Building Inspectors Break Secrets
Building inspectors break secrets. It’s their job to do so and we wouldn’t have it any other way. They’re in one very real sense property detectives.
It’s fraudulent for a vendor to knowingly conceal defects according to the law. This incl...
Read moreAm I An Owner Builder?
Whether you are or aren’t an owner builder can sometimes be a tricky concept to get your head around.
Even if you didn’t personally lift a hammer, but rather project managed different trades to do the work, – you are still, legally, the owne...
Read moreA Good Building Inspection Is Better Than An Expensive Cure
Put yourself in Hao’s shoes. He buys his dream home only to discover a buyer’s worst nightmare: most of his buildings are illegal.
As the Whittlesea Council says: His bungalow was constructed without a permit. And to add insult to financial in...
Read moreThe D-Word: Time To Talk Depreciation
Sad fact: Many Australian rental property owners are failing to correctly calculate depreciation.
“I have often seen clients who have owned investment properties for five, six or seven years and have never claimed any form of depreciation becaus...
Read moreNovember is Asbestos Awareness Month
Yes. It’s that time of year again. November is Asbestos Awareness Month.
Why Asbestos Awareness Month?
It’s a national effort with a noble goal. Asbestos Awareness Month is about fighting ignorance through education. The aim is to increase awa...
Read moreAsbestos Concerns? Call The Experts
Here’s an all too familiar story from the Newcastle Herald: A Glendale property is demolished after its owners found deadly loose-fill asbestos insulation.
This type of asbestos was relatively popular in the1960s and 1970s.
Science now tells ...
Read morePassing Your Next Rental Inspection With Mould-Busting Professionals
What’s one thing landlords despise? If you guessed mould, you’re right.
“The obvious things we look for are mould in the bathrooms/cupboards/bedrooms,” says one expert in the field. “This is usually an indication that the tenant isn’t ...
Read moreWhat is franchising?
Franchising is the practice of using another business’s successful business model. By replicating a successful model, the new business owner or franchisee has a greater level of incentive than an employee, they directly benefit from the effort they...
Read moreThe Case For More Home Inspections
Building surveyors are calling on Victoria’s state government to mandate balcony inspections. This follows the tragic balcony collapse in Doncaster East in late 2017. Sadly, two people died and many others were injured, according to The Age.
In ...
Read moreRe-stumping red flags
A guide to Re-Stumping
Re-stumping - or re-blocking as it's known in Victoria - is big business in Australia and can be a very costly exercise, particularly if you don't know what you're looking at and you don't understand what you've bought into....
Read more