Property Blogs

Agreements for Sale and Purchase of Property

Green Door Real Estate — Sun, 27 May 2012 12:02:26 +0000

The agreement for sale and purchase of property is a contractual obligation between a purchaser and vendor and is binding on both parties. It is generally prepared by the real estate agent or by private treaty. The offer presented to the vendor contains all the conditions put forth by the purchaser, which may be accepted as it is, or a counter offer made with changes in price and terms.

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What Prospective Home Buyers Hate

Green Door Real Estate — Sat, 26 May 2012 12:02:46 +0000

Home buyers are very selective and make their buying decisions after careful consideration of everything related to the house in question. Their scrutiny extends beyond the details on paper and what their eyes see. Also, since they do not just see one property, but many, before they select one they can convert into a home, they have a list of preferences and certainly a list of what they do not like.

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The Essentials For A Room Layout And Design

Green Door Real Estate — Fri, 25 May 2012 12:02:28 +0000

A room layout decides its aesthetics and appearance, besides the purpose it is meant to serve. A well-planned room stands out since everything has been carefully placed in a location that proves to be ideal. Planning the layout of a room could be according to Feng Shui principles, the latest trends or according to the purpose the room is supposed to serve.

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Benefits of Reasonable Real Estate Agent Services

Green Door Real Estate — Thu, 24 May 2012 12:03:13 +0000

Real estate agent services make the sale of property the easiest possible for owners, since they take on the entire responsibility of selling, including the paper work and legal clearances required. For the reasonable rates many such agencies charge, it is worth every penny.

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When to Reno and when to Run

Jane Eyles-Bennett — Thu, 24 May 2012 03:01:28 +0000

Renovating is an exciting concept for most people. Having the chance to pick your favourite paint colours, go shopping for all the appliances, fixtures and fittings and generally put your signature to something can be a real buzz.

Renovating for a profit on the other hand, can be a little daunting. How to make sure you really do make a profit? What should you do to the property? How much money should you spend? Will you stay on budget? Will the property ultimately sell, rent or revalue as you need it to?

There is a definite science to renovating for a profit, which is why some people get it right – and some don’t. You need to renovate the property in the right way (that is a whole other volume of books I could write about right there!) – but first you need the right property to begin with.

In fact, this is one of the questions I get asked most is; ‘How do I choose the right property to renovate in the first place?’

It’s not enough to just buy an old dunger – the worst house on the street and think you will make a profit on it. Nothing is guaranteed in renovating (particularly when renovating for a profit) but you can err on the side of the positive by selecting the right house in the first place.

When I choose a house to renovate, I have a checklist of 7 main things I look out for. The more tick boxes I can put next to each of my checklist items, the better. Ideally the property will be:

15-35 years old
Structurally sound
Have minimal necessary invisible costs – such as re-roofing, re-wiring, re-stumping, replacing windows etc.
Be either too busy looking (lots of pattern and old fashioned finishes and materials or overgrown garden etc) OR
Too plain – for example no landscaping, no contrast in materials or colours
On a street where there is a mixture of house styles (e.g. there is only limited value you can add to a 3 bedroom brick house on a street with only 3 bedroom brick houses)
Mostly a cosmetic reno with potential to add a bedroom or an ensuite without extending

Other really important factors to consider when renovating for a profit are:

Did you buy at a discount? It’s often not enough to rely on the renovation alone to return you a good profit. You need to buy well or have owned the property for some time to give yourself a head start
Is there enough of a jump between the value/cost of your property unrenovated vs renovated (comparative property). I.e Do the numbers stack up?
Are you comfortable with the extent of your renovation? Don’t do anything that makes you feel like you’re in over your head – get help if you need to
Can you get early access (if purchasing) to begin planning or implementing your renova

For more tips on renovating for a profit, visit www.hotspaceconsultants.com

© The copyright to this article is held by Jane Eyles-Bennett. 23/5/12

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Property Private Sale

Green Door Real Estate — Wed, 23 May 2012 22:20:13 +0000

Private property sales can be a tedious job for home owners especially those not familiar with the nuances of the real estate market. With insufficient time to learn and then apply the knowledge, it makes more sense to engage a private sales marketing service, which comes at a price, but worth every penny paid. Such services offer complete sales and marketing solutions and successfully get the best deals for both parties.

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What Not To Do While Preparing Your Home For Sale

Green Door Real Estate — Wed, 23 May 2012 22:19:13 +0000

The prospect of selling a home brings to mind endless possibilities to give it a face lift and make it look more attractive to prospective buyers. There is also a hidden incentive due to the conviction that a small renovation expense will yield a large profit. However, there are numerous things that must not be done, while preparing your home to sell it off.

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How to Add Value Renovating

Rene Moorby — Wed, 23 May 2012 12:08:30 +0000

Many of us think about renovating a property for profit and as far as an investment strategy goes – property still remains an effective option. Renovating without over capitalizing is the trick and keeping a track of what will give you the best return on investment will mean you turn a profit.

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BondAssist for Tenants

BondAssist — Tue, 22 May 2012 23:45:12 +0000

One of the biggest stresses for a tenant when moving is funding the bond payment and the fact that it is sitting in someone elses possession. Using BondAssist to guarantee your bond, frees up you money to do what you want with it, which is very handy at a time when there are a lot of expenses to pay.

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What is material?

Debra Dorrington — Mon, 21 May 2012 21:49:58 +0000

Historically anyone making changes to a unit title development needed either to complete a redevelopment plan or to cancel the unit title plan and start again. Both options needed unanimous consent from all of the owners.

Things are different under the Unit Titles Act 2010 but there are still steps to be satisfied. Some of them are causing practical difficulties.

Simple boundary adjustments

Adjusting a boundary between units can now be done using a process set out in the Unit Titles Act 2010.

The method can be used if the “redevelopment consists solely of the adjustment of the boundary between 1 or more units shown on a unit plan”. A change in the location of the boundary between say unit A and unit B would be covered. It probably also covers a unit changing its boundary with the common property (i.e. the boundary “between 1” unit).

There is no need to obtain the consent of all of the registered proprietors to do a simple boundary adjustment. The owners of the units that will have their boundaries adjusted jointly make an application to LINZ for changes to the unit plan. The other owners are not required to sign. However, the process can only be used where:

the adjustment does not “materially affect” the common property; and
the adjustment does not “materially affect” the use, enjoyment or ownership interest of the units that aren’t having their boundaries changed.

A certificate will need to be provided by the body corporate confirming that this is the case. The chairperson of the body corporate will sign off the certificate and they will have to make a judgment about what amounts to ‘material”. There is no stated criteria. You can expect the chairperson to take extreme care.

A certificate is also required from a registered valuer as to the ownership interest of the units. The valuer must also state that the amendment to the unit plan does not affect the ownership interest of any unit that is not having its boundary adjusted. You can expect a valuer to use extreme care in giving any such certificate.

These additional steps mean that a simple boundary adjustment may not be quite so simple.

Redevelopment

All other changes to a unit plan are redevelopments and require a similar but more robust process to be followed. The body corporate (rather than just the affected owners) applies for the deposit of the new plan. Before doing so the body corporate must:

ensure that all of the owners of the units that are materially affected by the redevelopment have consented in writing to the new unit plan; and
pass a special resolution agreeing to the new unit plan.

The redevelopment will involve the inclusion of part of the common property and as a result a review, of the ownership interests.

Objection process

There is an objection process which can be used when a special resolution is passed to complete a redevelopment. Notice of the resolution must be given to every unit owner and all of the parties who have an interest over a unit. They each have the right to make an objection to the designated resolution. Once an objection is made the matter will be sent to the High Court for determination.

The Unit Titles Act 2010 does recognise the role of the tenancy tribunal in resolving disputes. However the tribunal does not have jurisdiction in relation to disputes relating to the title of land. A redevelopment or cancellation of a unit plan is a dispute relating to the title of land.

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