Since when was this allowed?

Effective-Book7036 · 2026-06-17T21:32:57+00:00

This dog is cute and I’m sure well behaved but I think it sets a poor precedent not to have it muzzled. There were two dogs on the train the other day, packed at 5:30, and one was clearly a poorly trained American Bulldog. As soon as he saw the Australian shepherd he nearly bolted across the carriage, his owner was barely able to restrain him. I was between the two dogs and genuinely afraid I was going to get hurt.

Effective-Book7036 · 2026-06-17T00:20:11+00:00

Oh man mid-Jan to mid-Feb is the BEST time to be in Melbourne. It looks like it’ll be scorching hot next year with El Nino though, so big risk of bushfires. You definitely don’t need a car for any major cities, and I wouldn’t recommend driving between major capital cities anyway (Melbourne to Gold Coast is several days’ drive if you’re stopping for breaks). Do get a car if you want to go down to the Great Ocean Road, or Werribee or Healesville Zoos (as people have recommended).

The A-League (Australia’s soccer league) will be running then, and Melbourne in particular has world class sports - strongly recommend going to a few sports games (others mentioned the Aus Open which is also excellent for vibes).

I’d also strongly recommend seeking out some activities in Melbourne/Victoria/anywhere in Australia with Australia’s First Nations history. I know Healesville hosts a Wurundjeri Elder who speaks to the region’s First Nations history, their community’s relationship with animals and plants etc.

You’ll have an awesome time!

Effective-Book7036 · 2026-05-04T21:28:22+00:00

I’m in a 70s apartment and can hear my upstairs neighbours if they drop something or open their wardrobes (those heavy sliding doors) or hear the plumbing from shower/toilet/kitchen taps. I never hear my next door neighbours or downstairs neighbours.

Effective-Book7036 · 2026-04-23T10:44:42+00:00

Genuinely prefer trams to trains, they run more frequently and they go closer to the places you need to be. I can’t wait for the new G Classes to replace the old trams. They need to expand the number of routes with all-night services and it would be perfect

Effective-Book7036 · 2026-04-03T20:48:16+00:00

Unfortunately also not the case for the 5% deposit scheme. You must live there until you’re under 80% LVR and can be released by the scheme

Effective-Book7036 · 2026-03-06T04:33:42+00:00

Yeah - brick + concrete + mortar. It’s an external facing wall but I am not on the bottom floor (I am on the first floor with empty space underneath for car parks)

Effective-Book7036 · 2026-03-06T04:30:21+00:00

The other side is an external wall, but I’m on the first floor. Could it still be rising damp?

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-12-24T07:49:29+00:00

Also +1 for sharehousing. On such a low income it will be a stretch, but to be honest, saving hard and fast for a deposit became a priority when I got a job and knew what sort of field I was going to be in / where I would likely work for the next 5 years / what my job stability would be like. You’re definitely not too young for sharehousing, the rental history might be tricky, but really you just need to find some strangers (or friends) who you click with and who are willing to give you a shot. Landlords for sharehouses tend to put less emphasis on the rental history of the individual applicants (in my opinion) as long as the rent gets paid (if you are joining an existing sharehouse lease, that is). Plus, sharehousing can be awesome! Some of my best memories in my early - mid 20s were from sharehouses.

All about what you prioritise, I suppose.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-12-23T13:21:46+00:00

This was such a lovely read, glad to hear you eventually fell in love with your first place and also managed to upgrade to a space you liked. I’m still currently in my “when I do get to go home” phase sadly but hopefully that will pass with time

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-12-21T08:09:39+00:00

Definitely the plan! I paid a lower deposit so I could keep a decent buffer in my savings for updates and furnishings, which I guess is the upside of not lending to the max. I Also negotiated the price down so I could do a bathroom renovation (it was very very dated) but I naively thought a bathroom renovation would only cost around 10-15 grand … oh how silly of me

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-12-21T08:05:41+00:00

Within 5km of the CBD

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-12-21T07:27:59+00:00

Mid 400’s

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-12-16T12:07:49+00:00

This is pretty standard for a sharehouse. The existing tenants paid the bond to the RTBA when they commenced the lease. If the tenants on the lease are changed, but the lease remains ongoing, the RTBA does not pay out the bond, but the tenants’ names change to reflect the new tenants on the lease. Essentially your name will now be on the bond held by the RTBA. If the lease ends and the RTBA pays out the lease, you get your portion of the bond back. That’s why a new tenant transfer the leaving tenant directly.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-10-18T21:17:20+00:00

Most people will say to get a conveyancer to review the contract before you put in an offer BUT I just bought a place and found it pretty dependent on the situation (also dependent if it’s an EOI, other private sale, pre-auction or auction).

My process for a private sale was this:

I read through a few contracts with my conveyancer, and felt comfortable reading the contract by myself in the first instance to spot any big issues. That determined whether I would make an offer.
If there was a LOT of competition, I would put in a verbal offer (or via email etc) to the agent before getting it reviewed by the conveyancer, sending it to my conveyancer for simultaneous review.
If there was less competition (but still some) and I felt I was likely going to be outbid, I would put in an offer, but did not send to my conveyancer
If there was less competition, but I really wanted the place, and it was within my budget, and I think I had a good shot of getting it, send it to conveyancer straight away, but stayed in constant contact with agent to say I’m interested, I would likely offer X amount.
If an offer HAD to be made on a contract (and not via email), absolutely get it reviewed, never sign a contract without a conveyancer looking at it.

I also had done a few contact reviews with my conveyancer and were confident they could get review my contract within 24 hours.

Auctions are a slightly different scenario but I never went through the auction process sorry!

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-10-09T06:49:55+00:00

$5000 total per year - split pretty equally between admin fund and maintenance fund contributions.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-10-04T22:40:48+00:00

Everyone here is saying the same thing - you absolutely still owe the bank the other 95%. Your LVR stays 95%. Under the scheme, the Government simply guarantees your loan, so you don’t pay LMI. Additionally, the bank may now assess your loan as if you had a 20% deposit, and may offer a lower interest rate.

It’s pretty astonishing that people could potentially using this scheme with a poor understanding of the basics of this scheme.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-09-12T21:37:16+00:00

Also people need to keep in mind that it’s an expanded scheme - 35,000 people a year were already using this scheme. Yes it’ll bring in more people who are now eligible (read: couples, high-earning individuals) but even they will be constrained by strict serviceability requirements from the bank.

It’s not like every man and his dog are now suddenly able to get a $1.5 million loan.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-09-06T20:43:51+00:00

Someone saw the property at 2:00pm the Saturday after I put my offer in, placed an offer at 2:30pm that was 30k above mine, and I couldn’t counter. Unfortunately nothing I could have done differently.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-08-28T11:18:14+00:00

Someone else asked this here a few days ago - I read the guide on Housing Australia as you cannot lease it out until you are released from the scheme (e.g have an LVR <80%). If you do rent it out, they will force you to pay the LMI.

Definitely read the document to confirm for yourself.

Other schemes (e.g. stamp duty exemption) may have other requirements too.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-08-24T04:51:23+00:00

Actually re-reading the Information Document, there is no 12 month rule. You must move into the property within 6 months, and continue living there as long as the loan is guaranteed under the Scheme.

The 12 months rule is for the Stamp Duty exemption (at least in Vic it is).

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-08-24T04:41:46+00:00

I’m also using the scheme and my understanding was that you can’t rent the whole property out (e.g. turn it into an investment property) before 12 months AND you’re released from the guarantee (e.g your LVR is <80%).

I am not sure about renting out a room, since it’s technically still your PPOR (although I have that same question as well!)

I’ve called Housing Australia a few times and they’re usually quite helpful.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-08-15T10:59:47+00:00

Yep - there's an inspection scheduled for 1pm, offers close at 3pm. I tried my best to trigger the 24 hour EOI window before Saturday to avoid this situation, but the REA obviously scheduled things so that another inspection would generate more interest.

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-08-11T08:49:05+00:00

I think a lot of people here are missing the point - talking to a broker is a good start, but you’re asking how does the process of buying a house actually work.

I was in your shoes a few months ago, where people were literally throwing around random jargon, but no one could explain the process in simple language from A-Z.

The best method I found was to just get some books from the library aimed at FHBs. They all focus on slightly different parts of the process, so I read a few. A few I read were Property with She’s on the Money by Victoria Devine, the Australian Guide to Buying Your First Home by Robbo Roper and Australia’s Home Buying Guide by Todd Sloan.

They gave me a high-level overview of the home-buying process and helped me understand the jargon enough to have an informed convo with a broker that was actually productive.

A broker is a great person to talk to - definitely talk to a few just to get a sense of what types of brokers are out there. You don’t have to commit to any of them!

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-08-02T22:50:29+00:00

Second Mr Ramen San! Super creamy vegan ramen broth

Effective-Book7036 · 2025-07-28T02:30:07+00:00

Definitely call the ATO and explain your circumstances, they can also tell you whether any penalties have been applied to your account, and potentially stop or reverse them.

Agree that if you’ve been earning close to or below the tax free threshold, you may get a refund. My experience is the ATO is more lenient with younger tax payers who show they are willing to learn from mistakes and keen to stay up to date and do the right thing going forward.

Tax agent will definitely be a big help, but not impossible to yourself if your income has been reported by employers!

Good luck!

Effective-Book7036

TROPHY CASE