Hi,

I write this at 1am out of desperation

After sacrificing any holidays, pursuing job hopping and jobs on the side , I finally afforded my own apartment after years of renting (since 18)

I (26m) did everything right just to afford this , I have no family and just wanted to live a quiet life by myself

A few weeks ago, I moved into a third level apartment (with a fourth level on top ) in a building of under 100 units.

The first few days were great ,after this, there has been so much noise due to garbage sound proofing, the neighbour is up at all hours and it’s like I can hear them walking back and fourth . Every step they take on hardwood results in creaking , thudding and stomping noises . My apartment actually shakes at times

I have no idea what to do , ultimately if I end up saying something there is no reason for them to listen .

I spent all my money paying settlement costs

The apartment above is an exact replica to mine , if I pursue owners corp, I fear this will make the situation worse

I believe the person may have some mental issues because the behaviour is just not normal

I feel completely trapped , especially as a light sleeper and spent majority of nights on a few hours of sleep , what am I suppose to do ?

Noticed some huge price drops on 3 bedroom townhouses in my area recently (South West Brisbane).

In one complex of mostly identical 3 bedroom townhouses, sales in the last 6 months have been:

• $815k in April
• $810k in May
• $730k in September
• And now $650k in October.

That's a drop of around 20% in just 6 months.

What's interesting is how wildly different some asking prices still are. In the same complex as those listed above, there are 4 currently for sale but the 2 with prices are offers over $700k and offers over $790k for the exact same 3 bedroom townhouse.

In another townhouse complex in the same suburb, there are currently 2 for sale (exactly the same townhouse, 3 doors apart) with one listed at offers over $685k and other other offers over $849k.

Odd to see such a large difference in asking prices for identical properties, Some realistic and some completely unreasonable given recently sales data.

It feels like some sellers are adjusting their expectations to recent sales, while others are still pricing based on what properties were achieving earlier in the year.

Is anyone else seeing this around Brisbane? Are we starting to see sellers price expectations diverge significantly from what buyers are actually willing to pay?

Hi Reddit legends,

After a very long journey, fam bam and I are about to move into our own home! There aren’t enough words to describe the elation.

I’ve trawled through the day one and week one must-dos.

Tell me what beautiful thing(s) you did in your first days/month to quietly celebrate home ownership?

Big or small, I’m here for it.

Hi everyone,

I have never had to navigate this so not sure of the process or steps.

My partner and I bought into a 10 unit block in 2022 that was built in 1965. We have 7 owner occupied and 3 rented units. We paid a little over 1mil (Sydney prices are insane).

We have now been approached by a developer who wants to purchase our block and the one/s either side to combine into a large complex. For reference we are number 10. The other blocks (number 8 and 12) would need our buy-in and they cannot build around us.

The developer has only sent very preliminary that we could potentially get 20 mil for our block and divide amongst size of units (essentially we would be getting about 2mil for our unit) but would not be able to sell for 2 years whilst they investigate viability and approvals and they could pull out at any time.
We were planning on selling in the next 5 years anyway but are not currently in a rush.

A few residents have expressed interest in selling but one has their reservations.

My questions are:
- does everyone in the unit block need to agree to sell?
- eventually we would need our own property lawyer but at what point do we engage them if it’s just preliminary talks at this stage to garner interest?
- should we be getting our own valuation at this stage?
- how likely is it that this would actually progress?

It would be life changing money for us but I don’t want to get my hopes up or get taken advantage of by a developer.

Been looking at a few villas and townhosues around Melbourne lately and I think this part of the market is getting interesting again.

And just to clarify, when I say units I'm not talking about high-rise apartmnets. I'm talking about the older Melbourne-style villa/unit, maybe 4-8 on the block, usually 2 bedrooms, garage/car space and hopefully a bit of land. Plus townhouses.

Some of these have basically gone nowhere for years.

There are examples around Melbourne where units are selling for similar money to 5 or even 10 years ago, while houses in the same areas have become significantly more expesive.

Some of the data I've been looking at has units around the $500k-$550k mark in areas where houses can be $800k-$900k.

That's a pretty big diffrence.

So I ran a rough comparison between a $720k investment house and a $550k townhouse/villa.

For both I've assumed a 20% deposit, 6.5% interest-only loan, $540pw rent and no vacancy. I've used 6% for property managemnt, $120 a year for smoke alarm compliance and around 0.5% of the purchase price each year for maintenance.

Obviously these costs can vary quite a bit depending on the property and the investor. Particularly interest rates, rent, land tax, strata, insurance and maintenance. This is just using the same assumptions on both to compare them.

*For the townhouse example, building insurance is assumed to be included in the strata.

What got my attention wasn't really the purchase price difference. It was the holding cost.

Both are getting $540pw in this example.

But the house is costing roughly $1,795 a month out of pocket, while the townhouse/villa is around $924.

That's around $10,450 a year difference.

You've also got roughly $187k required upfront for the house versus $143k for the townhouse/villa, so about another $44k of your cash tied up from day one.

Obviously I'm not saying that automatically makes the townhouse the better investment.

The house may end up having better capital growth. That's the trade-off and probably where most of the debate will be.

But I think this is why investors are starting to look at this type of stock differently.

Interest rates are higher, land tax in Victoria has increased and the yield on a lot of houses isn't particularly exciting.

If I can get around 5% gross yield instead of 4%, borrow $136k less and have roughly $10k less coming out of my pocket every year, I think it's at least worth considering.

You still need to look at the location, land component, supply, floorplan, owners corp, sinking fund, maintenance history and whether there's going to be owner-occupier demand when you eventually sell it.

And obviously a townhouse with ridiculous strata or a big special levy coming isn't suddenly a good investment.

But there's another side to this which I actually find just as interesting.

First-home buyers and owner occupiers are looking at the same properties for completely different reasons.

Using the same $720k house vs $550k townhouse/villa example, here's what it could look like for someone buying as their own home.

For this one I've kept the 20% deposit and 6.5% rate, but changed the loan to 30-year principal & interest repayments.

Again, this is just an example. Deposit size, interest rate, loan structure and actual repaymnets will depend on the buyer.

But you're talking about roughly $34k less for the 20% deposit, borrowing $136k less and around $860 less going towards the mortgage every month.

That's more than $10k a year in repayment difference.

And I think this is where the conversation gets interesting for first-home buyers.

Higher interest rates have reduced borrowing capacities, but people haven't suddenly stopped wanting to live near work, family, schools, transport and everything else.

Someone might be able to buy a $720k house, but it could mean moving another 20-30km further out.

Or they could spend around $550k on a decent townhouse or older villa in an established suburb they actually want to live in.

Personally I think townhouses are probably the sweet spot for a lot of buyers at the moment, depending on the suburb and budget.

You can still get 2-3 bedrooms, garage, some outdoor space and something that feels much closer to living in a house.

Older villas can make sense too, particularly something with a bit of land, simple construction, decent floorplan and only a handful of properties on the block.

I'm still cautious with apartmnet buildings, particularly the larger developments where you're one of 100+ similar properties.

I'm definitely not saying villas and townhouses are suddenly going to outperform houses.

I just think the numbers are starting to make the decision a lot more interesting.

You've got investors looking at them because of yield and holding costs.

Then you've got first-home buyers and owner occupiers looking at the same properties because they can potentially borrow less, have lower repayments and still live in an area they actually want to live in.

Two completely different reasons, but both are pushing buyers towards similar stock.

Anyone else seeing this in Melbourne at the moment?

Hey I'm looking to covert my 2 bed 2 bath house into a 3 bed 2 bath house.

Would anyone be able to tell me if it is actually possible? Particulaerly based on what's structural walls/ load bearing etc?

I understand the house itself is tiny, but I have no other option.

Cheers.

Just why? Can I report the listing as inaccurate or something, they do this bs all the time, half my saved search notifications are for over 55s living.

As in title, would appreciate some advice! Thanks

I’ve seen Sasha Hopkins posting on Facebook saying his new business is coming. Given what happened with The A Team Property Group, people should know the history.

The A Team Property Group operated unregistered managed investment schemes and carried on a financial services business without a licence. ASIC reported approximately $27 million in losses across 217 investors.

In November 2024, Hopkins was ordered to pay a $1.25 million penalty

If you’re seeing his posts, read the findings before considering handing over any money or joining whatever he is thinking about doing.

Just moved into a new house and found these in a cupboard in the kitchen. Anyone recognise them / any ideas what they could be for?

Hey people, I made a post a few days ago about renting at 17, what I've gathered is that even though I'll be making 90k annually, it is unlikely I'll get a rental as I am 17, so, Im opting to haven't dad sign his name on the lease and have him and myself both listed as approved occupants instead. This way the lease will not be signed to a minor and they will have my dad's proof of income ( which is over 100k so that's no worries)

Is there any advice you have for perhaps changing the lease to be in my name when I'm 18 in 6 months or removing dad as an approved occupant but maybe leaving him signed?

Hi folks,

Some young folk were discussing Australian house prices around me and one lass was like “no point in buying a house, just rent forever and then retire on aged pension in a cheap SEA country”.

Got me wondering, what’s stopping more retirees from doing this currently? And what happens when younger generation just unsubscribe from the idea buying homes altogether in favour of skipping seas?

First home buyer here. Have been looking at the market in the last 3-4 weeks. I’m wondering how presenting offers work? I found a house I like and would like to put an offer through, however I don’t want to do my building and pest if and waste $$$ if my offer gets declined.

What are the usual processes when putting an offer through. I don’t wanna ask the REA because I feel like they will just manipulate me..

Thanks

Regional victoria- Bendigo to be exact has really insterested me with affordable houses. I understand for many people employment opportunities within pockets of regional areas could be a factor to not move in such places, but what other aspects of places like Bendigo would you recommend worth researching before making any commitment or perma moving there?

Thank you :)

I've recently bought my first place and received notice of the upcoming AGM. It's one of four units (VIC), 2 owner occupiers and 2 investors. Anything I'm expected to do other than yea or nay? I want to add a privacy lattice to the top of my back fence so will bring that up. Is there some sort of "official" language I use?

There are some bigger changes I'd like to make in the future (solar, replace old aircon, replace window frame with wood rot) but I need to save up for well over a year, so I would wait for the next AGM.

For example, I need parking and a gym. But what is something you didn’t realise you needed until you already had moved into your place?

Looking at the building and pest report for a house I’m interested in purchasing and the subfloor has these joists that are black. Anyone know what this is and whether I should be concerned? The report doesn’t mention why they are black.

If you see a listing like this, do you put in an offer subject to valid for 24-48 hrs or you will walk. Can't see how any self respecting buyer will wait couple weeks so the seller can take their time pick & choose the highest offer.

Question for the hive mind because I feel like I'm losing my mind. A friend is in the process of selling a massive corner block in one of our capital cities. She's done an incredible job fixing it up, and to help her style it for sale, I sourced enough cream blockout curtains for the whole house. Her real estate agent told her not to bother putting the curtain rails, curtains or blinds back up because then the house is a blank slate, and people can choose what they want. Seems incredibly stupid to me, but what would I know?

Now, two weeks into showing, some of the main feedback is negative about the lack of window coverings because OF COURSE IT IS. Buying enough coverings for a four bedroom house will cost thousands of dollars and until they're installed, the whole house is wide open to the street.

Should we reinstate the curtains? Should we trust the REA advice despite the negative feedback?

Sydney continues its free fall in prices.

Is there a way to tell I have the right ones without having to pay someone to come take a look? Also if they aren't right, would I be reported for getting the right ones in when I can afford too, post January?

I am in the process of purchasing a house with a longer settlement. The contract is now unconditional. There's a couple of things that need fixing up around the yard and I've identified the tradies I want to to hire to do the work.

Someone suggested I ask the seller for permission to undertake the work prior to settlement. I hadn't really heard of this before, and I was wondering if this was something that's realistic to ask. I don't really want to ask if this is something most sellers wouldn't agree to.

Hi all,

We're looking at buying a house on South St, Rydalmere to live in with our family. The price seems good, but two things are making us hesitate and I'd love some honest opinions.

1. Social housing nearby

Around 40% of homes in this pocket are public housing. I've spoken to a few locals who mentioned problems with some residents, including theft, noise, people wandering around drunk, and drug use. Some of the houses are also poorly kept, overgrown, or have items piled up in the yard. There are about 9 public housing homes directly behind this house and about 6 in front.

1. Light rail out the front

Parramatta Light Rail Stage 2 will run along South St, and the Nowill St stop will be right in front of the house. We actually like this since we use public transport a lot. My worry is resale. Will buyers be put off by the noise, people waiting at the stop out the front, and overhead wires across the facade? I don't want it to make the house hard to sell or drag down its value.

For those who live in Rydalmere, or near light rail stops elsewhere (Parramatta, Sydney CBD, Newcastle), how has it affected day-to-day living and property values? Would you buy here?

Thanks!