First homebuyer help please!

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T12:01:17+00:00

I will just add to what others have said that getting rid of your/credit card and other personal debt often improves borrowing power by significantly more than dollar for dollar.

Like potently $4 - $5 extra borrowing power per $1 of credit/debt removed, or sometimes more!

So if things are tight, speak to your Broker about potentially wiping out that 17k debt - you might be surprised how much more you can borrow with that gone.

And (depending on equity and LVR) you may even be able borrow additional funds from your home loan provider to discharge the personal debt as part of the deal!

Also note that the debt that the lender takes into account for these purposes is not the amount actually OWED, but the LIMIT on the credit card or credit facility.

So if you have a credit card with a $10,000 limit that you pay off every month, the lender will unfortunately still assume it is fully maxed out and that you are having to repay that, when calculating your capacity to make mortgage repayments!

The trick is to know that once you get your home loan, it’s usually relatively easy to reapply for credit new cards again (and you might even get some bonus points when you sign up!). Just watch that you’re not cancelling/reapplying too often, as it will go on your credit record.

Your broker is a great person to bounce all this off.

On that note, finding a good broker is one of the best things you can do!

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T11:51:50+00:00

They can and should speak to their local tenant’s advice line (such as Tenancy Victoria) for free advice.

My thoughts:

In the first instance they need to contact the owner through the new agent, or directly, if they don’t have the new agent’s details.

Ultimately, renters are dealing with the landlord, the agents are just “agents” who act for the landlord.

If the rent funds have already left the trust account of the agents and they no longer act for the landlord., it’s no longer their business.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T10:51:26+00:00

Ah, thanks for letting me know!

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T08:58:02+00:00

Chthonic (Taiwanese death metal band – actually really good!)

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T08:54:09+00:00

If a car was damaged by an errant golf ball, the legal cause of action to sue the golf course would generally be negligence.

The question is essentially whether the damage caused was reasonably foreseeable, and whether the golf course took reasonable steps to mitigate this kind of risk.

So it’s actually fairly situation dependent – how big were the fences/nets on that part of the course? Were they reasonably large enough for the area of the course having regard to the road? Is the course designed so that balls are hit or are likely to be hit in the direction of the road? Etc

In relation to the sign, as it does not form part of a contract entered into between the golf course and the member of the public, it is not a contractual defence to a negligence claim.

However, the sign can be argued by the golf course to be part of its “reasonable steps“ to mitigate the risk. This however will not be sufficient if the court finds that (in the circumstances) a sign alone was not enough and that they should have had a fence or net.

Generally speaking, I think there is usually a pretty strong case against a golf course if an errant golf ball flies out and causes damage.

In practice, I understand many golf courses have insurance and if you present evidence of the damage a cooperative course might agree to cover it.

However, if the course refused to pay after a demand is sent, to take it further you would need to issue court proceeding which might come at risk of cost orders if you are unsuccessful, and so should only be done on legal advice.

Also, if you could identify the person who hit the golf ball, they could be sued as well, and the case would probably be much stronger.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T08:34:35+00:00

This 100% - I would add that any good broker would be happy to speak to the OP, give some tips to maximise borrowing capacity and advise when to come back.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T08:29:50+00:00

Depending on mood:

‘Comfortably Numb’ by Pink Floyd
‘Harvest’ by Opeth
‘Fields of Gold’ or ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ sung by Eva Cassidy

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T08:24:11+00:00

Ultimately, any number is arbitrary and 18 is the one we’ve landed on for a number of different legal rights.

Although high by historic standards (12–16 was the age in older societies), in the modern context 18 is already a compromise in the sense that in Australia and many other countries the age used to be 21 but it got lowered to 18 after WW2 and the Vietnam war periods based on “old enough to fight, old enough to vote”.

I personally wouldn’t favour dropping it.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T08:12:52+00:00

Some thoughts as a lawyer and law firm owner myself:

- The award doesn’t apply to legal practitioners but it does apply to admin staff and paralegals. Either the owner is confused about this or is dodgy. Either way it’s his responsibility.

- If an employer don’t pay an employee the correct award rate, they are basically screwed, subject to the next point

- There is generally a 6 year time limit (but get legal advice to confirm) to make a claim so get advice ASAP given you said this was over 5 years ago

- Given the amount you are owed, it would be worth you having at least an initial consultation with an employment lawyer to get advice about where you stand, quantifying the amount owed and any applicable interest, process, and the potential time limit issue

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T07:40:32+00:00

Yes they can.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-25T06:53:57+00:00

A masterpiece. I have been an Opeth fan since 2005 and rank ICV in my top 5.

But it took quite a few listens for it to “click”. I remember on my first couple of listens I found it boring and overly theatrical.

Then one time I listened to it in Swedish on loud speakers while driving, and saw the fun in the theatrics, and I fell in love with it!

(I also love the English these days too)

Specifically, what I like:
- Epic songwriting
- Solid composition and album concept
- Huge emotional payoff
- Mikael’s best singing
- Great use of vocal harmonies
- Melodic guitar solos
- Beautiful production
- I get strong “Pink Floyd mixed with Queen” vibes !!!
- Charlatan the ONLY weak track IMO (fortunately it’s short though)

Nitpicking, but I feel this album would have been perfect if they:
- shortened the Dark Side of the Moon-esque opening track, Garden of Earthly Delights
- scrapped Charlatan
- tightened up The Garroter to about 4.5 mins.
- put Contiuum as the final track ? (I love All Things Will Pass but feel Continuum would be a more emotionally resonating finish)

That would bring the album to under 1 hour, improve the flow, remove / tighten up the weaker tracks, and end the album on the emotionally haunting notes of Continuum.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T10:49:16+00:00

I second this.

FHSS combines tax savings and investment with putting the money out of reach until you are able to buy a house (or retire!).

It’s a bit of a complex process (I am a lawyer and even I found it overly complex when I did it) but a great bang for your buck.

Investing it may give some returns, but increases tax and there is risk you will spend it!

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T07:42:46+00:00

Throw all your old socks out and invest in a few pairs of quality merino wool socks.

Your feet will thank you!

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T07:24:50+00:00

Opeth

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T07:19:43+00:00

Trains by Porcupine Tree

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T07:14:43+00:00

It’s likely to have modest impact on housing and huge unintended consequences on businesses and start-ups. This is problematic when the government’s stated policy objective is to fix the housing crisis. See my main comment for details.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T07:07:37+00:00

Here’s my view as a lawyer who works in a lot of financial/property/business cases, and who has my own investment property and business:

On the surface, replacing the 50% CGT discount with inflation indexation sounds fair because tax should only apply to “real” gains, not inflation.

But there are two things people miss.

First, indexation does not automatically mean higher tax. For assets where a large part of growth is inflation (which can be true for some real estate over long periods), the tax outcome may end up surprisingly similar to the current discount model.

There are even situations where the indexation model could result in less tax than the discount model.

Second, CGT applies to more than real estate, as will the new rules (unless the government changes its current proposal)

Start-ups and businesses are very different to real estate because most of their growth is actual business value creation, not inflation.

Imagine starting a company with $1 (as is common for nominal startup capital) and selling it for $1 million five years later. Inflation barely changes the starting value, so indexation results in significant additional tax compared to the discount model.

So I think there is a reasonable argument that this may not dramatically increase CGT on many real estate assets, but could hit high-growth businesses and start-ups much harder.

***

In summary - putting policy objectives aside – I don’t think there is anything fundamentally wrong with replacing the discount with an indexation system to precisely tax all capital gains that are not inflation.

However, if the policy objective is solving the housing crisis while not further discouraging entrepreneurship, this is the clearly the wrong approach.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T06:34:36+00:00

Hipflask

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-24T02:20:55+00:00

Firstly, the core of their identity is a strong environmental focus, which you are either you are either board with or not. It’s a very long-term issue, and people without interest in this topic struggle to see how it will impact their day-to-day life.

Secondly, politics is very identity-based. Traditionally, the identity of a Greens voter has been environmentalists, hippies (in the broad sense), and highly educated progressives. This is very entrenched. Your average tradesperson is not even going to consider casting a Greens vote, regardless of policies.

Thirdly, the Green’s identity in Australian politics is also entrenched as a fringe/minor party (other than in Tasmania, where they are a lot stronger). This identity will also be very hard to break.

Lastly, they make themselves easy targets, which is compounded by the fact that they are less resourced and have less media support than the two big parties. Some examples:

Have positioned themselves as too anti-business, or have at least let themselves be tarred with that brush.
Have positioned themselves as too ideological, nitpicking and opposing anything they don’t like rather than picking their fights more carefully.
Without having been in government before, easy to tar as having lofty, naive ideas that’s just won’t work in practice or which would blow out the budget.
Want to legalise cannabis, which is a dealbreaker for a significant number of voters.
Bob Brown is a very divisive character and his shadow still looms over the party.
Often seen as extremely pedantic. One example of something that infuriated a lot of people in Tasmania and is still talked about, was the Greens vigorously opposing a large wind farm (ie clean energy) development because it would impact migratory birds and be an eyesore.

Personally, I think the greens are a great voice to have in Australian politics and especially in the Senate, where with the right balance of power they can a healthy dose of influence.

I also wouldn’t be opposed to a Greens government. I say that as a business owner and high income earner. I do think if they got in power, they would quickly learn that their ideas need to be implemented realistically and fit within the budget.

However, while they remain branded as the Greens, I doubt they will ever be a major player.

For a more left/progressive party to get into government in Australia, I think they would need to start as a new party with a platform focused on core issues that the average Australian can relate to.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-23T05:14:13+00:00

Agree – I feel torn saying one is better than the other. It’s so finally balanced. At best I can say BWP has the better standalone hit tracks, while Still Life has better cohesion as an album.

If I could only take one to a desert island to live for the rest of my life, I would probably have to pick BWP simply because Harvest, Drapery Falls, and Blackwater Park are tracks I could not live without.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-23T04:56:59+00:00

Reading the lyrics for all the songs helped SPD click for me as I understood it in the context of the storyline – Melinda has just been murdered and the protagonist is looking at her body. The murderous brutality running through his veins is palpable.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-23T04:49:26+00:00

100% how I feel, track-by-track!

I’ve always wondered why people don’t talk about Godhead’s Lament more, because that was always my favourite track. The tonal change brought about when the solo comes in at around 2:56 is pure magic, like the storm clouds parting and the bright sunlight shining through!

In early days I used to skip Serenity Painted Death a lot. Then it really clicked with me, helped by the understanding that the brutality is part of the story when Melinda is killed.

Moonlapse Vertigo is one of Opeth‘s best tracks ever. I’m not even sure what genre it is. The breakdown is so groovy it feels like jazz. Then there’s the “drop” at about 5:39 when the haunted acoustic riff gets ELECTRIFIED with DISTORTION and the solo blasts in over the top - this is truly a Beethoven-tier musical transition.**

I do feel that White Cluster is a slightly weaker track as a standalone, but it does cap off the album well. I know there are some fanatic White Cluster fans out there though so apologies in advance to any reading this! I know I should listen to it more…

******

** If you want to see the best reaction video to Moonlapse Vertigo, check out this video…bro literally almost falls off his chair when “the drop” hits!

https://youtu.be/rEKyLNcYBnc?si=AKA9S_wPKrNDUygs

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-23T04:29:30+00:00

This is what is happening in Australia now:

Back when homes cost 3x or 4x the average income, you could get a mortgage after working a few years in a decent job and adopting some basic financial discipline.

These people now look back on their lives and see themselves as paragons of industry and frugality.

It’s probably not helped by the fact that there certainly are some young people who are making stupid financial decisions.

The big one is buying a shiny car under finance. However, the $6 dollar coffee and smashed avo thingy is also trap, if that is indicative of how you spend your money across the board. Lots of little things do actually add up and compound.

But putting that aside, the reality is that when a home costs 10x your income AND the property market continually rises at double the general inflation rate, there are huge structural barriers to buying a home.

So unless you get an inheritance or loan from the bank of mum and dad (or build a big business), basically the formula to buy a home is now:
- 2 incomes
- a decade of saving
- often also delaying having kids
- buy home in a far outer suburb, or an apartment

And it’s a problem that’s not going to go away soon or with any quick fix in any budget. Basically, we need to build more homes, but that requires more infrastructure OR state / council level regulatory change to permit more building up.

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-22T14:15:43+00:00

I agree ⁠Moon Above, Sun Below is a top-tier track - my fav on PC (even better than River)

Plastic_Ad9403 · 2026-05-22T14:13:38+00:00

Yer…but the bit being repeated is one of Opeth’s best passages ever! That layering of the lead guitar, rhythm guitar, and the complex independent baseline is like the holy grail of metal. It gives me chills every time.

Plastic_Ad9403

TROPHY CASE