First Homebuyers What You Need To Know

Looking to buy your first home? How much can you borrow?
Your borrowing capacity depends on a number of things.

Your income,also types of income,caual,contract,full time.

Number of dependants

Credit card limits

The value of the property compaired to the size of the loan.

Existing loans,eg Car loan.

The size of your deposit and your savings history. You will need to have at least 5% as a deposit. The more you have the better as this will reduce or eliminate the Lenders Mortgage Insurance. A deposit of 20% will eliminate the LMI.

What you can do before you apply for a home loan.

Pay off your credit cards.

Improve your savings ability by sticking to a budget.

Pay off any existing loans eg Car Loan

How Much Is Your Investment Property Going To Cost in Management Fees

Have you just bought your first Investment Property or are you thinking of buying one? I had a vague idea how much it was going to cost to have it managed by a Property Manager but i had not thought about all the costs involved. I had only thought of the monthly fee to the agent and not the setting up costs of the tenancy.
The following costs are what you can expect to pay to start a new tenancy.

The letting fee which is two weeks rent plus GST,based on rent at 435 dollars a week will be 957 dollars.
A Property Condition report will cost 150 dollars plus GST,making it 155 dollars.
A Tenancy Data Base check 20 dollars plus GST,making it 22 dollars per person. For two people on the lease 44 dollars.
The agents fee which will be around 8.5% of the weekly rent plus GSE taking it to 9.35% so that will be around 160 dollars a month.
Advertising cost,basic Internet Profile 55 dollars .
Total cost on a weekly rent of 435 dollars will be 1371 dollars.

If you have a six month Tenancy and the Tennents do not want to renew the lease then
you will have these start up costs again with the new tennants.
You need to budget for these costs and save some money for the start of a new Tenancy

ASIC Work On Improving Financial Advice

ASIC, Australian Securities Investment Commission are working on improving financial advice after many Australians have lost their life savings from dodgy investments.Before committing your self to any investment you can checkup on People,Companies or Schemes on ASIC's web site.

http://www.moneysmart.gov.au/tools-and-resources/check-asic-lists

Find Your Lost Super

There are a couple of ways to find your lost Super in Australia,this one is free. All you need is your Tax File Number. Take a look at the link below.

http://australia.gov.au/service/superseeker-lost-superannuation-search

First Home Owner's Grant

Looking at buying your firtst home? Then you can get a little help from the Australian Government.
Eligible applicants will be entitled to a one-off $7,000 payment.
Eligible applicants must be Australian citizens or permanent residents, who are buying or building their first home in Australia.
Applicants must be at least 18 years of age.
To qualify for assistance, neither the applicant nor their spouse (or de facto) must have previously owned a home, either jointly, separately or with some other person.

An eligible home will be located in Australia and will be a new or established house, home unit, flat or other type of self contained fixed dwelling that meets local planning standards.
An eligible home must be intended to be a principal place of residence. Applicants must occupy the home within 12 months of completion of construction or settlement and must live in the home for a continuous period of at least 6 months.
Assistance will not be means tested.
Joint applicants will be restricted to a single application for a single property and only one payment of $7,000 will be made

First Home Owners Stamp Duty

First home buyers in Western Australia will get a full exemption from conveyance duty on homes up to $500,000 and vacant land up to $300,000. Those buying houses valued between $500,001 and $600,000 will receive a partial exemption. A partial rebate is available for vacant land valued between $300,001 and $400,000.

First Time Home Buyers Grant

Are you buying your first home? Could you use some help with fees and charges and other incidental expenses?
You may be eligible for a grant.The Home Buyers Assistance Account(HBAA) is a State Government scheme administered by the Real Estate & Business Agents Supervisory Board(REBA). The scheme is funded from the interest paid on real estate agents’ trust accounts and can provide grants of fees, legal practitioner, or settlement agent fees, valuation and inspection fees, loan establishment fees, mortgage insurance premiums and lending institutions’ fees associated with lodging the application. Postage,bank cheque fees, rates and taxes are not claimable. Even if you receive funding from other schemes, you may still be eligible for a grant from the HBAA.
To be eligible for the grant you must meet all of the following criteria:
• you are buying your first home, which is established or partially built (not vacant land, a plan or a house and land package);
• you must not own or previously haveowned a home in Western Australia.
If you are buying the home with others who own or have owned a home in Western Australia before, then you can apply for a partial grant based on the percentage of your ownership of the home;
•you are going to live in the home for at least the first 12 months - you cannot rent out your home during this time; however if there is an existing tenancy agreement in place, you must live in the house for 12 months once the agreement has expired;
• you purchase the home through a licensed real estate agent;
Registrar of REBA no more than 90 days after the date your offer to buy the home is accepted. Should the application be later than 90 days after the offer is accepted,a letter is required which explains the reason for the application being lodged out
of time.

How To Look After Your Credit Score

We all have a credit score and it is checked every time we apply for finance. Here are the best tips for looking after your credit score.

Pay your bills on time

Reduce your credit card balance

Do not close any old accounts

Stop applying for credit

Mortgage Assistance, Behind On Your Mortgage

Have you got behind on your Mortgage payments? There are a couple of things that you can do to prevent your home being sold by the lender with whom you have the home's mortgage.
The first thing is to talk to your bank,do not suffer in silence as this is the worst thing you can do. You can apply for a hardship variation to receive up to 3 months relief form mortgage payments. This can only be applied for if you have had a problem with your financial circumstances. The bank will require that you explain in writing with supporting evidence such as 'loss of job''Death in the family','Doctors Certificate'

You could also apply to APRA for an early release of Superannuation to catch up on your arrears and to put you 3 months in advance.You should only apply to APRA if you will be able to continue to cover your mortgage payments or if you are in the process of selling your house. This would give you time to get back in front with your payments.

http://www.apra.gov.au/superannuation/early-release-of-superannuation-benefits.cfm

Save Money On Fuel

We all would like to save money on fuel,the price of petrol in Australia seems to go up every week. If you shop at Woolworths and have not yet registered for an Everyday Rewards card then you are missing out on Fuel discounts. Spend $30 or more at any Woolworths supermarket and a fuel saving voucher will be loaded onto your card which you can redeem at participating Caltex Woolworths co-branded fuel outlets.
Saving 4 cents per litre does not sound a great deal but i checked my account online ,and found out that i had saved $115 in the last 12 months.
You can pick up a temporary card at Woolworths and register online at
http://www.everydayrewards.com.au

How To Increase Your Super

Do you have money in another super fund as well as your present account?
If you have multiple super accounts you're probably paying more than one set of fees. And over time, those extra fees could drain your super savings.

Did you realise you could save thousands of dollars by filling in a simple form?
By combining all your super accounts, you instantly stop paying unnecessary administration fees. Over the years, this can add up to thousands of dollars. That's why rolling over your superannuation into the one fund could help increase your retirement savings.
Contact your Super Funds and ask them to send you the Roll over forms to you. Then you can transfer them into your present Super Fund

Why We Over Spend On Our Credit Cards

Why do many Australians over spend on their Credit Cards?
By going out to the shops because they are bored- It may not be the shopping centre, it could even be shopping on line with e-bay .Many Australians go shopping for something to do and spend money that they haven't got. The shopping centre is a pleasant place to visit. The result is you come home with things you don’t need, and a hefty credit card bill to match.
Break this habit by discovering other habits. When you feel bored, look for other things at home to distract you. Do some house work ,attack that pile of ironing or clean the bathroom. Not as glamorous as going shopping but it does not cost anything and the end result will give you satisfaction. Why not read a book, go out for a walk, watch a DVD, bake a cake or cook a special meal for dinner. Give your credit card a rest and you will save money

How To Take Control Of Your Credit Card

Do you Control your Credit Card or does it seem that your credit card controls you?
If you do not pay attention to your credit card then it can easily get out of hand.
Here is how you fix it.
By using Online Banking you can take control of your credit card. You can securely access your credit card account and conduct your banking using the Internet 24/7
You can check your daily balance and your statement. Transfer money between your accounts. This way you can control your credit card and see on a daily basis how much money you have spent on your credit card.
If possible clear your balance every month instead of making the minimum payment. Never get cash advances on your credit card as cash earns interest from day one.
Use your card for paying bills while your cash stays in your savings account which could be offset to your mortgage

Median Rent In Perth To Top $400

An interesting article in today's Sunday Times for Perth Property Investors.
Perth's median rent will top $400 a week during the year as vacancy rates drop before the next resources boom.
For first time Property Investors,they should be on the lookout for properties that will deliver high levels of rental returns as well as high rates of capital growth.
Recommended suburbs to watch

Lower priced suburbs for first time Investors

1) Cragie
2) Beldon
3) Clarkson
4) Greenwood
5) Mirrabooka
6) Forrestfield
7) Thornlie
8) Armadale
9) Warnbro
10) Safety Bay