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How this actually works, written plainly.
No market predictions and no hype. Mechanics: how a construction loan draws down, what a repayment pause costs you, why duty is charged on the land, and what the word turnkey is hiding.
Featured · Finance · 3 min read
The twelve months nobody explains: paused repayments during construction
What the arrangement is, what the accrued interest actually adds to your loan, who it suits and who it does not. The complete version, with the arithmetic shown.
Everything we have written.
Finance · 3 min read
The twelve months nobody explains: paused repayments during construction
Some lenders let you pause repayments for up to twelve months while your home is being built. Here is what the arrangement is, what the accrued interest adds to the loan over its life, and who it genuinely suits.
Read the articleFinance · 3 min read
How a construction loan actually draws down, stage by stage
You do not pay the full repayment from day one. The loan releases in stages and your repayment climbs with each one. The last two stages are where people get caught out.
Read the articleBuying · 3 min read
Why a house and land package is two contracts, not one
You buy the land from one party and the build from another. That structure is why duty is generally assessed on the land value in most states, and why your conveyancer needs both documents at once.
Read the articleBuying · 3 min read
Stamp duty on house and land, state by state
Where the land and build are separate contracts, duty is generally calculated on the land value. What that saves depends on your state, and the thresholds move, so here is how to check the current position.
Read the articleTax · 3 min read
Depreciation on a brand new build, and why it is different
Since the 2017 changes to second hand plant and equipment, the gap between new and established has widened. What a quantity surveyor's schedule covers and when to get one.
Read the articleTax · 2 min read
Own name, joint names or a trust: the question to settle before you sign
After the contract, changing the ownership structure usually means selling and rebuying, with duty payable a second time. Which is why this belongs at the start.
Read the articleBuilding · 2 min read
What turnkey actually includes, line by line
The word is used loosely. Here is the full list of what has to be there for a house to be leasable the day you get the keys, and the items most often quietly left out.
Read the articleBuilding · 2 min read
Titled land versus registration pending, and what a sunset clause does
On new estates, title may not have issued yet. The sunset clause decides what happens if registration runs late, and it is the clause worth reading before anything else.
Read the articleGetting started · 2 min read
Using equity instead of a cash deposit
Usable equity is what a lender will release against your existing property after allowing for their maximum loan to value ratio. How to work out roughly what yours is.
Read the articleGetting started · 2 min read
What actually reduces your borrowing capacity
Credit card limits count against you even at a zero balance. Here is the list of things that move capacity most, in rough order of impact.
Read the articleBuying · 2 min read
Why we start with the number and not the suburb
Starting with a suburb you like and working backwards to a budget is how people end up stretched. The order matters more than the shortlist.
Read the articleBuilding · 2 min read
The defect period: what to inspect and when
Practical completion is not the end. What to look for at handover, what the defect liability period covers, and how to raise something so it actually gets fixed.
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