gtdave

I'm a First Time Buyer, so Stamp Duty won't be applicable. Also, I won't have to pay the lenders mortgage insurance as I'm going with Keystart who are government-backed. Still don't see where the Broker is ccoming up with $7-8k.

Im house-hunting in Perth at the moment and was wondering if anyone could advise on the cost of fees when buying a house? My broker says to allow approx, 7-8k but I dont know how he's come up with this figure and it seems a bit high. I know I will have to pay for termite and structural surveys which will cost $500-600 each. Ive no idea how much a conveyancing solicitor will cost but im guessing somewhere in the region of $2k-$3k. My lender is Keystart so I wont have to pay LMI. Does anyone know of any other costs?

I could be open to correction, but as far as I know, the 'sold' prices listed by domain and realestate.com are actually the asking prices at time of sale?

House-hunting in Perth at the moment and I'd really like to find out what houses are actually selling for. Does anyone know where I can obtain this info. I know RP data sell reports on but I suspect they might be a bit generic and only really list average prices etc. Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks Pixie, thats great. I tried to use the e-tax thing but its telling me Im not eligible to use it (because its my first tax return), so it looks like I'll have to complete my return on paper.

Hi, I became resident in October 2012 and worked as a PAYG employee from December through to March of this year. Then from March to end of June I worked as a sole trader on an ABN basis. Does this mean I have to do two seperate tax returns, or can I just include all my earnings on my TFN tax return? It looks like the rate of tax is the same for both categories? Obviously tax was witheld from my salary when I worked as a PAYG employee, and by my calculations I have been overtaxed by approx $2.5k. However, I havent paid any tax while working on the ABN and I will owe approx the same amount, so one should cancel out the other. Also, when is the deadline for completing tax returns? Thanks, Dave

Seems I have very little options then. Think I'll just accept the refund and book the more expensive flight. It would definitely make me think twice about booking with them again though.

Jetstar have cancelled my Sunday evening Sydney-Perth flight in Aughust and booked me a seat on another flight on the same day only 12 hours earlier (at 7am). The earlier flight really wont suit me and I need to leave Sydney that evening. I've done a search for similar flights with other airlines and coincidentally Qantas have the cheapest flight to Perth that evening. So seeing as though they are sister airlines, I called Jetstar to ask if they would transfer me onto the Qantas flight. I thought this wouldnt be a problem but they cant do it (apparently you can transfer from Qantas to a Jetstar flight, but not the other way round!). So the only option this leaves me with is to get a refund from Jetstar and book a seat on the Qantas flight. This will mean that I am going to be out of pocket to the tune of approx $100 as its been four months since I booked my original flight with Jetstar. It's really annoying me as I dont see why I should have to shell out extra money to what is essentially the same airline just because they've decided to cancel my flight! Does anyone know what my rights/entitlements are or got any ideas?

Most of the furniture & homeware shops are located in Osborne Park. Scarborough Beach Road runs up through the centre of OP and if you start at one end and work your way up, you should find everything you need.

Just as a matter of interest, can anyone tell me how Landlords/Estate Agents determine affordability on the tenants behalf? I presume they look at the rent as a percentage of your net income e.g. if the rent is more than say, 35% of your net income thenh they deem you as not being able to afford it?

Thanks Eera, that pretty much answers my question. I think I'll go back to plan A and try find someone to share with. Dave

Hi there, I've been looking at rental properties in Perth and have come to the conclusion that I'd be much better off sharing a house with someone as opposed to renting a 1-bed apartment. For instance 1-beds are generally priced from minimum $300/wk upwards, whereas there are plenty of 3/4-bed houses available in the $500-$650/wk price-range. Obviously a house would offer more in terms of space and comfort, and I'd probably be better off financially if I got someone to split the rent with me. I initially thought that the way to go about this would be to find a suitable flatmate first and then go look for a place together. But then someone pointed out to me that this might pose difficulties as agents tend to favour couples/families over shared tenancies because the contracts are more straight-forward and they are seen as being more stable. So now im thinking,what if I were to lease a house by myself and then rent a room to a tenant. What are the pro's and con's of doing this? For instance, how do agents feel about this type of arrangement? Will they look at my salary and refuse me on the grounds that I dont earn enough to pay $600/wk, or will they allow for the fact that I will have a paying tenant to help with the rent? Also, what are the implications for prospective tenants? Are there any disadvantages of not being on a lease that may cause soemone reluctancy to sublet from me? I would be interested to hear from anyone who has done this in the past or from anyone who has tried and failed for whatever reason. thanks, Dave

Sorry to hijack this thread with a slightly off-topic question. Can anyone tell me if the DVS centre will give you a licence without proof of WA address. When I arrive I will be staying in temp accommodation for the first couple of weeks and wont have proof of address until such time as I find more permanent accommodation. Is it better to wait?

Thanks Cal.

Hi there, I will be arriving in Perth early October and have booked short-term accommodation for the first 4 weeks of my arrival. I dont have employment pre-arranged and I'm allowing 3-4weeks for me to find myself a job. I understand that most estate agents and property owners prefer proof of employment and I'm just a little concerned about the possibility of not having a job sorted by the time I have to leave the short-term rental. Has anyone else managed to secure a lease without proof of employment? I will be looking for a 1-bed apartment and am prepared to pay 3 months rent in advance. Will this be enough? Also, in terms of the documentation required, I will have the following: written references from my two most recent Landlords in Ireland, a Police clearance certificate, bank statement, ID. Do I need more than this? Any advice appreciated, Dave