What is the role of a real estate agent?

What is the role of a real estate agent?

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Agents understand that buying or selling property is as much a matter of the heart as the head. Drawing on their vast property expertise and knowledge of your area an agent will:
Provide a realistic indication of the value of your property.
Help you decide whether to list the property for sale, put the property out to tender or to auction.

• Organise, attend and record prospective buyers at open for inspection days.


• Manage enquiries about your property.


• Provide access to more potential buyers via their own prospect database.


• Handle sale negotiations on your behalf and strive to achieve the best possible result.
  Advise on and coordinate the marketing of your property, including preparation of flyers, floor plans and photography.


• Prepare a professional advertising program for newspapers and online.


• Prepare a Contract of Sale.


• Provide guidance on conveyancing, legal and financial services.

www.realestate.com.au

Estate agents gear for bumper spring season

Real estate agents can look forward to a bumper spring selling season, statistics from RP data today revealed.
According to the property information provider, nearly 34,000 pre-listing reports, known as Comparative Market Analysis or CMAs, have been prepared by estate agents in the last two weeks, a 5 per cent rise on July’s pre-listings.
RP Data executive general manager David Williams said today’s data also represented a 36 per cent increase on this time last year.
“CMA activity has been trending upwards since the start of the year, signalling a dramatic increase in pre-listing activity and industry compliance,” Mr Williams said.
Other recent data releases from RP Data also point to healthy market conditions.
The national weighted average clearance rate is nudging 80 per cent and property values have increased by 4.5 per cent over the first half of 2009.
http://www.rebonline.com.au

Attention All Landlords Preparing for Tax Time!

What can you claim?
This year the Tax Office will be paying particular attention to investors with regards to:
1. Rental Properties
2. Dividends and Interest
3. Sales of Investments
4. Avoiding dodgy tax schemes
5. Savings for Retirement
It is important that you take the time to careful review your accounts and seek independent professional advice to assist you with preparing for tax time to avoid mistakes and costly fines.
Following is an overview of what can be claimed*. Remember, you need to have documentation to support all of your claims.
Advertising for a Tenant – This is a claimable expense if you have incurred advertising costs.
Body Corporate Fees – These are most commonly paid quarterly and cover the running costs of the building. It covers repairs, insurance, gardening, communal lighting, pest control, etc. This is a deductible expense.
Capital Works – This deduction is known as the “Special building write-off” and is based on the actual cost of construction to the owner. Building construction costs can be claimed and include engineering, drafting, architect fees, surveyor fees and excavation costs.
When a new owner is unable to determine the cost associated with building construction, an estimate can be provided by a qualified person such as a quantity surveyor.
Structural Improvements include extensions, alterations and improvements constructed after 26th February 1992.

Cleaning/Gardening – This is deductible and includes internal and external cleaning. Owners who do the cleaning themselves can only claim the cost of materials, not their own labour.

Commissions and Management Fees – Commissions and management fees are deductible and are usually charged as a percentage of the rent.

Depreciation – This is essentially a deduction for the cost of furniture, fixtures and fittings based on the asset’s effective life stipulation in the Depreciation Schedule. You can obtain a Depreciation Schedule from a suitably qualified person such as a quantity surveyor. This is often overlooked by property owners and can provide excellent tax deductions.
Example of depreciable assets:
· Air conditioning units (excluding ducts, pipes and vents)
· Lights, both fitted and freestanding, and including shades
· Removable floor coverings, rugs
· Garbage bins and compactors
· Window coverings
· Dishwashers
· Electronic security assets, intercoms
· Freestanding furniture
· Heaters, ceiling fans
· Hot water systems (including solar hot water heaters)
· Refrigerators, freezers, stoves, cook tops and range hoods
· Swimming pool filtration and cleaning systems
· Television sets, DVD players
· Washing machines, dryers.


Insurance – Insurance on building, contents, public liability and landlord insurance are deductible.

Interest – Interest on a loan to purchase, build, improve or repair a property is deductible. The purpose of the loan must be income-producing purposes.

Legal Expenses – These are generally incurred when a tenant defaults on rent and includes filing fees for the Small Claims Tribunal.
Office Supplies – This includes stationery, rent books, postage, and a percentage of computer costs can be deductible.
Pest Control – Pest control is deductible.

Rates – Rates, including council, water and sewerage, are deductible.

Repairs – Repairs are deductible subject to the following definition. “Repairing” is restoring or replacing the item to the condition it was in before it deteriorated without changing its essential character.
Any other repair, which improves the function or extends its life, may be considered an improvement rather than repair and is not an immediate deductible expense.

Travel – Travel is deductible if used for the collection of rent, repairs, inspections and preparing the property for new tenants.
Included are motor vehicle travel and airline travel as well as accommodation, car hire and meals. If the rental property is in a different town to the taxpayer’s residence, travel must be pro-rated to the actual number of days spent attending to the property.

The Australian Taxation Office is increasingly using data matching to check on claims made by taxpayers. However, the ATO does make mistakes. Since the Australian Taxation System works under “self-assessment”, it is up to you to be able to substantiate and prove you are entitled to any claims you make. The best way to do this is to organise your receipts for your rental property so you get everything to which you are legally entitled. ■

* This is a summary of important items that can be claimed and is not a full comprehensive list.

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PROPERTY PRICES RISE

Resilient housing market bucks overseas trends!
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Indications of stabilisation in the Australian residential housing market as strong. The first quarter of 2009 saw Australian home prices increase. This is exciting news for the property market, which is buckling the dramatic downward trend seen in many overseas markets.

An April report release by RPDATA ( http://www.rpdata.com.au/ ) saw house and flat prices rise by 1.6 percent in the March quarter, with the growth occuring in February at 0.9 percent and March at 0.6 percent.
The positive outcome followed modest 3 percent falls in value of capitial city homes during 2008. largely due to mortgage rates peaking at 9.6 percent in August.
Improved housing affordability has been the main driver behind the price increases. According to the RP Data's director of Research, Tim Lawless, while the boost to the First Home Owner Grant (FHOG) certainly sparked demand , and the supply of available properties has been low, the dramatic drop in interest rates has been the key factor.

The first homebuyer sector represents less than 30 percent of all property sales, while the 3 percent interest rate as at May 2009 is the lowest offical cash rate seen for 49 years. As a result, the ratio of total household interest payments to disposable income has fallen rapidaly from 15 percent to 10 percent according to Christopher Joye, Managing Director of Rismark International.
Both Sydney and Melbourne achieved growth of 2.4 percent in Median house prices, while Darwin home values grew by 2.8 percent. Sydney's median rose to $514,695 while Melbourne's rose to $426,423.

Melbourne also recorded the shortest average time on the market for houses, with the average home selling in 41 Days, 14 Days less than the national average of 55 Days. Brisbane enjoyed modest growth in the first three months of the year, with Median house values up by 1.4 percent.

The figures highlight the importance of keeping a close eye on the facts and maintaining an objective and balanced perspective amdist the deluge of negativity that is bombarding are airwaves.