Why Every Property Investor Needs A Tax Depreciation Schedule

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Unfortunately too many property investors in Australia lose out tax depreciation benefits worth thousands of dollars every year. They fail to claim the legitimate investment property depreciation deductions. Not claiming the tax depreciation on your property is like not charging rent to your tenants.

One of the major reason why they don’t have a depreciation schedule is simply because their accountant never asks them to get one. Maybe because even their accountant is unaware about it. So lets try to understand what a depreciation schedule is and why does an investment property owner needs it?

The dictionary definition for depreciation is: “A decrease or loss in value, as because of age, wear, or market conditions.”

Investment property depreciation is a form of income that property investors can make, in the form of tax depreciation deductions. The Australian TaxationOffice (ATO) allows investment property owners to depreciate the value of their investment properties and claim the amounts as tax deductions against the income tax that they have to pay on the profits. Maximum property depreciation deductions can generally be achieved on new properties, however older renovated properties can also be entitled for significant investment property depreciation benefits. But, the depreciations are obviously incurred more on newer properties.

Therefore, it is advisable that, when investing in property, one must strategize on purchasing brand new properties which offer high levels of depreciation. And, we can utilize the tax depreciation benefits to sustain the investment property while it grows older. As authorised by the ATO, depreciation schedules can only be obtained from registered quantity surveyors in Australia, while your accountant can be consulted for tax deductibility of the items included in the tax depreciation schedule.

Thus, it’s imperative for all property investors to at least inquire whether or not they are eligible to any investment property depreciation deductions on their property. The easiest way to find this out is by contacting a reputable quantity surveyor who have considerable expertize in preparing tax depreciation schedules. The quantity surveyor will ask a few standard questions to determine whether it is worthwhile, and how much tax depreciation deductions you can claim. The fee to prepare a depreciation schedule is 100% tax deductible.

The best thing about investment property depreciation is that we actually didn’t pay for it, i.e. we don’t have to pay anybody for the “decrease or loss in value” of the investment property, but we are allowed to claim the tax depreciations! People in the accounting industry generally call this paper loss, since no money actually comes out of the investment property owner’s pocket!!

Things That Real Estate Agents Need To Consider While Providing Guidance About Buying Property In Sy

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Sydney besides being a major commercial hub is also one of the most
populated cities of Australia and the world. With an increasing number
of people willing to migrate to the city for ensuring a better career
and future, the demand for real estate Sydney is definitely on the rise.
Consequently, the profession of real estate agent or developer has
become one of the most preferred and well paid jobs. However, in order
to truly achieve success as a real estate agent, these professionals
need to have a deep understanding of not only the real estate market but
also the diverse clients they deal with. The task of providing help
buying a property in Sydney to clients is one of great responsibility
and involves the consideration of following factors.

The Type of Property:
The real estate agents need to truly understand the requirements of the
clients in term of the size and the style of the property they are
seeking. This knowledge helps them to direct the client to the right
kind of properties and win their trust, which is extremely important for
a strong working relationship.

Purpose of Buying Property:
Many people buy property just for investment purposes, while others
want to buy real estate Sydney for building their home. Being clear
about the intention of the clients with respect to the property plays a
critical role in determining which properties would suit them the most.

The Preferred Location:
People, who seek help buying property in Sydney for residential
purposes are generally quite sensitive about its location. Professionals
seek a property that is close to their place of work, even if it means
paying a considerably higher amount. There are still others who like to
sty away from the hustle and bustle of the city and seek a quite little
place away from the crowd but well within the city limits.

The Structural Aspects:
A good real estate agents also takes into consideration the structural
aspects preferred by the clients. This includes understanding whether
the clients prefer a newly constructed house/apartment or can settle for
one that has passed through the hands of various owners. Moreover, they
also need to know if he clients are willing to undertake minor repair
work in case of second hand houses/apartments.

The Budget Limit:
Budget definitely plays the most important role in determining the type
of property that the clients can get. As such it is important for the
real estate agents to consider the maximum budget limits of different
client before suggesting relevant property options to them. The real
estate agents also need to educate the clients about the various factors
that affect the price of a property to help them get the best deal.

Mortgage Fixed Interest Rates Cheaper than Variable Rates

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Due to the worsening global economic crisis, the Reserve Bank of Australia has decided to cut the standard cash rate further. This scenario leads to the decreasing percentage of home lenders who avail of mortgage with fixed interest rates.

As the Europe debt situation continually affects the world market, interest rates for a 3-year mortgage deal has become lesser having an average rate of 0.6% compared to the standard variable rate which evidently is much cheaper.

From the earlier months, fixed interest rates were prompted to be more expensive compared to loans with variable rates. This has created a notion that the RBA will regularly cut rates to protect Australia against the threatening economic malaise that currently takes place globally. The Reserve Bank of Australia has taken a cash rate of 4.25% interest last November and December 2011.

The Central Bank’s minutes during the monetary meeting held last December 20, 2011 has decided to make a close call noting that the Reserve Bank of Australia noticed that the domestic economy has performed a bit stronger compared to the case over the last six months. The Central bank has also warned that Europe already has experienced consistent downside and has increased the risk of unstable economy affecting many nations worldwide, including Australia.

Most home lenders would base the fixed loan pricing from the movement of money on the market rather than the cash rate released by RBA. However, truth is the rates in the money market are still influenced by the policy settings of the bank.

As of December 20, Ratecity – a comparison group – found out that home loan clients are paying an average rate of 6.29% to cover a 3-year fixed mortgage, rather than the 6.89% standard variable rate. Last June, the standard variable rate was 7.30%, higher than the 7.42% rates that fixed loans offer to clients.

On the same month, the 3-year fixed loans has actually dropped by 1.13% points, just after the turn down in the Bank Bill Swap rate, which was considered the key standard of the money on the market that financial institutions will use to set the pricing of loans. At the same period, the official cash rate of the RBA has decreased into 0.50% point.

There were also signs that deadlines on fixed rates were slowing down along with the 3-year loans, decreasing from 6.41% (December 1), and 6.29% (December 20). The rates were smaller compared to the 0.25% point reduction in the official cash rate of the RBA last December 6.

Ratecity Chief Executive Damian Smith has pointed out that fixed rates are decreasing and there is a lesser chance for clients to see 3-year fixed rates going down at the same interest rates that they already have. Rates will continually come down at a much decreased rate compared to what they have from the previous 6 months.

At the end of the RBA minutes, economists has concluded that RBA would cut down rates over again on its next scheduled Monetary meeting, which will be on this coming February 2012.

Ben Jarman, JPMorgan Economist said that they view the current policy setting as appropriate, so the RBA would be on its feet from the worsening economic outlook. Jarman added that they expect more bad news from both local and international economy, which will permit RBA to ease over the line.

Bill Evans, Westpac Chief economist considered the case as significantly strong for a 0.25% point easing by the Reserve Bank of Australia on February, and will be followed by another quarterly reduction on May, making a cash rate decrease of 3.75%.

Evans further said that the RBA monetary policy meeting has concentrated on the European situation, which shows the RBA board members are completely concerned.

According to Paul Bloxham, HSBC Chief Economist, the minutes of the monetary policy meeting demonstrates that the global economic risk has greatly affected the rate cuts as the RBA is seeking to apply insurance for protection on the threatening global growth, which the board now expects. RBA is confident on their inflation outlook and this only means that they will cut rates on the first quarter of 2012.

Bi-weekly Mortgages Versus Mortgage Accelerators

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Bi-weekly mortgages are a good way of saving money on a home mortgage, but a mortgage accelerator is far more effective. Mortgage accelerator systems save far more money than bi-weekly systems.

Every month, most of your mortgage payment goes toward interest, and only a very small amount goes toward reducing the principal. If you could do something that would cause less of that monthly payment to go toward interest, more of it would go toward principal! Is this possible? YES!

How? Use a mortgage accelerator! It’s a method that makes more of your monthly payment go toward principal. If you think this means making bi-weekly mortgage payments, you’re wrong. Real mortgage accelerators don’t change your regular monthly payment but more of it goes toward principal, and less to interest. Basically, you’re earning money on your own mortgage!

Mortgage accelerators are misunderstood but don’t be put off. Not only do they work, but also, using one can cut the time it takes to pay off a 30 year loan to just 10 years, and save you hundreds of thousands of dollars. Banks naturally don’t want you to know this and how much better it is than a bi-weekly mortgage. Actually, bi-weekly mortgages only save about 5 years.

The best mortgage accelerators use the “Australian method”, so-named because it was first used in Australia in the mid 1990’s. Since then, many people in countries around the world have used it with great success. Still, in the USA, it is not well-known. But don’t be put off because it really works and can save the average homeowner a fortune in mortgage interest.

There are several companies selling mortgage accelerators, and some of them charge thousands of dollars. Still, they are all based on the Australian model and so all will work, so you don’t have to spend more than a few hundred dollars.

One of the best values is the Mortgage Magic System.
The Mortgage Magic System lets you use the bank’s money to your own advantage.

Using this System, you will owe less money to the bank each month, and more of your monthly payment will go toward paying down your loan – in effect, making money on your mortgage.

Here’s how it works: you are going to use your regular income to offset your mortgage loan by having your income reduce your mortgage balance. For every dollar of income, you will owe a dollar less on your mortgage.

By using your regular income to offset your mortgage balance, you owe less on your loan. As a result, you owe less interest for the period! But you also need your income to pay bills and pay for my daily needs. No problem, because you have access to it anytime you need it to pay your bills.

If you’re excited about a system that is so much better than bi-weekly mortgages,there’s more. You see, if you can pay off your largest debt (your mortgage) in about 10 years, you’ll have all those extra years where your monthly discretionary income will increase by thousands of dollars each month. You’ll be able to quickly grow your retirement savings over those years, instead of paying all that money to the bank each month!

You think this sounds too good to be true, but it’s not, and there’s absolutely no risk of using a mortgage accelerator. So, if you want to save money on your mortgage with a bi-weekly mortgage system, use a mortgage accelerator instead.

Valuable Information About Melbourne Property Market And Prices

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Buying property in Australia has made headlines in the recent months as the markets are growing and the suburbs are being part of the coveted million-dollar club. Hence, property is being looked at as the best investment.

Melbourne Real Estate Values

2014 seems to be a good year as there appears to be an upbeat at least in the property scenario. The Melbourne market is showing signs of recovery and an upward trend is noticed in the coming months. Prices are rising gradually but not sharply. Melbourne property prices are said to climb further up and some analysts believe that the price growth would overtake established cities such as London and New York. However, after prices reached a peak in March 2014, there has been a fall in values for two months successively. This has shown buyers that a rapid price rise will not happen in early spring and the winter. The upswing phase started 2 years ago in May and currently it seems to be more moderate due to a better configuration between population growth and supply. Over the last two years, Melbourne home values have gone up by 13.1% and currently only 0.7% more than the peak price in October 2010.

Property Market Forces

Although, the Melbourne property market showed positive signs, in the last few weeks, the media was pessimistic. However, market analysts explain the phenomenon using statistics and history; it is said that the chief drivers of housing are interest rates as well as consumer confidence. When the rate of interest goes down, home values often increase. Conversely, when interest rate rises, home prices will keep decreasing. Therefore, it is not a chance that the growth in the property market that started in May/June 2012 was followed by the easing of the interest rates in May the same year. Now, that the interest rates are expected to be low throughout the current year and in 2015, there will be increased consumer confidence. This can bring about a slight increase in Melbourne property values or it may remain flat.

Why Invest in Melbourne

Melbourne is considered the best ever city in Australia. If you buy a property in Melbourne, you can be sure to receive returns. Being in the list of the top ten livable as well as sustainable cities in the world is enough reason why you should invest here. This is taking into consideration its economy, transportation, education, health and environment. A sustained growth in population is one important reason for the citys economic prosperity. The metro is well-designed with large gardens, good roads, public transport and affordable housing. With a pulsating culture, Melbourne also has cosmopolitan clubs, cafes and restaurants. This is why; you should think seriously of buying a home in this city.