Archive for the 'Mortgages Finance Money' Category
Yesterdays headline from the Financial Review says it all.
Source: Financial Review - Australia
There has been a fair amount of regulatory involvement of late over the ditch regarding Financial Planning, and more specifically its remuneration basis – especially the commission side of things. Some are already objecting to its stringent format.
Tentacles from the companies mentioned, MLC, AXA and AMP do reach NZ.
Just like the changes augured by the new Real Estate Act 2008, Kiwi financial planners and brokers have had to implement the new Financial Advisers Act 2008 too.
I sense some more tightening coming, however there is no doubt that brokers and planners in NZ provide a worthwhile service.
I’ve recently seen two home buyers, who in practically all circumstances should easily have qualified for a mortgage, get turned down, only to later, with the assistance of a broker be successful in gaining that home loan.
May 19 2010 | Buyers and Mortgages Finance Money and New Zealand and The Market | No Comments »
From a practicality point of view, Tip 4 is probably the most “wanting” thing that I see missing from new homes, be they for aging boomers or other age categories.
Tip4
Vertical slide out Pantries
Photo Credit – YES
Why?
Because they just make so …..so much sense.
Walk-in pantries are so last ………….
Conveniences to look forward to with a slide-out…….. are things like;
1] not having to reach over something to get to it.
2] having easy access for bulky / heavier items, that could simply…..because of their weight / obscure handling design.…..just slip from hands under a normal pantry environment
3] assisting to reduce the amount of “out of date” merchandise, mainly by quashing the amount of “I’ll use that one day” but it gets something put in front of it ….pattern
PHOTO CREDT – wec.co.nz
4] just ease of physical use, especially if mobility was ever to be an issue
5] everythings clearer! courtesy of the fact that once everything is rolled / wheeled /or slid out you can so much easier conduct a visual examination of an item rather than trying to dechiper one buried in the corner of a dark corner pantry.
6] pound for pound (oophs thats kilo for kilo) you get more real estate, more storage space
PHOTO CREDIT – slideoutshelvesllc.com
7] almost the single most overlooked part of this equation, you know that sort of “deja-vu” when you look at the final plan, or arrive on site to do a “3/4’s finished construction eyeball” that all of a sudden that space between the fridge and the wall or oven isn’t really that big now……….thoughts spring to a dual width vertical “bookcase style” winerack about now….but theres about another 2-3″ you just can’t figure what to do with.
Wallah!
Forget the bookshelf cubby hole style winerack and use that plus those extra 2-3″ to give yourself a present….yes thats right……..a fantastic pull out vertical pantry.
PHOTO CREDIT -Hettich New Zealand
Download their flyer here. (PC disclaimer here – nope I’m not in any way associated with them – they just are smart when it comes to using the web to show me exactly what can be done, in very clear large photos, and I like that.)
PHOTO CREDIT – thelaminexgroup
There are others too.
Its not hard to see that in the end it just comes down to imagination…….oh and physically possible techniques…….then again even on that front……if its something that you conceive, in the world we live in today, it just might be possible?
To my way of thinking few other innovations in the house can make the difference that this small change can. Talking to just about everyone who has one now in their kitchen, the elevator pitch is just about universal “how did I ever do without one of these?”
Most of those that I have seen in new builds conform to the standard cupboard / shelf width style, but hey theres nothing stopping you from being creative….even as far as having adjustable shelving……remember Point 2] above.
Some folks actually have 2 of them! And in questioning them, if they built again they’d probably go for 3! Now what does that tell you?
You really do owe it to your long term sanity to build one of these into your next new kitchen, heck if you don’t want to pay someone else, watch this and DIY.
And in ending heres a great comment from HowStuffWorks….
Store items in your pantry by category. A well-designed pantry can hold much more than food, including dishes and cookware.
Pots, Pans, cooking bowls, surely the advantage offered by a slide-out pantry must be one of the blessings of life now?
But at the end of the day, in all but 1% of cases, it all comes down to cost, and frankly everyone would have all these extra features and more….as long as it doesn’t cost more than 3% of the build cost……..that’s the figure that all the worldwide research shows could turn the corner.
December 13 2009 | Buyers and General and Mortgages Finance Money and New Zealand and Technology and The Market and photography and retirement | No Comments »
1st December 2009
Well we actually don’t have to do much more than turn to this morning’s latest “New Zealand Property Report – November 2009” not only to gain perspective, but most importantly to see a very impartial overview – courtesy of the reality that it’s actually based on national “multi-agency” daily compiled facts.
I do hope I’ll be excused for butchering these charts but they do illustrate a compelling story.
Are we booming?
Well no, frankly I prefer to liken local activity to what happens to the H2O in a “babbling brook.”
To my way of thinking, that would definitely be more representative of local conditions.
Inventory of listings
Colour me impressed here!
Like other Nelsonians, I find there’s a heck of a lot to like in this.
Recalling many past TV programs here……….I hear the words……… “steady as she goes”
No bust, bubble, or other Wall St word, etc …really……just that previously mentioned “babbling brook.”
Although after viewing the above data, one might be forgiven for saying “witness that the number of new listings would tend to suggest”…… that the local Nelson Real Estate market is trending towards a buyers market?
Not true.
Huh? …..Why?
Well on Oct 22nd Nelson had 345 listings for sale.
Nov 11 saw 371
Nov 23 stumped up with 370
Nov 28 displayed 359.
Not exactly magnitudinal changes here.
And is there a surprise?
One could think that the local listings suggest that the earlier talked about Brook is going just ……..fine………
To use a clichés…………”at the end of the day”……our market is all about consistency.
Full Stop.
Period.
End of Story.
CREDIT – All Graphics (except my additions to them) Courtesy www.realestate.co.nz
December 01 2009 | Mortgages Finance Money and Nelson | No Comments »
Property Investors should find this interesting.
“we did it by avoiding buying flats” ….Fergus Wilson comments in his opening remarks.
That’s the advice being offered up at an interview with the man who owns 900 homes, all amassed since 1995.
In a genuinely frank interview Fergus’s statements at times have the interviewer visibly expressing his frustration and/or wonder at the same time.
However with 900 homes under his belt Fergus knows a thing or two about investing in properties I suggest.
If you are currently a property investor or a budding one, this may well be worth watching.
SOURCE – renegadeeconomist.com
November 03 2009 | Buyers and General and Mortgages Finance Money and Sellers and The Market and Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
At the beginning of October Quotation Value NZ made an offer like they did back in 2006.
By going to their site here you can check QV’s House Value Tracker for free.
When I tried it, I found you could check on up to 5 properties to see what QV believes their value is worth.
They mentioned in an earlier email that this freebie expires on 25th October 09 so you’ve still got a few days yet.
I heard this week from a lending facilitator……..some banks are offering free valuations as another tool in their “persuader packs.”
There has been much debate, here and elsewhere over the accuracy of these figures in relation to a properties current market price.
I am hearing that QV’s figures are considerably below what the properties are selling for on the current market.
In fact, testing a some Sold properties in your region may highlight the differences.
So I decided to test the 3 properties that I’ve sold this week.
Property 1 Stoke – Sold for 8% above QV’s figure
Property 2 Stoke – Sold for 0.5% difference to QV’s figure
Property 3 Richmond – Sold for 9% above QV’s figure
Mixed results I’d say.
My concern is if they are using this figure as their LVR (Loan to Value Ratio) you might have problems with securing a satisfactory loan, that is a sufficient amount to complete your purchase.
This is certainly not too say that as a final tick to the loan process, a lender may require a Registered Valuation, however what I’m talking about here is the initial application processing stage.
As long as its applied across the board that would seem fair, but it does make one wonder whether an element of selective screening could be happening?
Any finance industry folk care to set me straight on this?
October 23 2009 | Buyers and Mortgages Finance Money and New Zealand and Sellers and Stats / Sales Data | No Comments »
Back in 2007 IRD put out a discussion paper regarding changes / updates that they were proposing to what they defined as “associated persons”.
There’s been a bit of media coverage, but it would seem most info flow has been coming in via Accountants, Taxation and Planning advice Consultants, and the like.
As a background read, have a gander at this Bell Gully’s take on it back in 2007.
And on we progressed through 2008 and now fast forward to October 2009.
Under the heading “New Tainting Rules” Matthew Gilligan, Auckland based GRA’s Director of Asset Planning penned a brief synopsis today (well worth a read) on what is to be known as the “Taxation (International Taxation, Life Insurance, and Remedial Matters) Act 2009.”
You can view the ACT here.
Gilligan started off his article by saying……
“The long awaited new associated persons rules have finally passed into law. On 6 October 2009 the legislation received Royal Assent”
Also today, the Policy Advice Division of IRD New Zealand released a Special Report, saying…..
New definitions of “associated persons”
This special report provides early information on the new rules for associated persons which were part of the recently enacted Taxation (International Taxation, Life Insurance, and Remedial Matters) Act 2009. It precedes coverage of the new legislation that will appear in a Tax Information Bulletin to be published later this year.
….and goes on for 34 pages to give a good run down on what it contains.
And in IRD’s own words;
The definitions of “associated persons” in the Income Tax Act 2007 have been reformed by strengthening and rationalising them. The definitions are mainly used in an anti-avoidance capacity to counter non-arm’s length transactions that could undermine the intent of the income tax legislation.
The reforms address a number of weaknesses in the previous definitions that posed a risk to the tax base. These weaknesses have significant base maintenance implications in areas such as the taxation of land sales, dividends and fringe benefits.
They also mention items like
The reforms narrow some current tests. For example, the ambit of the relatives test has been reduced from four to two degrees of blood relationship
and they have lots of charts and examples like this
I liked this one because it was in the shape of a house 
Now, DISCLAIMER here, I don’t profess to be a lawyer or accountant, but if you are a person who is looking to invest (sell?) in property after Oct 6th 2009 I feel you need to be aware of this Act.
If you aren’t then please ensure you either read it or even better still, question your accountant or professional advisor.
Members of some Forums are discussing it already.
October 15 2009 | Buyers and General and Mortgages Finance Money and New Zealand and Sellers and The Market | No Comments »
Currently the Kiwi dollar is trading north of USD$0.71c, according to news reports this morning that’s at a 13 month high.
Locally, pipfruit exporters, amongst other primary produce exporters like forestry & fish really are feeling the pains of a high NZD$.
But can there be a silver lining for home buyers?
Actually yes there is.
If you recall, look back, research you will discover that one of the primary catalysts for the commencement of the last great “property rush” was the influx of foreign, cashed up, buyers. To a tee, in the beginning the majority focused on coastal properties, not that hard to find in New Zealand.
CHART – higher res version here.
The above chart ample illustrates the situation buyers either immigrants from the UK, or returning ex-pats from London or Manchester, face. The date I picked to show the data labels is 1st Jan, just for comparison purposes, but you’d have to say 40,000 quid is quite a bit extra to stump up with.
Will the planets align like this next time we hear the word “boom”, who knows, but one thing for sure, that in the Spring 2009 market, local home buyers do not have a lot of cashed up competition from off shore or recent immigrant buyers.
September 17 2009 | Buyers and Mortgages Finance Money and Nelson and New Zealand and Sellers and The Market | No Comments »
Australians have long enjoyed the benefit, in one shape or another, of a government grant to assist them into their first home.
Recently, back in the May OZ budget, it was extended again as part of the economic stimulus package the government is pushing.
For the first time owner of a new home, the Australian Government will now stump up with combined grants of up to AUD$21,000 in total.
Seems this also applies to certain Kiwis living in OZ. So it would seem when they aren’t trying to beat us in Rugby, Cricket or Netball they still try to help out.
According to reports many Kiwis are using the grant to purchase holiday homes in Australia.
Above headline from South Australia’s Sunday Mail last week.
And the Politicians answer….
The Government has this week confirmed in answers to Opposition Senate Estimates Questions that New Zealanders and other foreigners are entitled to use money under the stimulus package to buy homes in Australia.
The article in the paper goes on to report
“In relation to New Zealand citizens, special provisions exist in the States’ First Home Owners Scheme legislation to ensure that NZ citizens residing permanently in Australia under Special Category Visas have equal access to the grant as other international citizens residing permanently in Australia,” the official advice said.
From a Real Estate perspective there was much hoopla in Australia back in April this year to encourage the government to go past, its then deadline, which I think from memory was 30 June. (End of financial year for OZ)
Here is how the Government put it….
The Boost was introduced on 14 October 2008, by the Australian Government, which together with the current $7000 First Home Owner Grant (“FHOG”) provides first home buyers with up to $21 000 where contracts were entered into on or before 30 June 2009. The Boost was extended on 12 May 2009 in the Commonwealth Budget, to continue in its current form for contracts entered into on or before 30 September 2009, and then will reduce by half for contracts entered into on or after 1 October 2009 and on or before 31 December 2009.
Many Real Estate commentators were blaming the grant for an artificial price inflation by that $10-20,000 grant amount and were voicing their concerns that if it stopped there would be a correspondingly similar drop in home prices. Talk of another side issue here too, but really this one will have the same reaction in any country.
Anyway as it goes, it seems to have been quite successful as many many thousands of new Australian home owners will attest.
September 13 2009 | Buyers and General and Mortgages Finance Money and New Zealand and The Market | No Comments »
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