B&P report.

Also don't over capitalise after you bought.

I spent 8 weeks "seriously" looking and about 14 months before that half assed.

In the seriously bit the first 2 weeks was getting a value and working out what we wanted.

Oh and you'll struggle to see more then 8 or 10 houses on a Saturday so try to cull the list by showwing your list to friends and family.

However don't invite 10 different people to come view the house you like. If you like it and you did the hours preparing who cares if second cousins fiancee's friend like the wall colour ? they confuse the issue.

Oh and don't get emotional about any house you look at... emotions inflate values.

- Look at a few of them and make sure you consider how much space you really need for the things you already have, and how much space you might be needing in the future.
- Turn on a few switches here and there and some taps
- Definitely get a building and pest inspection
- Our agent had been working in the area for a really long time so we got him to tell us all about the people he knew who lived in each house. Before that, we'd also looked online to see how long people had been living there

they're ALL two faced c***s

exactly... and do the same to them. say id love it, but im only approved for $x. they dont really have a come back then.

Check flood lines. (If in area that might be affected) Nominal fee for Logan CC, free in Ipswich not sure about Brissie.
Check Survey Plan before you sign the final documents, thats what your actually buying.

lol logan council don't miss you do they

it's free in brisbane, i looked up the flood study for a house my missus was considering putting an offer on near toombul shopping center. she didn't make the offer after i told her flood waters have risen to 1.5m over the highest point of the lot

get on the bcc website and search for 'floodwise property reports'

Saving 10k now is saving 20-30K in repayments..

Saving 10k now is saving 20-30K in repayments..

Actually, a loan at 6.5% (fixed for 3 years) is less interest than the loan amount! So it's really only like 19k. But Im sure interest rates will increase by the 3 year mark and i'll be fudged, hopefully my wage will have increased by then and I can keep pace! (Or be overseas letting some other poor sucker pay it off for me)

Thanks for flood reports!

Pace - wasn't the place on Wodongal? road in toombul was it? like right on the main road?

www.onthehouse.com.au

online rpadata stats for house sales. check not only how much similar houses SOLD for, but also how often the property has been sold

I live near a station. the advantages outweigh the disadvantages by miles. parking is the only issue.
Don't worry too much about wiring. getting a new rewire with all the powerpoints, phone cables and arials just where you want them is sweet.
just allow for the cost.
the size of the rooms can't be changed so get that bit right. esp kitchen and bathroom.
enjoy.

as a trader i can tell you that market psychology has a huge effect on a sellers willingness to sell

Individuals sell for all sorts of reasons.. and i can guarantee that you won’t spot the savvy investor selling vs a divorced couple selling with one spouse wanting out at all costs...

if you get lucky you can find a desperate seller.. because of Australias laws regarding agents having to present all offers your crazy if you don’t put in a ridiculous offer in from the get go

as people have said 10-50 grand off at the beginning of the loan can save you much more 10 years down the track

as a guide if you were to buy a place for 250k i would offer min 180 to kick off for a 500k place 400k would be my start..

this would be less if i could find problems with the place

dont get emotionally attached to any place you look at, pay what YOU want.. your the buyer... BUYERS set the price.. not sellers

agents can tell you all day long that a share/house is worth a million bux.. but unless someone is willing to buy its worth nothing

grow some balls and put in a low offer.. go to a bunch of houses and start putting in really low offeres to get a feel for it.. one day when you get 100k off a house price you can thank me

because of Australias laws regarding agents having to present all offers

Do you have a reference for this? Never heard of this before, but it would be a real key to making offers.

http://www.reiaustralia.com.au/documents/Guidelines_Price_offering.pdf

i live near a train station (2 mins walk) but f*** living on a train line.

FB i'm sure you've already considered this, but allow yourself a little wiggle room in terms of interest rates.

i'd be surprised if they don't go up at least 100-200 basis points over the next 12 months, possibly even more unless the economy starts to tank again.

in terms of the house itself, check major traffic routes/flows around the area and see if any of them affect your work/social habits. a family friend recently moved into what they thought was the perfect house but later found out its on the road all the locals use to rat-run to the gym and so they get woken up very early every morning by traffic. little things like that are what catches you out.

edit: superform is right, there are no laws expressly stipulating that agents must convey all offers to the principal (afaik) - but it is covered by section 52 of the the Trade Practices Act because it would be seen as 'deceptive' or 'misleading' conduct under the Act. it's probably a big no-no under the agent-principal relationship as well, but i don't know s*** about that area of law :(

last edited by taggs at 11:49:37 21/Aug/09

Yeah it was something like that, number 52 if I recall. Backed onto the arterial

How long are your loan terms? 25? 30? I'm just curious because it sounds like with 6.5% fixed for 3 years you've got a good start :)

Just an idea... but can people post 'txt' files of their 'checklists' for buying a home? I know everyones will be different, but it'd be interesting and useful to see what angle people are looking at...

I'm in a similar boat, but yet to seek approval from a bank, still trying to work out how i'm going to go about it.

How do you go about actually putting in a offer? Do you have to go see the agent and sign something or can you just give them a call?

How long are your loan terms? 25? 30? I'm just curious because it sounds like with 6.5% fixed for 3 years you've got a good start :)

Actually...have the banks raised interest rates again? I swear there was 3 year fixed for 6.5% (friend got 4.99% 6 months ago fixed for 3 years....

Now they are all like 6.74-7% for 3 year fixed.

FB i'm sure you've already considered this, but allow yourself a little wiggle room in terms of interest rates.

Yeah, I am making sure that they are fixed for at least 2 years. By that stage I shoould have got promotions and be earning more, or should be overseas letting someone else pay the mortgage.

How do you go about actually putting in a offer? Do you have to go see the agent and sign something or can you just give them a call?

Basically I think you just say how much you are willing to pay, subject to finance...building approval etc etc. Then they take the offers to the client, and the client picks which offer. Correct?


Does anyone know about any Owner-Builder courses? I f***ing SUCK at home handyman stuff, but it looks like I can either buy out further and get a small place that's new. Or buy closer, bigger and older. I could build it up a bit (my dad knows a bit of stuff) and increase the value of the house.
Been browsing through www.renovate.com.au and it looks like a good little site, but i'd be wanting a little bit of practice/training in basics before I just start pulling apart/adding onto a house.

Commonwealth increased their fix rate about 2 weeks ago. I think fixed have been rising on a monthly basis since may.

they haven't raised them yet, though the market seems to think it's only a matter of time.

<-- referring to the RBA.

last edited by taggs at 11:03:11 23/Aug/09

Fixed rates are factoring in predicted rises from the RBA.

Its massively hard to win the fixed rate game with a bank, even when rates are low like now. IMO the reason to lock shouild be if you need some certainty over repayments, not to save money.

I think only 1/3 are better off with a fixed loan. I just wanted some certainty during the early years of the loan when it is the most difficult. Plus it doesn't hurt that I locked at 6.04%.

I think only 1/3 are better off with a fixed loan. I just wanted some certainty during the early years of the loan when it is the most difficult. Plus it doesn't hurt that I locked at 6.04%.

Absolutely. Its definetly a good option especially if you're looking for certainty.

My comment was more about individuals trying to pick a good time to lock to beat the bank.

Yeah, I was wanting to lock for 3 years...but it's ike 6.5-6.7%. Turns out I could get a fixed 1 year 4.99 or even 3.49 (2 smaller lenders do it....need to research before I do that s***) for the first year and even if interest rates go up by 2-3% from 5.5%~ between now and 1 years time. The money i saved on the first year, will cover the extra money of the next two years, and bring me out on top (compared to fixing for 3 years at 6.5%).

I freaking doubt interest rates will go up by more than 1-2% in 12 months, let alone 3%. I can then reassess locking in 12 months

Locking for 4-5 is like 7%+ which is not worth it either!

last edited by Fireblood at 18:56:35 23/Aug/09

smaller lenders do it....

Research the hell out of it matey. Definetly find out wht the exit conditions are on the loan after the honeymoon rate and get someone to sign off on a total figure if you went somewhere else in 3 years.

A bunch of people have been f***ed by being locked into a lender who offered a sweet honeymoon rate and their standard variable rate is complete balls. GE Money for example didn't pass on any of the rate cuts.

The main reason I chose to not go Fixed is the cap on extra funds you can put into the loan. Being able to put in as much extra money as you want severly impacts the loan and interest you have to pay.

I know it might seem like you wont ever have extra cash, but if you dont mind living on the cheap for a while you can really start to bring down the amount a lot faster then if you're on a fixed loan.

If you do one of those partial fixes can you dump money onto the unfixed portion?

I know it might seem like you wont ever have extra cash, but if you dont mind living on the cheap for a while you can really start to bring down the amount a lot faster then if you're on a fixed loan.

yer, this is true.

we've gone fixed while we're cranking out the kids and wont have the two of us earning

Does anyone have a fixed ING Direct home loan? I'm wondering if the normal account is like an offset account like with the standard variable loan.

I wonder if you can get a kit home, become an owner builder, buy some cheap land out west and do everything for under 250k.

theres a good article in September's issue of AFR Smart Investor about the fixed vs. variable argument.

basically, current fixed rate loans have priced in a ~1.85% rise in interest rates over the next year. Cannex estimates variable rates would have to hit 9.27% within 3 years for a fixed loan to break even comparatively. over the last two decades around 85 per cent of cases would see a variable loan outperform a fixed loan.

so it would seem managing interest rate risk through a fixed home loan is fairly expensive. though i've never been in the position of buying my own home, in different circumstances it may make more sense. if you're particularly sensitive to upwards movements in rates over the short-term it still may be a good option.

a new 3 bedroom 2 bathroom brick home in houston texas, will set you back $200k.

Aussie real estate is f***ed.

avg wage in US = us$40k
avg wage in AUS = aus$65k
seems fair to me

in the us the interest on your home loan is tax deductible or some s***. thats bulls***.

They were building new houses at a stupid rate in the US, then the bubble burst at the end of 2005. So there's a glut of houses on the market in the US.

sounds like you should move to the US infi

you can have all teh guns and houses you want and woudlnt have to suffer under krudd anymore

oh, except you are the only person on the planet who doesnt like obama though

Remember US recently got spanked in the Financial area and lots of people lost their homes.


That is because he knows that Obama is the Anti-Christ.

I am considering it... doing some recon at the end of September then will have more info.

Please report back!

I have a friend that lives in Maine. He said there's houses everywhere cheap - the problem now is that noone can borrow any money from a bank to buy a house, banks are refusing to lend.

you can borrow it from private lenders for 8%, the banks are crippled.

over the last two decades around 85 per cent of cases would see a variable loan outperform a fixed loan.

that's what a guy from Aussie HL told me 4 years ago

US has capital gains tax on your principle place of residence. this is why the interest is deductable.
fail

I have a friend that lives in Maine. He said there's houses everywhere cheap - the problem now is that noone can borrow any money from a bank to buy a house, banks are refusing to lend.

Which actually has the effect of making the problems worse. Banks being tight is in part what caused the great depression.

As for the fixed stuff
Banks love to scare people into fixed rates because they make a killing on them.
There would have been very few times in the last 20 years where fixed worked in your favour. In gambling terms its like a 100 to 1 roughy. And even if it is a bigger chance now its still something like a 20 to 1 outsider.

That said interest rates could scream up to 20% and then you are the winner!

if it gets to 20%, everyones a loser except people who can now buy a much reduced priced house outright. I am hoping for a slow increase in rates to help my property to maintain it's value. Steady 2% increase over the next 3 years would see me break even but I wouldn't cry if was lower than that.

US has capital gains tax on your principle place of residence. this is why the interest is deductable.
fail

which is also subject to quite a few of exlusions, easily found in a quick google search. e.g. they can exclude $250k from capital gains (500k jointly) if they've lived in the property for 2 out of 5 years (similar to here). apparently, there's also massive loopholes in terms of capital gains on rental properties, effectively allowing owners to sell with 0 (or little) capital gains tax realised. also, remember their nominal and marginal tax rates in the US are vastly lower than ours in terms of both income and capital gains tax (though they get screwed on the whole dividend franking/tax issue).

so no, i'd say the the tax deductability of interest payments is not outweighed by the existence of a capital gains tax on principal places of residence.

here would have been very few times in the last 20 years where fixed worked in your favour. In gambling terms its like a 100 to 1 roughy. And even if it is a bigger chance now its still something like a 20 to 1 outsider.

according to Cannex it's roughly 85% (or 15% of the time that fixed > variable). read up.

last edited by taggs at 16:04:02 26/Aug/09

You forgot about US state and county income taxes, state and county sales taxes, overwhelming cost of health care. Not so much of a marginal tax rate now is it? Oregon and Delaware are the only states without extra taxes.

I spend two months in America each year. I got married there. I'm happy to be living here, even with our high taxes and ridiculous house prices.

last edited by Furgle at 07:57:21 27/Aug/09

heh, c'mon unless you live in NYC or Cali or somewhere like that the state/county tax situation usually ain't that bad. wiki says it ranges from 0%-10.3% (cbf looking up a more reuputable source, i also understand that states/counties/cities can impose their own surcharges/taxes on top of that too). no doubt the schedule is waaaaaay less progressive than in Aus too (a good thing).

even in somewhere like NYC which has a state AND city tax the effective rate of taxation (fed+state+city) is about the same as our top federal bracket (~45%).

we've got a sales tax too, guy. check your receipt the next time you pay for something.

the cost of health care is a fair point. but obama's fixin' it for you, right~? heh.

also i'm a dual US/Aus citizen, was born there and head back over relatively often. i'm sorry, i still think it's retarded that any american complains about taxes.

I'm not American.

"I'm happy to be living here" = living in Brisbane.

I was complaining about Australian tax and house prices. I'm not a US citizen. I can get a green card when I want, but I don't see myself moving there anytime soon.

I was simply pointing out that although their taxes seem low, it's not really as low as you think with everything else factored in. Cost of living is generally lower in most places, but if you want a job with a decent wage, you've got to move to places with a higher cost of living and higher taxes, eg California, Washington, New York, DC.

Anyways, if you're looking at a house, I've bought and lived in 2 so far, just sold 5 acres in cashmere, looking to move closer to the city, my list:

* Must have broadband

* Quiet street - no roundabouts, traffic lights or main roads. Try to get a culdesac

* Check for renters

* Look at how your neighbours yards are kept, both next door, across the road and behind you.

* Do your neighbors have a heap of cars parked in their front yard?

* Stalk the place; mornings, nights, weekends, weekdays. If you want quiet, you will have to spend some time sitting in your car near the house.

* Check the hot water system for rust. The last place I bought had a 4 year old system with a corroded anode. Complete writeoff. They hid it well.

* Check for a leaking bathtub. Look for water damage around tiles in the bathroom(s).

* If you want solar hot water or PV, make sure you have enough north facing roof space.

* Paved driveway. Might not be an issue with most newer houses, but my 1st house had a gravel driveway, and it washed out twice. Was a major pain in the ass.

* Check with the agent to see if all curtains are included, and make sure any plumbed items such as dishwashers, big ass fridges are included.

* Lowball with your offers. Don't make an offer on the day you look at the property. Don't give a written offer - the agent may insist, but just ask them to convey your verbal. Don't counter-offer more than once per 24 hours. You don't want to seem too keen. Try not to let the agent hear you talking to your wife/sig other about the pros and cons of the property. Don't give the agent any information about your price range. They are the enemy and will use that against you. When I sold my last place, the agent said "here is this guys offer, but I know he can go higher". We managed to get an extra $20k.

* Remember to factor in stamp duty - my most hated of all taxes.

* If you have the cash for a big enough deposit, get a line of credit style homeloan. Get a credit card with frequent flyer points. Put all your income on the loan. Live off the card using the interest free period to clear the card from the loan each month. You will save tens of thousands this way.

Remember these 5 magic words:

"SUBJECT TO BUYER'S SOLICITOR'S APPROVAL"

Add them to the special conditions of your offer - it's called a weasel clause and will get you out of the contract without penalty and for any reason you want. It is usually valid for 5-14 days. You can make multiple written offers on different properties if you use those words.

Other special conditions to consider:
* Lawns must be mowed before settlement.
* Carpet must be steam cleaned before settlement.
* Oven must be cleaned before settlement.

Don't pay a big deposit. Pay the minimum you can. Usually $1000.

Get a good building and pest inspector. Don't cheap out on this. This is the biggest investment of your life. Get an independent valuation -- don't use the bank's valuer.

USE A LAWYER. Don't use a conveyancer, stay far, far away from Conveyancing Works!

This is a good site for exposing all the s*** s*** goes on in the real estate market: http://reic.com.au/blogs/default.aspx

so many of the things you listed are cheap to fix, no way would i rule out a house i was looking at because i didnt like the curtains, or it mite need a new hotwater system down the track;

That's not to rule it out, that is leverage on pricing.

Further to Furgle's points, don't use a common solicitor with the seller, or use a solicitor the agent recommends.

my mistake, furgle.

"SUBJECT TO BUYER'S SOLICITOR'S APPROVAL"

i like this a lot!

USE A LAWYER. Don't use a conveyancer, stay far, far away from Conveyancing Works!

is there a story behind this? :)

Further to Furgle's points, don't use a common solicitor with the seller, or use a solicitor the agent recommends.

surely a buyer and seller using the same solicitor would cause massive conflicts of interest?

not really. you can act for both parties in a simple matter if there is no conflict ie if the parties have agreed and only need the agreement to be reduced to a written document.

A lot of country/suburban solicitors do in residential transactions.

I agree with Spook. I wouldn't even care about any problem in heating, cooling, hot water, etc. You can fix any prob for ~$1k give or take - and you are talking about a ~$300k investment.

I used a conveyancer recommended to me by a friend and he was tops, so I can't agree on the solicitor point. Maybe if stuff really goes to s***.

If you tried to purchase a property using all of the conservatism in Furgle's post, you will never get good value in the current market in my area (North East Melb). We managed to buy a property for excellent value by increasing our risk - big deposit, few special conditions, instant offer. However, when we did offer we offered our *maximum* and said, "That's all there is, we can't go any higher under any circumstance." right from the very start. Technically we could have borrowed twice as much, but that's a recipe for disaster when your partner is out of work, you have kids, etc, etc.

Buy something that you can afford on one income. s*** happens.

If you are unable to buy, just keep on saving as hard as you can. When you do finally buy you will have a nice head-start on your mortgage repayments. You will appreciate a buffer of a couple of years ahead of repayments for when you are unexpectedly out of work or one of you gets very sick, you have kids, and so on.

Minor addition to items we had on our 'wish list' - buy on the inside of a corner so people's headlights don't shine in your windows. If you buy on the end of a cul de sac, make sure headlights of turning cars don't shine in. ++ to buying on a cul de sac though, we did and it's quiet as.

On pest inspection - if you live in a known termite area you are crazy not to get a pest inspection - wood stumps or not, get a pest inspection. They are like ~$300. We skimped on the building inspection. My good mate is a 20+ years experienced builder, he looked over it and gave us a run down but put nothing on paper in return for a bottle of rum. You can get an architect's inspection for ~$600 and that usually includes professional indemnity insurance. Example: They write, that big gum tree won't disturb the structure, and then all your bricks crack open a year later, you can protect yourself against s*** like that. Or they say, the veranda is sturdy, and it collapses in a year, etc. Make sure you get value for money though. You need explicit statements about major items.

Just something to think about - I live across from a school with a car park. The lights and cameras may keep the burglars at bay but the booze buses camp there almost every month and I can't sleep with the sound of their generators...Basterds