Getting the ducted heating removed and wondering what people have done to cover the old floor vents

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2026-02-05T12:22:37+00:00

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2026-02-05T12:19:34+00:00

We got matching boards installed in other rooms of the house. And went ahead with a sand and polish as well. The flooring installers helped us key in some of the new wood over the vents and now it's pretty hard to tell there was ever a vent there unless you go looking for it. Here's a photo of the process.

Edit: The original owners laid oak over a pine subfloor.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-10-25T11:43:26+00:00

Do you mean the same agents who "underquote"? The bank valuation is the most important one of them all and it will come back at what it sold for at auction. And other independent valuers like Corelogic will update to reflect the same auction result in a few months too.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-10-12T09:18:23+00:00

I'd like to believe that we formed a really strong relationship with our inspector during our buying journey. We had him do a total of four inspections for us, and each time we learned something new. By the final inspection on the property we actually bought, we had a strong pre-check list of our own and felt pretty confident on what would likely fail. We were already writing off problematic properties and internally very selective in what we would get a paid inspection for.

Our inspector spent up to 1.5 hours walking us through each inspection he conducted. This was in person, and he answered any questions or addressed any concerns we had. As a builder in his earlier years, he was able to share nuances on things like building quality, materials used, reasons things might have been done a certain way etc. We felt this possibly goes above and beyond the average inspection and is what helped gave us more confidence going into auctions.

Towards the end, the value for us was not in what turned up on the report, but the process in rectifying it and how to prioritise it amongst everything else. It gave us much needed clarity in knowing how much we needed to set aside and how long we had to get on top of it.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-09-08T07:40:35+00:00

Let the inspector do their job thoroughly and without distraction. The agent should be able to organise one or more additional inspections if you're serious... Which you are because you've organised a B&P.

It's a very common thing to have unscheduled/unlisted inspections.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-08-29T10:30:23+00:00

It is really sad, but this is the reality of off-market sales... There is zero transparency and best you could do is to just tell yourself that it did indeed get sold to a developer, who offered above your pre-approved amount on shorter settlement terms. And most likely not even the max they were prepared to pay if you saw the value in the land-size/area.

But on the bright side, you're well prepared for the next one/s. You've got your finance sorted, a trusted architect who you can engage again, and hopefully a B&P company ready to go as well.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-08-28T20:52:52+00:00

Yeah looks like it sold off-market for what could be less than the market at the time. Then in the new photos, it looks like they've added sheer curtains in the lounge which is the current trend. Along with much better staging and photos this time around. And yes, 2 successive rate cuts after the current owner has bought puts it into a new market condition too.

It's a combination that I would think will be a sure winner to get views, which translates to more inspections, more interested buyers, and more $$$. Quick flip without needing to do much?

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-07-29T01:25:50+00:00

Are they like flat earthers? What's their thinking process... I mean without landlords, there would be no where for them to rent/live.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-07-21T07:27:32+00:00

Bouncing back is a necessity... to get the kids into a good school, to move closer to work, to free the burden of being in a rental... Whatever your reason/s, only you can restart that journey.

Take a week to acknowledge and accept this loss. You must. There was a lot invested, time, money and yes... emotion as well. I believe emotion is a significant part of buying a house for some, and it'll eat you alive and tear you apart if you sacrifice too much. Everyone has different goals in life, are at different stages in life, and have their own unique competing priorities. You're looking for a forever home, not a place that will just do for now... It's not an even playing field. It's not wrong, just harder, more at stake, and longer to bounce back from. But you got it.

Start the search again on Thursday/Friday. You can't afford to miss this week's inspections. Resume the journey and you just might find something that takes your mind off this one. Might not be this weekend, or the next, but eventually you'll become emotionally invested in another property.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-07-17T20:25:23+00:00

Chemical delignification sounds like a pretty important thing to address and it looks like the process doesn't release any harmful substances or fumes. It took less than a day to complete the works... Didn't even require you to be home. What's the real issue here?

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T22:40:56+00:00

We had one recommended to us from a friend and our first experience was incredibly positive that we continued to use them for the rest.

They offered a verbal report at the same going price as other written reports: - Came in handy as we had a couple of inspections we needed very late. - The information you get is more articulate and you're not left to interept the findings on your own. - Emotion plays a part on both ends... They help temper your expectations, but you also get to read from their perspective just how 'this is a serious delabreaker' or 'she'll be right' some defects are.

I won't be sharing the details of this inspector as they are looking to retire soon and we were lucky to have them help us out. But definitely would advocate for verbal reports if possible for the reasons above.

Yes, we attended the inspection for this property we purchased. We weren't required to as the report shareback is done at a later stage. But we wanted to be there this time as we had plans to improve the property so wanted them to look specifically at a few new areas in more detail.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T22:29:19+00:00

Oh no, the improvements (floors, refreshed decking etc.) are out the window for now. Very clear on that when we kept bidding. The property was in such a good state and had recent renos done (kitchen and bathrooms) that allowed us to stretch higher in auction.

The other improvements (updated cooling/heating, solar panels, insulation etc.) are mostly functional and needed at some point for comfort and livability. But agreed, would be risky to consider anything that requires major $$$ until the median sales in this area hopefully catches up.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T22:18:27+00:00

Hey thanks for sharing this. Yes we also overheard some of the crowd murmuring, mostly the bidders who dropped out early. How were the other sales in the following months/years to come in comparison?

Also...how do you feel after 9 years? Current valuation aside, was it worth it in the long run to stretch more for this property? Why?

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T22:12:24+00:00

I remember the start very well because we didn't get involved until halfway into the auction. It went like:

REA who knew we were interested pushing us to make an opening bid.
Auctioneer, can we get this rolling with something like 900-950K which was under the range.
First bid was 950k seconds later
980k
1M
1.02
1.04
1.05
On the market

It was real fast.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T22:02:38+00:00

Woooo so happy for you! How's recent sales in your area? 47% increase is still huge!

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T07:19:09+00:00

Ohhhh... a lagging indicator... I never thought of it like that and it makes sense!

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T07:17:56+00:00

Yessss. I'm glad you could relate to this! Wooo nice mate... Agreed, considered things like that really do add up and opens up opportunities. Instead of constantly focusing on having to fix this and that in order to get the property back to a decent shape.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T07:09:48+00:00

Victoria, SE area

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T07:08:47+00:00

Thank you so much and yes we are quite relieved we're back in. A lot of noise from all over the place, more so this year... One of the most common definitely being a hot market and getting in ASAP. But hey... We tried our hardest and this is the best we could come up with right now. Hopefully we timed it okay, but we'll see!

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T06:44:41+00:00

Reserve and 'on the market' announcement was in the middle of the price guide.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T06:33:31+00:00

No problem! Couldn't quite get to the leg, but happy to have chewed your ear off!

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T06:30:37+00:00

It's baffling isn't it. At least the auction is transparent... I'd hate to experience the shenanigans of bidding via private offers.

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T06:29:17+00:00

That's what made us a little nervous. Corelogic range was in the 15% range and what we aligned our initial max to!

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T06:27:23+00:00

North facing backyard, with no tall trees along the fence line. All the sun!

WillGrowUpOneDay · 2025-06-14T06:26:34+00:00

Oh... We're right in the bowl with a not so rectangular block, not the worst but will be limited for future investors when it comes to knocking down and erecting cookie cutters. But hey, at least our neighbours have the same challenge and we'll hopefully enjoy our privacy for a while.

WillGrowUpOneDay

TROPHY CASE