What Victoria’s New Tenancy Laws Mean For Landlords
Victoria’s new tenancy laws mean that landlords need to pay extra attention to basic standards, especially relating to health and safety. These include (but are not limited to) providing functioning heaters, stoves and even deadlocks. Furthermore, ...
Read moreHouse Inspections Take Time
Okay, random question: How long would you spend inspecting a house before buying it?
In Australia, more than half of homeowners (58%) spend less than an hour inspecting before the big buy, according to research put out by ME bank. Thus, it’s not...
Read moreGET YOUR HOME READY FOR WINTER!
With winter only around 7 weeks away it is time to think about doing those essential jobs around the home that is really easy to forget. Then one day you look out the window and you have water cascading down your fascia and into your eaves. This happ...
Read moreTwo Things You Need To Know About Smoke Alarms
One: Smoke Alarms Aren’t Always Reliable
Smoke alarms aren’t always reliable which is why a professional inspector can make your job easier and life safer. A good inspection takes into account adequate positioning and operational status in orde...
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 moreThe Dirt On Property Depreciation
What’s depreciation? In a nutshell, it’s an allowance under tax laws in Australia for investors. It means they can claim deductions for expenditures in their property investments.
Why depreciation? Even extremely well-built houses aren’t imm...
Read moreAsbestos - Not Just About Housing
FEATHERS were flying in Red Hill last week when neighbours discovered asbestos sheeting was being removed from a disused chicken shed near their properties.
First reported in the Southern Peninsula News (6 November 2018) the story continues:
Mo...
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 moreWhat Does Jim Know About Building Inspections Anyway?
ACTUALLY, QUITE A BIT MORE THAN WE EVER REALISED!
We recently discovered that Jim Penman’s dad was a forensic engineer.
From an early age Jim’s father was investigating materials, structures and their components which failed o...
Read moreWhat is Caveat Emptor?
Increasingly property buyers are aware of their responsibility to discover building defects before sale – this is known as the Latin principle Caveat Emptor or ‘buyer beware’.
The full quotation is ‘caveat emptor, qui ignorare no...
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