Read more… or Read more right here… »

1. Start walking

Every time before starting the car, ask yourself: do I really need to drive there? Or even better, make a list of your everyday destinations, and think: which ones are within walking distance? You’ll be surprised how many places people drive to just out of habit to reach places by car. This little revision can save you a lot by getting you out of “driving” mindset and into a “walking” mindset.

2. Ride your bike

Some places are not within a driving distance, but definitely within a bike-riding distance. Not only will you save on fuel, it’s also a great exercise and a very “green” way to get yourself anywhere. Whatever it will cost you to buy a bike and a helmet you will save on petrol within about 3 months. Want proof? Have a look at Frugal Dad’s article about riding to work and see all the calculations there.

3. Carpool

If you’re not familiar with the term, it means car-sharing with other people for commuting. Find people (co-workers for example) to share a car with and split petrol costs or just rotate, use somebody else’s car every day/week. Another idea is to carpool kids to school or other activities.

4. Shop on your way

Do your shopping on the way home from work or when running other errands. Plan your route and your day so that you’ll get the shopping done without dedicating a special trip to it.

5. Shop locally

Are there closer shops that you can go to? Shopping locally will reduce your driving distances. Of course it only makes sense if the prices in the local shops aren’t higher then in those further away.

6. Find closer parks

People like going to familiar places, so every family has a number of favorite parks. Explore a little - have a look on the internet to see if you can find other parks, closer to where you live. Give them a try, who knows, your kids might like the new places. This way you’ll kill two birds with one stone - save on petrol and have a new park on your list.

7. Buy petrol cheap

Go to Motormouth website if you’re in Australia or just do a search in Google for cheap petrol from anywhere in the world and you will find websites that list petrol stations with the lowest prices in your area. Another idea is to fill your tank early in the week because the prices always go up towards the weekend.

8. Use fuel dockets

Don’t throw away the receipts from the supermarkets - save the fuel dockets and use them when paying for petrol. Get into a habit of having at least one or two of those in your car. Pay attention to expiry date and make sure you use the older ones first!

Do you have other ideas on how to save on petrol? What works for you?

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here

Read more… or Read more right here… »

Here is a number of ways to have a lot of fun with your loved ones for free:

1. Make a movie night tradition.
Set aside a day in a week (or in a weekend) when all the family gets together for a movie. It doesn’t have to be just immediate family; you can invite the grandparents, aunts and uncles or good friends over.

Stick to that day - to create a tradition, you shouldn’t miss a day for at least two months. Compile a list of movies you’re going to watch and get everyone’s suggestions on, that will give people something to look forward to.

Serve some great movie snacks, here are a few ideas:

• The unbeatable popcorn
• A pizza, easily made at home
• Hotdogs
• Home made burgers
• Chicken wraps
• Mini sandwiches
• Ice cream

The only thing to remember here is that finger food is the best, anything you serve should be easy to eat in the dark and leave a minimum amount of mess.

2. Watch the game on TV, not at the stadium.
The same ideas from family movie night apply to making sports themed nights at home. Allow kids to bring their friends and be prepared for some loud fun!

3. Getting some CDs of a favorite band is much cheaper than going to their concert.
You will be saving on the tickets, the petrol to get you there and back, the drinks, the snacks, the T-shirts and the stickers all together.

4. Get together for a family games night.
No, it doesn’t have to be Monopoly. You can solve crosswords together; play cards, bingo, or charades.

5. Go on nature trips, hiking and picnics.
You would be surprised how many beautiful places are out there, waiting for you to discover them. Buy or borrow at the library a book with a list of parks and nature trails in your area and get everyone to name a place they would like to visit. Every week some else picks a spot. And if you get tired from the walks, there is nothing wrong with just going to the beach, tons of fun for the kids and some lazy time for the parents.

6. Go camping!
I agree, you would have to spend some money on the petrol, but the rest is free - the great outdoors, the sky full of stars, fishing in the river and sitting around the campfire.

And now it’s your turn - what are your ideas of spending less and having more family fun?

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here

Read more… or Read more right here… »

This is why I put together series of articles about how to make sure your household survives a recession. They are covering it all - food, petrol, entertainment, budget and expenses, income, debt, disasters and emergencies and will show you how to revise and optimize you entire household to get through the tough times. They will help you to feel safe, stay positive and enjoy life. Enough said, here is the first bit:

Household survival tips: 7 Recession Food Strategies

1. Grow your own

Growing your own fruits and veggies is one of the most effective strategies to spend less on food. There are a lot of low-maintenance vegetables and herbs you can even grow in pots (useful if you’re renting). They don’t need much attention and can save you a fair bit of money. If you like this idea, have a look how a Frugal Dad built a square foot garden for only $40.

Growing your own fruit will take more time, because the fruit trees take at least 2 years to yield crops. I would say this still is worth a try, because the tough times can last longer than that and you have free fruit supply for life. The fruits can be preserved by canning or dehydrating and you will be eating for free all year round.

2. Barter and trade

If your neighbors are growing fruit trees, veggies or herbs you could exchange the fresh produce - apples for lemons, dill for parsley, you get the idea, right?

3. Bake your own bred

I thought that baking bred at home is difficult, takes a lot of time and the outcome is not worth the effort. And I was entirely wrong because it is a simple process that takes 15 minutes of work and the bred comes out of the oven crispy and yummy. But I won’t describe here the whole process because Trent from TheSimpleDollar has done it already, click here to read his article.

4. Brew your own beer.

Join thousands (if not millions) of Australians who already brew their own beer at home. There are complete beer brewing kits available in the large supermarkets (K-Mart, Big W), they even come with a DVD that guides you through the process of brewing.

5. Cut back on takeaways.

Dining out is more expensive than eating in. Switching to home made meals will require some planning ahead, especially from people who are used to relying on takeaways (don’t feel bad, I am one of those myself), but your budget will reflect it right away.

6. Never go shopping for groceries when you’re hungry.

Shopping when you hungry leads to buying unnecessary things and spending more. It is much easier to fight temptations on a full stomach.

But let’s say you’re already at the supermarket and you’re hungry. The best thing would be to get something to eat first - a sandwich from a deli with a bottle of juice, an apple/banana/peach whatever you like, an then go ahead with the shopping.

7. Women, consider breastfeeding.

I will be cautious about this one - not every woman can breastfeed due to various medical reasons and health conditions. However, if this is only a matter of choice for your family, the here is how much you save: the average cost of formula tin is about $23 and it lasts for 3 weeks (then it expires and you need a new tin). Do your sums and see that breastfeeding saves you at least $400.

Did you like this article? Would you like to get more household survival tips? Subscribe and receive them to your email, click here to subscribe.

Update: this post has made it to the Carnival of Saving Money.

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here

Read more… or Read more right here… »

It is against the law to discriminate against tenants with kids. The only exceptions to this rule are:

• when if the property is unsafe for your little ones
• when the property is owned by government and is intended for childless people or
• when the property is place of residence of the landlord, who is temporarily renting it but will be returning

The bond

The bond can’t be higher than 1 month’s rent. If the landlord or the agent wants to get a higher bond, they have to go to VCAT (Victorian Civil & Administrative Tribunal) and get approval.

The only exceptions to this rule are

• when weekly rent is higher than $350 and
• when the house is landlord’s place of residence and the tenant will only live there until the landlord moves back in. There should be a clause in your tenancy agreement saying so.

In those two cases the bond is unlimited.

Another important thing to know is that the amount of the bond is only set once and can not be increased while you are renting.

What if they do demand a higher bond without any bases? You can complain to VCAT and they will be fined $500.

The rent

Rent is paid in advance, so the first question that rises – how much in advance?
If you pay on weekly bases - nobody can demand more than 2 weeks of rent in advance.
If you are not paying weekly and a week’s rent is less than $350 - only pay in advance for one month of rent.

If rent wasn’t paid on time

Even if you forgot to pay the rent and paid the next day or even next week – they can not throw you out. Only after 14 days of not paying the rent, agent/landlord has the right to give a tenant notice to vacate.

Ways of paying the rent

No matter how you pay, via direct debit, rent payment card or otherwise, they can not charge you for issuing a rent card or creating a direct debit agreement.

What if they do? Complain and they will get a $1000 fine.

Rent increase

If you have a fixed agreement – they simply can not increase rent. When you’re on periodic agreement, they can’t increase your rental payments unless there is a clause about it in your agreement. That clause should also say how much they can increase the rent.

You are completely safe in the first 6 months of tenancy and they can’t increase more than twice a year, 6 month between the increases. By law you must be notified 60 days before the increase in a written form.

Inspections

Neither the landlord nor the agent can come and inspect your rental during the first three months. After tat they can come once every 6 months and must give you at least 24 hours written notice. Also they can’t barge in on you any time – only between 8am and 6pm and never on public holidays.

Leaving your rental property

To leave a rental (in the middle or in the end of contract) all you have to do is to send a written notice to the agent by registered mail 28 days (at least) before the day you move.

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here

Read more… or Read more right here… »

Here are the terms you must know to understand what’s going on during the auction.

Reserve price - the vendor has set a minimal price that he would be willing to sell for. The auctioneer doesn’t reveal this price so nobody knows what it is.

House on the market - when the bidding starts, the first bids can be below the reserve price and as they go higher, when a bid exceeds the reserve, auctioneer announces that the house is “on the market”. It means that from that moment and on the highest bidder gets the house. If the bids don’t reach the reserve - the house won’t sell, it will pass in.

Property passed in - if no one placed any bids or all of bids were below the reserve - the property will pass in. The auction has failed, the house wasn’t sold. This is the moment when the bargaining power is in hands of buyers - they can make offers and the highest offer will get the house. Usually the highest bidder has the right to negotiate first with the vendor. At this time the original contract of sale looses all its power and you can negotiate your own terms.

Vendor bid - if there is not enough interest (meaning dead silence, no one’s bidding), the auctioneer will place a bid or two on behalf of the seller - to help bids reach the reserve price. Typically vendor bids will be just below or exactly at the reserve price.

Auction begins
Most of the auctions have the same scenario, meaning auctioneers do the same things in the same order. First, they welcome the audience; introduce themselves and the house that is being sold. Then they explain what’s in the contract of sale, conditions and Section 32. Then they describe the house and the neighborhood. After that they take questions from the audience, and finally - open the bidding.

Auctioneer is not your friend
It is important to keep in mind that the auctioneer is employed by the vendor to sell his house for the highest possible price. They will use any trick to push the bids higher. What they do best is make you believe that this next increase of $500, $1000 is going to get you the house, pushing you beyond your limit. Don’t give in, set your price before the auction starts and stick to it.

The bidding
To bid you simply raise your hand up when the auctioneer shouts a price you’re willing to pay. Make sure he acknowledges your bid by repeating it and pointing at you or describing you (something like “I am getting 350K from a gentlemen by the fence” will do).

Don’t bid before the bids reach the reserve. Remember, if there are no bids and the property passes in - you can negotiate with the vendor and in that case, the lower the last bid was - the better for you.

Another tactic you could try is wait until bidding is really slowing down (you can see it when auctioneer starts to make smaller increments of $1000 or even $500), then blow everyone away with a $10,000 bid (if the price is still within your range, of course).

Bid whatever you like - you don’t have to stick to the bids the auctioneer is shouting, any bid you feel like making, go ahead. The only condition is that it has to be approved by the auctioneer.

If you can’t make it yourself to the auction, a friend can bid on your behalf. Before the auction starts that person will need to present a letter to the auctioneer stating that he is authorized by you to make bids and sign a contract. In that case the contract should have a nominee clause, allowing the contract be transferred in your name (not you representative) before the settlement.

One more thing you should now - there are no “late bids”, meaning the property is sold at the fall of the hammer and no bids made after that will be accepted.

After the auction

The auction is over and there are only two possible outcomes - the house is sold to the highest bidder or passed in.

If the house is sold and you are the highest bidder – you will go into the house with the auctioneer, exchange the contracts with the vendor and pay a deposit. The deposit is going to be held in the estate agent’s trust until settlement and then released to the vendor.

If the house passed in, then you can approach the auctioneer/the estate agent and start negotiating with the vendor. Your bargaining position in this case is better, because the house will have to be put back on the market - and that means more fees for vendor to pay, so he will be more flexible. Usually the highest bidder has the right to negotiate first with the vendor. At this time the original contract of sale looses its power and you can negotiate your own terms.

Note: by law you won’t have a cooling off period if the contract was signed within 3 days of the auction.

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here

Read more… or Read more right here… »

Let’s begin. All the things you need to do when buying at auction can be split into 3 groups: before, during and after the auction.

Before the auction

Task #1 – Go to other auctions
If you have never bought at an auction, you have to see at least 5 other auctions before you are ready to participate in one. You have to learn the process and understand what’s going on to feel confident when you are bidding on a house. If you feel like doing a little homework before you go - watch this short video of a real auction here.

Task #2 - Inspect
Any house being sold at an auction is advertised as such at least 2 weeks before the auction date (normally 4 -6 weeks prior to the date). In that time all the prospective buyers should inspect the house personally and arrange for building/pest inspections, because once a house is sold at the auction – it’s final and never subject to conditions.

Task #3 – Read contract of sale, ask questions
Another very important thing is to pay a visit to the selling estate agent and get the contract of sale for the house. This contract defines exactly what you are buying and how you are required to pay for it – so read it carefully, ask all the questions and find out everything you need to know before the auction starts. I have an article dedicated to the questions you need to ask when buying a house, read part 1 here and part 2 here.

Not many people know that contract of sale can be changed before the auction, so if you’d like to change the settlement date or the deposit amount – all you need to do is ask (well, it helps if it’s your solicitor or conveyancer asking on your behalf).

Task #4 – Get the money
You should also go to a bank, apply for a loan (if you are borrowing money to pay for the house) and get it approved. Another important matter is that you have the deposit money ready, because if your bid wins at the auction, you will be required to pay deposit right after the auction closes, so you need to money to be available. Deposit can be paid by a bank or a personal cheque (you can read about various kinds of cheques in this article) .

More is coming, stay tuned - or, even better, subscribe.

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here

Read more… or Read more right here… »

A bit of background: the interest rate earlier this year was cut 2 times and this is the third time. Its peak was at 7.25% in September. The first cut was of 0.25 %, then 1% and now the last cut was 0.75 %. It looks like such a small figure - I mean what’s a 0.75 percent, right? WRONG!

If we compare how much a household with a 300,000 mortgage will pay now to what they were paying 2 months ago, we’ll see that they save $390 monthly, which means $4680 annually.

These figures will give you a good idea of how much you save on a mortgage:

• On a mortgage of 200K the monthly repayment before the cut was $1660, after the cut you save $260 a month, $3120 a year.
• On a mortgage of 300K the monthly repayment before the cut was $2490, after the cut you save $390 a month, $4680 a year.
• On a mortgage of 400K the monthly repayment before the cut was $3320, after the cut you save $520 a month, $6240 a year.
• On a mortgage of 500K the monthly repayment before the cut was $4150, after the cut you save $650 a month, $7800 a year.

This piece of news affects us all - people who own a house, people who think of buying a house and even people who are starting to build their own house, because all the loans are affected by interest rate change - now we can borrow money for less. Add to that the new FHOG and we are in a much better position than we were 2 months ago.

And now to the bigger picture - the reasons for this third interest rates cut was to avoid recession. I am sure you have heard about the global economy slowdown, some countries are doing better, some are worse and our government is trying to make sure Australia doesn’t go into recession, which would mean job losses for a lot of people, financial stress, etc. If our country was a train, speeding towards recession, then interest rate would be a break they use - so that we would only go into a slowdown, which is unavoidable anyway, but not into recession.

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here

Read more… or Read more right here… »

All the building permits for the house issued 7 years back from the date of contract should be listed here. Also if the house was built by owner builder in the same period of time - a relevant permit should be attached.

Why is that of interest to you? Because, for example, if you see a new pergola or a carport (I mean, if it clearly looks fresh), look for a permit, if there isn’t any - it might become your problem when you purchase the house and city council inspectors appear on your doorstep asking who approved the pergola or the carport.

Another issue to pay attention to - if the vendor had only owned the house for 3 years, they can’t be saying that in the past 7 years there weren’t any building works done.

Insurances

Pretty self-explanatory - details of the policy of insurance of vendor’s in regard to damage/destruction of the house.

Term Sales

Here go all the details of how you pay the vendor before you get the right to transfer the title in your name. Meaning: how many payments, total price, deposit, interest of you submit the payment late, etc.

Mortgages

Any mortgages on the house/ the land, the amounts, interest and principal payable, etc.

If Section 32 still looks scary to you, read this:

It will take all your patience to read through your first Section 32, because interesting reading is one thing it is not. The second Section 32 will take you half the time, and then it will become easier and easier because if you are familiar with the format and know what you’re looking for - it’s just a matter of scanning for the information you need.

« Hide it

Subscribe to Homeiown.com - click here