Talking Apartments

The world is thirsty for ways to use our finite resources smarter, easier, and cheaper and this is giving rise to a burgeoning share economy. If you don't want to use all of something, all of the time, you can share it. It may be a car trip, short stay accommodation, a book, or even a dress for Saturday night.

Now you can share the ownership of property thanks to Kohab. (Clever name eh...)

When I first heard about how I could literally share the ownership of property with someone I didn't yet know, my traditional real estate mind exploded with "what ifs" and why it wouldn't work. After this chat with Kohab Founder - David Dawson I was sold. And it wasn't that hard a sell. The Kohab website covers all the obvious questions and we dig into more here in this interview.

Co ownership of property is centuries old and anyone who owns the family home with their partner is already doing it. Kohab just ads a layer of connectivity, a pinch of "tenants in common" and then wraps it up with a co ownership agreement to allow the joint owners to document the rules they agree upon. It sounds simple but it has taken them over a year to iron out all the wrinkles to present a elegant solution.

The scenarios of where Kohab works just keeps growing the more you think about it. It may be...

2 or 3 friends getting together to buy their first home

Mum and Dad buying a home with their kids who will later buy them out.

A few families buying a holiday house together that is rented out when they are not using it.

A couple of mates buying an investment property or two.

Buying part of a property with a like minded soul to occupy or invest.

While this is Talking Apartments, Kohab applies to any property and it could be an investment, your home, holiday home, or the home of your friends or family.

Its a fascinating chat and I hope you like it.

When we go hunting for a property investment the very first thing most people do is start searching for a great property by following all the rules of location, aspect, size, access to facilities, etc etc.

But according to Domenic Suleman - Director of BCG  the decision of what property to buy is about number 7 on the list of things to do.

Domenic's book  "Property Investment" starts off with asking a few important questions ...

What can I afford?

What does the property investment analysis look like?

Whose name should I buy it in?

What are the tax differences between different ownership structures?

What type of loan is best?

How do I protect my assets?

and once we have answered all these questions can we then ask...

What is the most suitable investment property?

Once you have worked through these steps you will be well placed to then start searching for the right property for you that will ensure your goals or objectives of property investment are delivered by the property investment that is best placed to deliver them.

Domenic's book is available here and his check list of rental property deductions is available here which has many things you may not currently be claiming at tax time.

We love feedback so please share you thoughts and comments on the podcast.

Before most new apartment projects are completed an architect sat down with a developer about 5 years before that to plan the new apartment development. So if you want to know what is going to be happening in 5 years time from now an architect is a great person to ask.

Shane Rothe is the Founding Principal and Director of RotheLowman and with his partner Kim Lowman they have a better idea than most on what the future holds for new apartment projects as well as other residential sectors. RotheLowaman have offices in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane and while they are prominent in many disciplines of architecture they have a strong position in the apartment market around Australia.

In this interview I speak with Shane on what direction the apartment market is taking. We talk about

the format and size of apartments currently in design

services and facilities in most new projects and the cost of supplying such services

the regulatory environment (particularly in Vic) and its impact

how the apartment markets compare around Australia.

how the demand swings between smaller and larger apartments.

the return of home buyers for off the plan apartments.

environmental initiatives in new apartment projects

the trend for community services in an apartment building.

Shane's long history in many markets and many states is inciteful and his commentary provides a valuable and balanced perspective.

There is a lot of talk about the apartment market and many questions being asked.

Who is buying the apartments?

How many buyers are from overseas?

Where are the best places to buy an apartment?

How is the demand for apartments?

Have we built too many apartments?

To answer these and many other questions I sat down with the Chief Economist for REA Group (www.realestate.com.au) Nerida Conisbee and put her under the microscope to get the answers.

Nerida has access to the data generated from over 7 million property searches on realestate.com.au everyday and she can see on a daily basis how demand is trending and for what type of property.

When you buy an apartment or sell an apartment you want to know what the apartment market is doing and where are the hot and cold spots in the market. You also what to know why the market is behaving this way so you can tell how much it will impact you and adjust your plans accordingly.

For more passive investors the rental market also of interest and we talk to Nerida about the vacancy issues and who is occupying apartments.

With a national role Nerida is able to share her views of the apartment market around Australia.

The overall demand index is climbing

But the apartment demand index is dropping in Sydney

The demand from China based buyers is dropping…

From many years working in Real Estate Ray Wood has discovered the key issues when it comes to selling real estate. He has written about them in his best selling book "How to sell your home for more"

We discuss this very topic with Ray and from our chat I have written up the 5 rules of selling an apartment.

So here they are...

The 5 rules when selling an apartment

The very first decision to make is … “Are you committed to sell the apartment?” This may seem like an odd thing to ask but throughout a sale process there are some critical moments where you will need to revisit your commitment to sell the apartment to help guide you through. Assuming you are committed to selling you need to do whatever you can to maximise the sale price and then sell the apartment at that maximised price.

That is not to say you will sell at any price, but if you are only half-hearted in your decision to sell or have a relatively high target price then you may be wasting your time and money and should perhaps not sell at all.

Selling an apartment can be expensive, time consuming, and stressful so please don’t go through the process if you are not 100% committed to selling. You can also damage the image of the apartment if it is casually for sale for a long time.  Once you are clear on your decision to sell, it’s now important to do everything you can to get the very best result.

There are many “experts” who have watched one too many reality TV shows and learned all there is to know about presenting and selling an apartment. The rate of change in markets, technology, regulation, buyer tastes, economic conditions and demographics is rapid and so is the best way to sell real estate. Every apartment has its own attributes and challenges, which coupled with the owner’s personal situation, requires a tailored approach

1             selecting the best agent

The most important decision when selling is hiring the very best agent as they will work with you through the entire process and make the rest of the decisions a whole lot easier.

The two things many sellers ask a real estate agent is “how much? …and how much?

“How much is my apartment worth?”, and

“How much is your fee?”

They are two very important issues, but there are the two worst criteria when selecting the best agent to sell your apartment. Some agents are hard wired to suggest a high value to attract your interest in hiring them.

Of course, it’s about the money, but the best agent will get you the very best price regardless of what they think it is worth. The sale price is determined by buyers. Don’t believe the myth that if the agent doesn’t think the apartment is worth $750,000, they aren’t going to achieve that price. How many times have you seen a property sell for way above what everyone thought the property was worth including the agent. Only time judges who is right and who is wrong about value.

Selecting the agent who tells you the highest price is a big mistake and sets up the entire selling process on the wrong foot. You want the agent with the best plan and experience to get the highest price.

The second “how much” question relates to agent’s fees. This is also a bad criteria to select an agent and is something to discuss with the agent, once you are satisfied they are the best agent for you. Agency fees are negotiable and any small difference in fees between the best agent’s fee and the other agent’s fee will be repaid to you many times in the price achieved, the advice provided and the service delivered.

The net cost of the best agent will always be the cheapest. In other words, the best agent will get you the best net price (sale price less the fee) making them the cheapest as a lesser agent may cost you much more in a lower sale price.

Hi and welcome to Talking Apartments.

This will help you decide if this Podcast is for you and what it is about.

Talking Apartments will help you make the right decisions when buy and sell an apartment as well as leasing and managing them. It is also very interactive and I am super keen to actively engage with you along the way to make sure your questions or concerns are answered. You don’t have to wait for the next podcast or blog just shoot me an email on [email protected] or via our contact form

Apartments have been part of Australia’s property market for decades but recently that have rocketed to prominence due to a huge growth in development and everything that goes with that. There has been a commensurate growth in ownership of apartment and often by people who have never owned an investment property or an apartment before.

Apartments have an added level of complexities over a house, and that is assuming it is an existing apartment. Add on top of that buying an apartment “off the plan” and the complications and risks escalate significantly.

All too often people make basic errors in their transactions or ownership of apartments. There are little things that can make a big difference and are very avoidable with a little bit of direction at the right time.

If you either own an apartment or are looking to buy and apartment, and you want to avoid the traps and make the best decision through that process then Talking  Apartments will be a great help for you. Similarly once you own the apartment (particularly as an investor) there are lots of decisions to make along the way and again Talking Apartments will guide you.

There many books, TV shows and podcasts about how to invest in property. How to build a portfolio and what property to buy or avoid. Talking apartments will cover these topics but it is more focused on making sure the transactions and management of your apartment goes smoothly.

Like the name says – Talking Apartments focuses exclusively on apartments therefore it can dig into the nuances of an apartment both operationally and as a property investment.

My commitment is to educate as many people as possible to navigate themselves through the twists and turns of buying, owning and selling apartments. I don’t promise you will learn everything there is to know, but I do promise you will know when to get help and how to stress test the advice you are given. I am also committed to ensuring you enjoy the many benefits successful apartment ownership brings such as financial independence, generational wealth building, and exercising a passion for property.

Talking Apartments brings to you experts in the many fields that come together to make an apartment development happen from developers, financiers, market research analysts, architects, legal experts, financial planners and accountants, real estate sales agents, buyers advocates, property managers and many many more interesting and engaging professionals.

Talking Apartment is definitely not about me and while I am reluctant to bore you with my dossier I understand it is important for you to know who is espousing their advice, and how credible it is.

My name is Andrew Wood and I am your host on Talking Apartments. I am a fourth generation real estate agent after my great grandfather Henry Ashton Wood started HA Wood & Co in Swan Hill Victoria 1908 and my Grand Father (Henry Raymond Wood) and then my Father (Henry William Wood) continued the tradition and now that business is run by my Brother and his wife Brian and Lauren Wood. So that is about 110 years that my family have been advising buyers, sellers, and owners of property through droughts, floods, wars, property booms and busts including the great depression, and through dramatic changes in technology from the horseless carriage to th...