Renting a house

Location, location, location!

by Chris on March 2, 2012

The most famous expression of realtors is “Location, location, location!”. This really is one of the most important things you consider when buying or renting a house. A conveniently located older house can cost much more than a new one in a different neighbourhood. To make it easier for us, the biggest real-estate internet websites [...]

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Understanding real estate ads

by Chris on February 28, 2012

Not very long ago, reading property listings of houses advertised for sale / for rent to me felt like reading in a different language. Property ads, especially the ones in newspapers, have so many abbreviations – no wonder a person new to real estate (or new to Australia) needs a dictionary to understand them. Some [...]

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Renting a house and have a problem? Here’s how to get help.

by Chris on January 31, 2012

Renting is the most natural choice when you can’t afford to buy your own house (or simply choose not to). I bet almost anyone reading this post right now has had to rent at some point in life. And while renting is supposed to be quite straight forward – you find a suitable house, rent [...]

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Homeiown.com has a new look!

by Chris on December 1, 2011

To everyone who’s been wondering what on Earth has happened to Home I Own – it’s gone through a complete makeover. We reckoned it was about time this popular, unique, independent real estate blog became faster, easier to navigate, more intuitive – and much nicer to look at. A lot of work has been put [...]

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Are you leveraging technology to fast track your house hunting?

by Chris on November 23, 2011

Before the Internet and smartphones came into being, all we had to assist us in house hunting was newspapers, estate agents and word-of-mouth. But now that we have all these wonders of technology, what’s our excuse to insist on pen and paper as best tools for house-hunting? According to the new survey by real estate [...]

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A Step-by-step Guide to Finding a Rental Home Quickly and Easily (Part 3)

by Chris on October 28, 2011

Today you are getting the final steps (7 to 11) of my system to find a rental home with no hassle. If you’ve missed the beginning, steps 1 – 3 are here, and steps 4 – 6 are here. Step 7. Organize your information. To be efficient in your search for a rental house you [...]

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A Step-by-step Guide to Finding a Rental Home Quickly and Easily (Part 2)

by Chris on October 24, 2011

Today we are moving on to the next steps of my system to find a rental home with no hassle. Steps 1 to 3 are here. Step 4. Take stock of current rental listings. This is my own term that you probably won’t find anywhere else. When I say “take stock of current rental listings” [...]

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A Step-by-step Guide to Finding a Rental Home Quickly and Easily (Part 1)

by Chris on October 19, 2011

Did you know that on average a person spends 6 weeks to find a rental home? Seems like a very long time, doesn’t it. Just think – 6 weeks of looking, searching the internet, considering different properties, going to inspections, applying, being turned down, etc. Yes, that IS a lot of hassle. But it doesn’t [...]

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5 things to consider before renting with a housemate

by Chris on August 18, 2011

When people live under one roof, all sorts of things happen, good and bad. And while we always hope for the best, it makes sense to try and predict the worst in advance, and if the potential for trouble is high… re-think it before committing. Even living at home with your parents, siblings and the [...]

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Busting the myth of the housing shortage

by Chris on July 25, 2011

Here’s a shocking revelation: housing shortage may only exist in our imagination. In reality there are over 46,000 empty homes, purchased by property speculators, excluded from the rental vacancy rate calculations. If we were to include these homes, the real vacancy rates would be much higher. According to the latest report released by Earthsharing Australia, [...]

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Extreme frugality: moving house by bike

by Chris on July 21, 2011

When it comes to saving money, I know a thing or two. You would have to go for reasons to my childhood, and it’s been a habit for me ever since. I also love to ride my bike, and often use it to get around, instead of driving. But even with these two qualities combined, [...]

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